Comics Interview — Issue #146

Schelly discusses his book The Golden Age of Comic Fandom, covering comicdom's formative decade from 1961 to 1972 — from the first fanzines and Alley Awards through the rise of comicons and the eventual crossover of fan talent into professional comics. The interview is conducted by Roy Thomas, who participated in many of the events Schelly describes and contributes his own recollections, making it a genuine two-way conversation rather than a standard Q&A.

Shepherd describes how he revitalized Frew Publications' The Phantom starting in 1988 — overhauling their reprint policy, researching the King Features archives, publishing full unedited stories, and launching original Australian Phantom stories. He discusses the character's extraordinary Australian popularity, the massive sales and media coverage around the 1000th-edition milestone, and upcoming plans including The Legend of the Phantom definitive history timed to the forthcoming movie.

Part three of a multi-issue career interview, covering McGregor's Warren Comics work (the David Turner trilogy, vampire anthology plans), his arrival at Marvel and long runs on Killraven and Black Panther, and the genesis of Sabre at Eclipse — conceived first for a Jim Salicrup/DAK newspaper project — and McGregor's insistence on retaining copyrights and choosing an oversized format.

DAK expresses his lifelong affection for The Phantom, praises the concept of the legacy hero, notes the new Phantom 2040 animated series, and anticipates the forthcoming major motion picture.