''Jumbo Comics'' was an

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

anthology

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

published by

Fiction House Fiction House was an American publisher of pulp magazines and comic books that existed from the 1920s to the 1950s. It was founded by John B. "Jack" Kelly and John W. Glenister.Saunders, David"JACK BYRNE (1902-1972),"Field Guide to Wild American P ...

from 1938 to 1953. ''Jumbo Comics'' was Fiction House's first comics title; the publisher had previously specialized in

pulp magazines Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 until around 1955. The term "pulp" derives from the wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed, due to their cheap nature. ...

. The lead feature for ''Jumbo Comics''' entire run was Sheena, Queen of the Jungle. Notable creators who worked on ''Jumbo Comics'' include

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 ...

(working under a variety of

pseudonyms 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 ow ...

Bob Kane Robert Kane ( Kahn ; October 24, 1915 – November 3, 1998) was an American comic book writer, animator, and artist who created Batman and many early related characters for DC Comics. He was inducted into the comic book industry's Jack Kirby ...

, Matt Baker, Mort Meskin, Lou Fine, Bob Powell, Mort Leav, Art Saaf, Dick Briefer, Lily Renée, and Ruth Roche. Jerry Iger was ''Jumbo Comics''' art director for its entire run.

Publication history

By the late 1930s, Fiction House publisher Thurman T. Scott expanded the company from

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

, an emerging medium that began to seem a viable adjunct to the fading pulps. Receptive to a sales call by

Eisner & Iger Eisner & Iger was a comic book packager that produced comics on demand for publishers entering the new medium during the late-1930s and 1940s, a period fans and historians call the Golden Age of Comic Books. Founded by Will Eisner and Jerry Ige ...

, one of the prominent " packagers" of that time that produced complete comic books on demand for publishers looking to enter the field, Scott published ''Jumbo Comics'' #1 (Sept. 1938), (just a couple months after ''Action Comics'' #1) under Fiction House's Real Adventures Publishing Company imprint. Sheena, Queen of the Jungle appeared in that initial issue. The character had debuted in 1937 in the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

magazine ''Wags''.Sheena, Queen of the Jungle
at

Don Markstein's Toonopedia Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...

Archived
from the original November 10, 2011 Indeed, all the material Eisner & Iger prepared for ''Jumbo Comics'' #1 (and the subsequent seven issues) had originally appeared in ''Wags'', which was a tabloid-sized publication. For this reason, ''Jumbo Comics'' #1-8 were oversize (10-1/2" x 14-1/2") and exclusively in black and white. (The name "Jumbo" was derived from the oversized publication size.)Sergi, Joe
"Tales From the Code: The Near Extinction of Sheena,"
CBLDF website (January 25, 2013). With issue #9, the title reverted to standard Golden Age comic size (8-1/2" x 10-1/2") and was printed in color. Bob Powell's first published comic-book art is tentatively identified as the uncredited three-page story "A Letter of Introduction," featuring the famed

ventriloquist Ventriloquism or ventriloquy is an act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) speaks in such a way that it seems like their voice is coming from a different location, usually through a puppet known as a "dummy". The act of ventrilo ...

Edgar Bergen Edgar John Bergen (né Berggren; February 16, 1903 – September 30, 1978) was an American ventriloquist, comedian, actor, vaudevillian and radio performer. He was best known for his characters Charlie McCarthy and Mortimer Snerd. Bergen ...

and his dummy, Charlie McCarthy, in ''Jumbo Comics'' #2 (Oct. 1938). Lou Fine's first published comics art was the strip "Wilton of the West" in ''Jumbo Comics'' #4 (Dec. 1938), signed with the house

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 ...

"Fred Sande" (which strip originator

had used in previous issues). Ultimately, Fiction House published 167 issues of ''Jumbo Comics'' from September 1938 to March 1953.

Recurring features

Three features in ''Jumbo Comics'' #1 representing

's first comic-book work following his debut in ''Wild Boy Magazine'':Per Kirby's recollection in interview, ''The Nostalgia Journal'' #30 (Nov. 1976), reprinted in ''The Comics Journal Library, Volume One: Jack Kirby'' (2002) , p. 3 * "The Diary of Dr. Hayward" —

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

strip under the pseudonym "Curt Davis"; the strip was later continued by other artists until issue #9 * "Wilton of the West" — modern-West crimefighter strip as "Fred Sande"; the strip was later continued by other artists until c. issue #24 *

Alexandre Dumas Alexandre Dumas (born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas , was a French novelist and playwright. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the mos ...

's ''

The Count of Monte Cristo ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' () is an adventure novel by the French writer Alexandre Dumas. It was serialised from 1844 to 1846, and published in book form in 1846. It is one of his most popular works, along with ''The Three Musketeers'' (184 ...

'' — serialized adaptation as "Jack Curtiss" In addition, Dick Briefer produced a serialized adaptation (in five-page installments) of

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo, vicomte Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romanticism, Romantic author, poet, essayist, playwright, journalist, human rights activist and politician. His most famous works are the novels ''The Hunchbac ...

's 1831 novel ''

The Hunchback of Notre-Dame ''The Hunchback of Notre-Dame'' (, originally titled ''Notre-Dame de Paris. 1482'') is a French Gothic novel by Victor Hugo, published in 1831. The title refers to the Notre-Dame Cathedral, which features prominently throughout the novel. I ...

'' which ran in the first 8 issues. Other recurring features: Sheena, Queen of the Jungle — soon became the company's star character, and her adventures appeared in every issue of ''Jumbo Comics''. Over the years the Sheena feature was worked on by notable creators like Bob Powell, Mort Meskin, and Matt Baker. ZX-5 Spies in Action — ran for almost the entire run of the title. Ghost Gallery — ran from issue #40 until the book was cancelled. Inspector Dayton — another recurring feature that debuted in the first issue and ran until issue #60 (Feb. 1944). Hawks of the Seas — period adventure continuing a story from

Quality Comics Quality Comics was an American comic book publishing Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, ...

' ''Feature Funnies'' #12, after Eisner-Iger and Quality had had a falling out; the strip lasted about ten issues. Peter Pupp — originally by

; ran for the first 25 issues. Spencer Steel — ran for the first 12 issues; also appeared in Fiction House's '' Fight Comics''. Sky Girl — by Matt Baker; ran in issues #69-139 (November 1944–December 1952), with some of the later stories being reprints. Long Bow —

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 ...

feature which ran in issues #141-160 (Nov. 1950–June 1952), roughly concurrent with Fiction House's ''Long Bow'' series (which ran nine issues from 1951–Winter 1952/1953).

References

Notes

Sources consulted

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jumbo Comics Comics magazines published in the United States 1938 comics debuts 1953 comics endings Magazines established in 1938 Magazines disestablished in 1953 Golden Age comics titles