Mustanaamio Kerho (which translates to ‘Black Mask Club’) is a Phantom club that was established in Finland by the comic book publisher of Mustanaamio at the time, Semic Press Oy.
We see below a page dedicated on how to join Mustanaamio Kerho in Mustanaamio comic book edition number 1, published in 1970.
Club members received a membership certificate, a membership card, a code key booklet and Phantom rings.
Similar to Fantomet Klubben which operated in Norway, also by Semic Press, Mustanaamio Kerho was promoted in Mustanaamio comics, with sections of the comic dedicated to club correspondence, letters from readers, club competitions, and messages from ‘Subdivisions’.
Members of Mustanaamio Kerho would participate in publisher run competitions published in Mustanaamio comics. By decoding a secret message using the code key booklet, members were able to send in their answers to the publishers to win prizes if their name came up in the raffle.
Members of Mustanaamio Kerho were also able to establish ‘Subdivisions’ within their local areas, with members organizing events to meetup and socialize. The members were able to name their ‘Subdivisions’, with specific ‘Diplomi’ issued by Semic Press Oy recognizing these ‘Subdivisions’.
Semic Sarjakerho
Semic Sarjakerho (which translates to ‘Semic League Club’) is a fan club that was established in Finland by Semic Press Oy.
The club ran in conjunction with Mustanaamio Kerho, however Semic Sarjakerho wasn’t a club excusive to the Phantom. The club crossed over various comic book characters being published by Semic Press Oy at the time, including Flash Gordon, Spiderman and Superman.
As we can see below, advertisements appeared in various comic books, inviting readers to join the Semic Sarjakerho club.
Semic Sarjakerho also issued club member certificates titled ‘Diplomi’ as can be seen below.
The Phantom 