Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

5. Which patriotic hero and sidekick co-creation were satirical in nature?
 

Fighting American and Speedboy.

Hope Andy doesn't mind me stealing his thunder or overlapping one of his quizzes, but I figured it was time to give him an opportunity to be a player and not the quizmaster. Since my specialties include British comics, here are fifteen questions on that topic.

1. While the UK has had many comic publishers, two dominated the field through the twentieth century (not unlike in the USA). Name those two (one of the two has been known by more than one name, in the same way Marvel can also be known as Timely or Atlas, or more accurately in the same way DC began as two separate but connected companies, National Periodicals and All-American Publications - as such, I'll accept either of the names that company went by).
2. What were the Power Pack?
3. There's a British character who shares a name and surface level similar concept to an American character, and both debuted almost simultaneously, so neither one was a rip-off of the other. Name that character.
4. Name the longest running British comic. NB - it doesn't have to be still running.
5. Name the British comic with the most issues. NB - it may or may not be the same as answer 4, and likewise does not have to be still in publication.
6. What were the "Big Five"? Bonus points for naming any of them.
7. What did the words "Great News for All Readers Inside" on the cover of a comic usually herald?
8. 2000 A.D. is one of the best known British titles to Americans. But there have been times when that title was longer (and I don't mean with sub-titles like "Featuring Judge Dredd") - what were those longer titles, and why did they come about?
9. What was the first ongoing UK title to spin-off from 2000 A.D.? Not an overseas reprint, not an annual or special based round a single character, but a brand new ongoing title featuring both brand new characters and characters who originated in 2000A.D.
10. Prior to Marvel UK being founded in 1972, no less than four companies had the rights at different times (at least two overlapping each other) to reprint Timely/Atlas/Marvel stories. Name any of them (bonus for all four). Note that this is different from the rights to reprint stories for one-off annuals, as that actually adds at least three more companies (though if anyone can name those companies, go for it!)
11. Marvel UK acquired the rights to Doctor Who in 1979 and launched Doctor Who Weekly (later Monthly, later Magazine). But which company held the rights prior to that, and in which titles did the Doctor appear?
12. Which long-running UK title published new strips based around both UK and US television shows including (at different times) Knight Rider, Kung-Fu and Battlestar Galactica?
13. What were "story papers" (and how did they differ from regular comics)?
14. What 1970s comic became so infamous that the newspapers denounced it as "the Sevenpenny Nightmare", it was debated in parliament, and an issue was ultimately pulped by the publishers for fear of a retailer backlash?
15. Conversely, one of Britain's best known titles was launched in the 1950s as a response to its creator wanting to provide more wholesome fare than the violent American comics then appearing in the UK (the same titles that in the US led to a crackdown and the Comics Code). What was that title? Bonus points for any of the three companion titles that were launched after the runaway success of same.

Since I couldn't restrain myself and thus many of the questions have multiple parts/answers, feel free to respond even if you can only provide partial answers to those.

zuckyd1 wrote:

Loki wrote:

1. While the UK has had many comic publishers, two dominated the field through the twentieth century (not unlike in the USA). Name those two (one of the two has been known by more than one name, in the same way Marvel can also be known as Timely or Atlas, or more accurately in the same way DC began as two separate but connected companies, National Periodicals and All-American Publications - as such, I'll accept either of the names that company went by).
11. Marvel UK acquired the rights to Doctor Who in 1979 and launched Doctor Who Weekly (later Monthly, later Magazine). But which company held the rights prior to that, and in which titles did the Doctor appear?
12. Which long-running UK title published new strips based around both UK and US television shows including (at different times) Knight Rider, Kung-Fu and Battlestar Galactica?

