I've been admiring Benjamin West's The Death of Nelson painting this week.
Lord Nelson was born in Norfolk and we saw his statue in Norwich the other week on our summer holiday.
Its strange what connections you make when you see things. happens to me all the time as you probably can tell from this blog!
Nelson's prone position and white trousers immediately made me think of the goriest gum card I'd ever seen when I was a kid.
"Trapped" from Civil War News! Yuk! I was mesmerised by this card back then and couldn't help dwelling on that awful question: just where was his leg?
This image has stayed with me more than any other from the card series. It would have been my Brothers who had this set in the 60's. I was too young.
I managed to get a full set about 20 years ago from a local card dealer, Alex Bass. It came complete with the ABC album and a full set of confederate bank notes.
Once more I was 'trapped'!
Did you have Civil War News cards readers? Do you still?
Anyone know who the artist was?
Those graphics are stunning indeed, Woodsy.
ReplyDeleteTwo years back whilst in London, a seller at Alfie's Antique Market in London had a large boxful of A&BC card for sale, including Civil War News, Battle Cards, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., plus other brands - hundreds of cards for a tenner. I was quite flabbergasted to come across such a bargain, in London of all places. Since then, I have been fascinated by the pulp B-movie graphics of those CWN cards. Very effective and gory at the same time.
I'm actually in Portsmouth where the HMS Victory is on permanent display in our historic dockyard, as a kid we would always visit during the summer holidays and there is a raised plaque where he was shot and fell. We would joke that it was the plaques fault and he simply tripped over it! -Mark J
ReplyDeletetheres a tale that Nelsons body was shipped home in a barrel of alcohol. On the way back the sailors supposedly decanted cups of the fluid on the sly. It became known as 'Tapping the Admiral'
ReplyDeleteThat's grotesque! Ugh!
DeleteGoogling my own question I found this comprehensive list of the artists involved in bringing Civil War News to life. Do you know these artists? http://www.monsterwax.com/civilwar.html
ReplyDeleteThe ACW cards were released in the UK twice, once perhaps around 1965, the other maybe in 1976 (I'm going from memory and my approximate age at the time). They were condemned as violent, I recall. I don't know any kid who read the backs of the cards, which had reprints of parts of old American newspapers of the time. They had a significant effect on the playground, with vast games of "American Civil Wars", where we knew little other than than tone side wore grey, the other wore blue (and perhaps also that one side was for slavery). I recall on their second release, there was as much interest in the Confederate notes that each set held, some collecting these in preference to the cards.
ReplyDeleteI really don't remember these cards in the playground Andy but I was only 4 in '65 and 6 in '67. I think the ones I handled later were my older Brother's. The same would be said for Mars Attacks although I'm unsure if this set was in the house at all. Could be wishful thinking. Both sets were gory and violent like you say and like earlier EC horror comics they were controversial. There was another set I noticed at Memorabilia when I used to go to the NEC fairs, not Dinosaur News but Dinosaur Attacks maybe? Was that in homage to the earlier Topps/ ABC gore fests do you know?
DeleteSorry should read 1967, not 1976!
ReplyDeleteI suspect the same artist painted the grisly WWII 'Battle' bubblegum cards that I collected as a kid in Yorkshire in the '60s. The style also remind me of the gory 'Mars Attacks' set, so the artist could be Norman Sanders (or Saunders).
ReplyDeleteI've heard of Battle cards but not sure if I've seen any Charlie. Don't recall collecting them in 60's Lancashire. I managed to find a full set of Mars Attacks ABC cards at a car boot sale in Dewsbury! My most exciting find ever! I also have a reprint set by Renata, now my only set as I sold the originals, which I regretted ever since!
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