Did You Know...

Did you know that the way Shazam is able to transform into ethereal form and to travel back and forth from the Rock of Eternity is by way of a bracelet he wears?  In Captain Marvel Adventures #100 we find Tawky Tawny and Billy Batson speaking to Shazam.  Tawky asks Shazam how he can exist in spirit form.  Shazam then tells him that it is through his bracelet made from an element unknown to earthly science called shazamium.   

The shazamium bracelet allows the wearer to adopt ethereal form, whisk back and forth between the Rock of Eternity in the wink of an eye, and without the bracelet, Shazam will fade away into nothingness in 24 hours!

Did you know how Shazam is able to transform into ethereal form and instantaneously go back and forth from the Rock of Eternity?  Now you know that it is because of his bracelet made from the wonder element shazamium!!

Did You Know....

Did you know that the Captain Marvel Club was an unexpected hit with his fans?  In an interview with Roscoe Fawcett (son of Captain Billy Fawcett - founder of Fawcett comics) I learned that the club was an overnight success!  Here's a brief portion of the interview as published on page 12 of the Fawcett Companion.

"Fawcett Collectors of America: What about the Captain Marvel Club and all of the merchandise produced at that time... were you involved with any of that?
Roscoe Fawcett: Oh yes! We had to go out and rent an entire building just for the Captain Marvel Club... overnight! I couldn’t believe the response we got; we were flooded with mail... all of those dimes, quarters and dollars that came in! We had to hire six women who did nothing but open envelopes and empty out the money. We must have had between 30 to 35 employees hired solely for the handling of the Captain Marvel Club."

Holy Moley - they had to rent an entire building just to handle the demand for the Captain Marvel Club!  They also had up to 35 employees that did nothing but work on handling the club!  This is a great testament to how much fans of all ages love the Captain Marvel character.

Did you know the Captain Marvel Club was an unexpected hit with his fans?  You do now!!

Captain Marvel vs Fear

America and the world were only a few years removed from the end of the second world war when Captain Marvel Adventures #89 was published in 1948.  The world was at peace but the nuclear age had dawned and with it new fears would arise.  I want to highlight one story out of Captain Marvel Adventures #89 against that historical backdrop.  That one story is 'Captain Marvel Faces Fear!'

While this story has its whimsical elements, as most of Cap's stories do, there is a deeper element to it than what you might see on the surface.  This story not only gives us a new adventure for Captain Marvel, it also provides kids and adults with a practical life lesson on something we all face at one time or other and that is fear.  In this story Cap comes face to face with Fear itself!

The story begins simply enough with a young boy tasked with the delivery of an atomic engine.  But before he can walk too far from the building, Fear has influenced him to think he's carrying an atomic bomb.  Sure enough, the boy spreads the news and the entire city begins to evacuate under the fear of an atomic bomb detonating soon.  The paper's headline shouts, "Atom Bomb on the Loose! Delivery Boy's Tale of Terror Shocks City!"  Yes, Fear has done his job well and has all too easily attained his dastardly desired results.

But where is Captain Marvel in all the clamor as the panic-stricken public attempts to flee the city?  Cap is there and he springs into action, trying to be a calming influence on the citizens.  Cap is starting to get things settled down when Fear decides to step up his game and throw things back into a turmoil. Captain Marvel catches a glimpse of Fear and pursues him.  Captain Marvel catches Fear and looks straight into his face....and then "for the first time in his career, Captain Marvel knows the full terrible meaning of...FEAR!" 

Fear's impact is only temporary as the World's Mightiest Mortal quickly shakes of Fear's effect.  Shortly, Cap catches up with Fear once again and this time he vanquishes him - even putting some fear into Fear!

Now this is a great story that was wonderfully written and drawn.  But if you just stop there you are missing a golden nugget of truth, the truth that fear can be faced and must be faced.  Fear can't be allowed to create chaos in our life or in our communities.  Thinking about what people were facing when this comic was first published, I wonder if they were trying to help kids come to grips with their world and give them some tips on how to handle their fears.  Regardless of the times, there are some timeless lessons presented in this periodical.

