(January 1942)

Marvel, 1939 Series
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Volume
1
Price
0.10 USD
Pages
68
Indicia Frequency
monthly
On-sale Date
1941-11-17
Indicia / Colophon Publisher
Timely Comics Inc.
Editing
Joe Simon (editor)

Issue Notes

The on-sale date is from the publication date recorded in the Catalog of Copyright Entries, Part 2, Periodicals, 1942, New Series, Vol. 37, No. 1.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents)

Human Torch / cover / 1 page (report information)

Script
?
Pencils
Alex Schomburg
Inks
Alex Schomburg
Colors
?
Letters
typeset

First Line of Dialogue or Text
As the montrous tank raced toward helpless Toro...
Genre
superhero
Characters
The Human Torch [Jim Hammond]; Toro [Thomas Raymond]; the Nazis
Reprints
Keywords
bondage; heavy machine guns; rifles; tanks; torture; Wehrmacht; World War II

Yahoo! (Table of Contents: 1) (Expand) /

The Young Allies / promo (ad from the publisher) / 1 page (report information)

The Flaming Arrow Murders (Table of Contents: 2)

Human Torch / comic story / 15 pages (report information)

Script
Carl Burgos (signed)
Pencils
Carl Burgos (signed)
Inks
Carl Burgos (signed)
Colors
?
Letters
?

Genre
superhero
Characters
Human Torch [Jim Hammond]; Toro [Thomas Raymond]; Marvin Raleigh (owner of the Raleigh Tank Corporation); The Saint [John Borden] (villain, Raleigh's secretary); Nick Finelli (villain, death)
Synopsis
Torch and Toro must stop the criminal designs of The Saint, who, along with his gang, is out to steal the plans for a new super air tank that the Raleigh Corporation is building.
Reprints

[You are old enough to vote...---] (Table of Contents: 3)

Marvel Mystery Comics / activity / 1 page (report information)

Colors
?
Letters
?

Synopsis
Marvel Mystery Comics contest. Readers are asked to write a letter telling the editors of Marvel Mystery Comics why they like or do not like the following characters in the book: Human Torch, Sub-Mariner, Vision, Terry Vance, Angel, Patriot and Ka-Zar, and to rate each of the characters,from 1-7, as to their own preference. Cash prizes were to be awarded when the contest ends on December 30, 1941 as follows: 1st Prize = $50; 2nd Prize = $25; 3rd Prize = $10; and Prizes for 4th thru 15th = $1 each.
Reprints

Indexer Notes

Sequence added by Craig Delich 2012-8-5.

[The Fox's Smuggling Racket] (Table of Contents: 4)

Namor the Sub-Mariner / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script
Bill Everett (signed)
Pencils
Bill Everett (signed)
Inks
Bill Everett (signed)
Colors
?
Letters
?

Genre
superhero
Characters
The Sub-Mariner [Prince Namor]; George (dock worker); The Fox [Jasper Whifflegears] (villain); "Red" Larson (villain, 2nd in command); Mike (villain)
Synopsis
Namor hears from a dock worker (aka "brush man"), who handles fur cargoes shipped in from Alaska, that no more shipments are being received and that the furs are somehow being smuggled in. Sub-Mariner investigates and discovers that The Fox is putting the stolen furs in torpedo-like metal tubes with motors and fires them into an underground river that leads to the United States.
Reprints
Keywords
Thunder Cave

Indexer Notes

The Masterworks edition lists writer and inker as unknown. The last panel mentions that Sub-Mariner Comics #3 went on sale about October 1, 1941.

[A Business Meeting In Hell] (Table of Contents: 5)

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

Script
?
Pencils
Al Avison
Inks
George Klein; ?
Colors
?
Letters
?

Genre
superhero
Characters
The Vision [Aarkus]; Lucifer Satan [Victor Tisling] (villain); Satan's un-named sales manager (villain)
Synopsis
Satan demands that his sales manager quit falling down on the job and see to it that the only evil-free city in the United States, Arbor City, is turned into a hotbed of evil and misery. So he decides to send a special agent to Arbor City, in the guise of a local hero, to accomplish the deed.
Reprints
Keywords
Arbor City; Demon; Satan

Indexer Notes

The Masterworks edition lists writer as unknown. Previous indexer credited Joe Simon and Jack Kirby. Avison pencils and Klein and unknown inks per Michael J. Vassallo via atlastales.com and the Masterworks. Previous indexer credited Jack Kirby and David Walters.

Quick Thinking, or, How Good a Detective Are You? (Table of Contents: 6)

text story / 2 pages (report information)

Script
?
Letters
typeset

Genre
detective-mystery
Characters
Tom Moriarity; Eddie Thompson (mailman); un-named girl (death); Henry Gordon (bank guard); un-named gang of bank robbers (villains)
Synopsis
Ed warned Old Tom that some notorious bank robbers and killers in Kenton were headed his way and to be on the alert. They arrived and held Tom prisoner, but he quickly turned the tables on the crooks. But how did the police know the crooks were in Tom’s house?
Reprints

Indexer Notes

Written as a mystery where you are asked to work out the answer before reading the solution.

