Millie the Model Annual #1
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeMillie the Model Annual #1 holds a unique place in Marvel publishing history as the first Marvel annual composed entirely of original, newly-created material — its same-day companion, Strange Tales Annual #1, was assembled wholly from reprints, leaving Millie's oversized debut as the genuine template for the annual format Marvel would follow for decades. Published on July 3, 1962, the issue devoted a full story to Millie's origin — how a small-town Kansas girl arrived in New York City and was discovered by photographer Clicker Holbrook — giving the long-running series its first consolidated, definitive backstory. As one of Marvel's longest-running titles (207 issues from 1945 to 1973), the Millie franchise was the company's dominant non-superhero property during the Silver Age, and this annual, arriving just as Stan Lee and Stan Goldberg were steering the book's creative identity, crystallized the entire supporting cast — Chili Storm, Toni Turner, Daisy Dinkle, Mr. Hanover, and Millie's family — in one place for the first time.
In "How Millie Became A Model," Millie takes a glamorous trip to Hollywood for a screen test, channeling icons like Elizabeth Taylor, Gina Lollobrigida, and Jayne Mansfield with a series of bold wigs and hairstyles. Written by Stan Lee and brought to life with vibrant art by Stan Goldberg—pencils, inks, colors, and letters all by the same hand—this annual showcases Millie’s playful transformation with charm and flair. The cover, also by Goldberg, captures her in one of her dazzling new looks.
In "Millie's Sensational Screen Test!", Millie the Model trades her usual fashion-forward flair for a day in Hollywood, channeling icons like Elizabeth Taylor, Gina Lollobrigida, and Jayne Mansfield with nothing but a few wigs and a flair for the dramatic. With every new hairstyle, she slips effortlessly into a different star's persona—showcasing her charm, wit, and endless style.
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By 1962, Stan Lee had taken over scripting duties on the monthly series while Stan Goldberg — Marvel's chief colorist who had inherited the penciling chair from the defining Dan DeCarlo run (issues #18–93) — was handling both cover and interior art; this annual was their first extended showcase together on the character. The copyright records (Catalog of Copyright Entries, 1962, page 1227) list Stan Lee as the applying author, with the book registered to Male Publishing Corp. on July 3, 1962. The annual's giant, square-bound format — unusual for Marvel at that moment — required production changes that the publisher would soon standardize for its superhero annuals starting with Fantastic Four Annual #1 in 1963. Unlike the Strange Tales Annual issued the same day, every page in Millie's annual was new work, making it a genuine original publication rather than a repackaging exercise.
Trivia · 8 facts
- On-sale date of July 3, 1962 — tied with Strange Tales Annual #1 as Marvel's first annual, per the Catalog of Copyright Entries; however, the Millie annual consisted entirely of original material while Strange Tales reprinted older stories, making this the first Marvel annual produced as a true original publication.
- Written by Stan Lee; cover and interior art by Stan Goldberg, the team then steering the monthly series after Dan DeCarlo's decade-long defining run ended around issue #93.
- Contains Millie's origin story — 'How Millie Became A Model' — depicting her arrival in New York City from Sleepy Gap, Kansas, and her discovery by photographer Clicker Holbrook.
- Story 'Meeting Millie's Family!' establishes that Millie's family (including Mrs. Collins) visits her in New York, with Chili Storm insisting on a trip to the modeling agency — an early example of the two rivals' dynamic played out in a domestic setting.
- The issue is a Giant Edition featuring multiple story segments — including 'A Day in the Life of a Model!,' 'Millie's Sensational Screen Test!,' 'When the Circus Comes to Town,' 'Farewell to Clicker!,' and 'Where Millie Lives!' — plus fashion pin-up pages and paper dolls with reader-submitted hairstyles and costume designs.
- The full core supporting cast appears together: Chili Storm (Millie's red-headed rival), Toni Turner (best friend), Daisy Dinkle, Clicker Holbrook (photographer-boyfriend), Mr. Hanover (agency boss), and Mrs. Collins.
- The Millie the Model franchise — created by Ruth Atkinson in 1945 and Marvel's longest-running humor title — was the company's most prominent non-superhero property during the Silver Age, with multiple spin-off titles including Life with Millie, A Date with Millie, Mad About Millie, and Modeling with Millie.
- The series won an Alley Award for 'Best Romance Comic' at the 1968 New York Comic Art Convention, reflecting the sustained creative quality of the era in which this annual was produced.
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