Memorabilia: 1966

• "They're IN!! The new, groovy breed of... 'SUPER HEROES WITH SUPER PROBLEMS'" Lancer released The Fanastic Four Collector's Album reprinting issue #s 1, 6 and 11.
• Golden Records released several Marvel vinyl albums. The record was accompanied by a reproduction of FF #1 with some minor art changes.
• Grantray-Lawrence produced The Marvel Superhero Cartoons. Using very limited and crude animation techniques, they created 13 half-hour shows using the adventures of Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor and Sub-Mariner. Two of the Sub-Mariner stories were pulled from parts of Fantastic Four issue #6 and Annual #3. However, not having the rights to use the FF, the X-Men were substituted in their stead.
• I'm half-guessing at the actual production date of this. I've only heard them called "flicker rings," presumably because they "flicker" between two images (similar to Mattel's Secret Wars shields). The rings were pacaged in plastic bubbles and available through gumball-type toy dispensers (the likes of which can still be seen near entrances to some grocery, drug, and toy stores). Many different characters were used throughout the 1960s (the Phantom, Green Hornet, Flash Gordon, etc.) but it wasn't this year that Fantastic Four rings were made. One featured the Human Torch and Dr. Doom; another had a close-up of the Thing and a full body shot; the last one featured Reed and Sue as one image and Johnny and Ben as another. Special thanks to Bill Weber for digging up info and pictures on these rarities!
• Topps released a series of 12 three piece flyers for ten cents each. Each flyer (which I'm guessing was made of balsa wood) featured a Marvel hero in a flying pose. The character's arms would be on the wings and part of the cape or feet would be on the tail piece. They were sold in an envelope featuring a graphic of the Human Torch one with no outward indication which hero was on the inside. Both the Human Torch and the Thing were actually produced.
• With a Marvelmania membership (Marvel's official fan club at the time), you received a 16.5" x 12" Human Torch poster. I believe the art is by Dan Adkins, but I cannot yet confirm that.