MARS ATTACKS TRADE CARDS 1964 FULL SET 55 CARDS BUBBLES INC UK

EMLARGE IMAGES TO CHECK CONDITION , CORNER WEAR AND LITTLE CREASING TO SOME,CHECK CARD COMPLETED IN INK . CARD 52 CREASING GENERAL CONDITION VERY GOOD.

CIGARETTE AND TRADE CARDS  

I STARTED WITH MY BROTHER BUYING AND SELLING CARDS BACK IN 1978 MAINLY AT AN OPEN AIR MARKET STALL AT DERBY IN THE UK. DURING THOSE EARLY YEARS WE TRADED THOUSANDS OF CARDS AND BUILT UP VAST STOCKS, DURING THE 1980’S AND 1990’S WE CONCENTRATED ON BUILDING UP STOCKS OF MAGAZINES AND COMICS AND THE CARD TRADE TOOK A BIT OF A BACK SEAT BUT NOW I HAVE DECIDED IT’S TIME TO START OFFERING SOME OF THE HUNDREDS OF SETS AND THOUSANDS OF SINGLE CARDS ACQUIRED IN THOSE EARLY DAYS. 

ALL CARDS ARE GUARANTEED ORIGINAL 

 MARS ATTACKS

Mars Attacks is a science fiction-themed trading card series released in 1962 by Topps. The cards feature artwork by science fiction artists Wally Wood and Norman Saunders.^[1] The cards form a story arc, which tell of the invasion of Earth by cruel, hideous Martians, under the command of a corrupt Martian government who conceal the fact from the Martian populace that Mars is doomed to explode and therefore proposes a colonization of Earth to turn it into their new homeworld. The cards depict futuristic battle scenes and bizarre methods of Martian attack, torture and slaughter of humans, as well as various Earth nations being attacked. The story concludes with an expeditionary force of humans volunteering to embark on a counterattack on Mars, in which the Earth force attacks the Martians in their manner (bayoneting and bullets). This necessitates the Martians that are still on Mars to defend their homeworld. The Earth attack forces, after destroying the Martian cities and killing the Martians, depart just before Mars is destroyed in the predicted cataclysm, thus ensuring the peace and safety of Earth as the Martian race is seemingly doomed to extinction (but see “Adaptations and merchandising” below).

Scholar Nathan Brownstone noted that “The Mars Attacks cards achieved their popularity at the very time when the Cuban Missile Crisis captured the headlines, the moment when Cold War came closest to become radioactively hot. That was when that a brutal zero sum game scenario – for Humanity to survive the Martians must die – established a solid niche in Americana popular culture”.^[2]

The cards proved popular with children, but depictions of explicit gore and implied sexual content caused an outcry, leading the company to halt production. The cards have since become collectors’ items, with certain cards commanding over $3,500 at auction.^[3]

In the 1980s, Topps began developing merchandise based on the Mars Attacks storyline, including mini-comic books and card reprints.^[4] An expanded set of 100 cards called Mars Attacks Archives was issued in 1994 by Topps and spawned a second round of merchandising. Director Tim Burton released a film called Mars Attacks! in 1996 based on the series, spawning a third round of merchandising. In 2012, Topps released a 50th anniversary expanded set of 75 cards called Mars Attacks Heritage, leading to a fourth round of merchandising that continued into 2017 with the release of an official sequel series, Mars Attacks: The Revenge!

The Mars Attacks trading card series was created by Topps in 1962. Product developer Len Brown, inspired by Wally Wood’s cover for EC Comics‘ Weird Science #16,^[5] pitched the idea to Woody Gelman. Gelman and Brown created the story—with Brown writing the copy—and created rough sketches. They enlisted Wood to flesh out the sketches and Bob Powell to finish them. Norman Saunders painted the 55-card set.^[6]

The cards, which sold for five cents per pack of five, were test marketed by Topps through the dummy corporation Bubbles, Inc. under the name Attack from Space. Sales were sufficient to expand the marketing and the name was changed to Mars Attacks. The cards sparked parental and community outrage over their graphic violence and implied sexuality. Topps responded initially by repainting 13 of the 55 cards to reduce the gore and sexuality. However, inquiries from a Connecticut district attorney caused Topps to halt production of the series altogether before the replacements could even be printed.^[7]

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia