Amph 1001 Comic Books You Must Read: 280. "Superboy" #49

70. Boy Commando Comics #4

[image=http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/boy-commandos/4-1.jpg]

Writer: Jack Kirby

Artist: Jack Kirby, Joe Simon

DC(Fall 1943@ World's Best Comics Co.)

"The Boy Commandos were the ultimate kid gang, and this issue was their finest hour. The multi-chapter "Invasion of Europe" ran an amazing 46 pages. It wouldn't be long before writer-artist Kirby would find himself on those same battlefields."

 

71. Miss America Comics #1

[image=http://img.search.com/thumb/8/88/MissAmericaComics_n1_1944.jpg/200px-MissAmericaComics_n1_1944.jpg]

Writer: Uncredited

Artist: Jack Kirby, Joe Simon

Marvel(January 1944@ 20th Century Comics Co.)

"Introduced in Marvel Mystery Comcis, Madeline Frank gained her super-powers after being struck by lightning. Thought she continued to appear is various comics during the 40's, her own title would undergo a radical change with the next issue."

 

Ouch.

 

72. Archie Comics #7

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Writer: Ed Goggin

Artist: Harry Sahle, Janice Valleau

MLJ(April 1944@ MLJ Magazines Inc.)

"Archie tries to take both Betty and Veronica to a show without either of them being aware of the other's presence. It's the first of many such "double date" disasters and establishes the "eternal triangle" involving the three teens."

 

73. Four Color #38: Roy Rogers

[image=http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/four-color/38-1.jpg]

Writer: Gaylord Du Bois

Artist: Burris Jenkins

Dell(April 1944@ Roy Rogers Enterprises)

"It was the first Roy Rogers comic and the first Western comic with a photo cover. More violent that one expects from the "King of the Cowboys", this 49-page thriller is notable for its blazing action, brutal villains and gritty art."

 

74. Plastic Man #2

[image=http://members.fortunecity.com/holeymoley/covers/plasticman/Plastic%20Man%2002.jpg]

Writer: Jack Cole

Artist: Jack Cole

Quality Comics(August1944@ Vital Publications, Inc.)

"Another classic cover, as Plastic Man and Woozy Winks visit a town made over to look like the 1890's. Also: a man who can change bodies with anyone, a Lava Man, and a city--other than Washington, D. C.--where everyone has gone crazy."

 

75. Action Comics #78

[image=http://images.wikia.com/marvel_dc/images/2/2c/Action_Comics_78.jpg]

Writer: Alvin Schwartz (signed as Jerry Siegel)

Artist: Ira Yarbrough (signed as Joe Schuster)

DC (November 1944@ *1944 National Comics Publications)

"The Chef of Bohemia" one of Schwartz' Best Superman tales, is a tribute to his Greenwich Village friend Alex. The Russian owner of the Borsht Bowl restaurant, "Alex was kind of an artist at helping people" and fed many a starving artist."

 

Geez, if someone read nothing but this list, one would think that the only comics published in the 40's were either Archie or Plastic Man. I suppose that the combination of Plastic Man and a western village made for some funny moments.

Maybe a team up with Roy Rogers from the previous episode? Who, obvious from the synopsis, is wearing an outfit which just screams "gritty, hard boiled action..."

 

76. Miss America Magazine #2

[image=http://images.wikia.com/marveldatabase/images/0/0b/Miss_America_Magazine_Vol_1_2.jpg]

Writer: Stan Lee, Ruth Atkinson

Artist: Ruth Atkinson

Marvel(November 1944@ 20th Century Comics Co.)

"Miss America Comics becomes Miss America Magazine with Dolores Conlo0n portraying the heroine on the cover and a mix of comics and articles inside. Of more import, it's the debut of Patsy Walker, soon to be Marvel's biggest teen star."

 

Uh... wow. No wonder Stan did a bang-up job in the 60s - he had nowhere to go but up.

 

Wow. That looks . . . really strange.

 

77. Real Screen Funnies #1

[image=http://media.comicvine.com/uploads/0/229/325827-20851-124933-1-real-screen-funnies_super.jpg]

Writer: Uncredited

Artist: Uncredited

DC (Spring 1945@ Detective Comics Inc.)

"With rival Dell having licensed the Walt Disney and Warner Brothers cartoon stars, DC turned to Columbia Pictures. The relatively amiable fox and the conniving crow got the cover of most issues, and also starring in their own long-running series."

 

Plus film icons "Tito and his Burro." That the burro looks a lot like Bugs Bunny (Bugs Burro?! IT. COULD. WORK.) is probably not an accident.

 

78. Detective Comics #98

[image=http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20081129153123/marvel_dc/images/d/d9/Detective_Comics_98.jpg]

Writer: Don Cameron

Artist: Dick Sprang

DC(April 1945@ 1945 Detective Comics, Inc.)

