Friday Fiends: Cancelite, Thy Name Is Sales!

Cancelite. An plot device of Jerry Siegel (yeah...THAT Siegel!) used to level the playing field between good and bad guys. Except he shouldn't have leveled it...instead it should have been elevated. It was a period time in mid to late 60's that was riding the crest of Batman's campy television series. Nearly all comics publishers produced their own brand of superheroes...or in the case of Mighty Comics (Shield, Steel Sterling, etc) and Mighty/Radio Comics (Blue Beetle, Captain Atom) reintroduce their earlier creations. For the former, a more serious approach was taken to their presentation...for the latter, a more light-hearted one. Neither took.

1965 Comic Book Sales Figures
Average Total Paid Circulation as Reported in Publishers' Statements of Ownership

	Title	Publisher	Avg. paid circ.
1)	Superman	DC	823,829
2)	Superboy	DC	672,681
3)	Superman's Girlfriend Lois Lane	DC	556,091
4)	Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen	DC	554,931
5)	Action Comics	DC	525,254
6)	Adventure Comics	DC	520,440
7)	Archie	Archie	467,552
8)	World's Finest Comics	DC	465,842
9)	Batman	DC	453,745
10)	Walt Disney's Comics & Stories	Gold Key	410,209
11)	Justice League of America	DC	389,285
12)	Treasure Chest	Catholic Guild	386,171
13)	Flintstones	Gold Key	374,322
14)	Tarzan	Gold Key	356,699
15)	Metal Men	DC	334,245
16)	Uncle Scrooge	Gold Key	330,925
17)	Betty and Veronica	Archie	328,969
18)	G.I. Combat	DC	320,607
19)	Detective Comics	DC	304,414
20)	Flash	DC	298,151
21)	Walt Disney's Donald Duck	Gold Key	298,144
22)	Life with Archie	Archie	293,651
23)	Bugs Bunny	Gold Key	291,816
24)	The Three Stooges	Gold Key	288,967
25)	Korak	Gold Key	278,800
26)	Tom and Jerry	Gold Key	276,980
27)	Archie's Joke Book	Archie	273,679
28)	Green Lantern	DC	273,527
29)	Our Army at War	DC	270,100
30)	Laugh Comics	Archie	269,747
31)	Archie's Pal Jughead	Archie	269,512
32)	Archie Giant Series	Archie	256,516
33)	Twilight Zone	Gold Key	256,050
34)	Atom	DC	255,254
35)	Archie's Pals 'n' Gals	Archie	253,860
36)	Woody Woodpecker	Gold Key	250,340
37)	Turok, Son of Stone	Gold Key	250,316
38)	Yogi Bear	Gold Key	250,175
39)	Brave & Bold	DC	249,768
40)	All-American Men of War	DC	247,717
41)	Aquaman	DC	247,140
42)	Little Lulu	Gold Key	246,650
43)	Top Cat	Gold Key	245,387
44)	Bonanza	Gold Key	244,042
45)	Daffy Duck	Gold Key	243,825
46)	Star-Spangled Comics	DC	243,700
47)	Beetle Bailey	Gold Key	237,700
48)	Magnus	Gold Key	236,713
49)	Showcase	DC	235,091
50)	Journey into Mystery	Marvel	232,644
51)	Madhouse	Archie	231,934
52)	Mickey Mouse	Gold Key	231,814
53)	Strange Tales	Marvel	230,285
54)	Tomahawk	DC	229,979
55)	Phantom	Gold Key	229,890
56)	Doctor Solar	Gold Key	226,720
57)	Tales to Astonish	Marvel	224,346
58)	Tales of Suspense	Marvel	222,060
59)	Challengers of the Unknown	DC	220,965
60)	Pep Comics	Archie	220,010
61)	Millie the Model	Marvel	219,427
62)	Lost in Space	Gold Key	216,775
63)	Combat	Dell	210,687
64)	Wonder Woman	DC	209,918
65)	Adventures of Jerry Lewis	DC	209,691
66)	Young Love	DC	206,456
67)	Doom Patrol	DC	200,188
68)	House of Mystery	DC	196,677
69)	Kid Colt Outlaw	Marvel	193,506
70)	Rawhide Kid	Marvel	192,540
71)	Adventures of Bob Hope	DC	191,656
72)	Sea Devils	DC	182,866
73)	Mystery in Space	DC	182,376
74)	Thirteen	Dell	175,169
75)	Sugar & Spike	DC	175,089
76)	Forbidden Worlds	ACG	172,270
77)	Unknown Worlds	ACG	168,330
78)	Adventures into the Unknown	ACG	163,049
79)	Fox & The Crow	DC	160,515
80)	Adventures of the Fly	Archie	160,235
81)	Fightin' Army	Charlton	144,865
82)	Fightin' Marines	Charlton	144,487
83)	Hot Rods and Racing Cars	Charlton	143,342
84)	Sweethearts	Charlton	142,208
85)	Love Diary	Charlton	141,333
86)	Billy the Kid	Charlton	140,635
87)	Romantic Story	Charlton	140,528
88)	I Love You	Charlton	139,689
89)	Strange Suspense Stories	Charlton	131,350
90)	Space War	Charlton	130,490
91)	Texas Rangers in Action	Charlton	126,665
92)	Outlaws of the West	Charlton	126,012
93)	Cheyenne Kid	Charlton	118,124
	Average for comics		263,090

