Camilla, Queen of the Lost Empire in "The Nordic Giant" (Fiction House;1940)

Legendary golden age artist Bob Powell illustrates "The Nordic Giant", a previously untitled thriller starring Camilla, Queen of the Lost Empire from Jungle Comics #5 (May 1940); originally published by Fiction House. The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

Samar in "The Obandi War Dance" (Quality;1941)

This five-page classic jungle adventure starring Samar is short and sweet, largely due to the awesome artwork of golden age great Reed Crandall. "The Obandi War Dance" is from Feature Comics #44 (May 1941); originally published by Quality Comics. The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

"Gal" Friday! Maria Verchenova

There is a popular adult game that I will sportingly call "golf", where willing participants stroll around lush fairways called greens and knock little dimpled balls through the air. It is truly a game of skill that requires a high degree of talent to compete successfully at a professional level, but if you can manifest any degree of upward mobility, and if you can walk & chew bubble gum at the same time, you too can call yourself an athlete by simply participating in this game.

Now, all things being equal, I don't give a rat's ass about golf. However, in recent years some serious honeys have entered the country club set, and they get as much attention for their looks as for their relative skill level. I'm not making any judgement call about whether this is fair or not, but Tiger Woods personal peccadillo's notwithstanding, who gives a damn about hard little balls sailing through the skies, when these baby dolls are nearby.

Maria Verchenova is the first Russian to become a full-time member of the Ladies European Tour. Maria turned pro in late 2006 and is in her third season on the LET, where she has posted several top-10 finishes. Game or sport be damned, this young lady seriously has the goods!

Wambi the Jungle Boy in "Thundering Herds" (Fiction House;1940)

Sticking with the youthful contingent from the jungle again today, and "gal" Friday will stop by later as well. Wambi the Jungle Boy had an innate ability to communicate with the lower order, even when the animals made no sound at all. In fact, Wambi's best friends were an Indian-variety elephant named Tawn, and Ogg the Gorilla. All three are featured in "Thundering Herds" from Jungle Comics #4 (Apr.1940); originally published by Fiction House. The illustrator is Henry Kiefer, signed in the lower left corner of the splash panel as 'Karl Kief'. The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story, although they are stamped as a Marble River Scan. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

Tom-Tom the Jungle Boy in "Feathers Will Fly" (Magazine Enterprises;1947)

Tom-Tom the Jungle Boy along with his friends, Itchi and Tree-Trunk, try to capture a wild ostrich in this previously untitled tale (renamed by yours truly) from Tick Tock Tales #16 (Apr. 1947), originally published by Magazine Enterprises. I have no credited information on who the writer or artist was on this well-drawn strip. The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

Keeto the Jungle Boy in "Kidnapped by Baboons" (Dell;1943)

Keeto the Jungle Boy is a true golden age rarity. Other than this lone appearance from Animal Comics #6 (Dec.1943-Jan.1944) originally published by Dell; his only other published adventure was in Crackajack Funnies #43 (Jan.1942), almost two years earlier. This story badly rips off author Rudyard Kipling's classic 'The Jungle Book', but the artwork by Tom Hickey is actually not too shabby. So, here is Keeto and Krufa the brown bear versus a gang of surly baboons. The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

Og, Son of Fire ... continues (Dell;1937)

I inadvertently skipped last weeks chapters, but creator/writer/editor Irving Crump's "Og, Son of Fire", continues the serialized adventures of a cave boy who lived half a million years ago. The character was originally introduced within the pages of Boys Life magazine in December 1921. The artwork on these strips from The Funnies #6 and #7 (Mar./Apr.1937); originally published by Dell, may be the work of artist Stephen Slesinger, since the illustrations are re-purposed in color from a black & white 1936 Big Little Book version copyrighted to Slesinger. Dell serialized "Og, Son of Fire" in issues of "The Funnies" from January to November of 1937 (comprising issues 4-14 in two page snippets). I'll be presenting all of them in pairs on subsequent Tuesdays until I run out. The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for these stories. Note: The copyright for both issues, all contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

The Red Panther in "Tale of the Black Orchid" (Fiction House;1940)

The Red Panther stars in “Tale of the Black Orchid” from Jungle Comics #6 (June 1940); originally published by Fiction House. The story is credited to ‘Taylor Martin’ on the splash page, but Arthur Peddy was the artist on this previously untitled five page mini-epic, so I christened it accordingly. The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: The copyright for this issue, all contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or the creators and are reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

"Gal" Friday! Alexandra Daddario

I really thought that this young lady was gonna prove too "young" for me to feature as this weeks "gal" Friday pick, but Alexandra Daddario is actually twenty-five years old. That's sufficient for me to give you dummies a look at my pick for Wonder Woman, should Hollywood ever pull it's collective head out of its ass. She also previously starred in Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, which gives her a degree of mythological genre cred for starters. Then there's the whole smoking hot brunette thing going on for the native New Yorker. I'm gonna just let the thought percolate for a bit and see if the universe is paying attention.

Tiger Girl in "Trail of Doom" (Fiction House;1947)

Tiger Girl (aka Princess Vishnu) tackles a ruthless band of slavers who are plaguing the Bantu People alongside her usual allies, Abdola, Togara & Benzali in a thrilling tale called "Trail of Doom" from Fight Comics #49 (Apr.1947); originally published by Fiction House. The story is credited to 'Allan O'Hara' and the lovely art is by Matt Baker and Jack Kamen. The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!