1. IPC and DC Thomson?
11. TV 21?
12. TV 21?

1 is correct. IPC (Independent Publishing Corporation) and DC Thomson (named for founder Douglas Couper Thomson). IPC's precursor was Amalgamated Press, which got renamed as Fleetway (after the name of the building their headquarters was in, Fleetway House) after being bought by a new owner in 1959. I'd have accepted Amalgamated Press or Fleetway too, especially as IPC and Fleetway were effectively treated as synonyms by most people, even though there was a difference between them. Under those early names the company was already one of the two dominant comic publishers in Britain, but then in 1961 Fleetway's owners also bought smaller publisher Odhams Press (and Odhams had itself bought out and absorbed the smaller Hulton Press and George Newnes Publishing two years prior); in 1963 Fleetway and Odhams were merged to form IPC, though they continued publishing as individual subsidiaries until the end of the decade - in other words, titles still carried the Fleetway or Odhams logos. They got fully absorbed in 1968, but in 1987 IPC revived the Fleetway name; IPC, which also published newspapers and magazine, shifted all their remaining comics to the Fleetway "imprint," hence why IPC and Fleetway became synonymous to comic readers.

11. Not TV21, which was published (originally) by City Magazines. It was the home of the Daleks strip, but the Doctor's arch-foes actually made it into their own strip before the Doctor managed to. Because the rights to the Daleks were separate from the Doctor Who rights, the Daleks and Doctor Who were licensed to two separate companies and thus the Doctor didn't encounter the Daleks in comics for many years.

12. TV21 isn't a bad guess, since it did publish strips based on US and UK TV shows, including Land of the Giants, My Favorite Martian and Thunderbirds. But, afaik, most of the strips for US series were reprints of American comics adapting said series; one exception was Star Trek, which did get a UK-originated strip (written and drawn before the series aired in the UK by writers and artists who had very limited info on the series they were adapting). Unfortunately, TV21 only lasted six years (which you might consider a long run, but that's only middling by UK standards), and ended in 1971, long before Knight Rider or Battlestar Galactica were conceived. There were a number of titles in the UK that featured multiple strips based round TV shows, which is why I specified a few of the series covered. Most of them however used reprints of US comics to cover the US series. The one I am thinking of was one of the heavy hitters, featuring only original material and lasting twenty years or so (which, btw, still comes nowhere close to the longest running title to license strips based on TV series, a title which lasted 33 years).

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

No problem sharing. This thread is for everyone; ditto the other Trivia threads. Most I don't know but I think I can take a guess at a couple:

3. There's a British character who shares a name and surface level similar concept to an American character, and both debuted almost simultaneously, so neither one was a rip-off of the other. Name that character.
The one that jumps out at me is Dennis the Menace.

3 is correct. The British and American versions debuted very close together, probably the same day. US Dennis first appeared on March 12th 1951 while UK Dennis debuted in Beano#452, which had a cover date of March 17th 1951 - but like US comics, the cover dates on UK comics are later than the actual on-sale dates, so it's generally believed that Beano#452 came out on the 12th also. Regardless, the two debuted so closely together that there is no chance whatsoever that one swiped the concept from the other. While US Dennis is a well-meaning kid who causes havoc unintentionally, the UK one delights in being a terror, though he's gradually toned down his nastier traits over the years. In fact, the UK comics eventually revealed that we've actually gone through multiple generations of Dennis through the years - the appearance of Dennis' father has changed a few times, and the most recent father eventually had a flashback revealing he was the 1980s era Dennis. Presumably this means that Dennis' pet dog and younger sister are also multi-generational doppelgangers.

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

4. Name the longest running British comic. NB - it doesn't have to be still running.
5. Name the British comic with the most issues. NB - it may or may not be the same as answer 4, and likewise does not have to be still in publication.
For both of these I'll guess Beano and hope that I'm right on at least one of these.

4 is the Beano, clocking in at just over 82 years and still going. However, even at 4051 issues, it isn't the answer to 5. Another comic holds the record for most issues. 

17 is a nice try but sorry, can't give you that one. The r4est are correct. Aren't the Royalists a bit separate? They've both had 21st century Handbook entries. They're the answer I was looking for. For 18 the specific title was The Double Life of Private Strong.