Charlton's diverse line of Son of Vulcan, Blue Beetle and Captain Atom soon spawned additional titles such as Judomaster, Sarge Steel and Thunderbolt. From these titles, other characters were introduced such as a new Blue Beetle, Nightshade and Question. All of these provided unique takes on the heroic genre, from cosmic to mythological to scientific to perfectionism to objectivism. Mighty Comics derivative line of Fly-Man, Mighty Crusaders, their version of the Shadow, and Mighty Comic's Black Hood, Web, and others seemed to borrow elements from other classic characters and turn them on their metaphorical head while trying to grab giggles and laughs that ultimately fell flat. Both looked for niches that weren't there.

1966 Comic Book Sales Figures
Average Total Paid Circulation as Reported in Publishers' Statements of Ownership

	Title	Publisher	Avg. paid circ.
1)	Batman	DC	898,470
2)	Superman	DC	719,976
3)	Superboy	DC	608,386
4)	Superman's Girlfriend Lois Lane	DC	530,808
5)	Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen	DC	523,455
6)	World's Finest Comics	DC	513,201
7)	Archie	Archie	491,691
8)	Action Comics	DC	491,135
9)	Adventure Comics	DC	481,234
10)	Justice League of America	DC	408,219
11)	Detective Comics	DC	404,339
12)	Metal Men	DC	396,506
13)	Treasure Chest	Catholic Guild	348,305
14)	Walt Disney's Comics & Stories	Gold Key	346,250
15)	Betty and Veronica	Archie	342,295
16)	Amazing Spider-Man	Marvel	340,155
17)	Tarzan	Gold Key	338,052
18)	Flintstones	Gold Key	332,362
19)	Fantastic Four	Marvel	329,379
20)	Flash	DC	325,404
21)	Life with Archie	Archie	300,954
22)	Uncle Scrooge	Gold Key	297,516
23)	Thor	Marvel	296,251
24)	Archie's Pal Jughead	Archie	284,928
25)	Laugh Comics	Archie	282,731
26)	Brave & Bold	DC	279,406
27)	Bugs Bunny	Gold Key	276,949
28)	Tom and Jerry	Gold Key	271,920
29)	Korak	Gold Key	270,923
30)	Avengers	Marvel	269,994
31)	Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos	Marvel	268,499
32)	The Three Stooges	Gold Key	266,701
33)	Walt Disney's Donald Duck	Gold Key	265,932
34)	Archie's Pals 'n' Gals	Archie	265,476
35)	Porky Pig	Gold Key	261,850
36)	Strange Tales	Marvel	261,069
37)	Twilight Zone	Gold Key	259,703
38)	Tales to Astonish	Marvel	256,145
39)	G.I. Combat	DC	255,496
40)	X-Men	Marvel	255,070
41)	Daffy Duck	Gold Key	254,750
42)	Mighty Samson	Gold Key	254,725
43)	Lost in Space	Gold Key	253,025
44)	Archie Giant Series	Archie	252,427
45)	Tales of Suspense	Marvel	252,239
46)	Showcase	DC	250,512
47)	Pep Comics	Archie	248,718
48)	Woody Woodpecker	Gold Key	248,199
49)	Yogi Bear	Gold Key	247,356
50)	Green Lantern	DC	245,699
51)	Turok, Son of Stone	Gold Key	245,202
52)	Little Lulu	Gold Key	245,000
53)	Our Army at War	DC	243,906
54)	Magnus	Gold Key	236,304
55)	Atom	DC	232,850
56)	Bonanza	Gold Key	230,033
57)	Blackhawk	DC	228,453
58)	Aquaman	DC	228,403
59)	Mickey Mouse	Gold Key	225,716
60)	Doctor Solar	Gold Key	224,936
61)	Phantom	Gold Key/King	221,141
62)	Wonder Woman	DC	220,168
63)	Archie's Madhouse	Archie	220,056
64)	Star-Spangled Comics	DC	215,495
65)	Kid Colt Outlaw	Marvel	214,555
66)	Tomahawk	DC	212,954
67)	Adventures of Jerry Lewis	DC	211,934
68)	Challengers of the Unknown	DC	210,316
69)	Our Fighting Forces	DC	207,885
70)	Little Archie	Archie	206,321
71)	Young Romance	DC	204,613
72)	Sad Sack	Harvey	204,253
73)	Rawhide Kid	Marvel	202,823
74)	Adventures of Bob Hope	DC	194,004
75)	Doom Patrol	DC	191,420
76)	Sugar & Spike	DC	190,515
77)	Millie the Model	Marvel	190,217
78)	Tales of the Unexpected	DC	185,650
79)	House of Mystery	DC	183,934
80)	Strange Adventures	DC	174,922
81)	Sea Devils	DC	168,731
82)	Unknown Worlds	ACG	162,684
83)	Thirteen	Dell	161,231
84)	Forbidden Worlds	ACG	160,520
85)	Adventures into the Unknown	ACG	155,102
86)	Teen-Age Love	Charlton	148,813
87)	Fox & The Crow	DC	142,720
88)	Army War Heroes	Charlton	133,205
89)	Fightin' Army	Charlton	129,514
90)	Texas Rangers in Action	Charlton	125,114
91)	Outlaws of the West	Charlton	124,813
92)	Fightin' Marines	Charlton	123,517
93)	Strange Suspense Stories	Charlton	123,267
94)	Cheyenne Kid	Charlton	116,320
	Average for comics		271,323

