MARVEL COMICS SUPER SPECIAL

The one item in my collection that is by far the coolest and yet overlooked is the 1977 MARVEL COMICS SUPER SPECIAL – KISS. At the end of the day when all else is said and done this piece of memorabilia is probably one of the most important in the history of the band. Years from now when people mention KISS one thing that will always be said is that they ‘at one time published their own comic book’. That alone makes it important not only in the history of KISS, but rock and roll in general.
I was 15 years old when this little gem walked into my life. Dan and I were visiting the local comic shops in search of another installment of SERCRET WARS and ever so patiently trying to find the (freshly banned) ROCK AND ROLL COMICS PRESENTS GUNS-N-ROSES, when out of nowhere the owner of the shop told us,
"I don’t have the Guns-N-Roses issue…it’s pretty rare, but I do have this…." He held up the bright orange magazine sized comic and all of the air left the room. Dan pulled some wadded bills from his Velcro Van Halen wallet and the next thing I knew we were sitting in his Camaro and he kept repeating to himself,
"I can’t believe I actually own this!"
The fire that burnt in his eyes explained to me just how important this artifact was. Later, Dan would sell the comic to me during the great ‘Dan-unemployment’ phase of 1993 so it has never officially left his sight. The comic remains ‘within the circle’ and can be viewed at any time. It’s simply being preserved in the archives…a little more carefully than it would within the confines of the Thompson vault. Just ask to borrow Van Halen BALANCE on CD if you need further explanation.