Reading Room: BLUE BEETLE "Trap for the Blue Beetle"

The Blue Beetle was a beat cop without much pocket money...

...so, unlike Batman and the other millionaire heroes, Dan Garret had to depend on his local pharmacy for gimmicks and disguises!

Dan's partner, Mike Mannigan survived for the entire Golden Age run of the Blue Beetle, but when Dan Garret was revamped by Charlton in the Silver Age and became Dan Garrett (note the extra "t"): archeologist, Mike was nowhere to be found.
A different version of him did pop up in DC's CountDown mini-series in 2007!

This story from Fox's Mystery Men Comics #5 (1939) is credited to the the pen-name "Charles Nicholas", but was written by Will Eisner and illustrated by Charles Nicholas Wojtkoski, who later used the "Charles Nicholas" name for all his comic work until he retired.

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Reading Room: BLUE BEETLE "Protection Insurance for Newsboys"

At last, the Blue Beetle hits his stride...

...as he finally appears in the armored costume that will (with minor variations) strike fear into the hearts of evildoers for the next decade or so!

This story from Fox's Mystery Men Comics #4 (1939) is credited to the the pen-name "Charles Nicholas", but was written by Will Eisner and illustrated by Charles Nicholas Wojtkoski, who later used the "Charles Nicholas" name for all his comic work until he retired.

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Reading Room: BLUE BEETLE "Loan Shark Racket"

In the early Golden Age, superheroes helped the "little guy"...

...when sleazeballs took advantage of honest citizens' dire financial straits!

The Blue Beetle finally gains his mask in his story from Fox's Mystery Men Comics #3 (1939) which is credited to the the pen-name "Charles Nicholas", but was written by Will Eisner and illustrated by Charles Nicholas Wojtkoski, who later used the "Charles Nicholas" name for all his comic work until he retired.

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Reading Room: BLUE BEETLE "Armored Car Robbery"

The Blue Beetle dons his blue chain-mail costume for the first time...

...and displays the BeetleMobile in it's only appearance, ever!

You'll note Blue Beetle now wears distinctive chain-mail armor, but with short sleeves and no domino mask!
(Lucky for him no one recognized him as policeman Dan Garret!)
Next issue he gains the mask, and by his fourth appearance the long-sleeved look he was to keep for the remainder of his career.
This story from Fox's Mystery Men Comics #2 is credited to the the pen-name "Charles Nicholas", but was written by Will Eisner and illustrated by Charles Nicholas Wojtkoski, who later used the name for all his comic work until he retired.

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Reading Room: BLUE BEETLE "Debut"

Last time, we presented his final tale...

...now, from Mystery Men Comics #1 (1939), is the very first appearance of the decidedly-different Blue Beetle!

As you can see, it's not an origin story, since it's apparent that the Beetle's been operating for some time as of this tale.
(His origin won't be covered until the first issue of his own title, a year from now.
Even then, the full story won't be told.)
Also note the Green Hornet-inspired suit, fedora, and mask along with liberal use of a symbol to scare criminals and gas to knock them out.
It's the only time in his career he wears that particular ensemble.
With the next issue of Mystery Men Comics, you'll see the Blue Beetle begin the transition to the hero he was known as throughout the Golden Age as he dons the blue chain-mail costume.
(Oddly, when his origin is told in Blue Beetle #1, Garret is shown using the chain mail armor from the beginning of his career.)
Credited to the the pen-name "Charles Nicholas", this story was written by Will Eisner, illustrated by Charles Nicholas Wojtkoski, who later used the name for all his comic work until he retired.

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Reading Room: BLUE BEETLE "UnMasked"

We start our original Blue Beetle run with his final tale...

...where he does a credible Superman imitation, complete with nosy girl reporter!

Gee, Clark...I mean Dan...to think that crook thought you were Super...I mean the Blue Beetle...

Yeah, it's pretty lame.

You'll note the Blue Beetle has pretty much the standard range of super-powers at this point, including strength, flight, and limited invulnerability, all apparently due to the Vitamin 2-X he had been taking since Mystery Men Comics #1 (1939).

