Vol. 2, No. 4, April 2006 

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Postcard News From Courthouse Square

Vol 2, No.4 April 2006

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Vol 2. No.5. May 2006 COMING SOON! and come back here monthly for the online version

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UPCOMING SHOW - EVENT INFORMATION

(Show Promoters, see info below for listings in our Postcard News from Courthouse Square -Show Calendar, $15 for 12 issues or until show date)

Get out to a Postcard Show....it'll do you good!

Tulsa Oklahoma Postcard Show

Friday May 12, 2006, 10 AM to 6 PM (Early Bird at 9am) Saturday May 13 , 2006, 10 AM to 4 PM

Holiday Inn - South

Exit 145th St, Broken Arrow Expressway 2600 N Aspen Broken Arrow OK 74012

Details: This is the Annual Tulsa Postcard Club show involving buyers and sellers from 7 states bringing nearly 1 Million antique postcards for sale, as well as buying collections and accumulations, and giving free appraisals of most all vintage postcards, old photographs, and paper ephemera. Thousands of vintage Route 66 view postcards will be for sale. Lots of historical photos of Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Kansas, Native Americans, Civil War, Western Americana, Rodeo, Movie, Railroadiana,Oklahoma and Indian Territory, Victorian era, Kewpies, 101 Ranch, and 1000's of other topical and state view postcards and other historical paper memorabilia and ephemera for sale. 

Free Appraisels, time permitting. 

Exhibitors include: Laurel Kane, Tulsa OK; Lavoy Hatchett, Tulsa OK; WH Kropp, Tulsa OK; Dick Poore, Tulsa OK; John Dunning, Oklahoma City OK; Kirk McKinzie, Tulsa OK; Lee Carlson, KS; Jim Taylor, MO; Wallace Chariton, TX; John Oliveri, TX; Ken and Debbie Wilson, TX; Gerald Schmidt, MO; Dorothy Bichsel, IL; Bill Burdick, AR; Chris Peaden, KS, Hal Ottaway, KS, Ralph Bowman, CA

Admission $2 for both days.(10am)

Early Bird admission $5 at 9:00AM on Friday(good for both days)

Contact person:

Jim Taylor, PO Box 399, Neosho, Mo, 64850.

email Postcards@Courthousesquare.net

(host motel reservations 918-258-7085) Early bird admission ($5) will be available at 9am FridayRegular admission is $2

1-888-451-0340 or jmtaylor@ipa.net

ALIENATED WITH POSTCARDS

by George Eberhart

I like aliens. So does Jim Taylor, whose unnamed companion from another galaxy sometimes surprises people during his travels and postcard shows. And because I've had a long-time interest in UFO sightings, aliens on postcards were one of the first things I started collecting when I took up the hobby.

Of course, if you collect aliens you have to collect moderns. Few postcards before the 1950s focus on space denizens of any kind. Consequently, aliens are sometimes used to promote modern cards, as in this Rick Geary illustration for a British postcard fair, and this US GoCard promotion for the company's rackcards.

Aliens had been appearing in science fiction literature before H. G. Wells's novel War of the Worlds (1898), Edgar Rice Burroughs's A Princess of Mars (1912), and the Amazing Stories pulp magazine that Hugo Gernsback launched in 1928. UFOs first were reported in large numbers in 1947, but it wasn't until the early 1950s, when the concept of "little green men" from outer space was popularized by cartoonists and comic books, that postcards jumped on the band-rocket and depicted otherworldly creatures. A Curt Teich card from 1953 shows green robots landing at Midway Airport; and a Wall Drug card dated 1971 has the moon populated with some retro-looking bug-eyed monsters.

It didn't take Hollywood very long to start making alien-invasion films that went far beyond the space-opera antics of Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. Although published long after the movie was released in 1954, this card captures the spooky spirit of the times by reprinting the original poster art from the British Devil Girl from Mars. Another film-poster card shows Sigourney Weaver in Aliens (1983), which brought a new scary realism to fictional alien encounters.

