Planet of the Apes - Battle of Two Worlds

Tracks:

Battle of Two Worlds

Another POTA TV show-centric plot, another stunning Neal Adams cover. The audio adventure is pretty good, and features some grisly moments that were hallmarks of the Apes franchise, despite it being aimed at, and sold to, children. It still distracts me that the guy who plays Peter Burker was also Peter Parker on the Spidey records. Now...Spider-Man on the Planet of the Apes, that would be something!

Another thing: the first time I looked at it, I really thought that one ape was angrily biting a banana.

Spidey Super Stories

Tracks:
Spidey Super Stories

I had absolutely no idea this thing existed until I saw it on sale on eBay a few weeks ago...a "new" Spider-Man Power Record, titled Spidey Super Stories!

Okay...so it's not a Power Record, exactly. I guess Peter Pan Records wanted to slightly differentiate these Spider-Man stories, culled from The Electric Company TV series, from the slightly harder-edged ones they had been producing via their Power label, so that familiar logo is nowhere to be found. Still, I was so jazzed to find this, since it was all new to me!

The narration is by, yes, the Morgan Freeman (who of course was Easy Reader on EC). The cast is different than the usual stable of actors you heard on the Power Records, so it's safe to assume Peter Pan just bought the contents lock, stock, and web-shooter and put it out. I love the constant references to the Electric Company within the stories themselves...nice marketing, fellas.

After listening to the tracks, I had a weird feeling of deja vu. I felt like I had heard these stories before, so...maybe I did have this record as a kid? I have zero memory of it, but it's possible the record got lost over the intervening decades, along with the memories. Either way, these are goofy, corny fun!

Spider-Man LP Original Art

When I first saw this beautiful piece of John Romita art, I assumed it had been created expressly for the Power Record The Amazing Spider-Man LP, seen above. But upon closer inspection, it's more likely that it was used for some other purpose (Romita being Marvel's go-to guy for iconic stock art shots of its characters) and then re-used for the LP. Although...

Now that I look at it again, I see that the Spidey logo looks like a recent addition to the paste-up, since it has not browned with age like the rest of the piece. So maybe that was added later, and then signed by Romita to make it more valuable on the original art market. Whatever its origins, it's a beautiful piece, perfect for the album sleeve, promising the buyer classic Spider-Man adventures!

Heroes World Ad

I found this ad on Google Image, but it had no context so I can't be sure where it originally appeared. Judging by the wonky letting and DIY aesthetic, my hunch is its from one of those Heroes World catalogs from the 1970s and early 80s.

I know the ad is not suggesting this at all, but who do you think would win in a fight, Spock, Spider-Man, Captain America, and Dracula vs. Superman, Batman, Hulk, and Man-Thing? My money's on the latter!

Fantastic Four/Captain America Cassette 2-Pack

 

 

 

 

Tracks:

The Way It Began

...And A Phoenix Shall Arise

Over on the Power Records Facebook page, Power Pal Rockwell Jay Pugglesworth sent a bunch of really cool images, mostly of stuff we have yet to cover here on the blog. Case in point, this 2-pack featuring cassette versions of Fantastic Four: The Way It Began and Captain America: And A Phoenix Shall Arise!


As you can see, Power Records put in Mego-like effort sometimes, simply slapping a sticker with the word "cassette" over the cover, rather than re-printing. Clearly, they had inventory lying around, and Pete Pan realized that vinyl was dying off, so repurposing for cassette was the financially prudent thing to do. Maybe I simply stopped being interested in these by the early 1980s, because I don't ever remember seeing a single one of these Power Cassette sets for sale at the time.

We now have photographic evidence of three Marvel-based cassette sets, there must be more. Perhaps Superman or Batman? Until we can find them, thanks Rockwell!

The Power Records Podcast, Episode 7: More Monsters!

The Fire and Water Podcast Presents: THE POWER RECORDS PODCAST, Episode 7

It's Halloween time, and that means Monsters! Hosts Rob Kelly and Chris Franklin talk about two spooky Marvel Monster records, "The Monster of Frankenstein!" and "The Curse of the Werewolf!"

Leave a comment on our sites:

THE AQUAMAN SHRINE - http://www.aquamanshrine.net

FIRESTORM FAN - http://firestormfan.com

FIRE AND WATER PODCAST TUMBLR - http://fireandwaterpodcast.tumblr.com

SUPER MATES PODCAST - http://supermatescomic.blogspot.com
POWER RECORDS BLOG - http://powerrecord.blogspot.com

Have a question or comment? Drop us a line at firewaterpodcast@comcast.net

Subscribe via iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-fire-and-water-podcast/id463855630

Opening and closing themes courtesy Peter Pan Records.

