Richard Grey, Jr.
As months passed into years, the child of Richard Grey (Richard Grey Jr.) grew into a sturdy boy high atop the Mongolian crags. With the condors as his only companions, he learned how to survive. However, within him remained a yearning to fly. Once, he attempted to fly but plummeted to Earth in a heap.
And finally, one glorious morning in 1933, his determination was rewarded. The young condors now had a companion as they swooped through the cold clear sky.
Then one day while foraging for food in the distant lowlands, he was attacked by fearsome giant eagles! He fought bravely, but the eagles’ savagery soon took its toll and he fell to the ground.
Father Pierre witnessed Richard fall from the sky. As the old man helped the youth, Richard recognized one like himself… a human.
Crack Comics #1
May 1940 (March 27, 1940)
$0.10
“The Man Who Can Fly Like a Bird”
7 pages
Writer: Will Eisner
Artist: Lou Fine
Editor: Edward C. Cronin
Secret Origins #21
Dec. 1987 (Sept. 8, 1987)
$1.25
“The Secret Origin of the Black Condor”
19 pages
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Murphy Anderson
Editor: Roy Thomas
On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler became the Chancellor of Germany. Appointed by German President Paul von Hindenburg, Hitler would lead the Nazi Party and transform the country into a one-party dictatorship.
Eastern Color
In the United States, Maxwell Charles Gaines began a new job as a salesperson at Eastern Color Printing, a company that printed Sunday newspaper comic strips. Contemplating promotional ideas for Proctor & Gamble, Gaines suggested to his direct superior, Harry L. Wildenberg, a tabloid-sized book of color comic strip reprints to use as an advertising premium.
The result was released in April. Funnies on Parade was an 8-page magazine reprinting several comic strips licensed from the McNaught Syndicate and the McClure Syndicate. The publication, including popular strips such as Mutt and Jeff, Joe Palooka, and Skippy, was not sold on newsstands but sent as promotional items to customers who mailed coupons clipped from Proctor & Gamble products.
After the Proctor & Gamble experiment proved a success, Eastern Color produced similar publications for other advertisers. One such book was Toy World Funnies, which is suspected, but not proven, to have the same contents as Funnies on Parade.
In October, Gaines worked with Dell Publishing to publish a 36-page one-shot called, Famous Funnies: A Carnival of Comics. It again featured reprints of popular syndicated comic strips such as The Bungle Family, Dixie Dugan, Joe Palooka, Keeping Up with the Joneses, Mutt and Jeff, Reg’lar Fellers, and Somebody’s Stenog*.
* short for “stenographer”
Finally, Eastern Color produced Century of Comics in December. With no price on the cover, this may also have been a giveaway.
Humor Publishing
On (or around) May 12, 1933, Humor Publishing released Detective Dan: Secret Operative No. 48, by Norman W. Marsh. Although not printed in today’s familiar format, it’s considered a prototype for future comic books and was a pioneer publication because it contained stories that were not reprints.
Humor also released Bob Scully on (or around) August 1, 1933, and Adventures of Detective Ace King on (or around) October 6, 1933.
CODEX OMNIVERSA 