Shazam's Historama

Back in 2016, DC Collectibles solicited a new entry in their DC Comics Icons action figures line: SHAZAM! . The solicitation images showed a 6" figure based on the New 52 iteration of Captain Marvel (renamed SHAZAM!). The figure would have made for a nice companion piece for the previously released Black Adam (also a part of the DC Comics Icons line).   DC Comics announced at the end of March 2017 that the SHAZAM!, Deadshot, and Sinestro figures were canceled. The only remnants of DC Comics Icons: SHAZAM! action figure are its solicitation text and image. Solicitation By uttering the magical words "Shazam!" ordinary teenager Billy Batson is transformed into one of the World's Mightiest Mortal [sic]! Now you can harness this power with this 6" action figure from DC Collectibles! Complete with interchangeable hands and lightning accessories and dozens of points of articulation, no Justice League collection is complete without Shazam! Box dimensions: 1.5 x 0.75 x ...

Like many fast food restaurants, Jack in the Box , offers toys with their children's meals. Back in the summer of 2001, Jack in the Box's followed up its previous promotion of 7 DC Heroes and villains: Aquaman (in a swimming pose), Batman (in the Batmobile), Darkseid, Superman/Clark Kent (in a phone booth), Wonder Woman, Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner), and The Flash with nine new action (and inaction) figures: Wonder Woman, Superman, Batman, SHAZAM!, Hawkman, Steel, Batgirl, Robin, and Supergirl. The World's Mightiest Mortal was represented with a 4¼" action figure. It featured three points of articulation: 2 at the shoulders and 1 at the waist. It also featured a light-up lighting bolt at pressing a a yellow peg-button on the back of the figure hidden under the cape. Also included was a 4" x 2½" four page booklet that listed all the action figure/toys in the promotion, an offer to subscribe to DC Comics titles, and a one page brief summary of Captain Marvel (un...

After the success of their line of heroes in the DC Comics Super Hero Collection, Eaglemoss started a new line, DC Super Hero Collection - Best of Figurines , to re-issue the most popular characters from the first series in metallic resin rather than being cast in lead as they had done in the first series. While the figures were slightly larger in height (with a decreased weight), other aspects of each release had been scaled down and refitted. One of the problems with the first release, as well as many of Eaglemoss's other lines was the packaging. Eaglemoss shipped an 8.5x11 magazine along with a figure in a box both in a clear, sealed plastic bag. Because of this, many of the magazines were damaged in transit as well as the figurines. Eaglemoss rectified this by issuing these new figures in a smaller, four-color window box. Also, by switching to a figurine composition of metallic resign and eliminating lead, Eaglemoss improved the safety of the figurines. Solicitation DC SUPER HE...

One of the more under the radar Captain Marvel Family releases occurred under the Eaglemoss banner and unless you live in the United Kingdom, or your local comic shop happened to order them, or you regularly peruse the Diamond Previews catalog, or you stumbled across them on eBay, you may not be aware of them. The Eaglemoss Collection has published figurines of Captain Marvel (as SHAZAM!), Black Adam, and Mary Marvel (as Shazam! Mary) under three different lines starting in 2008 with the latest release in 2017. The three lines are: DC Comics Super Hero Collection, DC Chess Collection, DC Super Hero Collection - Best of Figurines. DC Comics Super Hero Collection From 2008 to 2012, Eaglemoss released 155 DC Comics Super Hero and Villain figurines under the banner of the  DC Comics Super Hero Collection (including special editions and the Blackest Night subset), three of which were Marvel Family members. Each figurine was packaged in an open face, three-sided, two-color heavy cardboa...

With the early success of the New 52 rebooting of the DC Universe in 2011, writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank reimagined Captain Marvel and renamed him "Shazam" in the pages of the relaunched Justice League title. Following the conclusion of the story,  an action figure release of the new World's Mightiest Mortal was soon added to the Justice League New 52 action figure collection, as DC Collectibles followed it up with the release of SHAZAM!  You can find the story that the SHAZAM! action figure is based on in: Originally published in Justice League (Series 2011) #7-11 (May-Sept 2012), 0 (Nov 2012), 14-16 (Jan-Mar 2013), 18-21 (May-Aug 2013) Reprinted in SHAZAM!: Origins - ISBN 10: 1401287891 - ISBN 13: 978-1401287894 Reprinted in SHAZAM!: The Deluxe Edition - ISBN 13: 9781401246990  Solicitation DC COMICS—THE NEW 52 JUSTICE LEAGUE: SHAZAM! ACTION FIGURE From DC COMICS—THE NEW 52 and the pages of JUSTICE LEAGUE comes an action figure of Earth's ...

  I really like using my imagination even when I'm supposed to suspend my disbelief. After my blog post about the character of Mentor, from the old SHAZAM! TV show, possibly being the wizard Shazam there was some push back from one of the stars of the original TV show! His red-suited portrayal of The Big Red Cheese is one for the ages. I mean how could you not love that friendly grin?!?  Even with the heavy hand of Pennsylvania and Alabama's favorite son on the scale, I just can't believe that the Mentor character is simply an average guy. I mean, seriously, how do you interview for that job? I'm thinking that it would probably go something like this...  Interviewer I see here that your name is Mentor? Is that a first name or last name? Mentor It's kind of like "Socrates", or "Aristotle", or "Cher". Just call me Mentor or "Mister" Mentor. Interviewer Okay, then. Well, I have to sa...

Fall 1974 was an exciting time for fans of the original Captain Marvel as a live action Saturday morning TV show premiered on September 7. The show starred 31-year-old, relative newcomer Jackson Bostwick as The Big Red Cheese himself, Captain Marvel, 23-year-old Michael Gray as Cap’s alter ego, Billy Batson, and 61-year-old veteran actor, Les Tremayne as Mister Mentor or simply “Mentor” as he was often called. Taking a “vacation” from his job at radio station W.H.I.Z ( the call letters never explicitly stated in the series), Billy is joined by Mentor, who drives an Open Road motor home around various suburbs, ranches, horse farms, construction sites, grocery stores, mining facilities and national parks of Los Angeles in search of various children and young adults who need help. Early on in each episode, Billy is contacted by the six Elders (Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, and Mercury -- the grantors of Captain Marvel’s powers), who give the boy vague predictions about who and...