Thanks for listening! Drop the needle and turn the page!

Wonder Woman - The Secret of the Magic Tiara Original Art

Here's the beautiful original art for Wonder Woman: The Secret of the Magic Tiara book and record set by the legendary Rich Buckler. About as iconic as it gets, weird capitalization notwithstanding!

If you look close, you can see some very minor tweaks made to Diana's face for the printed version--it seems editors just can't resist fiddling with final art after it comes in, no matter who is doing the work. Man, have I been there, and I'm not Rich Buckler or John Romita!

(h/t: Al Bigley's Big Glee Archive)

The Avengers - Captain America Joins The Avengers!

This gorgeous custom Power Records book-and-record set is courtesy the always engaging Dial "B" for Blog...but there's more!

In the late 1960s, Marvel teamed with an outfit called Golden Records, which issued four LPs called "Marvel Age Comic Spectaculars", that featured audio adaptations of classic Marvel stories (for the, uh, record: Fantastic Four #1, Amazing Spider-Man #1, Journey into Mystery #83, and The Avengers #4), accompanied by reprints of the comic--in this case, the aforementioned Avengers #4. Almost impossible to find now for less than a small fortune, they were the forerunners to the Power Records.

Dial "B" decided to create the custom Power Record cover, also adding "Ani-Motion" to the comic book portion, so you can watch your heroes move (sort of) as they discover the Sentinel of Liberty encased in ice. It's a lot of fun, and the audio adaptation is pretty darn good. In fact, I'm not sure why Peter Pan just didn't license the four Golden Records and repurpose them for the Power Records line, it would have been great to have The Avengers and Thor added to the roster!

Star Trek - Dinosaur Planet

Track:
Dinosaur Planet
 

Dinosaur Planet is another of the later period, Star Trek: The Motion Picture-inspired book and record sets. Like the previously covered adventure The Robot Masters, Dinosaur Planet is perfectly fine, if a little dull, comic book, but the audio portion is pretty good. The writers get the interaction of the characters pretty spot-on, and of course the dinosaur-centric plot is something the actual show could have never afforded to do!

Though I will say, while the idea of using photos of the actors makes sense from a marketing perspective, jeez do they look cheezy when paired with the comic book-style backgrounds!

Planet of the Apes Display Header

This beauty is the header card used for the Power Records Planet of the Apes in-store displays. They just don't make stuff like this anymore!

The fact this thing is still around gives me hope that other Power Record miscellanea is out there, too. Not that my wallet needs more trips to eBay, but still...

(h/t: Hunter's Planet of the Apes Archive)

Spider-Man - Bells of Doom

Track:
Bells of Doom

Another Spidey 45", featuring signed cover art by Bill Gow. Who is Bill Gow? Well, according to a commenter named Brian, he was an artist whose work "[A]ppeared mostly on the covers of Peter Pan and Kid Stuff Records in the 1970s." Mr. Gow, if you're out there, let us know, this blog would love to talk to you!

Superman - Light Up The Tree, Mr. President

Track:
Light Up The Tree, Mr. President

Another one of the Christmas-themed re-purposed adventures from the Superman/Batman/Wonder Woman LP, this 45" sleeve features a beautiful Neal Adams piece which I am amazed wasn't re-used for other Xmas-related merchandise down the line. Who wouldn't want a shot of a smiling Superman flying in front of a Christmas tree on an ornament?

Power Records @ The 1975 Toy Fair

Check out this mouth-watering display Peter Pan/Power Records had going at the 1975 Toy Fair. They quite simply don't make 'em like this any more! Click the image to check out PlaidStallions.com to see more pics from this show, it looks like the kind of thing I dreamed about as a kid.

 

Speaking of dreaming, I keep hoping one day I'll find some of these Power Records displays for sale on eBay or something. I have yet to, but hope springs eternal...

 

 

Space: 1999 - The Future is Fantastic!

 

Tracks:

Return to the Beginning
End of Eternity
Dragon's Domain
If Played So Softly on the Ear

In all my years of Power Records fandom, I had no idea that Space: 1999 was so popular! Not only did the show get two book and record sets, but it also headlined two LPs, too, complete with photo covers, something the label never did for other TV properties like Star Trek and The Six Million Dollar Man!

I haven't seen Space: 1999 since I was a kid, but I remember the show being pretty dull. You wouldn't know it from this sleeve, which makes it look like a combo of Star Trek, Star Wars, and Irwin Allen. The future is fantastic!