Posted in: Comics, Heritage Sponsored, Vintage Paper | Tagged: Street & Smith, william gibson

Blackstone vs Wizards of Logan Rock, Super Magician Comics at Auction

Shadow creator William Gibson sometimes drew on his knowledge of magical legends from world history for Super Magician Comics stories.

Shadow creator Walter Gibson likely wrote most of the Blackstone stories in Super-Magician Comics from 1941 until Gibson's 1946 exit from Street & Smith over a contract dispute.  A magician himself, Gibson leaned into his love of all things magic in the title.  Many of Gibson's plots drew from his historical knowledge of the practices and legends of magic around the world, and Super Magician Comics V3 #2, is a good example.  The location of the story is the Logan Rock of Cornwall, England, perched on the edge of cliffs there overlooking the English Channel.  Logan Rock is an example of a rocking stone, which some legends have associated with druidic rituals.  And that's exactly what Gibson has done for this story.

The title page blurb of the story sets things up by saying:  "Strange is the lore of the druids, those weird mystics who once ruled ancient Britain… stranger still is this modern tale, based upon the known history of those bearded wizards, who dealt in monstrous sacrifice."

Blackstone and his assistant Rhoda have arrived in a small town near Logan Rock on Midsummer's Eve in time to see that the townspeople have fallen into a mania under the thrall of modern druids who seek to revive ancient druidic practices as a means of stirring up revolution.  The situation is so dire that military officials fear that the mania may soon spread throughout England.  Blackstone fights magic with magic, but the conflict ultimately causes the Logan Rock to topple from the cliff, where it destroys a pirate submarine in league with the modern druids. This outcome also recalls a specific incident in the history of the Logan Rock.

In 1824, Lieutenant Hugh Goldsmith of the Royal Navy in command of the HMS Nimble patrolling the Cornish coastline for smugglers, when he decided to see if Logan Rock really could be rocked back and forth by human hands in accordance with legend.  His party of men did so and caused Logan Rock to topple from its perch — although it didn't actually fall from the cliff as some legends have it, toppling only from its balanced position.  In history, Logan Rock was restored to its proper position a short time later.

It's a fun and clever story by Gibson, and a good example of his work on the series, with a stand-out cover by Al Bare.  There are several issues of Super Magician Comics up for auction in the 2024 May 30 Adventures in the Golden Age Comics Showcase Auction #40261 at Heritage Auctions. If you've never bid at Heritage Auctions before, you can get further information, you can check out their FAQ on the bidding process and related matters.

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