World's Best Comics #1

([Spring] 1941)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 1)

blank page(s) / 1 page (report information)

Indexer Notes

Inside front cover.

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

Superman; Batman with Robin the Boy Wonder; Zatara; Johnny Thunder; Crimson Avenger; Red, White and Blue; Lando / foreword, introduction, preface, afterword / 1 page (report information)

Pencils

? (various)

Inks

? (various)

Colors

?

Letters

typeset

Genre

adventure; humor; superhero

Characters

Superman; Batman; Robin; Zatara; Johnny Thunder; Crimson Avenger; Red; White; Blue; Lando

Indexer Notes

Individual head views by each feature's artist.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 3)

Superman / comic story / 13 pages (report information)

Script

Jerry Siegel (signed)

Pencils

Wayne Boring (ghosted for Joe Shuster) (signed as Joe Shuster)

Inks

Don Komisarow ? (ghosted for Joe Shuster) (signed as Joe Shuster)

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

When a criminal scientist becomes master of one of nature's most beneficial phenomenons...

Genre

superhero

Characters

Superman [Clark Kent]; Perry White; Lois Lane; B. Drexel Rutherford; Rainmaker (villain, introduction, death)

Synopsis

A criminal scientist learns how to control the weather and uses his power for extortion, and he even nearly stops the Man of Tomorrow from interfering when he uses a paralysis gas on the Man of Steel.

Reprints

• in Superman: The World's Finest Comics Archives (DC, 2004 series) #1 ([August] 2004)
• in The Superman Chronicles (DC, 2006 series) #5 ([October] 2008)
• in Superman: The Golden Age Omnibus (DC, 2013 series) #2 ([September] 2016)
• in Superman: The Golden Age (DC, 2016 series) #3 ([August] 2017)

Indexer Notes

Credits in World's Finest Archives are wrong.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 4)

Curios / cartoon / 1 page (report information)

Script

Henry Boltinoff (signed)

Pencils

Henry Boltinoff (signed)

Inks

Henry Boltinoff (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

Henry Boltinoff (signed)

First Line of Dialogue or Text

The American flag was first carried...

Genre

non-fiction

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 5)

Red, White and Blue / comic story / 8 pages (report information)

Script

Jerry Siegel ?

Pencils

Harry Lampert

Inks

Harry Lampert

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

The first line of defense against the enemy within...

Genre

war

Characters

Red Dugan; Whitey White; Blooey Blue; Doris West

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 6)

Just Like Junior / comic story / 2 pages (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

Stan Asch

Inks

Stan Asch

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Gee, I wish I could go to th' circus...

Genre

humor; children

Characters

Junior

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 7)

The Crimson Avenger / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Jack Lehti (signed)

Pencils

Jack Lehti (signed)

Inks

Charles Paris

Colors

?

Letters

Charles Paris

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Although his identity is concealed by a pseudonym...

Genre

superhero

Characters

Crimson Avenger [Lee Travis]; Wing

Synopsis

The Crimson saves the Governor from a kidnapping attempt.

Indexer Notes

Crimson Avenger wears a cape. Inks and letters credits from Craig Delich.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 8)

Johnny Thunder / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

John Wentworth

Pencils

Stan Asch

Inks

Stan Asch

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

'How come Johnny Thunder's driving a truck?' you ask...

Genre

humor; superhero

Characters

Johnny Thunder; Thunderbolt; Mr. Darling; Mr. Katz

Synopsis

Johnny drives a truck for Daisy's father and has to deal with a rival trucking company trying to sabotage the business.

Indexer Notes

This is the superhero character from Flash Comics. The Thunderbolt is yellow, but he talks.

Danger Ahead (Table of Contents: 9)

text story / 2 pages (report information)

Script

Arch O'Hara

Pencils

Fred Ray (signed)

Inks

Fred Ray (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

typeset

Tong War in Chinatown! (Table of Contents: 10)

Young Doc Davis / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Henry Boltinoff

Pencils

Henry Boltinoff

Inks

Henry Boltinoff

Colors

?

Letters

Henry Boltinoff ?

Genre

detective-mystery

Characters

Doc Davis

Indexer Notes

Letterer credit added by Craig Delich.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 11)

Zatara the Master Magician / comic story / 9 pages (report information)

Script

Gardner Fox

Pencils

Joe Sulman (signed)

Inks

Joe Sulman (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

From the seething maelstrom of crime, there rises...

Genre

adventure

Characters

Zatara; The Menace (villain)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 12)

Incredible but True / cartoon / 1 page (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

?

