golden age Archives

Pep Comics #1 (MLJ, 1940) introducing the Shield.
Among other introductions in this issue is the Comet, who later in this series would become the first superhero to die, with his brother the Hangman rising up in vengeance.  The debut of a long-running historically important series with a cover by Irv Novick, and artwork from legends such as Jack Binder, Charles Biro, Manly[...]
Bulletman #10 (Fawcett Publications, 1942) featuring Bulletdog. A vintage comic book cover featuring Bulletman, a superhero in a red costume with yellow accents, soaring alongside a dog, while a female character in a similar outfit flies beside him. The background is a light blue, highlighting their dynamic movement.
In modern times, super pets have become a staple part of superhero franchises, and like those franchises themselves, the origins of such super animal companions can be traced back to the early Golden Age Bulletman #10, featuring the first appearance of Bulletdog, a historically significant comic book due to its introduction of what is arguably[...]
Doll Man #28 featuring Torchy by Bill Ward, Doll Man #42 cover by Reed Crandall (Quality Comics, 1950, 1952).
The post-war Doll Man era is an excellent example of the quality comics that were produced by Quality Comics in the 1950s, and there's a nice batch of several issues from Doll Man #27-47 many of which include Bill Ward's legendary character Torchy (often drawn by Gill Fox here) up for auction in the 2024[...]
Dizzy Dames #1 (ACG, 1952)
Fitzgerald was a part of the Army Signal Corps WB animation unit which produced the Private SNAFU cartoons and would work as an animator for the likes of Fleischer, MGM, and Hanna-Barbera throughout his career. Dizzy Dames #1 cover artist Ogden Whitney (1919-1975) was an underappreciated artist of the Golden Age and Silver Age of comic[...]
Patsy Walker #1 (Timely, 1945)
The character appeared in numerous other series during the Golden Age, and was included in Miss America (which eventually transformed back into a comic book) for the remainder of its 93-issue run Meanwhile, the Patsy Walker series itself ran for 124 issues 1945 – 1965.  A spinoff series also starring her frenemy Hedy Wolfe, Patsy[...]
Wonderworld Comics #30 (Fox, 1941) featuring Flame Girl.
The saga of the Fox Feature Syndicate character the Flame is more complicated than it appears.  The character, his powers, and his backstory evolved steadily, sometimes without explanation, from his 1939 introduction in Wonderworld Comics #3 through his final Golden Age appearances in the January 1942 cover-dated issues of Big 3, The Flame, and Wonderworld[...]
Startling Comics #10 (Better Publications, 1941) featuring the debut of the Fighting Yank.
Blummer, and with a cover by Elmer Wexler.  Long considered an important key by collectors, there's a CGC VG/FN 5.0 copy of Startling Comics #10 (Better Publications, 1941) up for auction in the 2024 September 26 – 27 Heroes of the Golden Age Comics Showcase Auction #40265 at Heritage Auctions. Startling Comics #10 (Better Publications, 1941) featuring[...]
Blue Beetle #56 (Fox Features Syndicate, 1948)
We've mentioned his Fox work on Dagar, Desert Hawk, and Rulah, Jungle Goddess recently, and his Blue Beetle work is also highly sought after by collectors.  This era of the Blue Beetle series is well known to have garnered a couple of mentions in Fredric Wertham's Seduction of the Innocent, but that's only part of[...]
Blue Beetle #13 (Holyoke, 1942)
On March 6, 1942, the notorious Golden Age publisher of Blue Beetle and much more, Victor Fox was forced into bankruptcy by creditors.  Fascinatingly, one of those creditors, printer Holyoke Press took over the title, and with Fox's Blue Beetle and other titles the publisher acquired under similar circumstances from Frank Z Temerson, Holyoke decided[...]
Blue Beetle #5 Vitamin 2x.
1940 was the Blue Beetle's year.  After launching in June 1939 in Mystery Men Comics #1, Dan Garrett, the Golden Age Blue Beetle would get a newspaper strip starting in January 1940, and his own series which hit newsstands around the same time A radio show started in May 1940 Like a lot of superheroes,[...]
Pep Comics featuring the Comet.
Although you may not have heard of him, MLJ Magazines' the Comet has one of the most interesting story arcs of the Golden Age — and he likely inspired one of the X-Men in the process The Comet was created by Jack Cole, the writer/artist best known for creating Plastic Man The character ran in[...]
Spider Queen's debut in The Eagle #2 (Fox, 1941).
Although Fox Feature Syndicate published its last comic book in 1951, several characters it published have had life after Fox.  The Flame, Phantom Lady and Samson were later used by Ajax-Farrell for example, and more famously, Phantom Lady (who had started life at Quality Comics) and Blue Beetle ended up at DC Comics.  The little-known[...]
Samson #1 (Fox Features Syndicate, 1940)
A historically important part of the Golden Age, there are copies of five of the six-issue Samson series up for auction in the 2022 May 29-30 Sunday & Monday Comic Books Select Auction #122222 at Heritage Auctions. Samson #1 (Fox Features Syndicate, 1940)   Samson, based on the biblical figure of the same name, was a super-strong[...]
Blue Ribbon Comics featuring Captain Flag and Yank (MLJ, 1941)
An obscure, unusual, and fascinating superhero saga from the WWII era, there's a CBCS VG/FN 5.0 copy of Blue Ribbon Comics #16 (MLJ, 1941) and several other issues of Blue Ribbon Comics featuring Captain Flag and others up for auction in the 2024 September 26 – 27 Heroes of the Golden Age Comics Showcase Auction[...]