CoverTales

Space pilot Vince Darrow overhears another pilot mention the Asteroid Witch, whom he described as the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. Deciding he needed to find her for himself, Vince goes to the rocketport and steals a space liner. The Interplanetary Patrol goes after him. Vince comes to his senses and plans to turn himself in. The villainess Asteroid Witch shows up, and bewitches him to continue on to meet her. Vince crashes into an asteroid. He gets out of the wreckage and continues his search. He is entirely enthralled and about to kiss her when the voice of Kit-E, a Martian maiden stops him. Kit-E has her "atom-blast pistol" trained on the witch. She sends the Asteroid Witch to another dimension.

Cosmic Carson was the two-fisted wise-cracking “ace pilot of the interplanetary patrol” and fought space opera themed menaces such as Brigo and the Fangmen of Jupiter, the Skullmen, Cannibals on Eros, Martians and a Plutonian “protoplasmic degenerator”.

U.S. Army Private Jack Weston wanted to do more to contribute to the war effort than just being stationed at Camp Blaine. He decided to put on a costume and fight as Minute-Man. He also became a member of the Crime Crusaders Club with Bulletman and Bulletgirl. He had no powers, but demonstrated tremendous strength, agility, courage and fighting prowess.

Tom Higgins was a scientist who was working on a formula that would grant superpowers. However, he was killed during the Black Tom Explosion and was framed for said explosion. Tom manages to tell his son Joe about the unfinished formula called S.H.I.E.L.D., which stood for Sacrum, Heart, Innervation, Eyes, Lungs, and Derma. Joe then became a chemist and completed the formula in order to clear his father's good name. However before using the formula, his father's killer goes after Joe. After being badly beaten, Joe crawls back to his lab and uses the formula into his body. He sealed himself into a special white suit and was exposed to "flouroscopic rays" for 12 hours. Allowing him to become the crime fighter called The Shield.

Red Gaucho was an American who became a famous crime fighter in South America. He had a habit of laughing when he fought and used weapons such as a sword or whip. He fought Communists as wells as enemies such as Furfooz, Tad Cromer, Punchez , and Don Bacco.

Roger's father Henry Chalmers once saved the chief of the African Mountain Men from a jungle beast. The chief was grateful and promised to give Chalmers the "enchanted dagger". However he ends up dying several years later, so his son Roger travels to the jungle and found the tribe. He was then given the dagger promised to his father so many years ago. Chalmers found the dagger eerie, but kept the blade which had the following inscribed on it: "The true owner shall forever be immune to it's great powers". He decides to become a crime fighter called Enchanted Dagger and fights criminals in Washington, DC once he returns to the States.

The Cisco Kid was the “Robin Hood of the Old West,” taking on evil ranchers, mining companies, stagecoach robbers, and anyone else who threatened the settlers on the American frontier in the 19th century. With the aid of comedic sidekick Pancho and his intrepid horse Diablo, Cisco patrolled the plains and high desert in pulp magazines, paperbacks, TV and radio shows, and comic books during the 1940s and ’50s.

Jim Carson was both a professional ventriloquist and an amateur detective. He fights crime by throwing his voice. His assistants included his sister, Cora, and his chemist, older brother, Dr. Doom. Besides his ventriloquism, Echo used an invisibility belt and a radioactive ring which allowed him to fire paralyzing beams from his eyes invented by his brother.

The man who would become the Great Zarro was an aerialist for a travelling circus. One day he visited a gypsy who told him his future; she saw him doing great things, that he would have a great tragedy befall him, and that he would fight crime. While he was away, the circus owner encountered Racketeers who threatened the circus and the well being of everyone in it. They carried out their threats by burning the circus down to the ground. The aerialist returned to find the circus destroyed and everyone killed except for one survivor, a boy named Rags. That night they made a solemn vow to devote their lives to fighting crime. The aerialist took the Gypsy's herbs which endowed him with the power of flight and he became the Great Zarro.

Joe Blair was a private detective. When a defense manufacturer hired him to investigate the inexplicable defections of his workers, he decided to use it as an opportunity to test his new invention and become a crime-fighter known as Zippo. Zippo was a moderately skilled detective. He has low-level super-speed thanks to his costume's wheeled feet. The wheels were powered by compressed air and controlled using his belt. With the wheels, Zippo could travel up to 65 mph.

Zanzibar is a stage magician and philosopher, taught magic by Indian Fakirs and uses his powers to fight crime. His super powers include telekinesis, mentally-powered super strength, and hypnosis/mind-control. In his first appearance, he battled the villain known as the Top. He later met Zeus, Hercules, and Athena.

