Spidey-Stash Episode 6: Posters

There have been tons of Spider-Man posters produced over the years.  I am going to focus upon several “key” posters available for sale commercially in this article/video.  There are so many cool display posters which were not for sale (and I love display items), so maybe I’ll do a “Display items” episode sometime in the future.

Also, this article will not mention all of the posters featured in the video.  So, go watch the video!!

Let’s start with the granddaddy of them all.  The giant, 6-foot-tall poster, featuring the artwork of Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko!  The poster was hinted at and then offered through comic books in 1965.  The poster was printed upon paper that is thicker than modern day poster paper.  Although some ads mentioned that more heroes would have their own super large poster in the future, no other posters were ever produced at the 6-foot size.

There were many comic book ads for the poster throughout 1965 and into 1966, until it was sold out.  As I started to pick up back issues of comics, I saw the ads for this beautiful poster and always wanted to own one.  The selling price in recent years made it unaffordable to me (in very nice condition the poster sells for over $1,000).  Thankfully, I finally secured one in the summer of 2020.  A friend built a frame for my poster, and I proudly display it in my “Spidey Room”.  My collection went to a “higher level” when the poster made its way to my home.  It is especially meaningful to finally get it, as I have lived my whole life here in Johnstown, PA, the hometown of Steve Ditko!

A friend of mine from the “collecting world” has a 1965 Ditko poster which he takes to conventions and asks comic book professionals to sign it.  Dennis Condon has a Facebook page, “Spider-Man Poster Adventures”, where he has photos and descriptions of many of the comic pros signing the poster.

Starting in 1966, a mysterious “Superheroes Club” was offering items through Marvel comic book ads.  In addition to a membership card, a set of 8 character mini-posters were available.  These posters have always been popular with Marvel fans.  The Spider-Man poster features the same pose as the 6-foot-tall Ditko poster.  In fact, many people have mistakenly believed it was Ditko art on the smaller poster.  Marie Severin is believed to be the actual artist.  There was even a larger Severin poster offered by itself (a typical full-size poster) at one point.  This artwork is unique in that you can “see” Spider-Man’s lips and mouth impression through his mask.

The poster sets were sold in a bag with a nice header card.  The posters were also sent out in a huge sheet at times which was perforated along the edges of each mini poster, to allow for the posters to be easily separated.

The Marvelmania Fan Club, the first independently operated club endorsed by Marvel, started in 1969 and offered some nice items to be ordered through the comic books.  A gorgeous set of full color, full sized posters featured a very nice John Romita Spider-Man scene (with Doc Ock and Green Goblin).  These posters were available for two years, and there are two different copyright dates along the bottom of the posters.

Originally, the Spider-Man poster was drawn by Jack Kirby.  After offering it for a short time, Marvelmania management decided the poster should be drawn by John Romita, since he was the one doing the Spider-Man comic book art.  So, the Kirby version poster was printed in a very limited amount and is hard to find today.

In 1971 a company called “Third Eye” produced some really cool black light posters of Marvel characters.  They also produced boxed puzzles and greeting cards with the same trippy artwork! These items are very sought after by collectors.  Some of the posters were reproduced and offered for sale as a portfolio last year, and a second volume is set to be released in the near future (the reproductions are a slightly different size and the colors of the black light posters are not as authentic as the originals).

There are two Third Eye Spidey posters.  One with our hero shooting out a web; the other is an underwater scene co-starring Namor, The Sub-Mariner.

One of my favorite Spidey items was produced late in 1972.  It is the topic of my very first Spidey-Stash episode:  The Amazing Spider-Man “Beyond The Grave”, A Rockomic, LP.  Inside the LP cover was a folded poster which featured the same artwork as the cover of the LP.  The poster was hung on my bedroom wall for years.  In 2017, an Alex Ross Rockomic tribute print was made available at the major Comic Cons on a limited basis.

A cool poster featuring a photo of someone in costume, superimposed upon the London city background, became available to readers of the UK “Spider-Man Comics Weekly” comic book series. It was a mail away offer.  That same poster was also included as a “free gift” for fans around the world who ordered the very first series “Marvel Value Stamp Book” in 1974 (and those poor fans quickly decreased the value of their comics by clipping out a “stamp” from the letters page of many issues).

Another poster was available for sale in England in 1973.  It features Spidey kicking Sandman in the face (Sandman was drawn in his new green costume). The poster also became available for sale through in the USA through the wonderful “Superhero Merchandise” catalogs in the mid 1970s.

1974 saw the release of a beautiful John Romita Spidey poster with a white background.  That same year, FOOM (Marvel fan club) offered a set of comic book cover posters for sale. The posters were not completely full color; they used 3 colors on each poster. The Spidey cover was issue 68 of Amazing Spider-Man.

Another beautiful black light poster was available in 1975, featuring the classic “running Romita” Spidey pose.  I bought mine at a Spencer’s Gifts store at my local mall, and it was proudly displayed on my bedroom wall for many years.

A company called “Thought Factory” made a series of superhero posters (Marvel and DC characters) in 1977.  Spidey’s poster had an additonal image of Spidey punching Stegron along the bottom of the poster.

There were a few portfolios produced in 1981.  The artists were Fastner and Larson.  The Spidey set had 4 posters featuring Spidey and the following co-stars on each poster:  Doc Ock, Lizard, Green Goblin, and J. Jonah Jameson.

Longtime Spider-man Crawlspace friend, Ron Frenz, was the artist of the “Old and New” poster during his masterful run on the book in 1984.  A whopping 19 characters (not counting Spidey and Peter Parker) were featured on the poster! This poster also was on my bedroom wall for years. (My bedroom wall was basically a Hall of Fame of posters)

In 1995 John Romita and Alex Ross teamed up on a beautiful poster of Spidey battling the Green Goblin in the New York City sky.  It was an homage to the cover of the second issue of the 1968 Spectacular Spider-Man Magazine (which was also redone as the cover of Amazing Spider-Man Annual #9 in 1973.

Romita and Ross teamed up a few more times.  In 2004 they did a poster of tons of characters from John Romita’s long career.  Entitled “Might Marvel Heroes & Villains”, it is a great tribute to Romita.

Do you know of other Spider-Man posters which should be honored?  Please comment below and share your Spidey poster love with us!

Please check out my website and join me as I continue livin’ my blessed Spidey life! https://www.spideyandme.com/