Detective Comics #17

(July 1938)

Swelegant Is the Word for It! (Table of Contents: 1) (Expand) /

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

The Snake Death (Table of Contents: 2)

Speed Saunders / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script:

?

Pencils:

Fred Guardineer

Inks:

Fred Guardineer

Colors:

?

Letters:

?

Genre:

detective-mystery

Characters:

Speed Saunders; a spy (introduction, death); Percy (introduction, death); Mr. Horn (introduction); Miss Horn (introduction)

Indexer Notes

We formerly credited the script of this story to Gardner Fox, but in an interview in Alter Ego #20 (June 2003), he stated that his first comic story, sold in March 1938, appeared in Detective Comics #18.

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

Oscar the Gumshoe / comic story / 1 page (report information)

Script:

Bob Kane

Pencils:

Bob Kane

Inks:

Bob Kane

Colors:

?

Letters:

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text:

Gosh! The Black Mask Gang...

Genre:

humor

[The Maine Castle Mystery, Part 1] (Table of Contents: 4)

Larry Steele / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script:

Will Ely

Pencils:

Will Ely

Inks:

Will Ely

Colors:

?

Letters:

?

Genre:

detective-mystery

Characters:

Bill Graham (introduction); Vera Sanders (introduction); The Boss (villain, introduction); his gang (villains, introduction)

[Von Ruyter's Explosive Gun] (Table of Contents: 5)

Cosmo, the Phantom of Disguise / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script:

?

Pencils:

Sven Elven

Inks:

Sven Elven

Letters:

?

Characters:

Von Ruyter (introduction); Countess Varnoff De Mornay (villain, introduction)

Indexer Notes

story in black and white

[The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu, Part 1] (Table of Contents: 6)

Dr. Fu Manchu / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Script:

Sax Rohmer

Pencils:

Leo O'Mealia

Inks:

Leo O'Mealia

Colors:

?

Letters:

typeset

Genre:

adventure

Characters:

Sir Denis Nayland Smith (introduction); Dr. Petrie (introduction); Dr. Fu Manchu (villain, introduction)

Reprints:

• from Dr. Fu Manchu daily (Bell Syndicate) ? - ?

Indexer Notes

adapted from The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu by Sax Rohmer; also reprinted in Wow -- What a Magazine! (Henle Publications, 1936 series) #1-4

The Hooded Hordes (Table of Contents: 7)

Spy / comic story / 8 pages (report information)

Script:

Jerry Siegel

Pencils:

Joe Shuster

Inks:

Joe Shuster

Colors:

?

Letters:

?

Genre:

adventure

Characters:

The Hooded Hordes (introduction, villains); Bart Regan; Betsy Norris

Indexer Notes

story title from next issue blurb in previous issue

Disaster on the Diamond (Table of Contents: 8)

text story / 2 pages (report information)

Script:

Vin Sullivan [as Paul Dean]

Pencils:

?

Inks:

?

Colors:

?

Letters:

typeset

Indexer Notes

We formerly credited the script of this story to Gardner Fox, but in an interview in Alter Ego #20 (June 2003), he stated that his first comic story, sold in March 1938, appeared in Detective Comics #18.

The Coolie Smugglers [Part 1] (Table of Contents: 9)

Bruce Nelson / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script:

Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson ?

Pencils:

Tom Hickey

Inks:

Tom Hickey

Colors:

?

Letters:

?

Genre:

detective-mystery

Characters:

Captain Carstairs (villain, introduction)

The Right Trail (Table of Contents: 10)

Buck Marshall / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script:

Homer Fleming

Pencils:

Homer Fleming

Inks:

Homer Fleming

Letters:

?

Characters:

Speck (villain, introduction)

Indexer Notes

story in black and white

Slam Bradley Gets the Air (Table of Contents: 11)

Slam Bradley / comic story / 13 pages (report information)

Script:

Jerry Siegel

Pencils:

Joe Shuster

Inks:

Joe Shuster

Colors:

?

Letters:

?

Genre:

detective-mystery

Characters:

Ramon Gonzales (villain, introduction); Sporty Morgan (Shorty's brother, introduction)

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

Detective Puzzles / activity / 1 page (report information)

Script:

A. W. Nugent

Pencils:

A. W. Nugent

Inks:

A. W. Nugent

Letters:

?

Indexer Notes

inside back cover

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

Johnson Smith & Co. / advertisement / 1 page (report information)