Also giving a day (and a few hours) notice on my questions.

Loki wrote:

2. What were the Power Pack?
5. Name the British comic with the most issues. NB - Not the Beano, which was the answer to 4. It does not have to be still in publication.
6. What were the "Big Five"? Bonus points for naming any of them.
7. What did the words "Great News for All Readers Inside" on the cover of a comic usually herald?
8. 2000 A.D. is one of the best known British titles to Americans. But there have been times when that title was longer (and I don't mean with sub-titles like "Featuring Judge Dredd") - what were those longer titles, and why did they come about?
9. What was the first ongoing UK title to spin-off from 2000 A.D.? Not an overseas reprint, not an annual or special based round a single character, but a brand new ongoing title featuring both brand new characters and characters who originated in 2000A.D.
10. Prior to Marvel UK being founded in 1972, no less than four companies had the rights at different times (at least two overlapping each other) to reprint Timely/Atlas/Marvel stories. Name any of them (bonus for all four). Note that this is different from the rights to reprint stories for one-off annuals, as that actually adds at least three more companies (though if anyone can name those companies, go for it!)
11. Marvel UK acquired the rights to Doctor Who in 1979 and launched Doctor Who Weekly (later Monthly, later Magazine). But which company held the rights prior to that, and in which titles did the Doctor appear?
12. Which long-running UK title published new strips based around both UK and US television shows including (at different times) Knight Rider, Kung-Fu and Battlestar Galactica?
13. What were "story papers" (and how did they differ from regular comics)?
14. What 1970s comic became so infamous that the newspapers denounced it as "the Sevenpenny Nightmare", it was debated in parliament, and an issue was ultimately pulped by the publishers for fear of a retailer backlash?
15. Conversely, one of Britain's best known titles was launched in the 1950s as a response to its creator wanting to provide more wholesome fare than the violent American comics then appearing in the UK (the same titles that in the US led to a crackdown and the Comics Code). What was that title? Bonus points for any of the three companion titles that were launched after the runaway success of same.

Since I couldn't restrain myself and thus many of the questions have multiple parts/answers, feel free to respond even if you can only provide partial answers to those.

2. What were the Power Pack?
The Power Pack were five of Odhams titles. The first was Wham!, which proved so popular that Odhams tried to recreate its success with Smash! soon after, then Pow! All three had focused on a mix of anarchic humour strips alongside action strips, and to focus readers on them they became Odhams' "Power Line" of comics, or more commonly, the Power Pack. Increasingly to fill the adventure strip section, Odhams began reprinting US Marvel strips, which came to dominate the final two titles added, Fantastic (only had one non-Marvel strip) and Terrific (no non-Marvel strips at launch). 

5. Name the British comic with the most issues. NB - Not the Beano, which was the answer to 4. It does not have to be still in publication.
Commando. Launched in 1961, it's still going, with 5370 issues and counting.

6. What were the "Big Five"? Bonus points for naming any of them.
A quintet of story papers launched by DC Thomson during the 1920s and 1930s; Adventure, The Rover, The Wizard, The Skipper and The Hotspur.

7. What did the words "Great News for All Readers Inside" on the cover of a comic usually herald?
The comic was getting cancelled without any prior warning and this was the last issue. Seriously, this is how British comics used to announce it.

Okay, the "Great News" bit was couched as
"we're merging with another title so you can half all your favourite strips from this comic AND all the great strips from that one in a single title,"
but readers very quickly learned it really meant
"we're merging with another title. Most of the strips from this title are now dead and gone. A couple of the most popular ones will transfer over to the merged title to trick you into reading that one instead, and we'll put the name of the dead title under the name of the one we're merging with for a few weeks to maintain the illusion (c.f. Pow! and Wham!), but odds are this subtitle will be dropped fairly quickly and so will those few surviving strips as we clear the decks in time for the next cancellation/merger." 
This happened so often across every major UK company that people working for the companies had a name for the process: "Hatch, Match and Dispatch" - literally come up with a new title (hatch), pick a title that it could suitably merge with (match), merge it (dispatch).

