Keeping up to date with the Legion

    Full 12-month calendars in their own right issued by comic book companies are nothing new these days, even if some may appear to be only released at the publisher’s whim. But as recently as the dawn of the 70s, such items were non-existent, appearing only occasionally as novelty pieces within the pages of comic books.

   The first DC Comics calendar which has any sort of Legion connection appeared in DC COMICS’ LIMITED COLLECTOR’S EDITION C-34 (Christmas With The Super-Heroes), which featured a standard 12-month listing of dates for 1975, embellished on the periphery with images of various DC characters, including the Legion. This Murphy Anderson illustration was also used on the covers of the four-issue LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES series, which reprinted various stories from the ADVENTURE COMICS era.

Art Institute of Zwen: Neal Adams & Dick Giordano

In 1975 DC Comics and Warner Bros. Books published the 1976 DC Comics Calendar. Each month featured a "poster" scene of one of DC's main characters. And who was chosen to start the whole thing off in January 1976? The Legion of Super-Heroes, illustrated by Neal Adams and Dick Giordano, that's who!
This picture was on the wall in my room for years, not only because it was so cool, but also because it helped me learn who all of the Legionnaires were!
Long-time Legion fans will notice that this scene must occur between Superboy/Legion #203 (the death of Invisible Kid) and Superboy/Legion #212 (the resignation of Matter-Eater Lad).
As far as I know, these pictures have never been collected.
Neal Adams drew quite a few covers for the classic Adventure Comics run, which we will begin to spotlight throughout the new year.
Long Live the Legion!

The Art Institute of Zwen: James Sherman & Jack Abel

In the 1978 DC Calendar, each month featured a different hero versus a different bad guy.
For December, the poster was of the Legion of Super-Heroes facing off against The Toyman. Some of the Legion come back to 1978 to visit Karate Kid to help him celebrate Christmas. Karate Kid was back in the past due to events occurring in his then on-going series, Karate Kid.
Art was by James Sherman, who was the then-current Legion Of Super-Heroes artist, and Jack Abel.