Geek blast from the past: St. John Publications 3D comics

It’s getting more difficult all the time to blow the minds of kids today. They’re more computer literate before hitting junior high than most of their parents. Toddlers can work an iPad before they can tie their shoe. The graphics on video games and movies are real enough to fool the eye (something we tested recently with Skyrim and Facebook). 3D was big for a few minutes in 2010, then faded into obscurity. The technology was the big thing at CES 2010 and was barely represented at all at this year’s CES.

In 1953, St. John Pubications released something that blew the minds of kids and adults alike. 3D had already been seen on static images and through movies, but there had never been a story told in three dimensions on the pages of comic books. They released Three Dimension Comics #1 (Sept. 1953 oversize format, Oct. 1953 standard-size reprint) starring none other than the pint-size superhero of the generation, Mighty Mouse. In the image below, you’ll see some kids candidly engrossed in the pages as the flying rodent popped off the page and into the imaginations of the kids of the generation.

Click to enlarge.