8. 2000 A.D. is one of the best known British titles to Americans. But there have been times when that title was longer (and I don't mean with sub-titles like "Featuring Judge Dredd") - what were those longer titles, and why did they come about?
Tied to the above and the titles that were absorbed into 2000AD:
2000AD and Starlord
2000AD and Tornado

The first of these two mergers was the more successful - two of the Starlord strips are still running to the current day: Strontium Dog and Ro-Busters (although the latter has transformed into ABC Warriors). 

9. What was the first ongoing UK title to spin-off from 2000 A.D.? Not an overseas reprint, not an annual or special based round a single character, but a brand new ongoing title featuring both brand new characters and characters who originated in 2000A.D.
Not Judge Dredd Magazine/Megazine as some might think, but Diceman, which featured "choose your own adventure" style strips for 2000AD characters, attempting to cash in on the brief craze for such interactive stories. The titular Diceman was the only ongoing strip not based on a pre-existing 2000AD character.

10. Prior to Marvel UK being founded in 1972, no less than four companies had the rights at different times (at least two overlapping each other) to reprint Timely/Atlas/Marvel stories. Name any of them (bonus for all four). Note that this is different from the rights to reprint stories for one-off annuals, as that actually adds at least three more companies (though if anyone can name those companies, go for it!)
The aforementioned Odhams.
Alan Class, which published a slew of titles that randomly reprinted not just Marvel but also ACG, Charlton, Tower, etc. One issue of a given title might feature the Fantastic Four, and the next issue the Thunder Agents, then Thunderbolt, etc. 
L. Miller and Son, the company most famous for Marvelman, also held the rights for a time to publish Atlas comics in the 1950s, notably the Human Torch.
City Magazines, who in the late 1960s got the license for Spider-Man and Ringo Kid, and reprinted those strips in TV21.

11. Marvel UK acquired the rights to Doctor Who in 1979 and launched Doctor Who Weekly (later Monthly, later Magazine). But which company held the rights prior to that, and in which titles did the Doctor appear?
Polystyle, who published him in TV Comic and then later in Countdown (which changed its name partway through its run to TV Action).

12. Which long-running UK title published new strips based around both UK and US television shows including (at different times) Knight Rider, Kung-Fu and Battlestar Galactica?
Look-In. In the UK there were for many years only two TV listings magazines - The Radio Times, which covered the listings for the two BBC channels (and was published by the BBC), and the TV Times, which covered the listings for the one remaining channel, ITV (and was likewise published by ITV), though ITV itself was split up into different regions of the country, each of which had slightly varying schedules and some locally made shows produced by regional companies. In 1970 ITV launched Look-In, "the Junior TV Times," which still featured brief listings aimed at shows considered suitable for kids, but also featured pop culture articles and strips based on shows airing on ITV channels, both UK made and ones imported from the US. Look-In proved an enduring success, and ran for 20 years.

13. What were "story papers" (and how did they differ from regular comics)?
Story papers predated comics, and featured text stories interspersed with illustrations. They overlapped what we would consider regular comics, both in terms of story papers continuing to be published alongside titles using the newer format, and with story papers beginning to introduce a few comic strips and comics including a few illustrated text series.

14. What 1970s comic became so infamous that the newspapers denounced it as "the Sevenpenny Nightmare", it was debated in parliament, and an issue was ultimately pulped by the publishers for fear of a retailer backlash?
Action. It's often seen as the precursor to 2000AD.

