SAVAGE TALES
Vol. 1 No. 1
May 1971
Magazine Management Co. Inc. (Marvel Comics)
Editor: Stan Lee
Associate Editor: Roy Thomas
Cover: John Buscema
Pages: 68
Cover price: 50 cents
CONTENTS
"The Frost Giant's Daughter" (reprinted from Conan the Barbarian #16 (July 1972; pages 2-12 revised)
Script: Robert E. Howard (original short story); Roy Thomas (adaptation)
Pencils: Barry Smith
Inks: Barry Smith
Letters: Artie Simek
"The Fury of the Femizons"
Script: Stan Lee
Pencils: John Romita
Inks: John Romita
Letters: Sam Rosen
"Man-Thing"
Script: Roy Thomas (plot); Gerry Conway (dialogue)
Pencils: Gray Morrow
Inks: Gray Morrow
Letters: Gray Morrow
"Black Brother!"
Script: Sergius O'Shaughnessy (Denny O'Neil)
Pencils: Gene Colan; Bill Everett
Inks: Tom Palmer; Bill Everett
Letters: Artie Simek; Morrie Kuramoto
"The Night of the Looter!"
Script: Stan Lee
Pencils: John Buscema
Inks: John Buscema
Letters: Sam Rosen
Stan Lee did a good job of luring readers to his new full-size comic magazine by using the ultra-popular Conan as the headliner. Ostensibly a sword and sorcery-themed mag, it also features the first appearance of the muck monster, Man-Thing, as well as a black main character who fights crime in the inner-city scripted by Denny O'Neil. In ALTER EGO #81 , Roy Thomas explained:
"...there were several things that led to Savage Tales being cancelled after that first issue. Martin Goodman had never really wanted to do a non-Code comic, probably because he didn't want any trouble with the over it. Nor did he really want to get into magazine-format comics; and Stan really did. So Goodman looked for an excuse to cancel it."
Lee was after a share of Warren's comic magazines, but publisher Martin Goodman didn't want to hassle with the potential problem of its mature content (remember, it was the 70's). ST disappeared off the stands after this first issue, but a re-launch years later reinvigorated interest and it became a long-running 'zine with Conan at the helm.
Savage Tales #1 is one of the most important books Marvel ever produced. It was a harbinger of what was to come in the 70's. I was too young to get a copy when it first came out, too mature for my house for sure. But I got an issue somewhere the line and it's a stunner.
ReplyDeletePales in comparison today, but back then it was definitely aimed at a mature readership. I remember the nudity in the Conan story being very controversial at the time. And that cover blurb: "Beware the Sisterhood: Tomorrow's Violent Voluptuaries"!
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