The Sarge Steel Reports - File #105

Sarge Steel #5 is dated September 1965. No writer is credited on the splash page but no doubt it's Joe Gill. The art this time is by Bill Montes and Ernie Bache taking the reigns from Dick Giordano. Giordano does supply the cover for this issue though. The splash page shows Sarge in a headlock held by a giant Asian warrior with Ivan Chung holding a sword and ordering a beautiful woman to shoot Sarge while a tweedy professor type looks on.

Part I of File 105 "The Case of the Caged Brain" begins on the beaches of Miami where Sarge is taking a small vacation. He is approached by a stunning raven-haired beauty who turns out to be Li-Li also known as "The Black Lily" a Chinese intelligence agent. She tells Sarge that she is attempting to get away from Ivan Chung, an old enemy of Sarge's, and the pair drive off together in Sarge's car. But they are followed and a trap ends up with Sarge trading bullets with unknown assailants. After the gunplay, Li-Li tells Sarge the truth, that she is there to get him to come with her in order that a scientist working for Chung will finish a project. He claims that only if Sarge is present will he feel safe enough to complete the assignment. While kissing Li-Li Sarge feels the prick of a needle and soon is asleep. An American agent reports from his car while Sarge is driven away and taken aboard a plane. The plane is tracked to a Cuban air field and we find out that this was part of a plan to get Sarge in touch with the scientist, a Dr.Crayne. Sarge awakes on the plane, attacks his kidnappers but finds his neck in the grip of some mighty hands.

"Special Services 3X" is a one-page text piece that talks about psychological warfare and the branch of the government which uses it. Then a story about using toy mechanical snakes to trick superstitious Vietnamese soldiers is related as an example.

Part II of the Sarge Steel story is titled "Fatal Beauty" and begins with Sarge in the arms of Li-Li but under the eye of others, specifically a giant Asian warrior. Li-Li kisses Sarge only to trick him and taking his luger away. A long flight and eventually Sarge lands Northwest China and is taken to the headquarters of Ivan Chung where Dr.Crayne is working. Chung threatens both Sarge and Crayne as well as Li-Li and Sarge punches him. Then the giant warrior named Nhu gets involved and quickly gets Sarge in a barred cell. But Sarge uses his steel fist to break out and a battle begins.

Part III is titled "Pick a Way to Die" and begins with Sarge and Nhu battling hand to hand. Eventually Sarge is able to get his very strong and agile opponent angry using his steel fist and is at a last able to knock him out. Chung attacks but Sarge using his fist yet again breaks his sword. Li-Li aims Sarge's luger at him, but she can't bring herself to kill him and so Sarge knocks out Chung and the trio of Sarge, Crayne, and Li-Li run to an airplane. Li-Li covers Sarge's and Crayne's escape in the plane and we see her presumably dead on the airstrip as they fly away to safety. Sarge fights back tears though he won't admit it.

"Sport of Judo" is a three-page piece by Frank McLaughlin narrated and starring Sarge in which he talks about judo not as sport but as an effective self-defense approach and demonstrates techniques used to fend off a knife attack.

I find the artwork of Montes & Bache very appealing, but I have to confess the storytelling is weak in places. Without captions, I'd have a very hard time following the action in a few places. This story features some good characters, but there are few twists. This is the last issue of Sarge Steel to have the "Private Detective" sub-title on the cover.

More to come.

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Werewolves Of Derby!

Steve Ditko

Tom Sutton

Steve Ditko

Unknown

Mike Zeck

Steve Ditko

Mike Zeck

Tom Sutton
Here are some dandy werewolf covers from might Charlton! With the new The Wolfman movie coming out this week, lycanthropes are all the rage this minute. I likely won't go to see this frenetic remake of the classic Universal The Wolf Man flick, Curt Siodmak's great creation, but I might be moved to dig out some of my classic Wolfman flicks and give them another gander.


And let me reserve a special place for Charlton's own Baron Weirwulf himself, as rendered on this beautiful cover by the late great Don Newton. Newton painted some truly memorable images in his brief time.

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Cap Gets A Gun!

It's been a good many years since I busted out this VHS copy I have if the serial Captain America. I perhaps have only watched it once, when I first got it so many years ago now. Needless to say my memories of the movie had long faded.

To begin, it's a fairly standard Republic movie serial. All the tropes are here. They've got exploding barns, exploding cars, exploding planes, and even exploding skyscrapers. There are electrical death traps, rolling tractor death traps, guillotine death traps, and remote-controlled robot trucks that smash into all sorts of things. Throw in fisticuffs, gunplay, and even an exotic Mayan blowgun and you've got quite a mishmash of standard adventure serial mayhem.


