Number 2284: Fighting Females Week: Blonde Bomber throws the Nazi bull

You may notice that I have finally enabled the lightbox feature of Blogger. I thought about a comment I got from a reader, Henrique Brum, a couple of postings ago. I had an objection to the feature at one time, but after looking at it again I decided to go with what Henrique suggested. Pappy

The second entry for our Fighting Females Week is Blonde Bomber.

The story is about German prisoners of war being held in the United States. The subject has fascinated me ever since my father, Big Pappy, told me about guarding German POWs in Georgia in 1942. The 1944 story was probably “ripped from the headlines,” as the old cliché goes. Both Blonde Bomber and her cameraman, Slapso, work in the newsreels. In the real world, at least 425,000 German POWs spent time in the U.S., and in the story, Nazi Marshal Von Taurus is a POW who is leading an insurrection and committing sabotage. Such things happened in the camps. While most German soldiers would claim they were not Nazis, Nazi officers still had power over their fellow prisoners. (Like Hogan’s Heroes in reverse?)

Grand Comics Database gives credit for the artwork to Bob Powell. I would advise them to turn back a few pages in the comic to the Spirit of ’76 story, which is by Powell, and compare the artwork. Blonde Bomber is drawn by Jill Elgin, one of a small number of fantastic female comic book artists of the era. Go to the link below for another Blonde Bomber story, and more information on Jill Elgin.

“Taurus the Nazi Bull” is from Green Hornet Comics #20 (1944). I love the symbolic splash panel for this story.

More Blonde Bomber and Jill Elgin. Just click on the thumbnail.

Number 1997: Kit West and the stockade full of suspects

For an 8-page story there is a lot going on in “Murder in the Stockade,” from Cow Puncher Comics #6 (1949). There is a cast of pretty gals, with an equal number of embittered-in-love types, one of whom is apparently murdering said pretty gals. There is also a handsome frontiersman, Dan, who, when one of his fiancées gets killed by person, or persons, or thing unknown, just takes up with the next gal in line. I have to say that the solution to this mystery is about as off-the-wall as a mystery by, say, Edgar Allan Poe, who is obviously the inspiration here.

Kit West, heroine in buckskin, is buxom, bare-legged, and bold. She even sets herself up to be killed, just so she can solve the mystery. Add “brave” to her description.

The Grand Comics Database lists Jill Elgin as the artist.

Originally posted in 2012, another Kit West story. Just click on the thumbnail.

Number 1927: “Bein' ate alive”

Blonde Bomber was a backup feature in some of the Harvey Comics superhero anthology comics of the WWII era, Speed Comics, All New Comics, and Green Hornet Comics, from which this episode is taken. The Blonde Bomber was Honey Blake, newsreel reporter, who got into adventures with her sidekick and cameraman, Jimmy Slapso. The characters were first drawn by artist Barbara Hall, and then taken over by Jill Elgin. “Horror Rules the Quicksand!” is from Green Hornet #22 (1945). It’s about saboteurs, set in a swamp.

Jill Elgin was the pen-name of Kathleen Jo Elgin, born in 1923. After her time in comics, during a long career as a writer and illustrator of children’s books, she signed her work both with her real name, and occasionally her pen-name. She retired from illustrating in 1975, and after the death of her mother moved to Florida, where she died in 2005 at age 82. David Saunders’ biography of Elgin is in “The Field Guide to Wild American Pulp Artists”.

Finally, does anyone remember newsreels? In the days before television they were shown in theaters. They were the forerunners of television news, although I remember them into 1963, at least, when I saw a newsreel on the funeral of Pope John XXIII.

Number 1246: The Devil is in Missouri!

The Devil runs rampant in the territory which will one day be known as Missouri. He slaughters families, leaving their corpses branded with his handprint on their chests. It takes hot young frontierswoman, Kit West, in her buckskin miniskirt, to solve the morbid mystery. This story, attributed by the GCD to artist Jill Elgin with possible assist from Gus Schrotter, was originally published in Avon’s Cowpuncher #4 (1948), but my scans are taken from a reprint in Geronimo on the Warpath #2 (1951).

This gory story has knifings, blood, murders, brandings and a burning at the stake! It’s got bad Indians and one bad Spaniard. It’s a lot for nine pages.