 After a mere three years from 1965 to 1967 of a concerted effort to launch a limited line of action-heroes, both publishers receded back to that which made them successful. In Mighty's case, it was its parent company Archie's line of teenage humor. And for Charlton, with the exception of licensed legend the Phantom, it was their love/war/old west comics that kept them in the game. Check out some of these titles...far down the list!

1967 Comic Book Sales Figures
Average Total Paid Circulation as Reported in Publishers' Statements of Ownership

	Title	Publisher	Avg. paid circ.
1)	Batman	DC	805,700
2)	Superman	DC	649,300
3)	Superboy	DC	547,100
4)	World's Finest Comics	DC	537,200
5)	Archie	Archie	484,648
6)	Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen	DC	450,700
7)	Superman's Girlfriend Lois Lane	DC	448,400
8)	Detective Comics	DC	425,700
9)	Action Comics	DC	420,900
10)	Adventure Comics	DC	412,800
11)	Man from U.N.C.L.E.	Dell	411,235
12)	Justice League of America	DC	385,800
13)	Tarzan	Gold Key	384,450
14)	Amazing Spider-Man	Marvel	361,663
15)	Betty and Veronica	Archie	349,632
16)	Brave & Bold	DC	342,400
17)	Fantastic Four	Marvel	329,536
18)	Walt Disney's Comics & Stories	Gold Key	310,665
19)	Dennis the Menace	Fawcett	308,736
20)	Treasure Chest	Catholic Guild	306,803
21)	Thor	Marvel	298,219
22)	Archie's Pal Jughead	Archie	287,422
23)	Laugh Comics	Archie	285,544
24)	Archie's Joke Book	Archie	282,199
25)	Flintstones	Gold Key	279,885
26)	Uncle Scrooge	Gold Key	278,901
27)	Daredevil	Gold Key	275,361
28)	Life with Archie	Archie	275,099
29)	Korak	Gold Key	270,050
30)	Avengers	Marvel	269,139
31)	Tales to Astonish	Marvel	269,132
32)	Flash	DC	267,000
33)	Bugs Bunny	Gold Key	266,815
34)	Uncanny X-Men	Marvel	266,034
35)	Lost in Space	Gold Key	264,667
36)	Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos	Marvel	260,930
37)	Tales of Suspense	Marvel	257,342
38)	Tom and Jerry	Gold Key	256,448
39)	Walt Disney's Donald Duck	Gold Key	255,470
40)	The Three Stooges	Gold Key	253,384
41)	Archie Giant Series	Archie	248,241
42)	Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea	Gold Key	243,688
43)	Pep Comics	Archie	242,821
44)	Porky Pig	Gold Key	241,735
45)	Strange Tales	Marvel	241,561
46)	Archie's Pals 'n' Gals	Archie	240,407
47)	Metal Men	DC	239,700
48)	Mighty Samson	Gold Key	238,075
49)	Twilight Zone	Gold Key	236,720
50)	Aquaman	DC	234,200
51)	Turok, Son of Stone	Gold Key	232,565
52)	Yogi Bear	Gold Key	229,100
53)	Bonanza	Gold Key	225,625
54)	Little Lulu	Gold Key	224,800
