For the vast majority of comics aficionados under the age of 45, the name Alan James Hanley is probably meaningless. Hint: He’s not the same guy who owns and runs the renowned comic book store, Alan Hanley’s Universe, across the street from the Empire State Building in New York City.

But to the few younger comics fans who are savvy about comics fandom roots; and to us older fans who knew and loved his work; Alan, “Jim,” or “A.J.” Hanley was a die-hard comic book fan who also happened to be a terrific and prolific cartoonist. As a matter of fact, from the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, when self-published comics fanzines were the primary method of communication and expression for comic book fans nationwide, Hanley was one of the best and most widely-known comic book fan-artists around.

Today, publishing comics fanzines, amateur press alliance (APA) mailings, and other such print and snail-mail delivered relics is considered a fringe endeavor by the majority of present-day fans. But 35 years ago, when Hanley was in his artistic heyday, fanzines were not just mainstream among comic book fans of that era, they were crucial in ways that are little understood by younger fans today.

Back then, fanzines performed all of the important communication functions that the thousands of comics-related Web sites do today. For a national and international network of comics fans, they were critical communications tools that provided a forum to share ideas, explore the history of comics, buy and sell comics-related material, and even provide fans with early insight about upcoming projects and story threads for fan- and professionally-published comics.

All one has to do is look through early issues of “adzines” such as The Buyer’s Guide for Comic Fandom (still being published today as the slick newsstand magazine Comics Buyer’s Guide) to see just how important fanzines were to comics fans back then. Many of the ads in those early tabloid-sized newsprint issues were placed by fan publishers selling their own newest ‘zine. In fact, in a number of early issues, the majority of ads – including the expensive full-pagers – were fanzine ads.

It was in this long-lost world of fandom where Hanley was a major contributor. In addition to publishing his own fanzine, titled Comic Book, Hanley sent his artwork to dozens – perhaps hundreds – of fanzine publishers, who used his strips and spot illustrations for their own self-published endeavors.

Early on, Hanley realized that one of the premier showcases for fan art during the 1970s was The Buyer’s Guide for Comic Fandom (TBG), so he routinely sent its publisher, Alan Light, covers, spot illustrations, and later, entire comic book stories – most of which ended up being published.

When the first tabloid-sized issue of TBG saw print in February 1971, it was a thin, monthly publication. But its popularity quickly skyrocketed, and within 18 months it was being published twice a month to meet the ad space demand. And after four years, with issue #87 (July 18, 1975), TBG became a weekly adzine. Each issue averaged about 72 pages, and while the majority of pages were ads, to be able to use the coveted and less expensive Second Class Mailing rates by the U.S. Post Office, Light was required to publish a significant amount of non-ad editorial material as well.

To meet these requirements, Light used fan art, and columns/features written by knowledgeable fans. This included fan- and pro-art covers, which were a staple for almost every issue. Soon, TBG had more than 10,000 subscribers – making TBG the largest fan-art “stage” in the country. It was on this massive national stage that Hanley created some of his most memorable work.

Hanley’s first published contribution for Light was the cover for TBG #21, published Sept. 15, 1972. And during the next eight years, Hanley’s work appeared in 90 other issues of TBG, making him, by far, the most prolific TBG artist of that era. His published work included covers, spot illustrations, puzzles, games, and a number of comic strips – including “Goodguy,” “Greenhorn,” “Liberty Legion,” “Madman,” “Pug Possum,” “Mad Marvel,” “Capt. America Bunny,” “Thug the Barbarian,” and “Green Ring.”

But sadly, in 1980, at the age of 41, when Hanley was probably at the peak of his popularity, he was suddenly and tragically killed on Christmas Eve when his Volkswagen van skidded off of an icy road near his house and plowed into a tree.

He left a widow, two young daughters, and thousands of heartbroken fans and friends. 

Below is a 1974 photo of Hanley in his Chicago apartment, along with a tiny sampling of his prodigious lifetime output of comics art.