Inks

?

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Because of the great weight of a full suit of armour...

Genre

non-fiction

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 13)

Drafty #158 / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Script

Ed Moore ? (signed)

Pencils

Ed Moore (signed)

Inks

Ed Moore (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

Ed Moore ? (signed)

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Hey, Drafty-- Look at this--

Genre

humor

Characters

Drafty

Indexer Notes

Letters credit from Craig Delich.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 14)

The King / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Gardner Fox

Pencils

Harry Lampert (signed)

Inks

Harry Lampert (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

Harry Lampert (signed)

First Line of Dialogue or Text

The man of a million faces! --Who can disguise himself to look like banker or bum...

Genre

detective-mystery

Characters

The King; the Witch (villain)

Reprints

• in World's Finest Comics (DC, 1941 series) #210 (March 1972)

Indexer Notes

Letters credit verified by Lampert and added by Craig Delich.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 15)

Dinky / comic story / 2 pages (report information)

Script

Henry Boltinoff (signed)

Pencils

Henry Boltinoff (signed)

Inks

Henry Boltinoff (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

Henry Boltinoff (signed)

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Gee! Imagine! A real fortune teller on our block...

Genre

humor; children

Characters

Dinky

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 16)

Punch Parker / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

Don Cameron ?; Ed Winiarski ?; Paul Norris ?

Inks

?

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Keen eyes watch a boat chug toward shore...

Genre

detective-mystery

Characters

Punch Parker

Indexer Notes

Possible pencils credits provided by Craig Delich and Jerry Bails. The inker for this issue's story is different from that found in World's Finest #2's story.

Carnival (Table of Contents: 17)

text story / 2 pages (report information)

Script

George Shute (credited)

Pencils

?

Inks

?

Colors

?

Letters

typeset

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 18)

Lando, Man of Magic / comic story / 8 pages (report information)

Script

Howard Purcell ? (signed)

Pencils

Howard Purcell (signed)

Inks

Howard Purcell (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Lando the Unknown, greatest of magicians, wages continual warfare...

Genre

superhero

Characters

Lando

The Witch and the Manuscript of Doom! (Table of Contents: 19)

Batman with Robin the Boy Wonder / comic story / 13 pages (report information)

Script

Bill Finger

Pencils

Bob Kane

Inks

Bob Kane; George Roussos (backgrounds)

Colors

?

Letters

George Roussos

Genre

superhero

Characters

The Batman [Bruce Wayne]; Robin [Dick Grayson]; Commissioner James Gordon; Erik Dorne (introduction, death); Dorne's butler; Joshua Grimm (introduction, publisher); Melissa Brunt (introduction, Dorne's Aunt); Jane Ware (introduction, actress); The Witch [Mr. Wright] (villain, introduction)

Synopsis

The Batman and Robin must track down The Witch, a mysterious figure responsible for the murder of Erik Dorne and the theft of a manuscript he wrote.

Reprints

• in Batman Classics (Classics/Williams, 1970 series) #56 (1974)
• in Batman (DC, 1940 series) #254 (January-February 1974)
• in Lynvingen (Illustrerte Klassikere / Williams Forlag, 1969 series) #11/1974 ([november] 1974)
• in Läderlappen (Williams Förlags AB, 1969 series) #12/1974 (1974-12-dd)
• in Batman (Editorial Novaro, 1954 series) #972 (27 de abril de 1979)
• in Batman: The World's Finest Comics Archives (DC, 2002 series) #1 ([November] 2002)
• in The Batman Chronicles (DC, 2005 series) #3 ([July] 2007)
• in Batman: The Golden Age Omnibus (DC, 2015 series) #1 (2015 [January 2016])
• in Batman: The Golden Age (DC, 2016 series) #2 ([April] 2017)

Keywords

Gotham City

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 20)

blank page(s) / 1 page (report information)

Indexer Notes

Inside back cover.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 21)

Superman; Batman with Robin the Boy Wonder; Zatara; Johnny Thunder; Crimson Avenger; Red, White and Blue; Lando / illustration / 1 page (report information)

Pencils

? (various)

Inks

? (various)

Colors

?

Letters

typeset

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Proudly presenting a star-studded collection of the world's best comics

Genre

humor; superhero

Characters

Superman; Batman; Robin; Zatara; Johnny Thunder; The Crimson Avenger; Red Dugan; Whitey White; Blooey Blue; Lando

Indexer Notes

Found on the back cover.