Now most folks probably know that the Captain America of the serial ain't the Cap we know and love from the comics. Nowhere is Steve Rogers and not a hint of Bucky is to be found. This "Captain America" is Grant Gardner (played by Dick Purcell) the local fighting District Attorney, and a more lethal public servant it would be difficult to uncover. He throws maybe half a dozen henchmen off the tops of buildings and out of windows and guns down at least a half dozen more. And when he's killed a guy, he just packs up his gun and moseys along to find more baddies to unleash on.


He's not alone as his secretary Gail played by Lorna Gray, is often on hand to add to mix. She is pretty tough as serial dames go, but just as often ends up under a blade or stranded in a gas-filled case. She's a beautiful woman though, one of the most beautiful I've seen in a serial.

The main villain is called The Scarab and is played to the hilt by the wonderful Lionel Atwill. He slips in and out of character pretending to be a true blue friend to his fellow scientists while plotting and committing many a murder as the story unfolds. He appears to be an enemy agent of sorts, though that element of the story is undeveloped. He wants revenge on his colleagues for ruining his reputation and a lot of the action centers around an expedition to the jungles of the Mayan empire. But as far as the serial is concerned the action stays centered right on the domestic homefront.


This Captain America is a bit of a mincer too. He never looks all that comfortable in his fighting togs and the gun doesn't have the pinache of the classic shield. He does get on a motorcycle one time and looks pretty good there.


The trouble with the serial is that it's a bit generic. Any hero would've done here, and that hurts the flavor a bit. I've read that Mr.Scarlet, the Fawcett hero was originally scheduled for this serial and Cap was a late addition. That would make sense, since there's very little here that has any real feel for the specific nature of Captain America.


This is a perfectly fine serial, but nothing especially robust or spectacular.

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The Sarge Steel Reports - File #104

Sarge Steel #4 is dated July 1965. Created by Pat Masulli and scripted by Joe Gill, this issue features artwork by Dick Giordano with Jon D'Agostino on the lettering. The cover is another choice one by Giordano.

The story "Case of the Kiss of the Cat" begins with a splash featuring Sarge facing off against a beautiful black-haired woman and her black panther. The story begins in a night club where Sarge is confronted by a thug named Moo who is a bodyguard for Lynx, but Sarge makes way with him and spends the evening dancing with the beautiful and rich thrillseeker. The papers the next several days feature Lynx making a splash everywhere she went creating quite a distraction, which Steel thinks might be linked to certain robberies. He is employed by Harker Bliss to safeguard some jewels which are being displayed during a party which Lynx will attend. She arrives with an ocelot on a leash which Sarge charms with some scent he brought for that very situation. He spies Lynx on the balcony distracted and then he himself sees a burglar climbing down a wall which Sarge confronts and sends splashing into the pool a few stories below. But there's a big explosion and the vault was robbed while all this happened. Lynx makes her exit as Part I finishes.

"P is for Parachute" is a one-page text piece about the history of parachutes.

Part II is titled "The Strolling Statue" and begins with Lynx and her henchmen Moo and Felix planning her next heist. Steel has been engaged to supply some security advice for the World's Fair and goes to fulfill that obligation when he encounters Lynx. He checks out the statue "The Dreamer" just before it is stolen with the use of sleeping gas and some disguise work. The life-size statue is dressed and driven off the Fair grounds in one of the distinctive taxis the Fair uses. Steel recognizes the thieves, attempts to intercept them but is knocked out himself when Lynx unleashes her panther on him. He wakes up in time to see a hydrofoil disappear across the horizon.

Part III is titled "Death on Cat Cay" and begins with Sarge rising out of the water onto the beach of Cat Cay, the ideal location for Lynx's hideout he suspects. He makes his way past the guards using various hand-to-hand and judo techniques. He leaps the fence using high-tech jump-jets and then scales the wall of the central hideout taking out various guards before at long last finding location of stolen statue. He then is again confronted by Lynx and her panther, but this time he uses his Luger to dispatch the attacking animal. Lynx is furious but then abruptly seemingly succumbs to Sarge's charms calling her "Man of Steel". But he is not fooled as she reaches for his gun. Suddenly British policemen show up and arrest Lynx and her men. It seems Cat Cay is under British mandate and they take the Lynx into custody. But as Sarge relates to Bessie and Harker Bliss later when he returns the jewels, she escaped the British police boat and seemingly drowned. Bliss and Steel lament the loss of such a beautiful woman, but Bessie is less impressed. The story ends with a final panel announcing the next adventure featuring arch-villain Ivan Chung.

