Fresh out of college, and failing to get work as a traditional comic book artist, Hembeck developed a unique artistic style based on the version of himself he used to write illustrated letters to his college friends. Hembeck used this character to conduct comedic "interviews" with Spider-Man and the Flash, which he sent to the leading fan publication of the day, "The Buyer's Guide for Comic Fandom" (later known as the "Comics Buyer's Guide"). Much to his surprise, the submissions were published, and Hembeck's strip, called "Dateline: @!!?#", became a popular feature. The "best" of these strips were published in "Hembeck: The Best of Dateline: @!!?#", put out by Eclipse Comics in 1979 and reprinted by FantaCo Enterprises in 1980.