Number 1527: Spirit of the gun

Recently I presented a bloody tale from Desperado #1 narrated by a gun. Here I have another tale, this time from Will Eisner’s Spirit Section of March 4, 1951, also narrated by a gun. Is this a good gimmick or not, having stories narrated by inanimate objects? (To answer my own question, the esteemed Ray Bradbury used it when he had a rocket ship narrate “I, Rocket” in Amazing Stories, May 1944. Perhaps I should just shut up.)

Another thing about this Spirit story that caught my eye was the panel sequence I have used as a teaser above, and a similar sequence from Mad #12 (1954), when Harvey Kurtzman and Will Elder did their satire, “Starchie.”

I wonder if the Spirit had any inspiration on the Mad sequence, either consciously or unconsciously.

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Number 1493: Spirit of the haunted house

This Spirit episode was originally published in its newspaper Comic Book Section on December 12, 1940. It was reprinted in Police Comics #19 in 1943, which is the source of my scans. An interesting sidelight to this moody and effective story of an old dark house on a bleak and rainy night, is that the Grand Comics Database credits Joe Kubert with the coloring. Yes, that Joe Kubert. The GCD doesn't distinguish between the original and the reprint when reporting Kubert as colorist, but I’ll assume they mean the reprint. Joe was 16-years-old at the time.

Another item of interest for you Marvel Comics fans: Sam Rosen, a familiar name from countless comics of the 1960s, is credited with the lettering.

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Number 1138: Sex and the Spirit

The Spirit newspaper comic book never wanted for hot girls. Will Eisner, creator, knew the power of sex in comics. He had co-created Sheena a few years earlier, after all. There was a saying (I'm paraphrasing), "Kids read the comic strips, but their dads buy the newspaper." A comic strip creator had to provide something for Pop to make him plunk down his nickel. When the old man was done, Junior got his eyes full ogling comic strips with pretty girls.

This early Spirit, from November 10, 1940, is from the 24th issue of the weekly Comic Book Supplement, carried by several newspapers until it succumbed in 1952. The Black Queen is overtly sexy in her abbreviated costume. She also has the kiss of death; not the last Spirit female who was as deadly, or deadlier, than the male criminals who regularly whupped on the Spirit.

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