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Mark Seifert

@markseifert.bleedingcool.com

Vintage paper addict, co-founder of Avatar Press, managing editor of Bleeding Cool. Interest in American periodical publishing history including dime novels, pulps, newspapers, magazines, golden age & silver age comics. I mostly post about old paper here.

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Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 6mo ago

Moses S. Cole's "novel form of aerial vessel" on the cover of Scientific American from Jan 1, 1887. Some believe this design was informative on newspaper illustrations during the UFO craze of 1896/97 in places like Aurora, TX, and Northern CA, among other locations.

A full-page illustration from Scientific American dated January 1, 1887, showing Moses S. Cole’s experimental aerial vessel. The craft resembles a large, oval balloon or rigid airship with a textured, net-like envelope. Four mechanical propellers extend from arms on either side, and a small gondola hangs beneath the center, equipped with windows and a dangling anchor. Below, a rural landscape is visible with farm buildings, trees, and groups of men and women gathered to watch the airship hovering low above the ground.
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 7mo ago

The Daily Graphic, Aug 16, 1879 Jefferson Davis creeps up to the U.S. Senate's doorstep, a legion of specters in his wake. Cartoon by Charles Weldon. A reaction to rising speculation that Davis would run for U.S. Senate from Mississippi, despite being legally barred from holding office

Political cartoon from The Daily Graphic (New York, August 16, 1879) showing Jefferson Davis as a hunched, cloaked figure sneaking toward a doorway labeled “U.S. Senate.” Davis clutches a document titled “Articles of Secession,” and appears furtive and diminished. Behind him, ghostly skeletal figures carry tattered flags labeled “States’ Rights,” “Treason,” and “Lost Cause,” suggesting the legacy haunting his political ambitions.
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 7mo ago

Yankee Notions Vol 4 #3, March 1855 “Triumph of the ‘Satanic Press.’” New York Herald publisher James Gordon Bennett Sr as the Prince of Darkness. Yankee Notions publisher and abolitionist Thomas Strong would likely have despised Bennett for his paper's pro-slavery stance during this era.

Political cartoon from Yankee Notions (Vol. IV, No. 3, March 1855), showing New York Herald publisher James Gordon Bennett Sr. as a large, shadowy central figure looming behind other newspaper men at a table. Bennett appears with outstretched arms, his dark silhouette dominating the scene like a menacing presence. A caption beneath the scene reads “Triumph of the ‘Satanic Press.’”
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 7mo ago

In the 1920s-30s, Ohio printer & dime novel fan Frank T. Fries produced small-format unauthorized reprints of material from the 1890s-1900s. He also published #fanfiction, such as the Frank Reade / Nick Carter crossover at lower right here - popular characters from 2 different publishers.

Overhead photograph of several small-format booklets. At the top are multiple pink issues of Blood and Thunder Story Paper, with visible mastheads, prices marked “5¢ Copy,” and publication dates from the early 1930s. Below them are two cream-colored issues of Midget Monthly Magazine, showing title blocks, story headings, advertising rates, and publication details from 1930–1931.
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 7mo ago

Illustrated Police News #692, Jan 31, 1880 "A genuine girl's ghost at New Carlisle, Ind" Several people saw the specter of a woman with a star on her chest on a country road in the evenings. Once, she approached a buggy and got in. The man ran away when his arm passed through her. #phantomsfriday

Engraved illustration from The Illustrated Police News No. 692, dated January 31, 1880. The scene shows a startled man recoiling from a translucent female apparition seated in a horse-drawn buggy at night. The caption below reads: “A Genuine Girl’s Ghost at New Carlisle, Ind.—What George Brown Says Got into the Buggy with Him and ‘Wouldn’t Stand Hugging.’”
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 7mo ago

"The ghastly light still radiated from the spectre's breast, and I saw it fix its melancholy eyes on mine with an expression of mingled rage and triumph" "The Dual Life" is the story of an Englishman who seeks forbidden knowledge, and finds it. Chimney Corner #552, Dec 25, 1875 #phantomsfriday

Front cover of Frank Leslie’s Chimney Corner, dated December 25, 1875. The cover illustration shows a supernatural confrontation inside a vast stone temple. At left, a tall, spectral figure in flowing robes stands amid swirling vapor, emitting a ghostly light. At right, a frightened man recoils backward against a column, clutching his coat as he stares in terror at the apparition.
Matt Anderson@mattbegins.bsky.social · 7mo ago

You know you want to listen to Ian Springer and Jeff Kaplan (screenwriters of FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS) talk about 1993’s FANTASTIC FOUR #375. They co-wrote the movie and I made them talk about the comic. It’s fantastic! sites.libsyn.com/601360/site/...

Does This Come In Chromium?: Fantastic Four #375 with Fantastic Four: First Steps screenwriters Ian Springer and Jeff Kaplan

On this episode Matt and special guest co-hosts Ian Springer and Jeff Kaplan try to figure out why this is not your parents' comics magazine by discussing 1993's FANTASTIC FOUR #375...but really they ...