Voodini's Last Laugh From the Grave (Table of Contents: 7)

Terry Vance, the School Boy Sleuth / comic story / 7 pages (report information)

Script
Ray Gill (credited)
Pencils
Bob Oksner (credited)
Inks
Bob Oksner ? (credited)
Colors
?
Letters
?

Genre
detective-mystery
Characters
Terry Vance; Dr. Watson (a monkey); Deadline Dawson; Professor Voodini's un-named lawyer; six un-named relatives of Professor Voodini (two die); Professor Voodini (villain, death); Professor Voodini's un-named butler (villain)
Synopsis
The relatives of the late Professor Voodini gather at his mansion to listen to the reading of the will, whose contents lead to several murders and the re-appearance of the evil professor.
Reprints

Indexer Notes

The Masterworks edition lists pencil layout artist as Oksner, but finished penciler and inker as unknown.

Death To Spies! (Table of Contents: 8)

The Patriot / comic story / 5 pages (report information)

Script
Ray Gill ?
Pencils
Sid Greene
Inks
?
Colors
?
Letters
?

Genre
superhero
Characters
The Patriot [Jeffrey Mace]; Mary; Guinaldo (villain, murderous Filipino); Suoka (villain, Japanese secret agent, death)
Synopsis
Suoka has appointed a Filipino bolo wielder to murder Lt. Curtis, but the Patriot interferes and prevents the crime, finally tracking down the Japanese secret agent behind the murder plot.
Reprints

Indexer Notes

The Masterworks edition lists the writer as unknown. Sid Greene pencils and unknown inks per Michael J. Vassalo via the Masterworks. Previous indexer credited Ray Houlihan.

Death Rings the Bell! (Table of Contents: 9)

The Angel / comic story / 9 pages (report information)

Script
Paul Gustavson ?; Kermit Jaediker ?
Pencils
Paul Gustavson
Inks
Paul Gustavson
Colors
?
Letters
Paul Gustavson

Genre
superhero
Characters
The Angel [Tom Halloway]; Richard Brown (death); Abigail Brown (Richard Brown's sister, death); unnamed butler to the late Jonathan Brown; unnamed servant girl to the late Jonathan Brown; Sprague (carillon player for the late Jonathan Brown); the Phantom of the Bell Tower (villain, brother of Abigail Brown)
Synopsis
The Angel investigates weird deaths associated with the ringing of the carillon belonging to the late millionaire, Jonathan Brown.
Reprints

Indexer Notes

The Masterworks edition lists the writer and artist(s) as unknown.

The writer may have been either Gustavson (who wrote the feature into 1942) or Jaediker (who also wrote the feature sometime in 1942), so both are added to script credit with ? after their names.

All Gustavson credits verified and courtesy of Terry Gustafson, son of Paul Gustavson.

[Fighting for the Free French] (Table of Contents: 10)

Ka-Zar the Great / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script
Ben Thompson ? (signed)
Pencils
Ben Thompson (signed)
Inks
?
Colors
?
Letters
?

Genre
jungle
Characters
Ka-Zar [David Rand]; the Nazis (villains, all die)
Synopsis
Arriving in French Equatorial Africa, Ka-Zar is captured by the Nazis and used as a decoy to sucker French ships into submarine range.
Reprints

Indexer Notes

Last appearance. The Masterworks edition lists the writer and inker as unknown. Writer ? added by Craig Delich 2012-8-5. The Who's Who indicates that Thompson was an artist only.

Battle of the giants! (Table of Contents: 11) (Expand) /

Human Torch / promo (ad from the publisher) / 1 page (report information)

Editing
Related Scans
Series Information
Table of Contents
  1. 0. ["As the montrous tank raced toward helpless Toro..."]
    Human Torch
  2. 1. Yahoo!
    The Young Allies
  3. 2. The Flaming Arrow Murders
    Human Torch
  4. 3. [You are old enough to vote...---]
    Marvel Mystery Comics
  5. 4. [The Fox's Smuggling Racket]
    Namor the Sub-Mariner
  6. 5. [A Business Meeting In Hell]
    The Vision
  7. 6. Quick Thinking, or, How Good a Detective Are You?
  8. 7. Voodini's Last Laugh From the Grave
    Terry Vance, the School Boy Sleuth
  9. 8. Death To Spies!
    The Patriot
  10. 9. Death Rings the Bell!
    The Angel
  11. 10. [Fighting for the Free French]
    Ka-Zar the Great
  12. 11. Battle of the giants!
    Human Torch
This issue was modified by, among others
  • Katie
  • Henry Andrews
  • Bill Borre
  • Nick Caputo
  • Steve Dasinger
  • Craig Delich
  • Del Gruber
  • Tony R. Rose
  • Richard Thomson
  • Jim Van Dore
  • Tom Zsolt