Saturday, April 30, 2022

"City of Crime"

Classic cover that presaged an ordinary crime caper.  Number 111 in the publishing order this story was submitted under the title 'Killer's Vengeance'.  Potato/Potahtoe, title-wise.  It did have the distinction of including a preview of the next issue in the last paragraph.

"It marked the end of another life-risking battle against crime, and at the same time it presaged greater difficulties ahead. The Shadow, who escaped death a million times, was to face a new kind of death, and a new kind of crime, in Death by Proxy... A strange menace hung over an ancient family home; death struck with uncanny regularity. Into this scene of fear and danger The Shadow must enter; here he must fight anew that justice would not be misled; that criminals get their deserved punishment - death, real death, not Death by Proxy."

While this practice was apparently common for Street & Smith's Doc Savage pulp, it was most peculiar for The Shadow Magazine.  This is the adventure that has Theo D. Shaw as one of our hero's disguises.  This is a pretty easy anagram to break, but it is fun.  Another note, this marked the first issue that Edd Cartier did the interior illustrations for the main story.

One last thing, the cover seems to have been an inspiration for Alex Ross' Dynamite Comics The Shadow issue 23 cover seen here...



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