"A Gotham City banker hits the hobo trail to escape his high-pressure existence in this romanticized version of hobo life. When he uses his money to fix up a hobo haven, criminals recognize him, and Batman and Robin must rescue him."

 

So of all the iconic issues of Detective Comics to come out in the Golden Age... #98. Really?

 

The plot sounds a bit like "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town"...

 

79. Green Lama #5

[image=http://goldenagecomics.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/green_lama_5.jpg]

Writer: Ken Crossen (as Richard Foster)

Artist: Mac Raboy

Spark Publications(May 1945@ 1945 Spark Publications, Inc.)

"An Army private writes to the Green Lama for advice on dealing with a bigot in his squad. A trip to Nazi Germany shows the bigot the wrongness of his prejudice in one of the few 1940's stories to show African-American servicemen."

Another Green superhero!

 

I was expecting a dumb pun on Green Lantern.

Instead, I merely got a dumb costume. I feel ripped off.

 

I'm sorry, but probably 95% of the items in this list have been incredibly underwhelming so far.

 

I had it as Green Llama at first. Which creates a somewhat different picture.

 

The Green Lama: "He fights for the four freedoms.."

Is that a traditional Buddhist reference? If it was, it would make sense, but would certainly be limiting to the audience. If it wasn't, I wonder which 4 freedoms he picked?

 

From Wiki:

"The Green Lama first appeared in a short novel entitled The Green Lama in the April 1940 issue of Double Detective magazine. The novel was written by Kendell Foster Crossen using the pseudonym of "Richard Foster". Writing in 1976,[1] Crossen recalled that the character was created because the publishers of Double Detective, the Frank Munsey company, wanted a competitor for The Shadow which was published by their rivals Street & Smith.

The character was originally conceived as "The Gray Lama" thinking that he could hide in the shadows and sneak around, but tests of the cover art proved to be less than satisfactory so they changed his color to green.

The Green Lama proved to be successful (though not as successful as The Shadow), and Crossen continued to produce Green Lama stories for Double Detective regularly up until March 1943, for a total of 14 stories.

Although appearing in a detective fiction magazine, the Green Lama tales can be considered science fiction or supernatural fantasy in that the Green Lama and other characters are possessed of superhuman powers and super-science weapons. The Green Lama is an alias of Jethro Dumont, a rich resident of New York City. Born July 25, 1913, to millionaire John Pierre Dumont and Janet Lansing. He received his A.B. from Harvard University, M.A. from Oxford, Ph.D. from the Sorbonne, also attended Drepung College in Tibet. Inherited his father?s fortune, estimated at ten million dollars, when his father and mother were both killed in an accident while he was still at Harvard. Spent ten years in Tibet studying to be a lama (a Buddhist Spiritual Teacher) and learning many mystical secrets in the process. He returned to America intending to spread the basic doctrines of Tibetan Buddhism (Remove ignorance and relieve suffering), but realized that he could accomplish more by fighting crime. He never carried a gun, believing that ?this would make me no better than those I fight.? Dumont was also endowed with superhuman powers acquired through his scientific knowledge of radioactive salts. He was also noted to wear a rainbow ring of hair. Dumont has two alter egos - the crime-fighting Green Lama, and the Buddhist priest Dr Pali. He also had additional alter-egos including the adventurer "Hugh Gilmore."

Among the Green Lama's litany of associates were: a Tibetan lama named Tsarong, the college educated reformed gangster Gary Brown, the post-debutant Evangl Stewart (who would go on to marry Gary), radiologist Dr. Harrison Valco, New York City police detective John Caraway, actor Ken Clayton, Montana-born actress Jean Farrell and magician Theodor Harrin. The Green Lama was also frequently assisted by the mysterious woman known as "Magga" whose true identity was never revealed. Crossen's pseudonym "Richard Foster" was also established as a character and friend of Jethro Dumont.

The first six stories have been reprinted in the pulp reprint fanzine High Adventure. Altus Press is currently in production reprinting the entire series."


All I can say is: Jethro?

 

Hey, don't be knocking Jethro, just think of all the great Jethros there have been over the years!

Jethro Tull, the 18th century agriculturalist and... Jethro Tull, the band named after him and...

Uh...

 

Wow. Never heard of him, and who would have thought he had such a massive backstory?

All I can say is: Jethro?

Sure that, and this:

Dumont was also endowed with superhuman powers acquired through his scientific knowledge of radioactive salts. He was also noted to wear a rainbow ring of hair.

Radioactive salts must have done wonders for his cancer rate. "Rainbow ring of hair" I don't even know what to make of? The power of Bozo the clown, perhaps?

 

Now, that sounds incredibly bizarre. I have never heard of this guy and the idea of a Buddhist superhero is just . . . I mean . . . that is just incredibly strange. I gotta try that one.