Here are the life lessons I pulled from the pages of this comic.  Some of these are direct quotes from the comic itself!

1.  "The tiny voice of reason is lost in the clamor of fear."  What started out as a small misunderstanding soon escalates into pure turmoil.  Captain Marvel and Billy Batson try to reassure Fawcett City that there is no atomic bomb, their voices are lost in the ocean of fears.  Today we are bombarded with information from the web, CNN, FOX, MSNBC, etc. and most of the time what we hear is negative.  When you become fearful about what you've heard, take a few minutes and really think about what you heard.  Bring that news into reality and ask yourself is it something you should be afraid of or is it something that you should be concerned about?  Is it just a case of Chicken Little reporting - the sky is falling - is it just hype?  Look for a voice of reason - even if it's small!

2.  Even the Best of Us Can Be Hit By Fear!  Captain Marvel experienced fear for the first time in his career and it gave him a temporary set back.  He shook it off and went back to his task at hand.  We need to do the same.  If we fall victim to fear don't let it get you down.  Learn a lesson from it and then press on! 

3.  Fear Fades in the Face of Firmly Held Facts!  Captain Marvel stuck to the facts when confronting fear - and Fear faded away.  Even Fear himself said, "Since the beginning of time I have existed only in the minds of people who have not known the truth.  For those who know the truth...I don't exist at all!"  Fear cannot stand in the face of truth.  

Not only was this a great adventure story, it also provides us with some life lessons on how to face fear in our life and world today.  "Captain Marvel Faces Fear!"  -  and so can we!!

Did You Know...

Did you know how Dr. Sivana got his name?  Dr. Sivana was the very first villain Captain Marvel faced (Whiz Comics #2).  C. C. Beck disclosed how Sivana got his name in an 1980's interview.  Beck said, "He (Bill Parker, Fawcett comic writer) created the word “Sivana” by combining the name of the Indian god Siva with the word Nirvana."  So there you have it - combine Siva and Nirvana and you get the scheming scientist Sivana!!!  I had no idea that that is how Sivana got his name!  It's always very interesting to me to learn these behind-the-scenes facts about Captain Marvel and his cast of supporting characters.

Did you know how Dr. Sivana go his name?  Now you do!!!

Billy Batson? Captain Marvel?

Is Billy Batson also Captain Marvel?  We know Billy transforms into Captain Marvel by saying the magic word, "SHAZAM!"  But does Billy stay Billy - just an older and more muscular version?

Billy Batson is not Captain Marvel.  Billy Batson transforms into Captain Marvel - they are two different people! 

The illustration shows the classic magic lightning bolt coming down after Billy Batson says, "SHAZAM!" It tells us that it is the "magic lightning that changes Billy to his other mighty self -- Captain Marvel!" 

Another proof is found in Captain Marvel Adventures #41.  (I wrote about this edition previously in another post.)  Here we have Billy Batson opening a letter given to him by the wizard Shazam.

Did you notice something about the envelope and the letter?  Notice who the envelope is addressed to - it is addressed to Billy Batson and Captain Marvel!  Did you notice what the letter says?  It says, "Billy Batson: For four years you and Captain Marvel have fought evil..."  Shazam addressed the letter to two different people, Billy Batson and Captain Marvel.  They are two different people!

Captain Marvel Adventures #69 tells the story of the King of Grafstan who wants to make Captain Marvel a knight. (I'll be writing an upcoming post about this edition!)  Billy Batson gets the message from Mr. Morris and says, "Captain Marvel will have to decide about this himself."

Why can't Billy decide?  Because Captain Marvel is a different person! If Billy Batson is Captain Marvel, there would be no need to transform, he could make the decision himself!

Finally, let me share once again the very first time Billy calls down the magic lightning from Whiz Comics #2.

"As Billy speaks the magic word he becomes Captain Marvel!"  Billy Batson becomes - is transformed into - Captain Marvel!!

