''Daring Mystery Comics'' is an American

comic-book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and written narrative, ...

series published by

Timely Comics Timely Comics was the common name for the group of corporations that was the earliest comic book arm of American publisher Martin Goodman (publisher), Martin Goodman, and the entity that would evolve by the 1960s to become Marvel Comics. "Timely P ...

, a predecessor of

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

, during the 1930–40s period fans and historians call the

Golden Age of Comic Books The Golden Age of Comic Books describes an era in the history of American comic books from 1938 to 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published and rapidly increased in popularity. The superhero archetype was created and ma ...

. Primarily a

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs, or related fiction/non-fiction excerpts by different authors. There are also thematic and g ...

, it ran eight issues from 1940 to 1942, and is notable for work by

Carl Burgos Carl Burgos ( ; born Max Finkelstein ; April 18, 1916 – March 1984 Note: Gives only month and year of death.) was an American comic book and advertising artist best known for creating the Human Torch (android), original Human Torch in ''Marvel ...

Bill Everett William Blake Everett (; May 18, 1917 – February 27, 1973) was an American comic book writer-artist best known for creating Namor the Sub-Mariner as well as co-creating Zombie (comics), Zombie and Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), Daredevil ...

Alex Schomburg Alexander A. Schomburg, born Alejandro Schomburg y Rosa (; May 10, 1905Alejandro Schomburg Y Rosa

, and the team of

Joe Simon Joseph Henry Simon (born Hymie Simon; October 11, 1913 – December 14, 2011) was an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s–1940s Golden Age of Comic Books ...

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (; born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comics artist, comic book artist, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He grew ...

. ''Daring Mystery Comics'' #8 (Jan. 1942) features the

first appearance In comic books and other stories with a long history, first appearance refers to the first issue to feature a fictional character. These issues are often highly valued by collectors due to their rarity and iconic status. Reader interest in fir ...

of the Golden Age superhero Citizen V, who decades later appears in flashback in the Marvel series '' Thunderbolts'', where his family and the Citizen V identity play a major part. A small handful of other ''Daring Mystery'' superheroes have been revived or have made guest appearances in modern-day titles, such as the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

-set flashback series '' The Invaders'' and the feature "

Liberty Legion The Liberty Legion is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team was first created in 1976 and set during World War II. Composed of existing heroes from Marvel's 1940s Golden Age of Comic Bo ...

" in ''

Marvel Premiere ''Marvel Premiere'' is an American comic book anthology series that was published by Marvel Comics. In concept it was a tryout book, intended to determine if a character or concept could attract enough readers to justify launching their own ser ...

''.

Publication history

''Daring Mystery Comics'' came from publisher Martin Goodman's

, which by the early 1960s would evolve into

. The first five issues were nominally edited by Goodman, but were in fact mixtures of material bought from Funnies, Inc. or the

Harry "A" Chesler Harry Chesler (January 12, 1897, or January 12, 1898 (sources differ)Harry Chesler
at ...

studio, both prominent comic-book "packagers" who produced stories or even complete, outsourced comics on demand for publishers entering the fledgling

medium Medium may refer to: Aircraft *Medium bomber, a class of warplane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''The Medium'' (1921 film), a German silent film * ''The Medium'' (1951 film), a film vers ...

. Timely's first in-house editor,

, relaunched the series with issue #6 as his second project for Goodman and remained for the last few issues. Following ''Daring Mystery Comics'' #1-8 (Jan. 1940 - Jan. 1942) and a publishing hiatus, the series' numbering continued under different titles. In a quirk of publishing involving

U.S. Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...

regulations and mailing costs, and a

, paper-supply-related moratorium on launching new series, publisher Goodman somehow continued the series numbering as both ''Daring Comics'' for four issues from 1944 to 1945,''Daring Comics'' (1944-1945)
at The Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics Creators and as ''Comedy Comics'' for 26 issues from 1942-1946, both of which launched with an issue #9.

Characters

An anthology with no regular star, the series included a number of obscure, mostly single-appearance features. Due to Golden Age comics work often going unsigned, comprehensive credits are difficult if not impossible to ascertain, and in many early cases, a feature's artist is also the uncredited writer. The best known superheroes to debut in its pages were the Blue Diamond, by artist co-creator Ben Thompson; writer-artist

's the

Fin A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. F ...

; and the Thunderer, created by writer John H. Compton and notable for artist co-creator

. All three heroes were introduced in issue #7 (April 1941). In the 1970s, the Blue Diamond resurfaced in period stories in ''

'', as a member of the homefront

team the

. He also appeared in writer Paul Jenkins' 2011

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

''All-Winners Squad: Band of Heroes'' (2011). Two characters introduced here, writer-artist

's Fiery Mask, and writer Will Harr and artist Maurice Gutwirth's Laughing Mask, who became the Purple Mask, appeared in present-day stories after awakening from

suspended animation Suspended animation is the slowing or stopping of biological function so that physiological capabilities are preserved. States of suspended animation are common in micro-organisms and some plant tissue, such as seeds. Many animals, including l ...

alongside 10 other Timely heroes in

' 2007-2008 and 2012 miniseries '' The Twelve''. Other heroes included the Challenger, drawn by Charles Nicholas Wojtkoski under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

Nick Karlton; Dynaman, by artist and possibly writer Steve Dahlman; and the superheroine the Silver Scorpion, created or co-created by artist and sometime-writer Harry Sahle using the

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

Jewell, which comics historian Michael J. Vassallo believes marked a collaboration with another, unknown artist. The final three issues contained work by the commercially popular team of writer-

inker The inker (sometimes credited as the finisher or embellisher) is one of the two line artists in traditional comic book production. After the penciller creates a drawing with pencil, the inker interprets this drawing by outlining and embellishing ...

