Posted in: Comics, Heritage Sponsored, Vintage Paper | Tagged: blue beetle, golden age, holyoke, victor fox

The Wild Holyoke Era of the Golden Age Blue Beetle, Up for Auction

After Victor Fox got into financial trouble, his printer Holyoke published the Blue Beetle #12-30, and those issues are a wild ride.

Published Mon, 25 Sep 2023 07:52:06 -0500

by Mark Seifert

Last updated Thu, 26 Sep 2024 09:52:39 -0500

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Article Summary

Victor Fox's bankruptcy led Holyoke to publish Blue Beetle #12-30, making for a wild and unique run.
Blue Beetle #12 features material prepped by Fox, with a $10,000 CGC 8.0 copy sold in December 2022.
Holyoke issues introduce sidekicks Sparky and Spunky, with #17 being one of the rarest in the series.
Blue Beetle fights WWII enemies, including stealing Hitler's mustache in #22, during the "NEW Blue Beetle" arc.

On March 6, 1942, the notorious Golden Age publisher of Blue Beetle and much more, Victor Fox was forced into bankruptcy by creditors. Fascinatingly, one of those creditors, printer Holyoke Press took over the title, and with Fox's Blue Beetle and other titles the publisher acquired under similar circumstances from Frank Z. Temerson, Holyoke decided to get into the comic book publishing business. Holyoke published the series from Blue Beetle #12-30, and after a one-issue transition, Temerson's staff led by Allan Ulmer and Charles Quinlan, best known for his work on Cat-Man Comics took over Blue Beetle for Holyoke. Less than three months after Fox's bankruptcy, Blue Beetle was up and running again.

The issue #12 "transition" to Holyoke used material prepared by Fox before their bankruptcy, including a rather intense cover by Roland Patenaude, whose work has been getting increasing attention of late. In December 2022, a CGC 8.0 copy of this issue sold for $10,000, and there's a CGC FN/VF 7.0 copy of Blue Beetle #12 (Holyoke, 1942) along with a number of other issues from the Holyoke run of the series up for auction in the 2024 September 26 – 27 Heroes of the Golden Age Comics Showcase Auction #40265 at Heritage Auctions.

After issue #12, the Holyoke issues of the series take on a markedly different look and feel. Some of it weird, some of it rather amazing, and all of it is an underappreciated aspect of the character's history. One of the early moves that Quinlan and company made was to give the character a sidekick. Sparky debuted with issue #14 of the series, but was replaced by a different sidekick character, Spunky in issue #18. Notably, issue #17 is one of the rarest of the run, and the cover story there features a group of Nazi soldiers attacking a military facility in America.

That issue may have been a prelude to what was to come for the series. Issues #20-22 are retitled "NEW Blue Beetle." Issues #20 and #21 feature war covers that don't have Blue Beetle on them at all, and Spunky has been dropped from the interior stories for a few issues. Issue #22 reveals the plot twist: Dan Garrett is quitting the police force to join the U.S. intelligence service. After completing his training, Garrett is sent on missions, and the Blue Beetle begins to fight the war along with him. This is the best part of the run, perhaps highlighted by #22, in which Blue Beetle steals Hitler's mustache to demoralize the Nazis.

Both Temerson and Fox would eventually regain control over the respective titles, but the Holyoke Blue Beetle run #12-30 was quite a wild ride. Inconsistent, weird, and sometimes amazing, there's a CGC FN/VF 7.0 copy of Blue Beetle #12 (Holyoke, 1942) along with a number of other issues from the Holyoke run of the series up for auction in the 2024 September 26 – 27 Heroes of the Golden Age Comics Showcase Auction #40265 at Heritage Auctions.