Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Weird Tract Number 93: "What Is Your Life Story?" by Operation Somebody Cares

Troy Davis writes:

Operation somebody cares tract

Previously, I wrote about Chick Publications' 1970 Operation Somebody Cares outreach program and the accompanying tract with the same name. Although the program is long gone, the name lives on in a tract publishing ministry in Collinsville, Virginia that does Chick tract knock-offs as well as booklets with original material.

On the ministry's website, it explains that it was founded in 1973 by Will Cosby whom Jack Chick granted the right to print knock-offs of his tracts; over the years, Operation Somebody Cares has published 20 million tracts. That's minuscule compared to the billion or so Chick tracts churned out but they do have a presence; "What Is Your Life Story" is one of several of their tracts I have received by street proselytizers. The tract has the same story as Chick's most-published tract "This Was Your Life."

NOTES ON JACK CHICK: In my introductory post, I listed just a few of the many rare and valuable objects from The Museum's extensive Chick-related collection . . . The role of Ralph Rushtoi in the publishing careers of both Jack Chick and another comics-based tract writer Vic Lockman. . . I discuss the role of Bill Bright's prolific tract The Four Spiritual Laws in leading to a format change in Chick tracts that was a key reason why they have become much more popular since the late 1960s . . . My thoughts on Jack Chick's spreading of the peace symbol/broken cross mythology . . .  Jack Chick's retro-futuristic car in the scarce 48-page version of "The Beast" . . . Chick tract parody "Constitutional Rites" . . . Chick tract parody "Donald Trump Is The Antichrist; Prepare for the Rapture!" . . .The 1972 Chick tract "The Last Generation." . . . The extremely rare 1970 Chick tract "Operation Somebody Cares" . .. . . The museum's prized cultural artifact, original art by Jack Chick . . . Artifacts from the museum's collections:all of Jack Chick's high school yearbooks (which include the first published cartoon by Chick) . . . "Closet Witches" by Jack T. Chick (audio-cassette interview with Dr. Rebecca Brown and "Elaine").

 The Museum of Weird and Demented Religious Tracts is a project of Les Zazous Postmodern Art Galley of Bellaire, Ohio. Read the Welcome Statement of The Museum here.


For more on the gallery, check out the web site here and the gallery's Twitter handle is @ZazousLes.  The Twitter handle for the museum is @WeirdTracts

The index of tracts for the museum's website is here

Contributions of weird tracts to the museum can be made by mail: send your weird tracts to Les Zazous Postmodern Art Gallery 3475 Guernsey Street, Bellaire, Ohio 43906.
religious tract weird
religious tract bizarre

No comments:

Post a Comment

Weird Tract Number 142: "Mark of the Beast" by Anonymous

Troy Davis writes: "Mark of the Beast is an anonymous, undated four-page pamphlet promoting the Catholic-baiting book by Seventh Day Ad...