55)	Woody Woodpecker	Gold Key	220,783
56)	Magnus	Gold Key	215,100
57)	Daffy Duck	Gold Key	212,225
58)	Doctor Solar	Gold Key	208,135
59)	Rawhide Kid	Marvel	205,221
60)	Mickey Mouse	Gold Key	205,083
61)	G.I. Combat	DC	202,100
62)	Green Lantern	DC	201,700
63)	Our Army at War	DC	196,500
64)	Madhouse	Archie	196,057
65)	Sad Sack	Harvey	192,213
66)	Little Archie	Archie	191,623
67)	Showcase	DC	189,500
68)	Young Romance	DC	187,400
69)	Young Love	DC	187,400
70)	Atom	DC	184,100
71)	Challengers of the Unknown	DC	182,200
72)	Adventures of Jerry Lewis	DC	180,800
73)	Little Dot	Harvey	179,592
74)	Girls' Love Stories	DC	178,300
75)	Spooky	Harvey	177,303
76)	Wonder Woman	DC	175,000
77)	Heart Throbs	DC	174,500
78)	Millie the Model	Marvel	173,519
79)	Little Lotta	Harvey	171,055
80)	Falling in Love	DC	170,400
81)	Girls' Romances	DC	170,400
82)	Tomahawk	DC	165,700
83)	Tales of the Unexpected	DC	162,600
84)	Star-Spangled War Stories	DC	160,000
85)	House of Mystery	DC	158,500
86)	Doom Patrol	DC	157,900
87)	Blackhawk	DC	157,700
88)	Teen-Age Love	Charlton	152,317
89)	Our Fighting Forces	DC	152,200
90)	Sugar & Spike	DC	150,200
91)	Secret Hearts	DC	149,700
92)	Strange Adventures	DC	146,600
93)	Army War Heroes	Charlton	140,005
94)	Billy the Kid	Charlton	136,615
95)	Unusual Tales	Charlton	135,266
96)	Romantic Story	Charlton	134,018
97)	Career Girl Romances	Charlton	125,710
98)	Fightin' Marines	Charlton	123,517
99)	Teenage Hotrodders	Charlton	120,890
100)	Sweethearts	Charlton	120,713
101)	Hot Rods and Racing Cars	Charlton	120,563
102)	Cheyenne Kid	Charlton	120,328
103)	I Love You	Charlton	120,310
104)	Outlaws of the West	Charlton	118,313
105)	Grand Prix	Charlton	118,002
106)	Fightin' Army	Charlton	117,513
107)	Love Diary	Charlton	115,412
108)	Fox & The Crow	DC	114,700
109)	Just Married	Charlton	112,413
110)	Teen Confessions	Charlton	111,410
111)	Texas Rangers in Action	Charlton	110,615
	Average for comics		239,366

While all these characters were later revived...ironically by the same mother-of-all publisher for superheroes DC...something was lost. For despite their flaws...be it in printing process for Charlton or plotting process for Mighty...there was a charm hidden between the panels. However, their own Fiend, Cancellation...was the one enemy that could beat the combined forces of our scores of silver-age stalwarts. And sagging sales is the true Kryptonite...er Cancelite...of any superhero.

(Special thanks to Comichron.com for their compilation of the above sales figures.