He is Chuck Benson ---- PHANTOM FALCON --- the secret air ace who appears when he is most needed to fight against the enemies of freedom and America in the heart of World War Two! PHANTOM FALCON only ran for six issues of Cat-Man Comics.

Gary Kennedy and his brother were shot down by criminals. He vowed to return from the dead to avenge his brother's death - and he did, becoming a ghost with the ability to be super strong when solid and fly or possess people as a ghost. He used his new ghostly powers to fight crime.

D-13, Richard Anthony, was an American spy who traveled the world solving international problems and protecting the US from foreign threats with help from his partner Robert Simms.

Richard Curtis Van Loan is a wealthy socialite who after serving in World War I becomes bored and craves the same level of "excitement" that he became used to in the trenches of the Great War. After being challenged to solve a crime that has baffled the police by his friend Frank Havens, publisher of the New York Clarion, Van Loan finds that he in fact has some ability as a detective. Solving mysteries provides Van Loan with the excitement he craves and so begins the career of the dilettante amateur sleuth, The Phantom Detective.

A Venusian man who would become known as Sub-Zero was a part of an expedition that was launched to establish first contact with Earth. Before the spaceship could enter Earth's atmosphere, it passed through a comet. Everything inside was frozen. One crewman managed to survive, but the exposure turned him into a living ice man that froze everything he touched. He escaped the craft while covered in ice and then made his way to the nearest building. The building happened to be full of scientists experimenting with "gamma radiation." They used the gamma rays to return him to his original humanoid form, though his ability to freeze objects remained.

During the Japanese siege of Manila, young Juan Manito is fleeing to the hills with his mother and sister when a Japanese plane strafes them, killing the mother and sister. He goes undercover with the Japanese, pretending to be a traitor, until he can direct the Japanese troops into an ambush and kill the pilot who killed his mother and sister. Manito then carries on the fight in guerrilla fashion.

Titan was a private investigator and defender of American freedom, who fought against oppressive forces whether they were ordinary crooks or foreign agents.

Diana the Huntress traveled from her home on Mount Olympus under orders from her father, Zeus, to protect Greece. She could be summoned by anyone who found one of her arrows. Her powers included flight, superhuman strength, and agility. Diana also had a "robe of concealment" allowing her to hide among mortals. She was a skilled archer and carries a magical bow and golden arrows. She was assisted by her fellow Greek/Roman deities such as Apollo, Hercules, Zeus, Mercury, and Discordia.

Archie Masters was a timid, cautious astronomy professor who taught at Grand University. A colleague created a device called an atom smasher, but the initial test went awry when Masters, preoccupied in his thoughts went into the room where the device was being used. He was bathed in atomic radiation but instead of killing him, the accident endowed him with various superhuman abilities such as strength, flight and invulnerability. With his confidence boosted, he used these powers to fight crime as the American Crusader.

Gasoline Alley made a low-key debut in The Chicago Tribune Syndicate, November 24, 1918. Gasoline Alley is credited as the first comic strip in which the characters age normally, and also being one of the first soap operas in any medium. The strip was created by Frank King with the remit from The Chicago Tribune's publisher, to create a strip to appeal to the new generation of car owners and mechanics.

Tugboat Tessie is the owner and captain of the tugboat Harbor Lady, based out of a major shipping port. She is an older woman, having a grown daughter that serves as her first mate on the tug, but still well into her prime and quite strong and physically imposing. Tessie often finds herself having to deal with lots of unsavory characters along the waterfront. Criminals and con men litter the area like floatsom on the tide. Thankfully Tessie's strength, her mean right hook, and her skill as a tugboat captain serve her pretty well to help keep the harbor safe.

Dressed to blend in with the legion of homeless wandering the streets, Daily Times reporter Jay Garson, Jr. was in reality the city's foremost avenger The Ragman. In the course of his crusade The Ragman wore a bulletproof vest beneath his tatters and wielded guns when necessary. Aided by Tiny his loyal assistant, he fought against such villains as Stinger and The Ghost in his efforts to clean up the city.

Sci-fi adventurer Captain Venture who rescued Princess Zyra, the last survivor of Earth's Saturn colony, from the villainous Kag and Kashas. The Planet Princess, as she was called, joined Venture in his adventures from then on helping him fight the Spider People, liberate Camur from the Valhoes, defeat the villainous Zalko and his machines, and also stop an invasion of Gon gas.

