Welcome to the first day of Branded in the 80s 2011 Countdown to Halloween!  This year is all about monster masks (with a little bit of Vincent Price to liven things up.)  Check back here ever day through the month of October for some fun vintage monster mask ads and more!

This first advertisement comes from the pages of Marvel comics back in 1977.  I though that this would be a fitting place to start as it’s the year that I was ushered into the world and represents my first Halloween ever.  It’s also the only mask ad of this type that I was able to find in my collection of older superhero comics…

For a measly $3.19 ($3.94 with shipping and handling) you could own one of seven different monster masks, or even a complete Ben Cooper Spiderman or Hulk costume!  For big spenders, there was also a Wolfman mask complete with sewn in hair for a whopping $10.53!  I loved the Ben Cooper costumes growing up, though I didn’t get a chance to wear many of them.  My mom tended to make my costumes, which were always cool, but there was still a tangible allure to those bright and vivid vinyl costumes that was hard to ignore.  Sure, it never made sense why the Hulk costume has a picture of the Hulk on it, but it was still pretty darn cool.

For more creeptacular fun, check out the official Countdown to Halloween page for a list of other site participating in a month-long celebration of all things Halloween!  You’ll be glad you did…