One archetypal scenario involves a clueless alien landing in a saucer and saying "Take me to your leader" to various inanimate objects or bemused household pets. Here are two examples: One is a QSL card dated 1979 in which the UFOnauts are confused by a truck's radio antennas, and the other features a punning Garfield.

Aliens come in handy for all sorts of traditional postcard purposes, from the friendly doctor's reminder to the why-I-didn't-write excuse.

The most common venue for postcard aliens is the advertising card (especially if you count movie promotions like Star Wars). Saucers and their occupants turn up frequently in ads for new music recordings and concerts, such as this San Francisco Funk Festival postcard-sized flyer from 2001. Nor are we Americans the only culture unique in exploiting aliens for ads: This Boomerang rack card from the Czech Republic proclaims Varta alkaline batteries an "unearthly resource."

Collecting space aliens on postcards can have its side benefits. I enjoy the bewildered look on the faces of postcard dealers (except for Jim Taylor) when I ask them, knowing the answer well in advance, whether they have any alien cards. It's been nearly 60 years since (maybe) a UFO crashed near Roswell, New Mexico. Isn't it about time that aliens enter the mainstream postcard culture?

The American Library Association recently published the 4th edition of my book, The Whole Library Handbook and Rick Geary designed a full-color postcard to promote it. On the grounds of this distinguished-looking library, banners echo topics covered in the WLH such as library history, librarians in film, things used in libraries, and, of course, library postcards. If you want one of these free postcards, send me a note and a SASE to fit this 4-1/4" by 6" card. Please write: George M. Eberhart, 1610 W. Highland Box 23, Chicago, IL 60660.

COMIC POSTCARDS OF WWII

A Checklist from Dr Thomas O. Garnhart

* 70+ pages, 8 1/2 x 11 *2400 detailed listings *Over 200 Large Letter included

*Index of every card by inscription*Index of artist

*Over 110 publishers included *More than 100 color illustrations (thumbnails)

*"Unidentified" publishers described

This new checklist titled Comic Postcards of WWII has been in the works for the past year, and is ready to go. It also includes large letter military linens. This new and updated list includes considerably more data than previous resources.   A helpful feature of this new publication is an index of cards by the inscription on the cards face that indicates the name of the publisher.  Since many cards are difficult to identify, this is of great help to the collector. Color illustrations are included to define the style of various publishers, including previously unidentified publishers. This list has been authored by Dr. Thomas O. Garnhart, author of the popular Checklist of Curt Teich Linen Comic Postcards. $29.95 plus p/h. Click here for order info.

by Thomas O. Garnhart

The Checklist of Curt Teich Linen Comic Postcards is the first definitive and systematic cataloging of linen comic postcards by this quality printer and publisher. Amidst the growing popularity of linens, it is a valuable resource for both collectors and dealers. Some 1548 detailed entries list cards in order of the production. Value ranges are provided to identify the comparative desirability/rarity of each postcard. Detailed information is given about each entry, including inscriptions, series names, and indicators of which are WWII related and which are black racial stereotypes. $24.95 + p/h visit this link for details and scan of cover.

 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:

Here are some links to some of our favorite postcard websites and ebay sellers. Be sure to visit our website for images and more great postcard collecting information.

 For a complete listing of the postcard shows produced by Jim Taylor and CourthouseSquare.net visit

http://www.courthousesquare.net

Some great postcard Auction sites include: (more to come!)

  

Jim Taylor

Courthouse Square Antique Cards

PO Box 399

Neosho MO 64850

Member APS IFPD

Specializing in Mail Approvals, Sales, and Shows, of Antique Postcards,

Historical Photographs Paper Americana and Archival Supplies

Visit the front page of our Web site at:

http://www.CourthouseSquare.net

email: Postcards@CourthouseSquare.net

Helping build great postcard collections is our speciality...

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