Detective Comics #18

(August 1938)

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

New Adventure Comics; More Fun Comics; Action Comics / promo (ad from the publisher) / 1 page (report information)

The Hilton Diamond (Table of Contents: 2)

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

Script

?

Pencils

Fred Guardineer (credited)

Inks

Fred Guardineer (credited)

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

detective-mystery

Characters

Speed Saunders; John Hilton (introduction, dies); Jim Hilton; Donald Brent (villain, introduction)

Indexer Notes

Donald Brent is also called Elias Brent, as if the writer couldn't remember his name from one page to the next.

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

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

Script

Bob Kane (signed)

Pencils

Bob Kane (signed)

Inks

Bob Kane (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Hmm! They're reported to be hiding around this locality!

Genre

humor

Characters

Oscar

Synopsis

Oscar mistakes a group of men in prison stripes for escaped convicts. In fact, they are heading for the Good Fellows Club Masquerade Ball

[Murder in Texas] (Table of Contents: 4)

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

Script

?

Pencils

Sven Elven (credited)

Inks

Sven Elven (credited)

Colors

?

Letters

Sven Elven

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Cosmo, feeling the need of a vacation...

Genre

detective-mystery

Characters

Cosmo; Jem Hawkins; Sheriff Harvey

Synopsis

Cosmo takes a vacation out west and gets involved in a case when his friend Sheriff Harvey is accused of murder.

[The Maine Castle Mystery, Part 2] (Table of Contents: 5)

Larry Steele, Private Detective / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Bill Ely (credited as Will Ely)

Pencils

Bill Ely (credited as Will Ely)

Inks

Bill Ely (credited as Will Ely)

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Larry and Bill Graham...

Genre

detective-mystery

Characters

Larry Steele; Bill Graham; Vera Sanders; The Boss (villain); his gang (villains)

Indexer Notes

story in black and white

[The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu, Part 2] (Table of Contents: 6)

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

Script

Leo O'Mealia (signed as L); Sax Rohmer (original author) (credited)

Pencils

Leo O'Mealia (signed as L)

Inks

Leo O'Mealia (signed as L)

Colors

?

Letters

typeset

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Put that back, old man...

Genre

adventure; detective-mystery

Characters

Nayland Smith; Fu Manchu; Dr. Petrie

Reprints

• from Dr. Fu Manchu daily (Bell Syndicate)

Indexer Notes

Adaptation of The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu by Sax Rohmer.

The daily strip ran in newspapers in 1930 and 1931.

Death's Ruby (Table of Contents: 7)

Spy / comic story / 8 pages (report information)

Script

Jerry Siegel (credited as Siegel)

Pencils

Joe Shuster (credited as Shuster)

Inks

Joe Shuster (credited as Shuster)

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

adventure; detective-mystery; spy

Characters

Bart Regan; Sally Norris; Akmet and two enemy spies (villains, one dies; introduction for all); Maharaja Kahoon (introduction)

Synopsis

Bart proposes to Sally.

The Golden Key (Table of Contents: 8)

text story / 2 pages (report information)

Script

Vin Sullivan (credited as Paul Dean)

Pencils

Fred Guardineer

Inks

Fred Guardineer

Colors

?

Letters

typeset

Genre

detective-mystery

Characters

Detective Tom Lawton; Henry Burroughs; Arnold Lansing (villain)

Indexer Notes

Text story with two illustrations.

The Coolie Smugglers, Part II (Table of Contents: 9)

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

Script

Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson ?

Pencils

Tom Hickey (credited) (signed as TH)

Inks

Tom Hickey (credited) (signed as TH)

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

adventure; detective-mystery

Characters

Bruce Nelson; Captain Carstairs (villain)

[The Lavalle Case] (Table of Contents: 10)

Steve Malone, District Attorney / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Gardner Fox

Pencils

Don Lynch

Inks

Don Lynch

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Steve Malone, brilliant young criminal lawyer...

Genre

detective-mystery

Characters

Steve Malone (introduction); Gini (villain, introduction)

Indexer Notes

Story in black and white.

In an interview in Alter Ego #20 (June 2003), Fox states this was his first comic story, sold in March 1938.

Compare the art with the signed Steve Malone story in Adventure Comics #38 (May 1939).

[In the Stratosphere] (Table of Contents: 11)

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

Script

Jerry Siegel (credited as Jerome Siegel)

Pencils

Joe Shuster (credited as Shuster)

Inks

Joe Shuster (credited as Shuster)

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Slam and Shorty are taking a spin...

Genre

detective-mystery

Characters

Slam Bradley; Shorty Morgan; Sgt. Gage; Prof. Barton (introduction); Prof. James; Miss James; Knife Morley (villain, introduction)

Synopsis

Slam and Shorty encounter a strange rocket shaped plane being flown by a girl. It turns out to be an invention that two scientists are fighting over.

Indexer Notes

story title from next issue blurb in previous issue

[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)