Though the art is credited to Charles Nichols (pencils) and Sal Trapani (inks), I seriously doubt Trapani did the inking.

This story in Charlton's Nature Boy #3 (1956) was the last appearance of Dan Garret, the Golden Age Blue Beetle.

The next appearance (with totally-new origin) of any Blue Beetle, would be eight years later in Blue Beetle V2 N1 (1964) with the debut of archeologist Dan Garrett (note the extra "t"), who would discover a mystic scarab that transformed him into The Blue Beetle!

Garrett passed his Blue Beetle identity (though not the scarab-based powers) on to student Ted Kord only two years later.

But when you next see the Blue Beetle here, it'll be his first appearance, from Mystery Men Comics #1, with a radically-different costume and modus operandi!

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Silver Age Green Hornet Comic Art

A few odds-and-ends from the Gold Key Green Hornet Silver Age comic.
The first two were the inside covers for #1, and were probably the proposal pieces submitted to the licensor for approval.

You'll note that the illustrations are of the characters in costumed form.
The next one is from the inside back cover of #3 showing the Hornet's equipment...

The Hornet Sting shown is the original version seen in the pilot and early promo photos.
The later version had a...focusing dish or somesuch on it...

But, the mask shown is the later, molded-to-the-face version, not the one used in the pilot episode and promo photos...

 ...which I think looks kooler and actually hides the wearer's identity better, but limited Van Williams' and Bruce Lee's peripheral vision, potentially making fight scenes hazardous.
BTW, all art was by Dan Spiegle.

Hope you've enjoyed reading them as much as I've enjoyed bringing them to you.
There's much more Golden Age Green Hornet stuff coming up in the Reading Room, so keep an eye on this blog!

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Video Fridays: THE GREEN HORNET STRIKES AGAIN "Flaming Havoc!"

Continuing our weekly feature "Video Fridays"...

After the events of the first serial, Britt Reid and Kato head to Hawaii for a well-deserved vacation.

Unfortunately, Crime never takes a holiday.

In Reid's absence, a racketeer has managed to place one of his men as Managing Editor, killing any attempt by The Daily Sentinel to publish racket-busting exposés!

Lenore Case sees what's going on, but is powerless to stop it, since she's "only a secretary".

She telegraphs Reid, but the gangsters discover the publisher's on the way back and intercept him...

The Green Hornet serial did so well that Universal rushed a sequel into production within six months.

(It usually took a little longer than that, even for popular chapterplays.
There were two-year gaps between each of the Flash Gordon serials.)

Warren Hull, who had recently played both Mandrake the Magician and The Spider in other serials replaced Gordon Jones as Britt Reid / The Green Hornet. In addition, the use of the voice of radio Green Hornet Al Hodge, when Reid was masked, was dropped.

Most of the first serial's cast returned, including Keye Luke as Kato, Anne Nagel as Lenore Case, and Wade Boteler as Mike Axford. However, Managing Editor Gunnigan is said to be incapacitated by a broken leg.

Following the same format as the first serial, The Hornet and Kato chip away at various rackets run by Crogan, played by Pierre Watkin (Perry White in the Superman serials), until the climactic confrontation in the final episode.

Want to see what happens next?

YouTube provider MedigoCobra has posted the entire serial HERE.
Or you can download it in a variety of formats HERE.

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Reading Room Annex: THE MEAN HORNET

Since it's just after April Fools Day, it's only appropriate we present a kool spoof/satire.
And since we've been on a Green Hornet binge, why not run the only spoof done (until the 2011 movie) of The Green Hornet and Kato?

Even though Mad (both comic and magazine incarnations) ran numerous parodies of everything from Superman (comic and movies) to Batman (comic, tv show, and movies) to Blackhawk, they never did any of the various incarnations of The Green Hornet!
(If Cracked or Sick did tales, I never saw them.)
There's only this never-reprinted six-pager from Marvel's Not Brand Echh! #9, 1968.
Written by Roy Thomas, Illustrated by Tom Sutton.

Here's a bonus: the original art to page 1!