SILVER STREAK COMICS #10 — CGC 4.0 (VG)
Lev Gleason Publications · May 1941 · Off-White to White Pages
ORIGIN & 1st APPEARANCE OF CAPTAIN BATTLE
CGC Certification #4232926005

A Golden Age key — and a Jack Cole book — in a CGC Universal (blue label) holder. No restoration and no defects noted on the label.

Origin and first appearance of Captain Battle

CGC has notated "Origin & 1st appearance of Captain Battle" directly on the label. This is the character's debut. Captain Battle went on to headline his own title at Lev Gleason and has been revived by later publishers, and the first appearance is the anchor book for the character. The designation is printed on the label — a buyer doesn't have to take a seller's word for it.

Creator lineup

CGC credits, on the label:

• Bob Wood — story, cover and art. Wood signed the cover at lower right, and would go on to co-create and co-edit Crime Does Not Pay, the book that launched the entire crime comics genre.
• Jack Cole — the creator of Plastic Man, later one of the defining cartoonists at Playboy, and one of the most collected artists of the Golden Age. His Lev Gleason work from this period is actively pursued on his name alone.
• Dick Briefer — the artist behind the long-running Frankenstein feature, a genuine cult name among horror collectors.
• Fred Guardineer — the Golden Age stalwart behind Zatara and Marvo.

Four names of that caliber in a single 1941 book is unusual.

The cover

Top banner: "KIDS! There's a Thrilling Surprise Inside." Silver Streak — blond, red bodysuit, USA belt — crashes through a window to grapple Ironjaw, a spike-limbed robot, while Kitty recoils at right beside a microphone. The caption box reads: "…as Ironjaw aimed his pistol directly at Kitty, Silverstreak crashed through the window to grapple the monster, but… See page 20."

Also on the cover: a Daredevil roundel at upper left, and at upper right the leering green fanged head of THE CLAW — one of the great grotesque villains of the Golden Age and a character closely identified with this title. "15 TERRIFIC FEATURES," with Lance Hale, Presto Martin, Cloud Curtis and Silverstreak & Whiz listed, a "Featuring CAPT. BATTLE" starburst, and the bottom banner "The Comic Magazine They Are All Talking About!" Ten cents.

Robot covers are their own collecting category, and this one carries the Claw and the Daredevil logo alongside it.

Back cover bonus — a full comics page, not an ad

The back cover is a complete "BUCKO PRIVATE" strip by Sunday Dow — a twelve-panel Army camp gag in which Bucko, assigned to guard a 27-year-old cannon and broke before the big dance, hits on the idea of charging a nickel a look at the moon through the barrel. A charming pre-Pearl Harbor peacetime-draft period piece, and a nice bonus over the usual mail-order premium page.

Condition notes

• CGC 4.0 (VG) with Off-White to White page quality — good paper for the grade on an 85-year-old book
• No restoration; no defect notations on the CGC label
• Cover colors remain strong; the yellow field, red costume and green Claw all present clearly and the book displays well
• Wear consistent with the grade: spine wear, edge and corner wear, creasing, and tanning to the cover edges. The back cover shows staining and discoloration toward the bottom and edges, visible in the photos
• Please review photos closely; they show the actual book being sold

Shipping

Ships fully protected: slab bagged, corner-protected, and boxed with rigid backing in a double-walled carton. Insured with tracking. Questions welcome.