"Sport of Judo" is a three-page instructional piece by Frank McLaughlin featuring Sarge Steel giving tips on two judo throws, specifically Osoto Gari-Major Outer Reaping Throw and Osoto Makikomi Major Outer Winding Throw. The former was specifically used in the main Steel story this issue.

This issue has a ranging setting, but does live up to the noir private eye quality more than the previous two which had a greater spy feel. This one deals with mere thefts, though the thief is very well connected and highly organized. This is a solid issue by Giordano, who will be taking a break from the series with the next few issues.

More to come.

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Up To My Konga In Snow!

I don't think we got nearly as much snow in my area as they have elsewhere, but it will certainly do. Being a teacher, I frankly love snow days. They are little islands of quiet and calm in the grand march of chaos that is daily life. While the world rumbles and tumbles through the drifts, I get to sit back and enjoy the cozy and warm recesses of my humble abode alongside my loving wife. That is, if I'm not out in the elements hoisting shovels of the white death over my shoulder.

Be safe out there if you can, or better yet be safe at home if you can.

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Rin Tin Tin Cinema!

Rin Tin Tin is a most famous name and at one time a powerhouse at the box office. But by the 1930's the original star was getting a bit long in the fang and soon his mantle would be taken up by Rin Tin Tin Jr.

The Legend of Rin Tin Tin features four serials starring both of these dogs. The first two star the original Rinty and the last two Rinty Jr. alongside Rex The Wonder Horse. All four of these movies are Mascot Serials, the company that would form the basis for Republic.


The Lone Defender was apparently one of the very first full-sound serial films. It's a solid story about a gold mine and the furious activity on the part of the badguys to make off with the claim. A young woman named Valdez loses her father, but the secret of the mine is etched in a watch and in the memory of Rinty her father's faithful dog. The baddies want to snatch both but are fended off by Buzz a young fellow who helps Miss Valdez and a mysterious character named Ramon, who many think is a villain named "The Cactus Kid". This serial is full of riding and Rin Tin Tin fights three other dogs in some rather intense sequences. The movie falls silent for long stretches, a common feature in early sound flicks, and there are some overly long sequences in sandstorms that are pretty difficult to follow. But overall it's an enjoyable journey with a few not-terribly-surprising twists to freshen things.


The Lightning Warrior is the second Rin Tin Tin sound serial. The plot is pretty straightforward, or at least I think so. A group of miners are being scared away from their claims by the threat of Indians stirred up by a mysterious cloaked figure called "The Wolfman" (this movie pre-dates the Universal flick by many years) and the government sends some men to investigate. A boy loses his father, the owner of the richest mine and a G-Man's brother is killed. Rin Tin Tin belongs to the dead brother but hooks up with the boy and they romp through the story escaping some pretty neat cliffhangers. Rin Tin Tin is the "Lightning Warrior" we learn about half way through, it being a nickname given to him by the Indians. It's a great title for a serial, but the explanation is pretty weak. There's other stuff, like a woman who has a father framed for murder who was raised by the sheriff. All of these guys including a few others look good to be the Wolfman. The story doesn't really make sense if you pay too close attention, but I found it had a good momentum and held my attention pretty well.


The Law of the Wild stars Rin Tin Tin Jr. and is a straightforward modern western with cars and horses chasing along the same backroads raising dust and doing damage. A wild stallion named "Rex" by our hero played by Bob Custer turns out to be a desirable racehorse and so gets stolen by veteran serial baddie Richard Alexander. Then the villains struggle with the hero for possession of a bill of sale and the horse is stolen and re-stolen over and over again as the action and the story unfold. The story frankly could use a few more maguffins to keep it fresh in the middle where it sort of bogs down a bit. Ben Turpin, a silent comedy star famous for his crossed eyes supplies the light moments and gets a lot of screen time. Rinty and Rex are a good team in this saga with Rex portraying a very convincing dangerous stallion. Rinty gets hurt a lot in this one, getting shot at least twice and thrown out of several cars and off horses. He must have some healing factor though as he keeps coming back for more.


The Adventures of Rex and Rinty stars Kane Richmond alongside Rin Tin Tin Jr. and Rex the Wonder Horse. This is a pretty good serial with a decent amount of variety in the action. Rinty is a dog possessed of "near human intelligence" who is a stray fending for himself in the world. Rex is a god-horse of Sujan a distant island kingdom who gets stolen by the badguys and ends up through a bunch of coincidences in the stables operated by Kane Richmond's girlfriend's daddy. Richmond plays an expert polo player who trains Rex in that sport. Meanwhile the baddies led by an evil polo player try to steal Rex over and over again. Often it is Rinty to the rescue and the pair have more than a few adventures on their own apart from the main plot. The save some animals and even a lost little boy from an evil human predator. Ultimately of course all is made well and the horse gets back to Sujan, but then you knew that all ready.

