When you first start collecting Lili Ledy WGSH figures, you might chance upon some brow-beaten dudes who someone called Superman. And to be fair, it’s not much more than a curl in front and a hairbrush style on top that separates Shazam’s head sculpt from Superman’s in LedyLand.
Shazam (left), Superman (right)
Shazam (left), Superman (right)
But Shazam’s name troubles run much deeper than this. Their origins are from within the comics from whence he came.
S The wisdom of Solomon;
H The strength of Hercules;
A The stamina of Atlas;
Z The power of Zeus;
A The courage of Achilles;
M The speed of Mercury.
Like Frankenstein’s monster, Shazam is often called by the wrong name. The wizard called upon to give Billy Batson (Memo Batson in Mexico) his amazing powers is named Shazam. The hero that we casually call Shazam is actually Captain Marvel. Shakespeare wondered what was so special about a name when Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet were kept apart because of their warring families. So, what’s in a name?
Well, Captain Marvel was the most popular comic of the 1940s, even surpassing Superman in sales. In the 1950s, Fawcett Comics ceased production of all Captain Marvel publications due in part to a copyright infringement from DC Comics which alleged that Captain Marvel was an infringement on Superman. In the 1970s, DC Comics licensed Captain Marvel and returned him to publication, but the name had already been taken. During all of this, Marvel Comics had already trademarked the name Captain Marvel for one of their own characters. So, what to do? DC used the name Shazam instead. Whew, confused yet? There’s more.
Which nickname best suits Shazam, err Captain Marvel? Ask fans of the character and he’s known as “The Big Red Cheese.” This was first coined by arch-nemesis Dr. Sivana in the 1940s. And what a great nickname for a Superhero! With his boy scout sensibilities and hoop cheese outfit, the name really fits. But if you ask the publishers, he’s boldly known as “The World’s Mightiest Mortal.”
Are you getting a sense of Shazam/Captain Marvel’s importance now? He’s an enduring character with legions of fans. With only 18, possibly 19, characters released for the Lili Ledy Super Heroes line, Shazam made the cut. Not only was he included, but apparently Mexican kids made him popular enough to see 3 different outfit changes. Each outfit is a little different from the last. There’s a lot to be said for continuity, so each outfit will have its own new name.
The hard-to-find early Type 1 bodysuits were made from cotton and many of them are found with significant color fading. They are a wonder to behold. Tight fitting and full of charm, here's the Type 1 Faded suit. Boy, that collar is far out! We sure looked in a lot of places to find this particular figure.
On this rear view of the Type 1 Faded Suit, you can see the active color fade. It is more typical to see the splotches of the darker color in hard-to-reach spots like inside a boot or in an armpit. The splotches here are unusual. The synthetic velvet accessories are separate from the outfit.
This is possibly the closest representation of the actual character. We're calling this one the Type 3 Intermediate Suit, and it is an oddball in the Lili Ledy Universe. The reason for the oddball theory: This guy was found with his fuzzy cuffs properly attached and a belt that left behind an imprint that only years of wear can create.
It's also odd because the synthetic velour belts were replaced with rubbery ones by the time the Type 3 suits were released. Now perhaps the belt came from Robin and was a stand-in, but the stitch on those cuffs gives a ray of hope on the oddball theory. The boots for all 3 versions are Lili Ledy Hero boots cast in yellow.
Here you have the Final version of Ledy Shazam and also the most plentiful, and naturally, that is a relative term. If your knees get weak when you stare at a rubbery accessory belt, raise your hand. We'll call this one the Type 3 Common Suit. Each Lili Ledy Shazam sports a yellow vinyl cape similar in length to the Lili Ledy Superman cape. All variations of Ledy Shazam also utilize a standard Lili Ledy male body with metal rivets. Hey, has anyone ever noticed that you can bend a Ledy arm at the elbow in both directions? Try it!
Shazam's popularity likely did not surpass Batman nor Robin as Ledy figures, because we have yet to see any Shazam Type 3 Common suits that lack the snap set, while Robin so far has the record for the number of appearances with that variation. It has been postulated within the halls of WorldMEGO that a Type 3 suit without a snap set may be the final clothing production change for Lili Ledy's World's Greatest Super Heroes. As of this writing, a few examples of a possible last body production change have been located.
Just feast your eyes on this absolutely wonderful original boxed Type 1 Lili Ledy Shazam from the collection of Luis Felipe Lopez Portillo Guzman. This is what Ledy Shazam is supposed to look like without the fade. Hence, it's called the Type 1 Red Suit. Shhhhh, I'm meditating.
This is the rear of an original Ledy Shazam box. Once again the graphics were borrowed from MEGO. It's unknown at this time how or if MEGO provided artwork and style guides, though we have made contact with a graphic artist who worked for a neighboring toy company in Mexico during this era. We hope to report back soon. Thanks for stopping by.