Millennials will never know a time when information and entertainment weren’t only as far away as their phone.

For us, the children of the 1970s, we had imagination. Suspending belief we moved from panel to panel between the pages of 20- to 50-cent adventure books of wonder where men and women dressed in colorful outfits, flew and busted the jaws of evil doers.

Christmas With the Super Heroes (1977)

Power Records gave voice to those images.

During the 1970s Power Records snapped up licenses from both Marvel and DC comic companies. Stories were sold on 45 RPM singles accompanying a 20-page book reprinting whatever issue or issues were translated to the record. Eventually these were repackaged on LPs to wring every bit of coinage from fanboys.

With no official title we’ll call this offering Christmas With the Super-Heroes. The LP featured “three exciting stories with Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman,” released in 1977 and running 44 minutes.

Superman’s adventure was entitled “Light Up the Tree, Mr. President.” Unless the Man of Steel can stop him, the president will launch missiles when he lights the National Tree.

Wonder Woman became a “Prisoner of Christmas Island” with Santa Claus taken prisoner by Broomhilda.

Batman and Robin solved the “Christmas Carol Caper” through song and slug fests with the likes of Rudy “Rudolph the Red Nosed Hitman” Snow and Sammy the South Side Santa.

Marie Severin didn’t date this pin-up, but I’d put it somewhere between 1970 and 1972 based on the characters in evidence. This may be the only time Conan experienced Christmas.

Following Superman’s resurrection when the Man of Steel thought he could rock a mullet as mighty as Bono’s the creative crew of Karl Kesel, Stuart Immonen and company tossed their one-time flagship character into a Christmas Eve story entitled “A Night of a Hundred Thieves.”

Amidst candy canes and Christmas trees Superman and the special crimes unit of Metropolis spend the evening outwitting 100 criminals. Not a great story, but standard for the era.

No idea where this came from (contact us), but thought it would be appropriate for the site.  C’mon, Santa, the Grinch and Hulk. Where else can you find this holiday triumvirate? Just goes to prove what a magical time of year Christmas really is.

For me How the Grinch Stole Christmas is the premiere holiday animation as Boris Karloff purrs through Dr. Seuss’ prose.

Update:  Artwork by Michael Delmundo!  – Jeff