When Wonder asked me to write an article about collecting monster magazines, I was delighted. I am one of the elite few in the world of monster movie fandom that can lay claim to owning a complete collection of Famous Monsters of Filmland magazines, which all monster movie fans know (or should know) is the granddaddy of monster movie magazines. As with many of the 8 to 14 year old crowd that grew up in the 50's and 60's, I was monster crazy. The Universal horrors - Dracula, Frankenstein's monster, the Mummy and the Wolf Man, along with any space alien, giant insect, or other beastie that the hollywood movie mill could churn out - were my steady diet. And Famous Monsters (FM) was the dessert that consummated my monstrous appetite.

I did not start out with the idea of acquiring a complete collection of FM's. That lofty goal, while planted in my youth, did not come to fruition until many years later. There are many reasons, I suppose, for becoming a collector. Some people get into collecting for financial reasons - for the long- term investment. The majority, however, I believe have a more personal reason - nostalgia. There is something eminently satisfying about gathering about us the relics of our youth; those delightful treasures that gave us so much pleasure during our "wonder" years. So much so, in fact that many of those dime-store antiques now command princely sums on the collector's market.

My journey into the world of collecting began about five years ago while visiting my parents in Melbourne, Florida. I was exploring a corner of my parents garage where some of my childhood "stuff" was stored when I happened upon my old cache of FM's. Somehow they had managed to withstand that overwhelming parental urge that causes comic books, baseball cards, plastic models and the myriad other treasures of our youth to be funneled into the nearest trash can. I was, of course, delighted that they had been spared such a dismal demise.

After spending the better part of a day browsing through the yellowing newsprint littered with my beloved monstrous memories, two thoughts suddenly occurred to me, 1: I wonder if this stuff is worth anything, and 2: I wonder what it would cost me to complete my collection. I remember as a kid finding a picture in one of the early FM's of a kindred spirit who had a complete collection. At that time a "complete" collection consisted of about 35 or 40 issues (A complete collection now consists of 191 regular issues, 10 yearbooks, 3 paperbacks and two convention magazines.) I can still remember drooling over the picture of that young man surrounded by those wondrous (an now, rare) issues and vowing that one day I would own a compete set. Unfortunately my allowance at the time would not let me take advantage of purchasing the back issues they advertised in the back of FM, so I had to be content with not letting any of the newly published issues slip through my fingers.

My first FM purchase was #23 (circa 1963) which featured a terrific Basil Gogos portrait of the terribly mutilated face of Colonel Glenn Manning from Bert I. Gorden's classic War of the Colossal Beast. I somehow missed issues 24-26 so my next purchase was #27. From #27 on I managed to catch almost every issue at either the local drug store or grocery store.

Unfortunately, as we grow older, our childhood vows often fall by the wayside. I graduated high school, began college, and somewhere along the line I apparently went a little soft in the head. My longtime commitment to things magical and monstrous seem to fade midway through college as I had to cope with such harsh realities as the Vietnam war, racial strife, and simply making a living in the work-a-day world. I stopped buying FM's somewhere around issue #125.

It was on that fateful Florida vacation, nearly 18 years later, that I finally regained by sanity and renewed my vow. Providing that the value of FM's had not risen to astronomical proportions, I decided I would complete my collection. Every journey begins with a first step; mine began that same day with a phone call to a local comic book store. "No, we don't handle magazines, just comics. But you might try the Cartoon Museum in Orlando. They handle stuff like that."

The Cartoon Museum, it turned out, was not a museum at all but simply another comic book shop that happened to also handle old paperback books and some Star Trek and science fiction related merchandise. The curator was a pleasant older gentleman who directed me to a magazine filled box. In this box was a section labelled "Famous Monsters". To my disappointment, there were only 6 or 7 issues, all but one of which I already had.

When I returned home to Atlanta from my vacation, I pulled out the Yellow Pages and proceeded to call every comic book store in the metro Atlanta area. With few exceptions I was given the same story: "Sorry, we only handle comics... We hardly ever get requests for that sort or thing... No we can't suggest any potential sources."A few suggested trying the two science fiction conventions that had become annual events in Atlanta - DragonCon and the Atlanta Fantasy Fair - but others acted as though they had never heard of such a magazine as Famous Monsters of Filmland. The few exceptions I did come across, however, were definitely worthwhile. Two stores told me to keep in touch with them because they actively sought FM's but were temporarily out of them. A third, a little comics shop in Decatur, a suburb of Atlanta, told me to come right over because they had a number of them in stock. It was there that I made my first significant find, netting 10 or 12 new issues. It was also there that I discovered a price guide existed for FM's and similar magazines.

Bob Michelucci's Collector's Guide to Monster, Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Magazines was first published in 1977 and had been newly updated and expanded in 1988, the same year I began my odyssey to fulfill my youthful vow. This guide, I soon discovered was the bible of every serious monster magazine collector. In perusing its pages, I quickly discovered that completing my collection was not going to be easy on my pocket book. The later issues were no problem as the guide listed their prices as ranging from $1.25 for a copy rated Good to about $5.00 for a copy rated Mint. Those prices I could handle. It was the prices of the early issues with which I had a problem. FM #1 in Mint condition was listed at $500. The Mint condition price for the first 10 issues alone totalled over $2,000. I did not have to have mint condition issues, of course, but I did want them as close to that condition as I could get. The trick was how to acquire them without breaking the household budget and sending my wife (the budget watcher) into cardiac arrest.

