Sparky was a D.C. Thomson comic which ran from 1965 to 1977. Originally aimed at young readers as a sort of stepping stone between Bimbo and Beano, it was revamped in the late Sixties for the average comic reading age but with more than average content. Sometimes experimental and surreal, and often laugh out loud funny, Sparky is still fondly remembered by collectors today.
Now, loyal Sparky fan Alan Smith has devoted a great deal of his time in compiling a fantastic 129 page Sparky File recounting the history of the weekly. Available as either a Word document or PDF to download from the Comics UK website, the impressive tome escorts the reader through the issues, recounting each character with synopses, names of artists, and charting the many changes that the comic underwent. There's even a listing of every free gift and which issue they appeared in.
Such a venture could easily have been presented in a dull and clinical fashion but Alan keeps it lively by adding his opinions and snippets of information. All in all it's a brilliant reference work that I'm sure every fan of this very individual comic will be consulting time and time again.
You can download The Sparky File by clicking on the links that follow. Personally I found the PDF version worked best on the iPod Touch, and the Word .doc was best for the desktop computer.
http://www.comicsuk.co.uk/Sparky File.doc
http://www.comicsuk.co.uk/Sparky File.pdf
If they don't work, refer to the Comics UK forum here where you'll find the links:
http://www.comicsuk.co.uk/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=3541&start=0
Just to say-a big thank you to Lew for putting my `File` on his site!
ReplyDeleteI am still updating & correcting it. Just corrected a real `boo-boo!!` The "Snooks" should be listed in `Fun Strips` appendix! They were a 1968 fun strip that ran from issues 166 to 205. Sorry for that `absence`