Joe Simon and

penciler A penciller (or penciler) is an artist who works on the creation of comic books, graphic novels, and similar visual art forms, with a focus on the initial pencil illustrations. In the American comic book industry, the penciller is the first step ...

and sometimes co-scripter

. They collaborated on the covers of #6 (July 1940) and #8 (Jan. 1942), the former of which also featured a 10-page Simon & Kirby story introducing the single-appearance superhero Marvel Boy (the first of several

Marvel Universe The Marvel Universe is a fictional shared universe where the stories in most American comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Comics take place. Superhero teams such as the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Guardia ...

characters to take that name), and 10-page story starring the previously introduced Fiery Mask. Issue #7 (April 1941) contained an eight-page Simon & Kirby story introducing the obscure Captain Daring (taken over for the next and last issue by artist

Frank Borth Frank M. Borth III (April 1, 1918 – August 9, 2009) was an American comic book artist. Biography Borth was born and raised in Cleveland, eventually graduating in 1940 from the Cleveland School of Art, where he majored in illustration."New Sea ...

, and continuing as Captain Dash in ''Comedy Comics'' #9). One of the first superhero

parodies A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satirical or ironic imitation. Often its subject is an original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, etc), but a parody can als ...

— Stuporman, by Harry Douglas who signed his name "Harry / Douglas" leading to much confusion and many theories over the possibility of two creators — debuted in issue #6 (Sept. 1940). Non-superhero features included "G-Man, Don Gorman", a single-issue cover character by unknown creators, though inked by future notable Dick Briefer; "Soldier of Fortune, John Steele" and "Monako the Master Magician" a.k.a. "Monako, Prince of Magic", both by artist co-creator Larry Antonette (under the pseudonym Dean Carr for "John Steele");''Daring Mystery Comics'' #1
at the Grand Comics Database "K-4 and the Sky Devils", by uncertain creators; "Whirlwind Carter of the Interplanetary Secret Service", by writer-artist

Fletcher Hanks Fletcher Hanks Sr. (December 1, 1889 – January 22, 1976) was an American cartoonist from the Golden Age of Comic Books, who wrote and drew stories detailing the adventures of all-powerful, supernatural heroes and their elaborate punishments of t ...

; the jungle-lord adventure "Trojak the Tiger Man", by artist co-creator Joe Simon using the byline Gregory Sykes; artist co-creator Ben Thompson's single-appearance

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

"Robin Hood of the Range", featuring the first of two Marvel characters called the Texas Kid; and the

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

-set ''Flash Foster at Midwestern'', by writer and artist Bob Wood."The Football Fixing Scheme", ''Daring Mystery Comics'' #1
at the Grand Comics Database The comic's first five covers were by artist

Alex Schomburg Alexander A. Schomburg, born Alejandro Schomburg y Rosa (; May 10, 1905Alejandro Schomburg Y Rosa

Complete List of Features

*The Fiery Mask (January 1940; June 1940; September 1940) *John Steele, Soldier of Fortune (January 1940) inal*The Texas Kid (January 1940) inal*Monako, Prince of Magic (January 1940; May 1940-September 1940) inal*Flash Foster at Midwestern (January 1940) inal*Doyl Denton, Phantom of the Underworld (January 1940) inal*Barney Mullen – Sea Rover (January 1940) inal*Zephyr Jones and His Rocket Ship (February 1940) *The Phantom Bullet, Scourge of the Underworld (February 1940) inal*Trojak, the Tiger-Man (February 1940-June 1940) inal*K-4 and His Sky Devils (February 1940-June 1940) inal*Mr. E. (February 1940) inal*The Laughing Mask/The Purple Mask (February 1940-May 1940) inal*Dale of the FBI (April 1940) inal*Breeze Barton (April 1940-June 1940) inal*The Phantom Reporter (April 1940) inal*Marvex the Super Robot (April 1940-June 1940) inal*Captain Strong of the Foreign Legion (April 1940) inal*Whirlwind Carter of the Interplanetary Secret Service (May 1940-June 1940) inal*G-Man Don Gorman (May 1940) inal*Little Hercules (June 1940) inal*The Falcon (June 1940-September 1940) inal*Marvel Boy (September 1940) inal*Stuporman (September 1940) *The Flying Flame (September 1940) *Dynaman (September 1940) inal*Tigerman (September 1940) inal*The Thunderer (April 1941; January 1942) inal; revamped as Black Avenger*The Fin (April 1941; January 1942) *Blue Diamond (April 1941; January 1942) inal*Officer O’Krime (April 1941; January 1942) *The Silver Scorpion (April 1941; January 1942) *The Challenger (April 1941) *Mr. Million (April 1941) inal*Captain Daring (April 1941; January 1942) inal; revamped as Captain Dash*Citizen V (January 1942) *The Li’l Professor and the Robot (January 1942) *Tubby an’ Tack (January 1942)

Collected editions

* '' Marvel Masterworks: Golden Age Daring Mystery Vol. 1'' (collects ''Daring Mystery Comics'' #1-4) * ''Marvel Masterworks: Golden Age Daring Mystery Vol. 2'' (collects ''Daring Mystery Comics'' #5-8)

In other media

The Thunderer appeared in the "Six Forgotten Warriors" episode of one of the

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appearance, first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in ...

animated television series An animated series, or a cartoon series, is a set of Animation, animated films with a common title, usually related to one another. These episodes typically share the same main heroes, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series ...

References

External links

*{{comicbookdb, type=title, id=12671, title=''Daring Mystery Comics'' Comics magazines published in the United States Timely Comics titles 1940 comics debuts 1942 comics endings Magazines established in 1940 Magazines disestablished in 1942 Defunct magazines published in the United States Magazines about comics Golden Age comics titles