Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Dynamite Magazine

Dynamite was a magazine for children founded by Jenette Kahn and published by Scholastic Press from 1974 until 1992. The first issue, Dynamite #1, was dated March 1974 and featured characters Hawkeye and Radar from the television series M*A*S*H. The final issue, Dynamite #165, was dated March 1992 and featured actress Julia Roberts and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Popular in the 1970s and 1980s, the magazine served as a guide to popular culture for a generation of children. Dynamite included magic tricks with Magic Wanda; kids' one-line woes, known as "Bummers," which always began with the words, "Don't you hate it when..."; "And Now a Word from Our Sponsor" commercial parodies; the puzzle pages of the ghoulish Count Morbida; Hot Stuff, a section featuring gags and new stuff in stores; the birth and growth of a horse called Foxy Fiddler; reprinted origin stories on Marvel and DC superheroes, and later the comic superheroes the "Dynamite Duo"; and Good Vibrations, an advice column. Chock full of articles, Dynamite covers profiled three decades in TV shows (from The Six Million Dollar Man to Beverly Hills, 90210), cartoons (from "Snoopy" to "Garfield"), movie stars (from Bruce Lee to River Phoenix), music stars (from KISS, John Denver, or Elvis to Paula Abdul and Rick Springfield), and other assorted themes.

In addition to items on the back covers to punch out or assemble (such as puzzles, games, postcards, mobiles, bookmarks, or masks), Dynamite also included bonus inserts, such as fold-out posters, greeting cards, calendars, or records. Often the magazine would contain additional bonus inserts such as baseball cards, stickers, or glow-in-the-dark items. Occasional 3-D posters with glasses were also popular, featuring images such as King Kong, skateboarding, and outer space.

3 comments:

  1. Do you remember Hot Dog as well? I think it was similar to Dynamite. I used to get it in second grade in 1982.

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  2. I had this issue!! Loved this magazine as a kid!!

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  3. Great magazine, used to read it along with Ranger Rick and Odyssey

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