Adventure Comics # 119, August, 1947

Unfortunately, another really bad scan for this issue so we'll just gloss over it. Too bad because there's a cute superboy meets girl story and the third appearance of Green Arrow's Joker-clone, Bull's-Eye. Some really good Meskin art on Johnny Quick, also.

These Sam Spade comics ads for Wildroot Cream Oil began appearing around this time in connection with the then-popular radio series starring Howard Duff. As Duff and Spade creator Dashiel Hammett became accused of being communists, the comics ads would be replaced by Al Capp's Fearless Fosdick and Charlie Wild, the radio clone of Spade that replaced the original to avoid a scandal. 

Adventure Comics # 118, July, 1947

Here's a fun Superboy tale dealing with the mid-forties radio quiz show craze. Of course, Superboy, as his subtitle has been reminding us for the last couple of issues now, presents "THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN WHEN HE WAS A BOY." This means that in this story Clark is about 14 years old, tops. The Man of Steel himself was said to be perpetually 29 years of age. Thus, this tale must logically take place some 15 years prior to the year in which this issue was actually published. That would place this 1947 tale in 1932. According to John Dunning's definitive book, ON THE AIR: THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF OLD TIME RADIO, the quiz show as we know it didn't exist until 1936 with the big craze arguably starting with 1939's POT O'GOLD. Ah, the joys of trying to keep Superboy from being anachronistic. 

The villain in the GREEN ARROW story below has a cool costume and, one would think by this page, the same name as a later member of the Silver Age Flash's Rogue's Gallery, THe Weather Wizard. Throughout the story, though, he's referred to as The Storm King, instead. 

Another puzzler. This full-page ad was not for a DC title nor even, as we've seen before, for a Prize Comics title. No, THE KILROYS was an ACG--American Comics Group--title. According to Wikipedia, ACG was partly owned by DC owner Harry Donenfeld's son-in-law---from 1948 on. This, however, was still mid-1947. So why the ad for the competition?, 

Adventure Comics # 117, June 1947

Horrid, faded scans this time around but nothing to write home about this issue anyway. For the record, here are the splashes.

Adventure Comics # 116, May, 1947

Back to the more lighthearted covers for awhile. 

And the more lighthearted stories as well.

 Here's the return of the Jok....errr...The Bull's-Eye, to take revenge on Green Arrow and Speedy.

A nifty ad for the new TOMAHAWK feature. TOMAHAWK would eventually replace Robin as cover feature in STAR-SPANGLED and was even given his own title!  Perhaps due to the fifties popularity of Disney's DAVY CROCKETT, the TOMAHAWK book had enough momentum to carry it up until 1970.  

Adventure Comics # 115, April, 1947

 

A tad more violent than the usual covers.

  

This issue, Superboy meets Jaguar Boy. Was DC using this as what they call a back door pilot? Jungle comics were starting to come in vogue with the ever-popular Tarzan and Sheena joined by Nyoka and soon many, many more. Maybe DC was looking for their own jungle character? If so, as far as I know, Jaguar Boy did not return.

Below is an ad for one of my personal favorite series from this period--Howie Post's JIMMINY AND THE MAGIC BOOK. He was in MORE FUN COMICS and later WORLD'S FINEST. Wish DC would do a paperback reprint of all the Jimminy stories.