Pocket Comics #1

(August 1941)

[Contest] (Table of Contents: 1) (Expand) /

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

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

Satan / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script

Otto Binder (signed as Eando Binder)

Pencils

Pierce Rice

Inks

Arturo Cazeneuve ?; Louis Cazeneuve ?

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Satan...mad dictator of the underworld!

Genre

horror-suspense

Characters

Private Air Cadet Jim Brady; Lieutenant Patricia Randall (nurse); Satan (villain, introduction, mad dictator of the underworld); Adolf Hitler (villain); un-named members of Satan's gang (villains, introduction for all, many die)

Synopsis

Satan makes the mistake of trying to sabotage Camp Porter in his mad campaign to undermine the U.S. program to defend democracy.

Reprints

• in Men of Mystery Comics (AC, 1999 series) #87 [black and white]

Keywords

Camp Porter

Indexer Notes

Ppencils credit from Craig Delich and Bill Black 2012-12-13.

Ink credits from Bill Black.

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

The Red Blazer / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

Al Avison (signed as A. Avison)

Inks

Al Avison (signed as A. Avison)

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Swooping and zooming -- propelled by fiery pyro rays -- a strange champion of justice appears!

Genre

superhero

Characters

The Red Blazer [Jack Dawson] (introduction, origin); Kagah (Martian, assistant to Dr. Morgan, death); Dr. Morgan (scientist, inventor of a space cruiser); Doc Breenan (villain)

Synopsis

Jack comes upon an aged man burying someone and discovers that the man is Dr. Morgan, a scientist who invented the space cruiser and flew to Mars in 1901. Morgan slips Jack a drink, causing the young man to pass out. He is taken to the Heaviside layer by the scientist, where astro-pyro rays advanced the young man's evolutionary stage. He returns to Earth to battle criminals who are looting cities and murdering residents.

Reprints

• in Men of Mystery Comics (AC, 1999 series) #87 [black and white]

Keywords

Astro-Pyro Rays; Kamena Penitentiary; space cruiser; Vis-o-Phone

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

Spirit of '76 / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script

Bob Powell

Pencils

Edd Ashe

Inks

Edd Ashe

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Gary Blakely, great great grandson of Captain Ralston, aide-de-camp to General Washington, returns from England to serve the United States.

Genre

adventure; superhero

Characters

Spirit of '76 [Gary Blakely] (introduction and origin); Major Ralston (Gary's grandfather); Captain Blakely (Gary's father); Tubby (cadet friend of Gary's); Captain Hoch (villain); the Nazis (villains)

Synopsis

Gary is attending West Point, but his family tradition of serving in the military spurs him on to action before he graduates, and what better way than taking on Luftwaffe Captain Hoch, whose "Khaki Shirts" are planning to dynamite West Point.

Reprints

• in Golden-Age Greats Spotlight (AC, 2003 series) #6 [black and white]
• in Green Hornet Comics (Harvey, 1942 series) #v2#7 (7) (June 1942) [probably with some redrawing / rearranging of panels]

Indexer Notes

Original art at at Lewis Wayne Gallery.

[Origin of the Black Cat!] (Table of Contents: 5)

Black Cat / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script

Alfred Harvey

Pencils

Al Gabriele

Inks

Al Gabriele

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Linda Turner, Hollywood movie star, and America's sweetheart, is bored with her ultra-sophisticated life of make believe.

Genre

superhero

Characters

Black Cat [Linda Turner] (introduction and origin); Rick Horne (introduction); Garboil (villain, introduction)

Synopsis

Bored with her pampered life as a Hollywood star -- and suspecting that her German director Garboil is a Nazi spy -- Linda Turner creates the masked identity of the Black Cat to foil Garboil's plans. Rick Horne, a reporter and Hollywood gossip columnist for the Los Angeles Globe, is also after Garboil. Black Cat and Rick meet, both thinking the other works for Garboil until they compare notes. They then reluctantly team up to stop Garboil and his thugs.

Reprints

• in Speed Comics (Harvey, 1941 series) #17 (April 1942)
• in The Original Black Cat (Lorne-Harvey, 1988 series) #6 (August 1991)

Indexer Notes

Originally credited to Barbara Hall based on Trina Robbins' interview with Hall as given on the Comixscholars-L listserve on 30 April 2014. But on 21 July 2015, in an interview with CBR.com, Robbins stated: "I have to tell you that she [Hall] had told me that she drew the first "Black Cat," which it turns out she did not draw. Al Gabrielle drew it. So neither her daughter nor I know if she ever did draw "Black Cat." She was getting on when I interviewed her. She had always told her daughter that had drawn "Black Cat," but at this point, it remains a mystery."

