Spread the Joy: Advent 2025: Day 4

Hear those bells ringing? That might be because today's featured charity is The Salvation Army. They've been using bells to attract attention to passerbys for charitable giving ever since 16-year old volunteer Amelia Kunkle got the idea at a New York red kettle way back in 1900.

I didn't know this but the Salvation Army is not just a charity. It's a church. Formed as a Methodist place of worship in 1865. Originally started as the East London Christian Mission by William Booth and his wife Catherine. Booth changed the name to the Salvation Army in 1878 when one of his son's bristled at being called a member of the church's 'volunteer army'. The word 'salvation' replaced volunteer and Booth began to adopt a more militaristic approach to his church, dressing workers in uniform, creating a flag and appointing himself the Salvation Army's first general. They even have their own anthem and flag!

Perhaps the most well known charitable operation of the Salvation Army is its homeless shelters and 'soup lines' which have become as synonymous with the holidays as well as the Great Depression of the 1930s. They also provide addiction recovery services, financial assistance for rent utilities and transportation, and humanitarian aid worldwide. Last year, an estimated 27 million American men, women and children were helped by the Salvation Army.

If the ringing of a Salvation Army volunteer's bell brings back memories of your parents giving you a quarter when you were a kid to drop in the donation kettles, then perhaps think about making a much larger donation now as an adult. If so, you can donate here to the Salvation Army USA

Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #82

Reprinting the Nick Fury story from Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #24, the Howlers earn some furlough time back in the States. While a couple of the team goes off to visit family, incognito Hollywood actor Dino arranges for a special USO style performance for the rest of his compatriots. Of course, it's not all glitz and glamour as Fury runs a foul of a secret Nazi cell operating in the United States. 

Lots of fisticuffs! Some really awesome cameos. Tinsel Town's most famous celebrities including Bob Hope appear. I really liked the reverse secret identity aspect of the story involving Dino Manelli. Enlisted under his birth name, none of the celebrities at the bash know that Dino is actually an Army grunt participating in top secret missions. Dino has used his connections as an actor to throw this private show from the Howlers. However, Dino is in disguise as his dashing leading man self, hosting the fete in a full tuxedo. None of his celebrity peers even suspect that Dino is one Fury's unit. In fact, I thought it rather hilarious when one actor wondered aloud why this handful of guys warranted such a celebration thrown by Dino.

A good story with a refreshing change of pace. I liked the downtime aspects better than the actual meat of the story. I'm just hoping that by going with some reprints in order to chronicle the complete World War II career of the Howling Commandos, I'm not missing anything like pages culled because of bronze age comic book page counts or a secondary feature starring a solo member of Fury's team. 

The things I do to save a buck ..

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars. 

The Adventures of Bob Hope #87

If you've been keeping up with my blog for a while, you will know that I am a consummate bargain hunter. I don't like to pay full price for anything. I've been known to wait months- years to read something if I can't get it on discount. 

Now there's a few exceptions to this rule. When it comes to Supergirl or Scooby-Doo Team-Up, I shell out the big bucks for a monthly fix. Holiday specials are the same. So when I saw this book at a local comic book store in Greensboro, NC, I had to do some quick math and weigh the pros with the cons. 

I've been wanting a copy- any copy- of this series since I started collecting comics again 10 years ago. My father had a couple of copies of this along with some Jerry Lewis comic books that got passed along to me before they were stolen in the early 90s. I got myself a Jerry Lewis issue for only a buck some time back. So, I felt that balanced out shelling a few extra dollars towards making this comic a part of my collection. Plus, from the cover, I felt that the book could make for a fun read this Halloween season. So, into my shopping cart it went...

This issue of Bob Hope has the comedian as some sort of con man. This was a typical character that he played in a number of his films in the 40s and 50s. Along with his dog Harvard Harvard, III, Bob is casing a carnival when he spins his last dime on a fortune teller. The clairvoyant tells the main character to find a castle with five steps in order to obtain his financial rewards. 

The only place Bob knows that there are castles is in England, so our hero and his dog embark on a cargo ship across the pond to Jolly Old England. There he finds a pretty girl that just happens to be going to a castle with five steps to claim her inheritance. Seeing dollar signs, Bob tags along only to discover that the castle is haunted and the spirits that inhabit it aren't very happy to see him there.

This was a very interesting look at DC Comics in 1964. I don't often get to read a book that old unless it's a collected reprint. So, I really enjoyed seeing all the great vintage ads and the smell of the comic- I don't need to take drugs. That old comic book smell is intoxicating enough!

One thing I thought was quite interesting was an interview with series artist Bob Oskner. In it, the artist states that he hopes his daughter becomes the first woman to break into comics. Excuse me, but what about Marie Severin (EC Comics) and Ramona Fradon (Metamorpho)? I'm pretty sure their roles on various titles beginning in the 1950s pre-dates Bob Oskner's little girl by almost 15 years!

The overall story was pretty funny. I laughed a few times. Though I have a feeling if I had read six of seven issues in a row, some of the gags would have gotten old pretty fast. Bob was portrayed in his typical smarmy and self-deprecating manner to a tee! And I really thought the new character of Harvard the Dog was a great addition. Too bad he didn't last more than about a dozen issues...

I did think it was quite funny in one segment when Bob Hope tells a policeman that he's an American. Very few people know that the US military's greatest supporter was actually born in London!

The scary aspect was about as scary as an old Abbott & Costello Meets (Insert Monster Here) film. A little spooky but nothing to keep you up at night. But it's a great read to conjure up a Halloween atmosphere. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.