Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, Vol. 2, No. 21, June, 1921

Before Captain Marvel saved the day, there was Captain Billy. W.H. Fawcett's unassuming humor magazine launched in 1919 and grew into something unexpected: the unlikely ancestor of the comic book industry. Each 64-page issue was a compact explosion of jokes, quips, and comedic verse, written for Americans who wanted to laugh without taking anything too seriously. This June 1921 issue contains articles ranging from "Havana's Passe Charms" to "Our Movie Gossips," alongside regular features like "Smokehouse Poetry" and "Drippings from the Fawcett." It's a time capsule of vaudeville-era wit, pre-war optimism, and the kind of broad humor that made this publication a cultural touchstone. The magazine's success spawned Fawcett Publications, which would eventually introduce the world to Captain Marvel, the superhero who directly inspired the creation of Superman. Meredith Wilson immortalized the publication in "The Music Man" when Trouble sang that he'd "bought a grab-bag at the drugstore" full of Captain Billy's Whiz Bangs. For readers curious about where American comedy and pop culture began their long strange trip.