Thursday, February 26, 2015

A Jack Kirby Omnibus



I’ve seen “Jack Kirby Omnibus” thrown around as the title, or part of the title, of several reprint volumes from both DC and Marvel. It got me wondering what a real Jack Kirby Omnibus would look like, cross all company lines. So I compiled my own wish list/table of contents for just a volume 1 alone.  This book would clock in at 504 pages and include material from 1938 to 1954, from 10 different publishers and 10 different genres.  Ah, if only…

“The Count of Monte Cristo” [adaptation] (8 pages, 1938, Jumbo Comics #1-2 , Fiction House)
“Lightnin’ and the Lone Rider” [cowboy] (8 pages, 1939, Famous Funnies #62-65, Eastern)
“The Green Sorceress and the Cyclotron” [Blue Bolt] (10 pages, 1940, Blue Bolt #2, Novelty Press)
“Case No. 1: Meet Captain America” (7 pages, 1941, Captain America Comics #1, Timely)
“The Riddle of the Red Skull” (14 pages, 1941, Captain America Comics #1, Timely) - 47
“Captain Marvel vs. Z” (15 pages, 1941, Captain Marvel Adventures #1, Fawcett)
“Riddle of the Slave Market” [Sandman] (10 pages, 1942, Adventure Comics #72, DC)
“Villain from Valhalla” [Sandman] (10 pages, 1942, Adventure Comics #75, DC)
“Adventure of the Magic Forest” [Sandman] (10 pages, 1942, World’s Finest Comics #6, DC)
“The Man Who Created Images [pt. 5]” [Sandman] (6 pages, 1943, All-Star Comics #15, DC)
“The JSA Fights for a United America” [ch. 5]” [Sandman] (6 pages, 1943, All-Star Comics #16, DC)
“Brain Wave Goes Berserk [ch. 3]” [Sandman] (6 pages, 1943, All-Star Comics #17, DC)
“The Invasion of Europe” [Boy Commandos] (44 pages, 1943, Boy Commandos #4, DC)
“The Crimes Set to Music [ch. 5]” [Sandman] (6 pages, 1944, All-Star Comics #19, DC)
“Cabbages and Comics” [Guardian & Newsboy Legion] (11 pages, 1944, Star-Spangled Comics #29, DC)
“Killer in the Big Top” [Stuntman] (13 pages, 1946, Stuntman #1, Harvey)
“Crazy Quilt – Artist in Villainy” [Boy Commandos] (12 pages, 1946, Boy Commandos #15, DC)
 [Lockjaw the Alligator] (7 pages, 1947, Punch and Judy Comics v. 2 #10, Hillman)
“Enter Riot O’Hara” [Flying Fool] (8 pages, 1947, Airboy v. 4 #5, Hillman)
“…My Date Was with Swifty Chase” [romance] (14 pages, 1947, My Date Comics #1, Hillman)
“Death Trap De-Luxe” [Vagabond Prince] (10 pages, 1947, Black Cat #7, Harvey)
“Sunken World” [Boy Commandos] (13 pages, 1947, Boy Commandos #23, DC)
“The Strange Aftermath of the Kansas City Massacre” [true crime] (8 pages, 1947, Headline Comics v. 3 #2, Prize)
“Her Best Friend’s Sweetheart” [romance] (8 pages, 1948, Young Romance #3, Prize)
“Queen of the Speed-Ball Mob” [true crime] (13 pages, 1948, Justice Traps the Guilty #4, Prize)
“City at the Center of the Earth” [Boy Commandos] (14 pages, 1948, Boy Commandos #29, DC) “Vanishing Jewel Salesman” [Charlie Chan] (9 pages, 1948, Charlie Chan #2, Prize)
“Dale Evans – Queen of the Westerns” [Boy Commandos] (12 pages, 1949, Boy Commandos #32, DC)
“This Man I Loved Was a Momma’s Boy” [romance] (13 pages, 1949, Young Romance v. 2 #4, Prize)
“The Man Who Stole a Train” [true crime] (10 pages, 1949, Justice Traps the Guilty v. 2 #4, Prize)
“I Want Your Man” [romance] (14 pages, 1950, Young Romance v. 3 #9, Prize)
“The Last Battle” [cowboy] (8 pages, 1950, Prize Comics Western v. 9 #4, Prize)
“The Man Who Hated Boys” [cowboy] (17 pages, 1950, Boys Ranch #1, Harvey)
“The Scorn of the Faceless People” [horror] (10 pages, 1950-1951, Black Magic v. 1 #2, Prize)
“The Legend of Alby Fleezer” [cowboy] (7 pages, 1951, Boys Ranch #3, Harvey)
“The Bugle Blows at Bloody Knife” [cowboy] (12 pages, 1951, Boys Ranch #4, Harvey)
“The Monsters on the Lake” [horror] (9 pages, 1953, Black Magic v. 3 #4, Prize)
“Let Sleeping Love Lie” [romance] (8 pages, 1953, Young Romance v. 7 #1, Prize)
“The Man from the World of D” [Captain 3-D] (11 pages, 1953, Captain 3-D #1, Harvey)
“Break the Spy Ring” [Fighting American] (10 pages, 1954, Fighting American #1, Prize)
“The League of the Handsome Devils” [Fighting American] (9 pages, 1954, Fighting American #2, Prize)
“Investigate the City of Ghouls” [Fighting American] (7 pages, 1954, Fighting American #2, Prize)
“Bulls Eye, Chapters 1-3” [Bulls Eye] (25 pages, 1954, Bulls Eye #1, Mainline)
“Poison Ivan and Hotsky Trotski” [Fighting American] (8 pages, 1954, Fighting American #3, Prize)
“Trial by Fire” [Bulls Eye] (9 pages, 1954, Bulls Eye #2, Mainline)
“Union Jack” [Bulls Eye] (8 pages, 1954, Bulls Eye #2, Mainline)