Number 2214: Up in the air, man

Despite how many comics with many characters I have read in my time, I have still missed a lot of them. That includes Air Man. created by the team of George Kapitan and Harry Sahle. Like Hawkman, Air Man has wings and can fly, but with the help of helium. Like other non-super heroes with gimmicks, he can land a punch, too, which is handy when taking on a whole gang of killers, as he does here.

Air Man was short-lived, appearing in only two issues of Centaur’s Keen Detective Funnies and two of Detective Eye. Centaur was also short-lived, being the first comic book company to go out of business. Sadly enough, Harry Sahle was short-lived. He went on during the 1940s to do a lot of features, including what was a knack for teenage humor. He drew Candy for Quality Comics, and even Archie for MLJ/Archie Comics, then died in 1954 at age 41. Sahle was a journeyman comic book guy, drawing all sorts of comics, including superheroes for MLJ after Centaur went bust.

This episode of Air Man appeared in Detective Eye #1 (1940).

Number 2184: The star-faced supernatural superhero

Captain Courageous was a supernatural hero appearing in Banner Comics, then one issue of Captain Courageous (#6, 1942, from where this story today came). That issue was a one-shot, a continuation of Banner Comics, which ended with that issue. From there Captain Courageous went to Four Favorites and lasted the rest of the war years. After a time he made a bewildering and unexplained change to civilian clothes, and was without his supernatural powers. His career ended with issue #28.

What grabs me is that star-shaped mask, which looks silly. I guess if he is a guy who is called forth to help during a time of war and crisis he can wear what he wants. But every time I see it I wonder how it could be taken seriously. Maybe it’s just me.

“The Black Mayor” is drawn by Harry Sahle. Captain Courageous is an Ace Comic. Sahle worked mostly for MLJ/Archie Comics. Besides his other work, he drew some of the Suzie episodes I have shown in this blog.

Number 2154: Suzie steams up the place!

Suzie is a lovely, but naïve young woman. She has trouble holding a job, because while she means well, her job performance is lacking. In the best tradition of sexy, dumb blonde “humor” from decades of popular culture, Suzie is also quite an eyeful.

Suzie was created for MLJ Comics during the war years, and her comic book was published for at least a decade after the war’s end.

I admit to being naïve myself. I thought steam cabinets were a cliché, used as a joke. I thought they were only used in the distant past (in the case of this story, 1944). I did not think they were still being used for weight loss, but I was wrong. Here is a photo from the Internet showing a portable steam cabinet you can buy right now. (I don’t advertise in this blog, so I removed all of the information that would identify it. If you want it you’ll have to look it up.)

This steamy story, written by Ed Goggin and drawn by Harry Sahle, is from MLJ’s Laugh Comics #46 (1944).

Number 1391: Kidnapped to the future!

Blonde Phantom, alter ego of mousy secretary Louise Grant, lusts after her boss, Mark. But like many comic book masqueraders, she finds herself in a love triangle with herself. Tsk tsk. My advice to Louise is to tell Mark — don’t keep secrets; they lead to mistrust. (Short lecture over.)

Louise and Mark are kidnapped by a group of future men who put them in a zoo to be studied by the thirtieth century citizens. If Louise had been a guy she would have just used brute force and whupped on the kidnapers. But Blonde Phantom uses her brain to overcome her adversaries...and she does it all in an evening dress and high heels. This entertaining story, from Marvel’s Blonde Phantom #21 (1949) is credited by the Grand Comics Database with art by Al Gabriele and Harry Sahle.