The Spirit #6/2/1940 [The Detroit News]

(June 2, 1940)

[The Origin of the Spirit] (Table of Contents: 1)

The Spirit / comic story / 7 pages (report information)

Script

Will Eisner (credited) (signed as Will Eisner)

Pencils

Will Eisner (credited) (signed as Will Eisner)

Inks

Will Eisner (credited) (signed as Will Eisner)

Colors

Joe Kubert

Letters

Zoltan Szenics

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Good evening Commissioner Dolan... May I can come in?

Genre

adventure; detective-mystery; superhero

Characters

The Spirit [Denny Colt] (first appearance); Commissioner Dolan (first appearance); Dr. Cobra (first appearance); "Happy" the Coroner (first appearance); Kelly (first appearance); Ebony White (first appearance, cameo); Sgt. O'Rourke (first appearance)

Synopsis

While chasing Dr. Cobra Denny Colt falls into a vat of chemicals and is presumed dead.

Reprints

• in Police Comics (Quality Comics, 1941 series) #11 (September 1942)
• in Comic Forum (Comicothek, 1979 series) #14 (Juni 1982)
• in The Spirit (Kitchen Sink Press, 1977 series) #36 (August 1982)
• in Spirit (Semic, 1984 series) #[7] - Spirit Jubileumsalbum 1940-1990 ([oktober] 1990)
• in Spirit: The Origin Years (Kitchen Sink Press, 1992 series) #1 (May 1992)
• in Will Eisner's The Spirit Archives (DC, 2000 series) #1 ([July] 2000)
which is reprinted
• in Die Spirit Archive (Salleck, 2002 series) #1 (2002)
• in The Best of the Spirit (DC, 2005 series) (2005 [February 2006])
• in Will Eisner's The Spirit: A Celebration of 75 Years (DC, 2015 series) ([September] 2015)

Indexer Notes

First Spirit strip by Will Eisner and beginning of the series. In this first story the Spirit doesn't wear a mask.

Credits confirmed from Cat Yronwode's Spirit index. Unnoficial title taken from Will Eisner's The Spirit Archives (DC, 2000 series) #1.

Letterer credit of Zoltan Szenics confirmed by Alberto Becattini in his blog "alberto's pages", 29 January 2015 (http://alberto-s-pages.webnode.it/news/zoltan-szenics/), retrieved 16 February 2015.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 2)

Lady Luck / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Script

Will Eisner (credited as Ford Davis)

Pencils

Chuck Mazoujian (credited as Ford Davis)

Inks

Chuck Mazoujian (credited as Ford Davis)

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Swift as a young deer, a graceful, cloaked figure slips from shadow over the city's darkened rooftops.

Genre

adventure; superhero

Characters

Lady Luck (first appearance)

[Origin of Mr Mystic] (Table of Contents: 3)

Mr. Mystic / comic story / 5 pages (report information)

Script

Will Eisner (credited as W. Morgan Thomas)

Pencils

Bob Powell (credited as W. Morgan Thomas)

Inks

Bob Powell (credited as W. Morgan Thomas)

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

superhero

Characters

Mr. Mystic [Kenneth St. Germain; name revealed in John Law (2006)] (first appearance, origin)

Synopsis

The origin sequence for Mr. Mystic.

Reprints

• in Will Eisner Presents (Eclipse, 1990 series) #1 (December 1990)