Mandrake the Magician 1 (Miller)
| Mandrake the Magician #1 | |
 Cover artist: unknown | |
| Country/language: |  United Kingdom / English
|
|---|---|
| Format: | 18.5 × 24.5 cm |
| Pages: | 68 pgs, b/w |
| Publishing date: | 1958 |
| Editor: | unknown |
| Publishing company: | L. Miller & Son |
| Preceded by: | none |
| Followed by: | issue 2 |
The cover is printed by The Manton Press, Baylis Road, London S.E.1. The text is printed by the Monument Press, 270 North Circular Road, Dublin.
Contents
Mandrake stories
- "The Little Fog" by Lee Falk and Phil Davis.
- "The Trapping of 'Tub'" ("Tub's Gang") by Lee Falk and Phil Davis.
Indication of the release date
This issue was released without a publishing date on the cover or inside, but is likely released autumn 1958.
The L. Miller triangle
When the son (Arnold Miller) left his fathers company in 1959 Leonard Miller changed the company name from "L. Miller & Son" to "L. Miller & Co".
The 291 issues (from the week ending March 14, 1959) of "Marvelman" and "Young Marvelman" both have "L. Miller & Son" and the 294 issues (from the week ending April 4, 1959) have "L. Miller & Co".
One can also see the triangle changes from Son to Co at other series like "Kid Montana" (issues 55 vs 56), "Maverick Marshal" (issues 51 vs 52) and "Front-Line Combat" (2 vs 3), to name a few others.
Ad
The Jolly Books
On the back cover of the first Mandrake issue there is an ad for the "Jolly Books" series by US Avon Publications released for the UK market by L. Miller.
This ad promote the 4 new titles: "Moko the Circus Monkey", "Tuffy the Truck", "Up goes the House" and "Fun in the Firehouse" - strangly, all with the original US covers. When released in UK the original US copyright date written inside was keept.
The ad also have pictures of the new "Jolly Book - comics album" and "Happy Boys and Girls - comic album".
Both the "Jolly Book" and the "Happy Boys and Girls" is the first issue of a series of 3 issues, believed to be annuals from 1958, 1959 and 1960. At GCD the publisher for the first "Happy Boys and Girls" is listed as "L. Miller & Son" and the two other as "L. Miller & Co".
-
ad for the Jolly Books -
US vs UK print -
first issues
The same ad was used in other comic books from L. Miller, like: "Annie Oakley" #15, "Gary Colt" #9, "Kid Montana" #53, "Marvelman Family" #23 and "Young Marvelman" #275.
Stamps
The Mandrake issue has an ad from Broadway Approvals for a start package for collecting stamps.
Broadway Approvals has the adress: 486 Old Kent Rd. London. The address they had until January 1959, when they moved to 50 Denmark Hill. London.
The lot W3 has 120 different stamps and free gift like the book "Midget Encyclopedia of stamp collection" and the "Solar System souvenir sheet".
-
lot W3
as in #1 -
Solar System
souvenir sheet
An identical ad is also in "Young Marvelman" #275 and "Ringo Kid" #21.