BATMANIA
Moderators: Scott Sebring, Ben Bentley
BATMANIA
Anyone else a fan of Biljo White's BATMANIA fanzine from the 60s?
The November 1965 issue was already in the can when word came that the TV Show was coming out the following January, so all they were able to do was make a cover of Batman and Robin running out of a set.
One of the more remarkable things to me as a Golden Age Comic Collector was the report from the floor of a 1965 Comic Con-- where folks with deep pockets were able to score the earliest Batman issues-- with "BATMAN #1 and Detective Comics #27 (first Batman) both fetching upwards of $50 each!"
Todays value for each is well over $2.2 million for a Batman #1 and Tec #27 $3.5 million.
At the convention they screened episodes of the movie serials CAPTAIN AMERICA (1944) and ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN MARVEL (1941). There was a costume contest which seemed to be mostly Marvel focused and included fandom early leaders Phil Sueling (who would virtually create the comic shop system we still use today) and Roy Thomas who would eventually be Marvel Comics Editor in Chief.
Other tidbits from the issue-- some fans were not crazy about the "new look" Batman which was introduced in 1964-- fans still thought Bob Kane was handling the art-- this is before a controversy over the actual artists would start in just a few more months. There was talk about starting something called CAVE-CON which would be a Batman centric convention where they would show episodes of the two BATMAN Serials from Columbia.
If you'd like to read the issue yourself I have a copy here;
BATMANIA #7 Fanzine
The November 1965 issue was already in the can when word came that the TV Show was coming out the following January, so all they were able to do was make a cover of Batman and Robin running out of a set.
One of the more remarkable things to me as a Golden Age Comic Collector was the report from the floor of a 1965 Comic Con-- where folks with deep pockets were able to score the earliest Batman issues-- with "BATMAN #1 and Detective Comics #27 (first Batman) both fetching upwards of $50 each!"
Todays value for each is well over $2.2 million for a Batman #1 and Tec #27 $3.5 million.
At the convention they screened episodes of the movie serials CAPTAIN AMERICA (1944) and ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN MARVEL (1941). There was a costume contest which seemed to be mostly Marvel focused and included fandom early leaders Phil Sueling (who would virtually create the comic shop system we still use today) and Roy Thomas who would eventually be Marvel Comics Editor in Chief.
Other tidbits from the issue-- some fans were not crazy about the "new look" Batman which was introduced in 1964-- fans still thought Bob Kane was handling the art-- this is before a controversy over the actual artists would start in just a few more months. There was talk about starting something called CAVE-CON which would be a Batman centric convention where they would show episodes of the two BATMAN Serials from Columbia.
If you'd like to read the issue yourself I have a copy here;
BATMANIA #7 Fanzine
Artist-Writer
http://WWW.ANDYTFISH.COM
http://WWW.ANDYTFISH.COM
Re: BATMANIA
Awesome, Andy! Enjoyed reading the issue and seeing references to “Alter Ego” and the Seulings. Such a fun read. Thanks for sharing it.
Reminds me of my preteen years when I started collecting comics (although I read them as a kid, buying “returns” - with the top 1/3 of the cover cut off - in three-pack bags for a dime). I would get the Howard Rogofsky catalogs and dream about buying the comics I studied and underlined - but never had the money to buy.
Made me smile, Andy.
Reminds me of my preteen years when I started collecting comics (although I read them as a kid, buying “returns” - with the top 1/3 of the cover cut off - in three-pack bags for a dime). I would get the Howard Rogofsky catalogs and dream about buying the comics I studied and underlined - but never had the money to buy.
Made me smile, Andy.
- A. Pennyworth
- Posts: 0
- Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2012 6:24 am
Re: BATMANIA
I have a couple copies of Batmania issues around somewhere.
Here is the archive site with full scans of #1 and #2
Batmania #1 full scan https://archive.org/details/batmania-01 ... %20_01.jpg
(p.s. an original #1 is asking/selling for over $2,000)
Batmania #2 full scan https://archive.org/details/batmania-02-01
Batmania #3 full scan https://archive.org/details/batmania-03-01
and a site showing the Collection of 23 covers (some scans) https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=524921
and on ebay you can buy digital copies of 19 on a flash drive
Here is the archive site with full scans of #1 and #2
Batmania #1 full scan https://archive.org/details/batmania-01 ... %20_01.jpg
(p.s. an original #1 is asking/selling for over $2,000)
Batmania #2 full scan https://archive.org/details/batmania-02-01
Batmania #3 full scan https://archive.org/details/batmania-03-01
and a site showing the Collection of 23 covers (some scans) https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=524921
and on ebay you can buy digital copies of 19 on a flash drive
Re: BATMANIA
Thanks for sharing that, John! Some more fun reading ahead.
Re: BATMANIA
The "Comic Book Plus" site has 19 issues of Batmania (which may be the entire run) available to read or download: https://comicbookplus.com/?cid=746
They also have lots of other fanzines as well as Golden Age comics that have fallen into the public domain (nothing DC or Timely, but lots of other stuff from Quality, Fawcett, ACG, Charlton, Dell, etc etc.
They also have lots of other fanzines as well as Golden Age comics that have fallen into the public domain (nothing DC or Timely, but lots of other stuff from Quality, Fawcett, ACG, Charlton, Dell, etc etc.
"You were right again, Batman. We might have been killed."
"Or worse."
"Or worse."
- A. Pennyworth
- Posts: 0
- Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2012 6:24 am
Re: BATMANIA
Thanks....probably where those ebayers got their digital scans to share!SprangFan wrote: ↑Fri May 23, 2025 11:09 am The "Comic Book Plus" site has 19 issues of Batmania (which may be the entire run) available to read or download: https://comicbookplus.com/?cid=746
They also have lots of other fanzines as well as Golden Age comics that have fallen into the public domain (nothing DC or Timely, but lots of other stuff from Quality, Fawcett, ACG, Charlton, Dell, etc etc.
Re: BATMANIA
Artist-Writer
http://WWW.ANDYTFISH.COM
http://WWW.ANDYTFISH.COM
- Therin of Andor
- Posts: 5
- Joined: Sat Feb 14, 2015 5:46 pm
Re: BATMANIA
I did the major correct/expansion of the magazine’s presence on “Fanlore”.
http://fanlore.org/wiki/Batmania
"Holy nostalgia, Batman!"
Therin of Andor
(aka Ian McLean, from Sydney, Australia)
Therin of Andor
(aka Ian McLean, from Sydney, Australia)

