MASKED RANGER COMICS "Frontier Killer"

Sometimes the line between "good" guy and "bad" guy is blurred...

...as we see in this never-reprinted one-shot tale from Premier's Masked Ranger Comics #4 (1954)

Future MAD Magazine artist George Woodbridge shows his versatility in penciling this tale of moral ambiguity in the Old West.

It's believed that Sid Check provided the inking, but there's no authoritative source for a writer's credit.

And now for a sad announcement.

Because of lack of readers, we're taking this blog off it's once-a-week frequency.

The blog will still be around, and there will be new posts, usually linked to something Western-themed occuring in movies or TV, or to note the passing of a Western media celebrity.

At that point, I'll gauge if there's enough interest to go back to weekly posting.

So it's "Happy Trails to you...until we meet again..."

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ALERT: VALLEY OF GWANGI, LETTERBOX, UNCUT, AND COMMERCIAL-FREE !!!

We interrupt this blog to alert you!!!

Turner Classic Movies (TCM) on Saturday Morning!
November 9th, 6:45 AM (Eastern)

NOT AVAILABLE ON DVD!

Heat up the DVRs or DVD recorders!

PLUS, you can read the comic book adaptation of the movie HERE!

DEATH VALLEY "Deadly Double Cross"

Here's a never-reprinted tale of six-gun justice deferred...

...by the talented team of then-up and comers, Ross Andru and Mike Esposito!

Anthologies without ongoing characters were a popular format for Western comics, allowing for life-or-death situations that sometimes actually resulted in a tale's feature characters ending up on Boot Hill!

The first issue of Comic Media's Death Valley (1953) was a showpiece for Andru and Esposito to demonstrate their storytelling prowess in all four stories.
While there's no author listed on any of the indexes for this issue, it's not unreasonable to believe Ross and Mike also wrote these four tales!
Besides the one we're running today, we presented the other stories HERE, HERE and HERE.

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MASKED MARVEL "Beasts of Horror"

We end October as we began, with the hero who looks like a Dia de los Muertos sugar skull...

...in his final, never-reprinted appearance in Youthful's GunSmoke #16 (1952)!

Most of the time, the Masked Marvel, like the Ghost Rider, faced threats that appeared supernatural, but actually were people pretending to be ghosts or monsters, like the heroes themselves.
The writer is unknown, but the artist is Tony Tallarico, who went on to co-create Lobo, comics' first Black cowboy (and the first Black character to get his own comic book) in 1966!

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THE ORIGINAL GHOST RIDER "Spectral Warrior"

Has it been almost a year since we ran a Ghost Rider tale?

Since it's almost Halloween, let's do something about that, with a never-reprinted story...

...from Magazine Enterprises' Ghost Rider #13 (1953).

Illustrated by co-creator Dick Ayers, it's typical of the stories, moody and entertaining, with what appears to be a supernatural threat simply being someone using tricks and misdirection to appear supernatural!
And isn't that the basic concept of "trick or treat"?

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STRANGE STORIES FROM ANOTHER WORLD "Phantom Riders in the Sky"

While Ghost Rider and Masked Marvel II were guys pretending to be avenging spirits...

...these specters were the real deal...as Ed Sharlin discovered...

This never-reprinted tale appeared in Fawcett's Strange Stories from Another World #4 (1952), illustrated by Ed Waldman.

The writer is unknown.

BTW, Fawcett had one of the biggest Western comics lines in the business, with over 1/4 of their 140 or so titles (including one-shots) being Westerns.

And that's not even including back-ups in non-Western comics (like movie actor Rod Cameron's strip in Captain Video)!

Be here next week when we continue our journey during October through the Weird West...

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MASKED MARVEL "Blood-Sucker of Banta Gulch"

The Masked Western Hero who looks like a refugee from Dia de los Muertos returns...

...battling a real supernatural threat in this tale from Youthful's GunSmoke #15 (1951).

Most of the time, the Masked Marvel, like the Ghost Rider, faced threats that appeared supernatural, but actually were people pretending to be ghosts or monsters, like the heroes themselves.
The writer and artist for this particular story are unknown.

Be here next week when we continue our journey during October through the Weird West...

Support Western Comics Adventures

Visit Amazon and Buy...

Original Ghost Rider

Volume 1

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HOW THE WEST WAS FUN! "Sane"

Here's a never-reprinted spoof from Premier's MAD-clone NUTS! #2 (1954)...

...done by an unidentified writer and artist.

Premier Magazines had only 7 titles (including a Western comic, Masked Ranger) over a two-year period in 1953-54, then disappeared into the mists of time.

Check out our 
Western Comics online store...

 ...for duds and provisions!