Posted in: Comics, Heritage Sponsored, Vintage Paper | Tagged: Cyclone Comics, golden age

The Utterly Bizarre Saga of Volton in Cyclone Comics #1, at Auction

Published Sat, 11 Jun 2022 15:17:09 -0500

There were a lot of strange superheroes created during the Golden Age of comic books, but Volton might be in a class all his own. Volton was apparently the creation of Charles Quinlan, perhaps in collaboration with Cyclone Comics series editor Worth Carnahan. A distinctive stylist who is also known for some unusual and inventive stories, Quinlan is best remembered for his stint on Cat-Man Comics and the Holyoke period of Blue Beetle. But Volton might be his most unusual work of all. The hero was the result of a brilliant young scientist inventing a small device that could harness the forces of static electricity in the human body — in other words, every child's superheroic playtime dream. The debut of one of the most bizarre superheroes of the Golden Age or any other era, there's a Cyclone Comics #1 (Bilbara, 1940) Condition: VG- up for auction in the 2022 June 12-13 Sunday & Monday Comic Books Select Auction #122224 from Heritage Auctions.

Cyclone Comics was the only actual comic book title published by Bilbara Publishing Co., a company launched around 1937 alongside better-known publisher Ideal Publishing Co by former Fawcett Publications executive William M. Cotton. Bilbara and Ideal eventually came to publish a number of film industry magazines including Movie Life, Movie Stars Parade, and Personal Romances among others. Bilbara also published a humor/satire magazine that included gag cartoon art called Peek Magazine. The company had acquired three non-comics titles from Ultem Publications, which is historically important to comics for publishing titles such as Funny Pages and Funny Picture Stories. Cyclone Comics editor Worth Carnahan was apparently a family friend of William M. Cotton and his wife.

Between Quinlan and the work of Carnahan himself, the short-lived Cyclone Comics is an underappreciated bit of Golden Age comic book history. But those Volton stories are the star of this show, and you can get the first one in Cyclone Comics #1 (Bilbara, 1940) Condition: VG- up for auction in the 2022 June 12-13 Sunday & Monday Comic Books Select Auction #122224 from Heritage Auctions.

Cyclone Comics #1 (Bilbara, 1940) Condition: VG-. Origin and first appearance of Tornado Tom. Volton, Kingdom of the Moon, and Mister Q stories begin. Charles Quinlan of Catman fame is among the issue's artists. George Papp art. Spine split at the bottom up to the bottom staple. Rusty staples. Overstreet 2021 VG 4.0 value = $168.