Amazing Spider-Man Annual #5

Issue Details

Synopsis

THE PARENTS OF PETER PARKER! When helping Aunt May move stuff around the attic, Peter accidentally breaks open a storage trunk filled with photos and other items belonging to his parents. Among these is a newspaper clipping that identifies that his parents were traitors to their country. Mortified, Peter questions his Aunt May, who tells him of his parents and the last time they saw them alive and how she and his Uncle Ben adopted him when they were killed.  Unable to shake this idea from his mind, Peter decides to learn the full story, and so as Spider-Man he seeks the Fantastic Four's aid in helping him travel to the last place his parents were reported seen alive: Algeria. There he learns that his parents were supposedly spies who worked for the Red Skull, and he came across their ID badges for the Skull's organization. Spider-Man also stumbles upon the Red Skull himself, who is in the country to organize a new plot to take over the world.   Spider-Man clashes with the Skull and his men and eventually learns from one of them that Richard and Mary Parker were murdered by the Red Skull when they refused to do his bidding. Believing his parents to have died heroes, he goes after the Red Skull once more and defeats him in battle. In the aftermath, he finds that his father's Red Skull ID card has been cracked in the battle, and finds ID cards underneath that identify them as anti-espionage agents, proving to Peter that his parents were secret government operatives. With evidence to clear his parents' names, Peter returns to the United States, happy to know that in reality, his parents died serving their country instead of betraying it. A DAY AT THE DAILY BUGLE A Pin-Up of the Bugle office featuring J. Jonah Jameson, Joe Robertson, Ned Leeds, and Betty Brant. PETER PARKER, THE SUPER SPORTS STAR A two page spread of Peter Parker day dreaming about using his Spider-Powers in a number of different sports. WHERE IT'S AT! A map of Manhattan, showing where the regular places featured in Amazing Spider-Man are located. Places include Peter Parker and Harry Osborn's apartment, The Daily Bugle, Aunt May's house, Empire State University, and the Coffee Bean. THIS IS SPIDEY AS WE KNOW HIM BUT-- Drawings of Spider-Man that are in parody of various Sunday funny strips, including Dick Tracy, Micky Mouse, Superman, Archie and Charlie Brown. THERE WE GO-A-PLOTTING! Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and John Romita are stuck for ideas for an upcoming issue of Amazing Spider-Man. When Larry suffers heartburn due to sourballs, they incorporate this event into a plot where Aunt May also suffers heartburn. They come up with a concept about Aunt May hiring a house maid who turns out to be Dr. Doom in disguise. Stan and John agree on what should happen in the story, to Larry's despair, but right when they're about to put it to paper, Roy Thomas enters the room and tells them his latest Avengers story: About how the Avengers hire a house maid who turns out to be Dr. Doom. With Thomas beating them to the punch, they decide to start all over again with a new story idea - and, to do so, they force Larry to eat more sourballs.