MEDIA IN COMICS 014

Forget lost media, here are some media that only exist in comic books

Movies: 

A Modern Macbeth is one of innumerable in-comic movies that we never really learn anything about. Is it a musical? Is that why a singer is speaking at the premiere? Is it a reference to another movie? The only pre-1941 movie with a similar title that I can find is 1917's A Modern Monte Cristo and that seems a bit of a stretch. (More Fun Comics 072, 1941)

Captain Marvel stars in a film called Crusher of Crime in one of our earliest examples of a super-hero starring in a film as themselves. No clue what it's about but we can probably assume that it's standard 40s super-hero fare. (Whiz Comics 020, 1941)

More intriguingly, the character of Whitey Murphy joins the Captain Marvel cast just two issues later, and dialogue between him and Billy Batson implies that not only does the real-world film The Adventures of Captain Marvel exist in the comics universe, but that both Captain Marvel and Billy Batson appeared in it and also that some or all the events of the film actually happened.

This is reinforced by the fact that Billy goes to see "The Guillotine", the second chapter of the serial, in Captain Marvel Adventures 003 (Whiz Comics 022, 1941)

The costume party held for the premiere of The Phantom Duelist (film) held in the castle of the Phantom Duelist (ghost) provides the opportunity for the Phantom Duelist (super-villain) to murder Reynolds (film producer, universally-hated). (Doll Man Quarterly 001, 1941)

One of the minor recurring tropes of comics is "tough guy goes to Hollywood and finds it exhausting," seen here as the super-hero Hercules is talked into making a sadly unnamed jungle movie and it almost kills him. (Hit Comics 010, 1941)

Music:

The song "Icy Igloo Blues" is the key to District Attorney Steve Malone solving a major jewel robbery case. (Detective Comics v1 053, 1941)

The "Symphony of Death" was employed by the nefarious Doctor Death in his murders. Do music nerds in comic book universes hold Nights of Evil concerts where they play pieces like this? (Wow Comics 002, 1941)

Speaking of which, here are six extremely on-the-nose songs composed by the Murder Maestro as part of his own efforts in the field of killing: "A Message to My Heart" (victim shot in the heart), "I'm Drowning My Sorrows" (drowned), "I'm Burning Up Over You" (set on fire), "My Sleepy-Time Pal" (poisoned, weirdly), "I'm Walking on Air" (dropped from a plane) and "I'm Getting Up in the World" (fake attempt on own life). (More Fun Comics 072, 1941)

Newspaper Columns:

"Walter Winkle on Broadway" is of course yet another take on the gossip column of Walter Winchell. (Feature Comics 049, 1941)

Television:

There are in fact Martian invaders in this Human Torch story, but since they don't get up to any NYC-destroying I must conclude that this is an unnamed and very coincidental television program. (Marvel Mystery Comics v1 003 1940) 

REAL PERSON ROUND-UP 020

Where would comic books be without real people, after all?

Easter Island: 

Lance O'Casey and his pal Dan'l Doom fight some wreckers on Easter island, and while I can't tell if the place saw enough ship traffic in the 1940s to make shipwrecking a profitable enterprise, I will say that the concept of Lance and Dan'l just casually passing by one of the most isolated islands in the Pacific Ocean while travelling from place to place is an eyebrow raiser.

The whole Easter Island aspect of the adventure honestly seems to just be a bit of set dressing, but I sure do love these extremely flat moai statues.(Whiz Comics 013, 1941) 

Fort Knox: 

As "Fort Gnox," robbed by Dr Sivana. (Whiz Comics 014, 1940)

FDR: 

Spy Smasher saves the president from being assassinated by probable-Nazi spy the Dark Angel, leading to what I can only interpret as a very awkward meeting between the two. (Spy Smasher 001, 1941) 

Fiorello La Guardia (Not): 

Wow Comics 004 features not one but two mayors who are not Fiorello La Guardia in comics previously established to be set in New York City. I'd say poor guy for not getting elected in two different versions of Earth-S but neither of these guys are exactly having a good time. (Wow Comics 004, 1941)

Harry "A" Chesler: 

The Zip Comics 007 Steel Sterling story involves a crooked moneylending firm called the Uwana Loan Company, and here we see the door of that company with H. "A" C. listed as president. Comic book publisher Harry "A" Chesler was a decent boss as far as I can tell, so once and future Chesler employee/ "Steel Sterling" scribe Charles Biro is probably indulging in some classic comic book yuk-em-ups here rather than a trenchant skewering. (Zip Comics 007, 1940) 

Henry L. Stimson: 

US Secretary of State. As "Secretary Simpson," almost gets assassinated and mummified by the Black Thorn. (America's Greatest Comics 001, 1941) 

J Edgar Hoover:

As "FBI Chief Doover" almost gets assassinated by the Ghost. (am greatest 001 1941)

Ken Crawford: 

The Mask adopts a reporter alias as part of an attempt to find out the Spy Smasher's secret identity, and there is no doubt in my mind that "Crawf Kenford" is a classic syllable-flip reference to venerable political correspondent Ken Crawford. (Whiz Comics 013, 1941)

Mort Meskin: 

You have to squint to read it, but that red sign says "M. Meskin, Fish" on it. (Zip Comics 007, 1940)

William Tell: 

Golden Arrow plays William Tell in a local school pageant, with love interest Carol Braddock as the apple-headed son. (Whiz Comics 012, 1941) 

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 898: THE DEATH BATTALION

(America's Greatest Comics 001, 1941)

Like Mr Skeleton before them (and possibly because I first encountered them both in the same comic), the Death Battalion is one of those super-villain concepts that really lodged itself in my brain and which I am glad to have finally appear here. Unfortunately, unlike Mr Skeleton, the Death Battalion isn't quite as great as I'd remembered. For one thing, I'd long thought that they were a Mr Scarlet revenge squad, but despite the fact that he put them all in jail, they seem to bear him very little ill will. Comparatively.

