The Marvel Age of Comics

The Marvel Comics Universe of the 1960s was set in the real-world as opposed to fictional, not only in their locales but within their narratives as well. Iron Man helped fight the Cold War, the Fantastic Four and Spider-Man played roles in the Space Race, Namor the Submarine joined the environmental movement, the X-Men hung out in Greenwich Village, and a Mary Jane Watson got a job as a go-go dancer. By remixing the factual with the fictional, these narratives offer a unique and insightful overview of the decade.

The Marvel Age of Comics

The Marvel comic books of the 1960s often reflected real-world events, from the Cold War to the Civil Rights Movement, creating a fictional history that complimented the factual Sixties.

Spider-Man and Project Mercury

The amazing Spider-Man helps a crippled space capsule return safely to Earth while the real-world Mercury Seven astronauts wait for the opportunity to travel into the vast unknown.

The Might Thor Joins the Peace Corps

Thor alter-ego Donald Blake travels to the war-torn nation of San Diablo as a volunteer doctor to help the sick, similar to the tens-of-thousands of young Americans who joined the Peace Corps.

Black Panther: Making a Stand in South Africa

Members of the Fantastic Four travel to the segregated African nation of Rudyarda to assist the Black Panther, a journey similar to one made by Robert F. Kennedy to South Africa in 1966.

The Incredible Hulk and the University of Wisconsin

The Hulk became enraged at protesters at Desert State University in 1970 while real-world students protested napalm manufacturer Dow Chemical at the University of Wisconsin in 1967.

Wyatt Wingfoot: The Fish-In Protests

Wyatt Wingfoot invites the Fantastic Four to his Oklahoma reservation for help against the Miracle Man while Native Americans fought for fishing rights in the real world state of Washington.

Red Wolf and the Occupation of Alcatraz

The mythical Red Wolf seeks revenge on the death of Willaim Talltrees’ parents while Richard Oakes hatches a plan to occupy Alcatraz Island after its notorious prison was abandoned in 1963.

Iron Man: Behind Enemy Lines

Iron Man and New York Times journalist Harrison Salisbury both traveled to North Vietnam in the late 1960s, encountering different views of the U.S. bombing effort during the Vietnam War.

Spider-Man: The My Lai Massacre

The tragic massacre during the Vietnam War is explored alongside Flash Thompson’s failed attempt keep a sacred temple from being bombed when he was drafted and sent to Vietnam.

The Fantastic Four and Apollo 11

The Fantastic Four foil a plot by the alien Kree to keep Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin from landing on the Moon while millions across planet Earth are enraptured by the lunar mission.

Captain America and Altamont Speedway

Captain America confronts members of Satan’s Angels disrupting a music festival shortly after the Hells Angels stabbed a fan at the infamous Rolling Stones concert at Altamont Speedway.