All in all these are a fun batch of movies. The quality of the movies is suspect, but I've come to expect that with older flicks. This is not great cinema, but it is fun cinema for sure.

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The Sarge Steel Reports - File #103

Sarge Steel #3 is dated April-May 1967. Created by Pat Masulli with script by Joe Gill, Illustrations by Dick Giordano and Letters by Jon D'Agostino, the issue features a cover by Giordano. The title still has the "Private Detective" label attached.

Case #103 "The Heritage of Hate" begins with a splash page featuring Sarge fencing with a man wearing a swastika on his fencing mask with the Smiling Skull shooting a bullet between them while a beautiful redhead lingers on the floor. The story starts in Sarge's office with Sarge late for an appointment charging across town avoiding parking tickets and speeding to make a date with Rocky. Rocky it turns out is an ex-light-heavyweight boxing champ with whom Sarge spars twice a week. After the bout Sarge shows off his steel fist to an interested party by smashing a bathroom wall, then goes to his locker to find a man stealing his signature steel luger. He breaks his wrist and sends him packing. Later at his office he listens to Bessie's recorded notes about the clients of the day, but is interrupted by three thugs. Sarge battles them and defeats all three but then is slugged from behind by an unknown party. He awakes in the arms of a beautiful redhead named Inga Ross. Then police appear and tell Sarge that while they don't suspect him, they need him to come with them to answer questions since bullets matching his gun have turned up in regard to two homicides. He discovers that his luger has a silver twin with the same serial number and almost identical and ballistics patterns. That silver Luger reportedly owned by Rudolf Wolk. Then after leaving the police office Inga pulls a gun and forces Sarge onto a plane headed south.

Part II is titled "The Smiling Skull" and opens as Rudolf Wolk, the Smiling Skull approaches Sarge's plane in a military style jet. Both planes land on a field in a "banana republic". After a few words, Wolk uses his signature silver luger to demonstrate his shooting skill by shooting at Sarge who is unimpressed. After trading a few bon mots Sarge and Wolk come into conflict with Sarge deflecting Wolk's shot with his steel fist and then knocking out the Nazi. Taking Wolk's gun and running out the window, he finds Inga hanging out another window and re-enters the building. She says her father is being held captive and then thugs appear with guns. Sarge shoots them as they head to the dungeons in the network of tunnels under the base. Sarge and Inga encounter a fencer wearing a swastika on his fencing mask just as Sarge realizes his silver Luger is empty.

"C.I." is a two-page text piece about the training and expertise needed to do the job of Criminal Investigator in the military. The essay is narrated by Major John William Henry.

"Doomsday" is a one-page story by artist Bill Molno about the threat of nuclear war and speaks of bombers, submarine missiles and the future threat of missiles launched from the ocean floor.

Part III is titled "The Silver Luger" and begins as Sarge defeats the fencer, blocking his sword with his fist then he and Inga head into the dungeon as Wolk appears with another gun. They find bars blocking the way, but Sarge is able to use his fist to bust through them. The pair run into a staging area filled with jet planes and other equipment which Inga explains is the secret weapons cache of the Smiling Skull and includes nuclear weapons. Sarge reloads the silver luger and then releasing fuel sets fire to the weapons cache. Fleeing the raging fire they find Inga's father just as they come under fire from a machine gun, but Sarge dispatches the gunner. He then gets Inga's dad and other released prisoners to use the machine gun to hold the Nazis at bay while and Rudolph Wolk the Smiling Skull face off. Again Sarge deflects the bullet with his fist and fires at Wolk seemingly killing him. But a caption says Wolk will be held for trial as the battle is won and the wannabe Nazis are defeated. Sarge gets a kiss from Inga but the final panel shows him returning to his office where Bessie waits. He brings the silver Luger with him.

Finally there is "The Sport of Judo" a three-page feature written and drawn by Frank McLaughlin featuring Sarge Steel telling the reader all about the basics of judo and how it should be seen more as a sport requiring specific discipline rather than just a deadly secret science.

This is a solid issue of Sarge Steel. The format of the story has more of the spy flavor from the second issue and less of the noir feel of the first. The Smiling Skull is a memorable baddie and it's always good when the good guys are cleaning out a nest of Nazis. Back in the 60's there were plenty of these unrepentant types to subdue it seems. Sarge really depended on his steel fist in this one using it many times to deflect bullets a now common trick, and as a shield of sorts in the fencing bout. It's a great all-purpose weapon in these stories and as a mace is perfect. Sarge's strength seems a bit amplified this time, but I guess we can write some things off to metal fatigue.

More to come.

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