Instead, the six members of the Death Battalion are broken out of jail by a seventh fellow, the Brain, and enlisted into his plot to take over the US. Note the Nazi-ness of the Brain's operation, but also that there is no real connection to the Nazi Party. Instead, the Brain and his Death Battalion appear to be independent Nazis, like your neo-Nazis and so forth will be later on. If it were just a few months later they'd be heiling Hitler, but as it stands we're dealing with locally sourced indie hipster Nazis.

Like I said, this isn't a Mr Scarlet revenge squad - these just happened to be the six highest profile villains available to be broken out of El Catraz Penitentiary. But just what do they bring to the table?

the Black Clown: Former circus owner. Murderer and bank robber. Circus connections.

the Black Thorn: Fifth columnist. Murderer. Packs a mummy ray.

Doctor Death: Former concert pianist. Murderer. Poisons.

the Ghost: Former charity president. Embezzler. Sheet ghost costume.

the Horned Hood: Academic. Jewel thief. No special equipment.

the Laughing Skull: Former banker. Extortionist and murderer. Access to stone-cutting tools and shovels.

A motley crew indeed. There's a pretty wide range of skills and success levels on display here - like I said, the Brain seems to have prioritized breaking out the flashiest crooks over the most competent ones.

The Brain's plan is simple: murder six key men, thus setting in motion a destabilization of the US government that will allow the Death Battalion to swoop in and conquer the country. Let's see how that goes. 

Senator Hiram Dean: 

Spoilers, but I must lead with the fact that Doctor Death is the only one of the six to successfully kill his target. Specifically, he appears to scare him to death? Regardless of how it was done, this is the event that puts Mr Scarlet onto the Death Battalion's trail.

Kudsen: 

Kudson, head of a government defense program, comes very close to being killed by the Black Clown's gorilla due to his refusal to turn around and see if the enormous gorilla-shaped shadow that is advancing on him might indicate some sort of danger. It's only his dumb luck that his assistant is the one who gets aped first, and that Mr Scarlet shows up in time to prevent any further aping.

FBI Chief Doover: 

The Ghost is one the real odd men out in the Death Battalion. Consider that he was an embezzler whose main strength was the large group of men in spooky costumes in his employ and ask yourself just what chance he might have at assassinating the head of the FBI. It's only due to Chief Doover's nonexistent security that he almost manages to plant a knife in his back and only due to Pinky the Whiz Kid that he fails to do so.

Secretary of State Simpson:

The Black Thorn on the other hand, is quite a good choice when it comes to murder, particularly as he has somehow gotten his hands on another mummy ray. He comes pretty close to getting the Secretary of State but spends a bit too much time mummifying random committee members before Mr Scarlet turns up.

General Dodd:

The Horned Hood manages to screw up a simple murder while armed with a light machine gun from about ten feet away. This is absolutely on-brand for him as the biggest screw-up in the whole Battalion. The Hood's presence on this team is proof of some sort of super-villain corollary to the Peter Principle.  

Dollar-a-Year Man Phillips:

Finally, the Laughing Skull is sent to kill dollar-a-year man Phillips, which leads to the question: what is a dollar-a-year man? Turns out that the term describes a wealthy person who takes a nominal salary in order to be counted as an employee while essentially doing government work for free, and Phillips is one of them. Lucky for him, the Laughing Skull insists that live burial is the only acceptable way to murder someone, which gives Mr Scarlet and Pinky enough time to show up and save the day.

But what about the brain himself? What's his deal? Well, aside from being the leader of the whole enterprise, the Brain has precisely two things going on: he has a weird mesh bubble helmet that makes the head inside look enormous, and he "deals in poisons," which means that he tries to kill Mr Scarlet by dangling a tarantula at him on a stick in a display that is hilariously ineffectual looking even if you, like the creators of this comic, are working from the incorrect belief that the tarantula is massively venomous.

Having foiled all of the Death Battalion's attempted murders (but for that one), Mr Scarlet and Pinky make their way back to the group's HQ by employing a little subterfuge and then beat all five of them (the Horned Hood and Laughing Skull already being in custody) to a pulp. And just who does the Brain turn out to be? Why, none other than ex-Warden Loomis, who so prominently retired after six costumed criminals escaped from his prison. Presumably he now gets to revisit his old workplace!

The Death Battalion never needs to return, unless perhaps a flashback story needs a team of Nazi super-villains in it to be stomped, but as always I must whoop and cheer for the concept of a bunch of low-grade villains teaming up like this. It's just fun!