Posted in: Comics, Heritage Sponsored, Vintage Paper | Tagged: golden age, Hedy Lamarr, Martin Goodman

Marvel's Obsession with Hedy Lamarr in Georgie Comics, up for Auction

In Georgie Comics #1, Marvel publisher Martin Goodman as "Captain Goodman" helped Georgie in a scheme to impress Hedy Lamarr.

As we've mentioned before, someone at Marvel — Stan Lee or Al Sulman, perhaps? — was a big fan of actress/inventor Hedy Lamarr.  Of course, Marvel was not the only comic book publisher with comics influenced by the star of Algiers, Lady of the Tropics, Samson and Delilah, and numerous other films.  The screen legend was also reportedly an inspiration for the creation of Catwoman.  At Marvel, she inspired the names of two different major characters.  Hedy Wolfe was Patsy Walker's frenemy, first appearing in Patsy's debut in Miss America Magazine v1 #2, and eventually getting title credit in the long-running Patsy and Hedy series.  The character Hedy De Vine was more on point with her film actress namesake, as the character was a movie star herself.  But perhaps the Hedy fan at Marvel was publisher Martin Goodman himself, because both Goodman and Hedy Lamarr figure into a story in the debut issue of teen humor title Georgie Comics as well.

In a story in Georgie Comics #1, Georgie Lawson goes on at length about how much he likes Hedy Lamarr, and soon comes up with a plan to impress the actress.  Along with his pal Monty, Georgie intends to open a detective agency and catch an infamous criminal, which he is certain will attract Lamarr's attention.  This scheme eventually leads Georgie to the Riverside police station, where he meets with Captain Goodman, who has an unmistakable resemblance to Marvel founder and publisher Martin Goodman.  Unfortunately for Georgie, even though he ends up (accidentally) finding the wanted criminal that Captain Goodman was looking for, the story ends before revealing if the scheme came to Hedy's attention — and when Georgie's girlfriend discovered his motivations, it got him in hot water regardless.

Georgie Comics eventually enjoyed a solid 39-issue run from 1945-1952, with a brief title change to Georgie and Judy Comics in the middle.  Many of the Georgie stories in the early part of the series were drawn by Frank Carin, with several stories from the title's later era drawn by Hy Rosen. Like most of this era's Marvel teen humor titles, Georgie was shamelessly inspired by Archie Comics. Swapping the location from Riverdale to Riverside is a detail that stands out in this regard. And by the end of the title's run, the Georgie logo had been redesigned to resemble the Archie logo.  That said, the title and its covers managed to capture much of the Riverdale gang's silly, pretty charm as well, and there are several issues of the series up for auction in the 2023 April 20 Timeless Good Girl Art Comics Featuring Dan DeCarlo Showcase Auction #40221 at Heritage Auctions. For new bidders, take the time to familiarize yourself with Heritage Auctions' FAQ and auction event details before the event to ensure a seamless and enjoyable bidding process.

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!

Stay up-to-date and support the site by following Bleeding Cool on Google News today!