Is Billy Batson also Captain Marvel?  No, Billy Batson transforms into Captain Marvel.  Billy and Cap are two different people.  

I hope you've enjoyed this article and found it informative - thanks for reading!

(NOTE: The idea that Billy Batson stays Billy Batson but older and with muscles when he says, "SHAZAM!" is a new twist to the Captain Marvel origin that started in 1987 (Shazam: A New Beginning) and has continued with the Shazam character of DC's 'New 52' comics.)

Captain Marvel's Moniker

I've read several articles and posts where it seems the conventional wisdom is that since most people now know the original Captain Marvel by the name 'Shazam' then we might as well call him that.  In other words, everyone knows him as Shazam, so there's no reason to refer to him as Captain Marvel.  At first I agreed, but now I don't.  

In my opinion, and based on research, referring to Captain Marvel as Shazam is a fairly new phenomenon, not one that goes back years and years ago.  And the premise that most fans know him as Shazam and not Captain Marvel isn't as precise a premise as it seems at first.  Allow me to present some facts from my research.

Fact 1:  All fans going back to the 1940's know that the Wizard's name is Shazam and Captain Marvel is his champion to fight evil.  (See my previous article here: Shazam? Captain Marvel?)  I won't get into the lawsuit between DC and Fawcett in this article and the impact it had on Captain Marvel's name, but you can read some fantastic articles about them on the Shazamcast here and here. (Please also give a listen to the Shazamcast podcast featuring Carl and Jeff as they go into depth on this issue!)

Fact 2:  When DC brought Captain Marvel back in 1973, the title of the comic was 'With One Magic Word...Shazam! The Original Captain Marvel" (Edition 1, Feb 1973).  On the inside leaf it states, "After 20 years...The triumphant return of the World's Mightiest Mortal...The Original Captain Marvel."  In future editions they would show the Wizard Shazam and Captain Marvel.  

Fact 3:  In the 31st edition of Legion '91 (September 1991) Captain Marvel is referred to as...Captain Marvel!

Fact 4:  In the Power of Shazam series that ran in the late '90s, the character is named Captain Marvel.

Fact 5:  In the August 2000 edition of Superman in Action Comics, the character is referred to as Captain Marvel.

Fact 6:  In Jeff Smith's 2007 edition of Shazam: The Monster Society of Evil it is Captain Marvel, not Shazam!

All these facts prove that fans, Fawcett and DC called Captain Marvel by his true name for over 70 years.  He has been Captain Marvel for over 7 decades!

So when did he lose the Captain Marvel moniker for the Shazam sobriquet?  That happened in 2011 when the New 52 Shazam was introduced. According to Shazam! A Celebration of 75 Years, on page 366 we are told, "For the first time there would be no mention of "Captain Marvel" and the World's Mightiest Mortal would be referred to solely by the name already used by many fans - Shazam." (Emphasis added)  That just doesn't add up for me.

Let's say, for arguments sake, that the last time DC published Captain Marvel with the name Captain Marvel was in 2007.  DC would have us believe that in the 4 years from 2007 to 2011 fans suddenly referred to Captain Marvel as Shazam - reversing over 70 years of both fans and DC calling him Captain Marvel??

I implore DC to return Captain Marvel's name to him.  It's been our beloved character's name for 75 years, a name he was given by the wizard Shazam, a name he has earned, and truly the name already used by many fans.

Did You Know...

Did you know that Captain Marvel can time travel?  That's exactly what he does in Captain Marvel Adventures #79.  (Note:  I've also read other editions where Cap does this but I failed to get the edition number - I'll update this once I find them!)

Captain Marvel exceeds the speed of light to escape the known universe and arrive at the Rock of Eternity (Note: He thus proves Einstein's theory!!).  Upon reaching the Rock, Cap uses his 'amazing abilities' to follow the time-line into the past and accurately reach the exact point in time he was looking for!  The World's Mightiest Mortal doesn't need a time machine or high-tech DeLorean to time travel!  

Did you know Captain Marvel can time travel?  I didn't until I read this edition of Captain Marvel Adventures!