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

The Phantom Sphinx / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

Pierce Rice

Inks

Louis Cazeneuve

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Revived from a 6000 year hypnotic sleep as a mummy, the great Amron uses the magic of ancient Egypt for the good of all mankind...

Genre

superhero

Characters

The Phantom Sphinx [General Amron] (introduction, origin); Dr. Salle (scientist, introduction); Nancy Taylor (American reporter); Red Norton (villain, bandit, death); Suliman the Terrible (villain, transformed into a camel)

Synopsis

Dr. Salle and his companions discover a long lost tomb that contains the remains of General Amron, who was put into a hypnotic sleep by his father some 6000 years before. However, a notorious bandit named Norton kills all the explorers, reads Salle's notes, and revives the mummy using the Star Sirius, a pebble. Rising from his long sleep, the mummy, heeding the words of his father, becomes the Phantom Sphinx and avenges the wrongs that have been done.

Reprints

• in Men of Mystery Comics (AC, 1999 series) #87 [black and white]

Keywords

Sphinx; Star Sirius

Indexer Notes

Inks credit from penciled note on margin of original art of page 1. Images of original art can be viewed at Heritage Auctions website. www.HA.com

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

British Agent 99 / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script

? [as William Churchill, Jr. (byline)]

Pencils

Arturo Cazeneuve

Inks

Arturo Cazeneuve

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

The adventures of Alan Douglas, famed Hollywood star, begin when he returns to England to serve his country...

Genre

adventure; war

Characters

British Agent 99 [Alan Douglas, aka Hal Payne as an American reporter] (introduction, origin, former Hollywood star); General Douglas (flashback, Alan's father, death); Sultana Zaida; Chuck; Herr Karl Vern (villain); Fritz (villain); Heinrich (villain, Vern's chauffeur); the Nazis (villains)

Synopsis

Traveling to Belgrade, Yugoslavia, on his first assignment, in the disguise of an American reporter, Agent 99 saves a young girl from the Nazis and tells her that he is in Yugoslavia to protect her from Gestapo agents.

Reprints

• in Men of Mystery Comics (AC, 1999 series) #88 (2012) [black and white]

Keywords

Komitadjii (patriotic secret society)

Indexer Notes

Art credits from Bill Black.

John Doyle Convicted of Murder (Table of Contents: 8)

The Zebra / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script

? [as "Ellery King"] (signed)

Pencils

Pierce Rice

Inks

Louis Cazeneuve ?; Arturo Cazeneuve

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

superhero

Characters

The Zebra [John Doyle] (introduction, origin); Mary Sewell (Doyle's girlfriend); Happy Mike (villain, political boss); Slug (villain)

Synopsis

Sentenced to death for murder because of the actions of politicians protecting the real culprit, John Doyle escapes from prison to track down the murderer, and discovers that his girl friend has been kidnapped by criminals who believe she knows more about the actual murderer than she should.

Reprints

• in Men of Mystery Comics (AC, 1999 series) #87 [black and white]
• in Green Hornet Comics (Harvey, 1942 series) #v2#7 (7) (June 1942)

Keywords

Daily World

Indexer Notes

Bill Black reports that Louis Cazeneuve also did inks on this story, although the Who's Who doesn't list Louis having worked on this strip.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 9)

Meet the Stars / text article / 2 pages (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

?

Inks

?

Colors

?

Letters

?

The Zebra's Murder Case (Table of Contents: 10)

Zebra / text story / 4 pages (report information)

Script

? [as Ellery King]

Pencils

Pierce Rice ?

Inks

Pierce Rice ?

Colors

?

Letters

?

Indexer Notes

Text story with illustrations.

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

Spin Hawkins / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

?

Inks

?

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Spin Hawkins, ace air adenturer and famous author, spans the seven corners of the world seeking adventure...

Characters

Spin Hawkins (introduction)

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

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

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

Ditto / filler / 1 page (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

Byghe

Inks

?

Colors

?

Letters

?

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

Best Laughs of the Month / filler / 1 page (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

?

Inks

?

Colors

?

Letters

?

Indexer Notes

Printed on inside back cover.

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

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