Dynamic Man was created by Dr. Moore to fight the forces of darkness personified by the Yellow Spot. The Spot used his evil witchcraft to kill off or enter the minds of American scientists. He could travel as a bat and went into the home of Dr. Moore to kill him. While being stabbed, Moore somehow managed to throw the switch, giving life to his creation. The Yellow Spot's fiendish plan was put to a stop by Dynamic Man, who released the trapped minds of the other scientists and eliminated the Yellow Spot, who could only be killed in his bat form.

Rusty Adams works by day as a copy boy for the Daily Herald. When danger threatens, however, he puts on a costume and becomes "Crash Kid, boy nemesis to gangdom!" He has no superpowers.

Volton possesses what is called "the electrical power of elongation." He is super strong, he can fly, and he can emit bolts of lightning and electrify his hands.

Charles Gibson, a wealthy scientist, was experimenting with electricity and chemicals when lightning struck his lab. The electrical shock caused the lab to explode, but Gibson emerged from the wreckage with a body that could conduct and generate electricity. Swearing to use his powers for the good of humanity, he decided to fight crime as Shock Gibson, the Human Dynamo. In spite of using his surname in his code-name, nobody can figure out who he is under the mask.

The Black Phantom was a train robber who worked with a minion named Beast who wielded a bullwhip. She had a twin sister named Jicilla who was a dancer and singer at a saloon as well as a sweetheart to Tim Holt's friend Chito. However when Chito arrives to pick Jicilla up for their date he instead sees her twin Helena in her Black Phantom costume. The Black Phantom orders her men to kill him by dumping him down the well, but Tim Holt sees them carry his friend off and saves him as the Red Mask. While she started her career as an adversary of the western hero Red Mask, she eventually became Red Mask's crime fighting partner.

Alani, also known as South Sea Girl, was the ruler and protector of a chain of volcanic tropical islands in the South Pacific called the Vanishing Isles. She teamed up with Captain Ted to prevent oil tycoons from taking over her islands. She has no powers, but is strong enough to swim through a typhoon, can kill a shark easily, and is a knowledgeable mariner.

Don Wright was a publisher of Daily Bulletin, a newspaper based in either Central City or New York City (different issues give different locations). He put on a costume to help the downtrodden and oppressed. When World War II broke out, he focused on fighting the Axis saboteurs. Captain Freedom originally displayed super-strength and limited flight, but those powers vanished shortly after his original appearance and he remained non-powered for the remainder of his appearances.

District Attorney Jim Hornsby puts on a costume and teams up with his younger brother Bob (aka: the "Cobra Kid") to fight crime. He has no superpowers but is a skilled fighter.

Tom Dash was a humble antiques dealer, who's daughter, Lola, was gunned down in the crossfire of a mob hit. Enraged, Tom swore to avenge his daughter's death, and rid the city of organized crime. For the next year, Tom dedicated himself to intensive training so that he could become the ultimate crime fighter. During his year of training, Tom became a crack shot with a handgun, and an expert in boxing, jiu-jitsu and knife throwing, among other things. He also studied under a Hollywood makeup artist to become a master of disguise.

Pat Parker, also known as War Nurse, formed an all-girl team known as the Girl Commandos. The original members included Pat Parker in her War Nurse identity, Ellen Billings, Pat's friend, Tanya, an "official Soviet photographer", and Penelope "Penny" Kirt, an American radio reporter. Mei-Ling, a Chinese woman, joined the team during their first adventure in order to avenge her family's death at the hands of the Japanese army. After their first adventure, Pat Parker dropped her War Nurse identity and began adventuring under her real name.

Agent ZX-5 was one of the top US spies. He answered to his superior Major Jason, who gave ZX-5 missions around the world fighting the Axis powers during WWII. He would continually come into conflict with foreign spies such as Madame Terror. After the war, he goes on to become a private eye. He was known for his charm and carried a trick cane with numerous buttons each with a different function such as one for tear gas.

When he was 14, Bob Sanders' parents were killed when a tornado hit their hometown of Windy Gap. Bob was caught up in the tornado and found that the experience made him a part of the cyclone itself. Using his strange new powers for the good of mankind, Bob becomes the Twister. The Twister can fly, and one punch from him can send a villain crashing through a wall. Whirling his arms creates a tornado strong enough to carry cars or move them along at super speed. He also carries a Cyclone Gun that shoots powerful bursts of air. Breathing in the wind allows him to manipulate and amplify it.