15. Conversely, one of Britain's best known titles was launched in the 1950s as a response to its creator wanting to provide more wholesome fare than the violent American comics then appearing in the UK (the same titles that in the US led to a crackdown and the Comics Code). What was that title? Bonus points for any of the three companion titles that were launched after the runaway success of same.
The Eagle. Aimed at older boys, its success saw the addition of companion titles Girl (as the unimaginative title suggests, aimed at girls), Robin (aimed at pre-schoolers), and Swift (aimed at boys in the later years of primary school, around 8-12 years old).
 

For the creator questions, treat "Earth-2 Batman" and "Batman in general" as the same thing, because it was ultimately the version that proved to be the Earth-2 version that they initially created.

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

Calling a day's notice on last week's quiz. Surprisingly even the easier questions are still on the board.

9. Who are now considered Batman’s co-creators, though one didn’t receive a co-creator credit until recently?

Bob Kane and Bill Finger.

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

10. Who else has claimed credit for creating Batman’s foe the Joker?

Jerry Robinson.

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

18. Who was Batman and Catwoman’s daughter (code name and real name)?

Huntress, Helena Wayne
 

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

Calling a day's notice on last week's quiz. Surprisingly even the easier questions are still on the board.

2. What was the real name of the first Two-Face to fight Batman?
7. Decades after Crisis on Infinite Earths, Batman returned briefly as a dead JSAer in which series?
15. What was the original title of the long running series that for the first few years of its run had both Batman and Superman solo stories?
19. What was Batman’s civilian occupation at the time of his death?
 

2. Harvey Kent
7. JSA
15. World's Finest Comics
19. Police commissioner

Additional note with #8: I see now from re-reading the story in Batman: The Golden Age Archives that the name in the story title is not the in-story name. Since the former is what i was recalling I'll accept either answer.

For this quiz, the answer begins with a different letter of the alphabet, in order. Ignore “The” or any variations thereof. The next quiz will have fewer characters, but for this one i wanted to include the entire alphabet of course.
 
A. The original Green Lantern first appeared in this title
B. This (normally) superhero title published by Archie in the 1980s had no fixed characters
C. Comely Comics primarily published the adventures of this superhero
D. Marvel published an adaptation of which movie directed by David Lynch?
E. The Runner is a member of which team?
F. Speedy member of the New Gods
G. This team appeared in the Marvel mini-series Beauty and the Beast
H. Who was trapped in a world he never made?
I. House of Mystery feature starring Andrew Bennett
J. Black Hood and other superheroes appeared in this 1940s comic
K. Another name for Flash allies Red Trinity
L. Montana’s primarily paraphernalia
M. The Spectre first appeared in this title
N. A preview of this title came with DC Comics Presents #26
O. This was the first series to reprint Ghost Rider stories, starting with a retelling of his origin
P. This DC line of comics included, among others, Beautiful Stories for Ugly Children
Q. Charlton briefly published the adventures of this equine hero
R. This title co-starred Harvey’s two best known characters
S. This non-fiction book (in which the author heavily played with the facts to fit his narrative) heavily influenced censorship in American comics in the 1950s
T. The last issue of this series had on the cover “#80 in a Four-issue Limited Series”
U. This was an Atlas-era horror anthology series
V. A popular character whose original adventures were published by Warren in magazine format
W. This was a DC villain-focussed repint title in the 1970s
X. This series written by Chris Claremont continued the adventures of the X-Men from where he originally left the series (thus not 616/Prime)
Y. This Vertigo series was about a world where most of the male population had been wiped out
Z. Hero created by Scott McClloud
 

Last edited by Andy E. Nystrom (9/25/2020 5:49 am)

All those are correct. I'd accept lariat or lasso for Montana, and I, Vampire or I... Vampire for Andrew Bennett. I met Captain Canuck's creator Richard Comely at a convention a few years back. Nice guy.

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

B. This (normally) superhero title published by Archie in the 1980s had no fixed characters

Blue Ribbon

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

F. Speedy member of the New Gods

Fastbak.

 

K. Kapitalist Kouriers
R. Richie Rich
W. Wanted
X. X-Men Forever