News Archive January 2011

1977: Star Wars, KISS And Comic Books
by: Chris Chiarella
Posted: February 11, 2011

Let's get something straight right off the top: I'm not really a KISS fan. Nothing against 'em certainly, and we'll get to what I admire about them soon enough, but for me, my deepest fondness lay in the confluence, in the unusual ways in which KISS will forever be intertwined with my two real adolescent passions: Star Wars and comic books.

My Cousin Jerry was the biggest KISS fan I knew growing up and we're still close. (It's true what they say about Italians and their cousins.)

We're both grown men with families now, and nostalgia now seems to flavor at least a few minutes of every day. But I'm guessing I'm not alone among those born at the tail end of the Baby Boom for whom Star Wars, KISS and comic books are curiously linked within that wistful sea of reminiscence.

The world was different place for music and film in 1977. A major motion picture could stay in theaters for an entire year or more. A band might be popular, but instead of being overexposed and burning out early, they could ride that wave album after album, show after show.

And we were different, too. These days, we have the proper age and wisdom to reflect upon the ways KISS has forever changed entertainment, while they miraculously remain relevant even to new fans. I appreciate a timeless anthem like "Rock and Roll All Night," the infectious rockability of "Detroit Rock City," and I can't deny their success, Gene and Paul in particular.

But back then, anyone dialed into pop culture could not help but be somewhat aware of KISS, out there on the periphery, not yet mainstream but a growing force to be acknowledged. And I knew enough to admit that a guy who spat blood and breathed fire on stage was pretty damned cool.

For his part, Jerry has developed a healthy... less-making-fun-of Star Wars, if not full-on respect.

In 1977, when we were teenagers, I had yet to meet anyone who embraced both The Hottest Band in the World and that galaxy far, far away, although a life of fandom would eventually fix that. One thing Jerry and I could always agree on, however, was the wonder of comic books. Perhaps it helped being born and raised in the outskirts of New York City as we were, the cradle of KISS, as well as both DC and Marvel Comics.

When Things Were Rotten

For those who aren't aware, in 1977, comic books, well, kinda sucked. This was nearly a decade before Frank Miller and Alan Moore would shake everything up with The Dark Knight Returns and Watchmen (the comic is better than the movie, trust me), and we were all just too dumb to notice. As proof, consider that the ludicrous Howard the Duck #1 debuted just a year before--one storyline even had him running for president against Ford and Carter--and had grown into the most hotly coveted back issue in years. (Nine years later, Jedi Master George Lucas would also put his name on a legendarily atrocious Howard the Duck feature film.)

Then again, perhaps I shouldn't condemn The Duck too harshly: It was in a '77 issue of Howard that KISS made their comic book debut, a cameo which predated their headlining appearance in the first issue of Marvel Comics Super Special. That later magazine-sized one-shot was famously printed with real KISS blood, so you didn't have to be a KISS fan to think it was totally sweet. I was a proud owner of MCSS #1, even though creatively it was just a notch above TV's abysmal KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park. But now Gene and Paul had crossed over into the printed medium, no doubt a dream of theirs, where they have stayed ever since. Cross-media "events" like the graphical debut of KISS were among the ways musically timid folks like me like me first became aware of the group during its original ascendancy.

They might have also driven new customers into comic book stores, too. Keep in mind that, in 1977, a lot of comic shops were hanging on by a thread. To hear some tell it, Star Wars is credited for saving the entire industry, for the hordes of cash-bearing fans that this almost religiously life-changing movie drove through the doors like some pimply-faced stampede. Because if you were one of the faithful, this Mecca of geekdom was the best place to get your fix on.

"Merchandising" didn't really see Luke Skywalker & Co. coming, so most of the toys didn't arrive for another year. The limited offerings such as Topps trading cards and 8x10" glossies and that ubiquitous Hildebrandt poster and of course the horribly drawn, cheesily rewritten Marvel Comics adaptation soon shared shelf- and bin-space alongside the usual men in tights and scantily-clad women. By 1977, DC Comics had slipped into a mediocre funk in both art and writing, leaving their central Trinity--Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman--forgettable for the most part. Rival Marvel was doing it better, particularly in their team books. The all-star lineups of The Defenders and more so The Avengers weren't just imaginative and exciting: At a mere 30 cents for all that heroism, they were a great value! And the monumental evolution of The X-Men; from also-rans so un-compelling that they actually ceased original publication for five years, to an unstoppable force of comicdom; could be traced back to this era as well.

Secret Stash

Outside of the comic shops, there was always the neighborhood newsstand. The movie monthlies and one-shots--with their frequent cover stories on Star Wars--would typically be displayed in the vicinity of the music magazines, which were increasingly unafraid to put the unprecedented painted lads front and center. I happily parted with all my lawn-cutting money, and Jerry... well, no law-abiding citizen really knew the source of his funds, but he wouldn't hesitate to fork it over.

There was something about the devotees of both Star Wars and KISS, a true fanaticism that drove us to buy everything that reminded us of our obsession. No coincidence then that George Lucas and KISS were considered pioneers in product licensing. Around this time, Marvel had also been branching out into tie-in products like Mead school supplies emblazoned with classic covers. Mead would also give us a Star Wars line, although I suppose KISS was still a little too subversive for the classroom.

And then, for the brave, there were stores like World Imports, which indulged trends from music to movies to whatever was the latest comedy routine. It was one-stop shopping to cover our walls, dress ourselves in t-shirts, jewelry, maybe pick up a little incense... ah, who am I kidding? Places like this also dealt in rolling papers and water pipes and roach clips. Like I said, a different world.

No internet. No cell phones. A lot less responsibility and a lot more fun. Looking back now at that all-important year of 1977, movies, music and comics all sort of blur together into what might have been the best time of my life.

Except for maybe 1978....