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Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 7mo ago

One of the most infamous single comic books in the hobby due to its theft from Nicolas Cage's home in 2000, I've been covering this copy's saga since its recovery by LAPD in 2011. The seller here was not revealed, but we know it had been in Ayman Hariri's collection. bleedingcool.com/comics/first...

First Superman in Action Comics #1 CGC 9.0 Goes For Record $15 Million

The census-topping Action Comics #1 CGC 9.0, once owned by Nicolas Cage, has just sold for an all-time record $15 Million, Metropolis/ComicConnect has announced.

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Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 7mo ago

Boys of New York #386, Jan 6, 1883. A spooky cover that I like. Gaston Garne is one of Francis W. Doughty's pseudonyms. In this chapter of this story, Kit Carson and his associate Burke Miller have found the skeletal remains of Burke's family, and vow to take revenge on their killers.

Front page of The Boys of New York, Vol. VIII, #386, dated January 6, 1888, with the top banner “Out To-Day! The Holiday Number of The Boys of New York.” Beneath the ornate masthead, a large circular illustration depicts a tense frontier scene in a winter forest. Several human skeletons stand upright, tied to bare trees. At right, two frontier scouts in buckskin clothing come upon the scene in surprise. The scene is titled, “Kit Carson’s Little Scout, by Gaston Garne." Gaston Garne is one of the prolific Francis W. Doughty's pseudonyms.
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 8mo ago

Beadle’s Half‑Dime Library, #19, circa Oct 1877 The Phantom Spy; or, The Pilot of the Prairie "Far out upon the prairie and plainly visible in the moonlight, was what appeared to be a specter horse and rider... she seemed to urge her steed on by a mere exertion of her will." #PhantomsFriday

Cover page of Beadle’s Half‑Dime Library, Vol. I, No. 19, published in 1877 by Beadle and Adams. The ornate masthead fills the top of the page above columns of dense text introducing the story “The Phantom Spy; or, The Pilot of the Prairie,” attributed to Buffalo Bill. A large engraved illustration occupies the lower half, showing a dramatic nighttime prairie scene under a full moon. At right, a man stands holding the reins of a rearing horse, turning to look toward a ghostly, semi-transparent rider galloping away on a pale horse. A caption beneath the image reads, “Then heed my warning. Farewell!”
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 2y ago

Harper's Weekly, January 6, 1912 A new year's cover by Power O'Malley, who was born Michael Augustine Power and took the name O'Malley after his stepfather. O'Malley contributed covers to Life, Harper's, and Puck during this period.

On the cover of Harper's Weekly of January 6, 1912: A new year's baby driving a 1912 roadster runs 1911 father time off the road.
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 8mo ago

Fox’s Illustrated Weekly Doings #67, July 19, 1884. “Woman’s Dangerous Exhilarant” "How the use of Calisaya Bark as a tonic is demoralizing the female portion of the community and making drunkards of fashionable women -- the use and abuse of a pernicious drug that enriches the drug stores."

Full-page comic-style illustrated back cover from Fox’s Illustrated Weekly Doings No. 67, dated July 19, 1884. The page presents depictions of women experiencing various stages of intoxication and distress. The central image shows two fashionably dressed women stumbling arm-in-arm while onlookers laugh or stare. Surrounding panels include a woman collapsed on the floor being assisted by a man, a woman slumped asleep on a sofa, a man sneaking away from a storefront labeled “Drugs,” and women drinking at a counter while one drops to the floor. The illustration is captioned “Woman’s Dangerous Exhilarant,” with a subtitle warning that the use of calisaya bark as a tonic is demoralizing women and enriching drug stores.
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 8mo ago

One of my most prized acquisitions of recent years has been the glass plate negatives of the early 1920s Luis Senarens photos previously only available in grainy newsprint versions. Senarens (1863-1939) is without doubt one of the most important science fiction authors in American history.

Black-and-white photograph of Luis Senarens seated at a wooden desk in his office in the early 1920s. Senarens, dressed in a striped shirt and tie, is shown in profile as he writes with a pen on loose papers spread across the desk. Shelves and cubbies around him are crowded with stacks of manuscripts, letters, and periodicals.
SF Encyclopedia@sfencyclopedia.bsky.social · 8mo ago

Luis Philip Senarens sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/senare... died on this day: he wrote "most" of the Frank Reade dime novels, whilst creating and writing all the Jack Wright ones: here's some examples of both (couldn't identify the artists):

Cover to "Jack Wright and his electric balloon ship, or, 30,000 leagues above the Earth" by Luis Senarens (1894)
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 8mo ago

Beadle's Half Dime Library #1, circa Jan/Feb 1877. Deadwood Dick by Edward L. Wheeler First appearance Calamity Jane in fiction, first app. Deadwood Dick, beginning of important 1168-issue series. Calamity Jane arrived in Deadwood with Buffalo Bill in July 1876, this hit newsstands 7 months later.

