Number 1607: Go-Go gorillas

As a kid I bought comics with gorillas on the covers. I still perk up when I see a story featuring those powerful creatures.

These two stories fit the bill. Both of them are tales about turning men into gorillas. Naturally, “the best laid plans...” you know...they often don’t go as we expect.

“Killer’s Arms!” is from Charlton’s Strange Suspense Stories #22 (1954), drawn by Leon Winik and Ray Osrin. “The Beast,” credited to Manny Stallman, is from Atlas’ Strange Tales #1 (1951).

Ook! Ook!

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Number 1587: “I’ll be hornswoggled!” The lady blacksmith and the tall cowboy.

Wayne Hart rides into the town of Lodestone looking for a blacksmith. He finds that and his true love in the same person, Edie Ford.

Since this is a love comic book, Cowboy Love, pardners, you know that the road to love will be mighty bumpy, and the roadside lined with owlhoots and sidewinders lookin' to get what Miss Edie’s uncle left her. There’s a rich guy dressed fancy who hires Wayne to do the dirty work, but Wayne double-deals him with his true payoff in mind...the hand of Miss Edie.

This is the second story I’ve shown recently where a Western woman is doing a “traditional” man’s job. In an earlier post, Pappy's #1157, she is the sheriff. In that story her fella takes her job and puts her in the home as his wife. I’m not sure that happens here with Wayne and Edie since the ending is left open on that subject, but I know what I’d be thinking about a blacksmith woman if I were Wayne: “Do I want a wife with Popeye arms who could pick me up and toss me like a cowchip?”

“Love’s Last Stand” is scanned from a reprint in Cowboy Love #28 (1955). It was originally shown in issue #2 (1949). Cowboy Love is one of the titles picked up by Charlton in 1953 when they bought up the rights to Fawcett’s non-Marvel Family comics. In his notes for issue #2 comic art-spotter Jim Vadeboncoeur Jr credits Marc Swayze with the art.

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Number 1492: The Wallace Wood acolyte

In the early seventies I picked up issues of Charlton’s Midnight Tales for the work of Wayne Howard. Wayne had once been one of Wallace Wood’s assistants. Derivative or not, I liked his work, and thought the early issues of Midnight Tales had fun stories with a sense of humor. I found out later that Wayne was African-American, and that after casting about for work in the era, getting jobs here and there, finally left comics in 1982. On the Prodigy bulletin boards in the early nineties someone who knew Wayne personally told me that he was a survivalist who lived a spare existence and had lots of guns. Wayne Howard died in 2007.

Booksteve had a posting a couple of days ago with a story by Howard. You can find it at Four Color Shadows.

This story from Midnight Tales #18, “The Iron Man,” I found on the Heritage Auctions website. It sold for $262.90 in September, 2010. It shows the care that the artist put into his panels. The photographs of the pages were a bit blurry so I darkened them and sharpened the images a bit.

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Number 1467: The blackmail racket

Ah, yes, it’s the old “make me think I’ve committed murder” scam. You can’t pull this one on me, fellas, because I read about that blackmail con in Racket Squad In Action #3 from 1952. I have taken heed of Inspector O’Malley, who wants to keep me from being a victim. And I, big-hearted and public spirited, am passing this cautionary tale on to my readers.

A Charlton comic, art by Frank Frollo. (The colorist who put lavender eye shadow on everyone on the cover is unknown.)

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As a bonus, additional features that warn you of other rackets. Kids, save your milk and lunch money...do not spend it on the numbers game. Spend it  instead on comic books.

 

P.S. I love the English language for things like this: If you remove the space from “In Action” you get Racket Squad Inaction. Ha!

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