Uncanny X-Men 130 (1963)

I’ve been waiting a while to dust this one off, but now I can finally count Dazzler as part of the Four Color Holiday stable.

Today is Pop Music Chart Day.

Pop Music Chart Day is celebrated January 4 to honor the original Billboard Magazine’s Hit Parade publication. That was over 85 years ago, but worth remembering.

Dazzler’s, aka Alison Blaire, rise to comic book fandom was a long and complicated one.

Depending on who you listen to, either Casablanca Records or Marvel first approached the other with the concept of a disco singer and a mulitmedia event. Marvel Comics was already familiar with Casablanca due to their collaboration through the rock group KISS. The company and band had partnered to create a comic book in magazine format showcasing KISS as super heroes in 1977.

By 1979 disco music was at its apex and about to spiral out of public favor. That didn’t stop Neil Bogart, Casablanca head honcho, and Marvel Editor Jim Shooter from working to create a singer who would not only star in her own comic book, but be part of the record label and even a film.

Names bandied about for the movie included actress Bo Derek, while John Romita, Jr., Marvel penciler, envisioned the character more along the lines of singer Grace Jones. Her original name was to be the Disco Dazzler, but writer Roger Stern saved her from typecasting by shortening her moniker to simply Dazzler.

During production, Casablanca began to experience financial troubles and their end of the agreement become a moot point. Marvel continued and debuted the new character, now a mutant able to transmute sound into light, in Uncanny X-Men 130 in 1980. The book also serves as one of the opening salvos of the Dark Pheonix Saga.

Dazzler next appeared in Amazing Spider-Man issue 203 and Fantastic Four 217, both in April 1980.

Though the multimedia event orignally planned was cancelled, Dazzler was given the distinction of being the first Marvel ongoing series exclusively offered through the direct market. The premiere issue was cover dated May 1981 with a print run of 400,000 copies.

The original series ran 42 issues, 1981-85 with a seperate graphic novel.

She continues to be part of the Marvel Universe with a large following, but her early days will always be her best.