Front page from Beadle’s Half-Dime Library, Vol. I, No. 1, published by Beadle and Adams. The ornate masthead spans the top with elaborate lettering. The story title reads “Deadwood Dick, Prince of the Road; or, The Black Rider of the Black Hills.” Among the text columns, a large black-and-white wood-engraved illustration shows a masked character reining in his horse beside a tree bearing a reward poster reading “$500 REWARD—DEADWOOD DICK.”
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 2y ago

In 2017, I wrote about a particular aspect of the Die Hard Christmas legend, and asked Die Hard screenwriter Steven E. de Souza about it: the similarity between the name of Silent Night composer Franz Gruber and Die Hard's Hans Gruber.

The Silent Night Dies Hard: Hans Gruber and Franz Gruber

Die Hard fans have long pondered the similarity between the name of Silent Night composer Franz Gruber and the name of Die Hard antagonist Hans Gruber.

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Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 8mo ago

Yankee Notions, Vol 5 #12, Dec 1856. Published by Thomas W. Strong. An attempt at bagging a Christmas turkey goes awry. Yankee Notions is a very underrated early comic paper of the era. Publisher Thomas W. Strong had apprenticed under Robert H. Elton of Elton's Comic All-My-Nack fame.

Front page of Yankee Notions, Volume 5, No. 12, dated December 1856, published by Thomas W. Strong. The page is topped by an elaborate illustrated masthead reading “Yankee Notions,” surrounded by whimsical caricatures, patriotic symbols, and comic figures in motion. The central engraving depicts a slapstick hunting accident titled “A Dead Shot,” showing a man tumbling off a collapsing wooden shooting platform while firing at a turkey.
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 8mo ago

Still probably my favorite Christmas item in my collection. The size of the Brother Jonathan Mammoths (20 3/4" x 28 1/2") is a show-stopper in person, and as some may know, publisher Benjamin Day had published what is considered the first comic book in America with Brother Jonathan Extra #9.

Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 2y ago

Brother Jonathan 1853 Christmas and New Years "Mammoth Double Sheet Pictorial", probably my favorite Christmas item in my collection. Christmas scenes depicted in a comic style format (Four Color #126 Golden Age comic added in there for size comparison).

Brother Jonathan 1853 Christmas and New Years "Mammoth Double Sheet Pictorial" scenes of Christmas. Front page.
Matt Anderson@mattbegins.bsky.social · 8mo ago

Why choose to bring back the clone of Spider-Man in the 1990’s? The answer is more complicated than you might expect. Listen to part one of the “Clone Caucus” on RANDOM ACTS OF COMICS now!

Matt Anderson@mattbegins.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Since no one can tell me no, I decided to launch DOES THIS COME IN CHROMIUM? a day early! Join me and FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS screenwriter Ian Springer as we discuss 1993’s BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #50. Welcome to the CHROMIUM AGE of podcasts! directory.libsyn.com/episode/inde...

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #50 with Ian Springer

On this episode Matt and special guest co-host Ian Springer (screenwriter of FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS) try their best to not get distracted by the gold embossing on the cover and discuss 1993's BAT...

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Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 9mo ago

Illustrated Police News (Boston) #432, Feb 4, 1875. A night watchman of NYC's Grand Opera House sees the ghost of robber baron James Fisk, Jr. Fisk owned the opera house with partner James Gould, & had been laid out in state there after his 1872 murder by his mistress's other lover #phantomsfriday

Engraving from The Illustrated Police News (Boston), issue No. 432, February 4, 1875. The scene depicts the interior of the Grand Opera House of NYC. A frightened night watchman recoils in terror from a figure appearing in a private box. The watchman, holding a lantern that swings from his hand as he stumbles backward, stares wide-eyed at the apparition. Inside the ornate, curtained private theater box stands the spectral image of James Fisk Jr., dressed in a military-style coat with epaulets (he had been named a colonel of the 9th NY National Guard Infantry Regiment), arm extended as though pointing or accusing.
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 9mo ago

The Day's Doings #331, September 26, 1874 "Adventure and Vision of a Pike's Peak Tourist" A tourist at Pike's Peak was injured by a fall, and overnight was visited by "beautiful and passing strange" phantoms of "some very nice ladies" who were "exceedingly delicate and diaphanous". #phantomsfriday

Full-page engraving from The Days’ Doings (No. 331, Sept. 26, 1874) illustrating “Adventure and Vision of a Pike’s Peak Tourist.” The central scene shows a man lying unconscious on a rocky ledge beneath a steep mountain range, surrounded by swirling ghostly female figures who appear to drift toward him. Above them, owls fly through the night sky, and a gargoyle-like creature crouches on a cliff overlooking the scene. At upper left is a smaller inset titled “The Fall,” depicting the man losing his footing and plummeting from a cliffside path. Below it, a second inset titled “The Rescue” shows two men lowering a rope to pull the fallen traveler up from a deep crevice. At lower right, a final inset titled “The Return Home” shows the recovered man arriving at a doorway, greeted in relief by a woman.
Mark Seifert@markseifert.bleedingcool.com · 9mo ago

Aldine Boys’ First-Rate Pocket Library No. 84, circa 1893. published in London by Aldine Deadwood Dick, Jr., in Texas; or, The Ghouls of Galveston by Edward L. Wheeler, first published in Beadles Half-Dime Library #539, 1887. In which Deadwood Dick takes on a band of grave robbers.

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