Let me assure you aspiring collectors that it is possible, as I now have a complete collection, our finances are in order, and my wife's heart hasn't skipped a beat. The rest of this article is devoted to explaining how you can piece together a nice collection of FM's for a fraction of the price guide list prices. Using the suggestions I am about to lay out, however, will require two attributes on your part: patience (I took me 3´years to complete my collection and I started out with nearly 100 issues.) and persistence.

There are two primary sources for acquiring FM back issues: The first is mail order houses. Mail order houses come in different varieties; some carry such diverse items as comics, sci-fi related paperbacks, pulps, toys and, hopefully, monster movie magazines. Others, such as Steve Dolnick, out of New York, specialize in one or more of these items. Steve Dolnick is one of the few, if not the only, mail order house(s) specializing only in monster/sci fi/fantasy movie magazines. Such mail order houses are great for finding the specific issues you might be looking for in a variety of prices and conditions. But, if you are looking for high quality, you will almost certainly be looking at a high (but usually fair) price.

The second primary source for acquiring FM's is anywhere other than the mail order houses: comic book shops, collector/memorabilia shops, used book stores that also carry old magazines and comics, flea markets, garage sales, sci fi/horror/fantasy/comic/movie memorabilia shows, etc. The less commercial the source (ie. garage sales, flea markets, etc), the better the chance of finding bargain prices.

By far, however, I have achieved my most fruitful results through a method I refer to as networking. Networking involves a sort of shotgun approach that encompasses all of the sources listed above and more. To use this method, I suggest you create a log or journal in which to keep notes, plus a booklet or box for storing business cards. From experience, I have learned that the best place to start is with the comic book shops. Even if the shop does not deal in monster magazines, one or more of the employees may very well have a few in their private collection or know friends who do. When you go on vacation or business trips outside your area, stop at various towns along the way and check with the local comics and collectibles shops (You can usually find them listed in the yellow pages.) If the stores are agreeable, ask if you can put up an "FM's Wanted" notice with your address and phone number in their store.

Sci Fi/ horror/comics/etc. shows are another great place to make contacts. Be sure to approach every dealer at such a show. I have scored several excellent finds at very reasonable prices through dealers that did not even handle comics or magazines and several of these did not come from the dealers themselves but through their friends and acquaintances. Such shows are also an excellent place to ferret out other monster magazine collectors who may have duplicate issues to sell or trade. These shows usually have a free literature table stacked with various types of flyers. Be sure to add your own "FM's Wanted" flyer to the pile.

Another potential source of FM's is through the Fang Mail section of Famous Monsters. Most of the letters to the editor in this section included the name, city and state of the writer. I, along with a few other collectors I know, have had moderate success locating some of these writers. I found some early FM's this way by contacting an individual who had written a letter that was published in one of the early issues. This method can involve some detective work as there may be several people in the target town or city with the name you are seeking. In my case, I unknowingly contacted the writer's father who, in turn, referred me to him. Be careful when using this method though, as it is easy to run up a large telephone bill chasing a lot of dead end leads. I was lucky in that the individual I was seeking happened to live in the metro Atlanta area so I was able to avoid making any long distance calls.

I have had my least success with garage sales. This is probably because the chances of lucking into finding FM's in this manner is really dismal. Out of about 100 or so garage sales that I have checked out, not one has ever produced any FM's. This still hasn't dampened my hopes that some day I might stumble onto a box of near mint condition early issues for $10. And yes, I still occasionally seek out the house with multicolored balloons on its mailbox, displaying a "Garage R Us" sign, hoping that this just might be the one.

I know a few people that have had some success advertising in magazines like FilmFax, various fanzines, and even their local newspaper's "Collectibles" section. Unfortunately, as with any advertising, you risk receiving zero return on your investment.

You probably get the idea of networking by now. It should also be obvious why keeping records of your contacts is a good idea. I am still following a couple of promising year-old leads that I hope will some day lead to pay dirt.

My first piece of advice to any collector is to buy Bob Micheluchi's Collector's Guide to Monster, Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Magazines. This book can be ordered for $9.95 + $4.00 S&H from:

Dennis Druktenis Publishing & Mail Order, Inc.

348 Jocelyn Place

Highwood, IL 60040

A new edition of Bob's guide is due out around August 1993 so you may want to hold off ordering your copy until then. He is also in the process of producing a computer software program for magazine collectors. It will provide information similar to the book and allow the collector to record and keep track of the condition and value of his/her inventory. Bob hopes to update the program with new magazine titles and prices annually. For more information about this software program, write:

Imagine, Inc.

P.O. Box 9674, Dept. W

Pittsburg, PA 15226

(412) 921-8777

For you collectors who have the money, but not the patience to wait months or years to complete your collections, Steve Dolnick will undoubtedly be your best source. You can request Steve's latest inventory/price list by sending a self-addressed stamped envelope to:

Steve Dolnick

P.O. Box 69

Dept. G

East Meadow, NY 11554

There are a lot of monster magazines out there besides Famous Monsters. Titles such as Castle of Frankenstein, Monster Parade, Fantastic Monsters of the Films and scores of others are lurking in closets, attics and basements all across our planet. They are waiting patiently, hoping that one day their owners will find them and rediscover a beloved part of their childhood in their yellowing pages. Hopefully they will avoid our overcrowded landfills and find their way into hands and hearts of someone who will care for them and give them a loving home.