#1: Red Dragon Comics (Street & Smith). When his father is killed by the head of the Gestapo known only as #1, the Black Crusader dons an all black costume save for the white cross (one vertical and two horizontal lines) to hunt him down. The Black Crusader has one special weapon, a quick drying plastic spray that allows him to cast instant masks and become a master of disguise.
A-5: 1940, Amazing Mystery Funnies #18 (Centaur). A German spy. He died in an accident when he stole a prototype stratospheric aircraft designed and built by Dr. Karl Jordan and guarded by Larry Kane.
Ace of Spades: 1940, Phantom Lady 20 (Fox). An oil scandal is brewing in the sleepy western town of Death Butte and witnesses are killed before they can come forward. So Senator Knight fakes a vacation trip to the touristy old west town to investigate along with his daughter Sandra and her boyfriend Don Borden. What they get is a murderous female cow-girl dressed in form hugging black and her partner the foreman of the oil fields. The Ace of Spades is unmasked by Phantom Lady as saloon singer Queenie. While trying to escape, she comes to an unfortunate end by driving her horse off one of the cliffs that gives Death Butte its name.
Agar: 1940, Amazing Mystery Funnies #19 (Centaur). Billed at the Colossal Bigtop Circus as the "Man without a Brain" Agar was an attraction controlled by Professor Henry Trepper. Being without personal volition Agar does not respond to pain and exhibits amazing strength and flexibility (for a human). Even after Professor Trepper's capture by Fantom nothing has been revealed of Agar's background. All that is known is that Trepper hypnotized some poor subject and gradually removed all traces of his personal volition. Once Agar reached this point Trepper used him to gain revenge on (read kill) his ex-wife and several other people.
Agent Z1: 1941, Amazing Man Comics #24 (Centaur). Ruthless Nazi agent stationed in the US. He was captured by the King of Darkness.
The Airmaidens: 1942, Air Fighters Comics v2 n2 (Hillman). The maidens are the beautiful assistants and wingwomen of the Valkyrie.
The Albino: (Fox). Anthony Durrant writes: This monster of the jungle was an albino exile who had a disease that he could pass to others by touch, with fatal results, when they died, they turned white like the Albino himself. He was the assistant of a girl who set herself up as a rival to Rulah, the Jungle Goddess, and pretended that she could root out the mysterious killer. In the end, the Albino died of his disease, but not before he killed the girl with his deadly "petrifying" touch as an act of revenge.
American Crime Ring: 1940, Amazing-Man Comics #17 (Centaur). This was a well-organized, high-tech gang run by Carl Weltner in Chicago. Though quite profitable none of the members knew exactly what the gang raised money for. In actuality Weltner was the front man for the Great Question. The high-tech equipment was supplied by the Great Question. The gang was disbanded after Amazing Man captured Weltner and destroyed much of the gang's equipment.
Anarchy Circle: 1940, Amazing-Man Comics #17 (Centaur). This was an anarchist's group supported by the Great Question. One known member was Madame Olga.
Dr. Anderson/the Twin Terrors: 1940, Super Spy #1 (Centaur). Dr. Anderson is a physician but his business dried up. He studied other sciences on the side and as he slowly ate through his savings he accidentally discovered a way to copy the atomic structure of himself, to make a duplicate that he could control via his thoughts, otherwise it was completely inanimate. He used this duplicate to commit bank robberies while he himself was safely at home. Ultimately, the police got suspicious especially while they had a couple of detectives at his home talking with him while his duplicate gets apprehended. One detective secretly follows and watches Anderson and sees him operate the machine and confronts him and gets the whole story. Note: DC had a similar though costumed villain in Dr. Double X introduced in 1958.
The Ant Woman: (Fiction). This evil white woman has made a home with her stolen gold and jewels in a lair underground, the entrances resemble large ant hills. She rules over native slaves and poisonous red ants. Her crimes and endeavors bring her to the attention of the Red Panther and when her lair is being destroyed by fire she seems to fall her to her death covered with maddened ants.
Anti Shock Gibson: 1942, Speed Comics #23 (Harvet). A Nazi spy on the lam hides out in a vacant residence. However, it happens to be the home of Robert "Shock" Gibson and when he sits in Gibson's Electrical Energizer which he mistakes for a covered chair, he is endowed with duplicate powers of Shock Gibson. He wears a similarly designed costume and is equal to Shock in powers but he doesn't pose as the hero, so he's not a faux version. They soon meet on the seas as an attack is launched on a ships carrying troops overseas (of which the newly inducted PRIVATE Robert Gibson is one). Unable to fight him directly, Shock leads the Nazi on a merry go-round chase as he tackles the various U-Boats and German ships until both he and the spy are out of power. At which point, he is easily laid out by a right cross.
Arpor: 1941, Fantastic Comics #15 (Fox). Arpor is the high priest of a cult of Kali in the US. In addition to counterfeiting coins, he has a hatred of Samson and tries to kill him through various death traps and a lightning gun (a lightning rifle in actuality). His cult is smashed and he's captured by Samson and David. Arpor is made up to look more like a Mongol and the statue of Kali is in the style of a Buddha. His cult is made up of what look like American gangsters as well as other Asians similar to himself.
Asteroid Witch: 1950, Amazing Adventures #1 (Ziff-Davis). Anthony Durrant writes: This beautiful damsel from another dimension was luring spacefarers to her asteroid, where she would seduce them and drain the soul from their bodies! Her last victim was one Spike Kelley, who had just thought he'd seen his Martian lover Kell-E commit suicide by jumping through the window of their flat! After learning of the Asteroid Siren's existance from another spacefarer, Kelley stole a transport ship and headed off into the banned constellation where the Asteroid Witch's asteroid was located. However, Kell-E had only faked her death and arrived on the asteroid in her spaceship wielding a dimension busting gun that - once the Asteroid Siren had fled her asteroid - sent the woman into the seventh or eighth dimension! After her confrontation with the Asteroid Witch, Kell-E - whose gender made her immune to the Asteroid Siren's telepathic powers - took Spike home in her own spaceship.
The Avenger: Anthony Durrant writes: This gentleman set out to kill thirteen millionaires and was stopped by John Law, the so-called "scientective," in a story spread out over a number of issues.
Azkor: 1941, Amazing Man Comics #19, (Centaur). A scientist of unknown origin who created a gas which was so virulent that a thimble-full could wipe out an entire city in hours. He was supported, in his Latin American base, by Nazi agents. He was stopped (killed) by the Masked Marvel and his agents.
Baby Face: Sept. 1943, Clue Comics #5. (Hillman) Ronald Byrd contributes: Ostensibly "an angelic-looking little man who loves to give charity," Baby Face uses the lure of charitable donations to capture people. Accompanied by a gorilla whom he dresses in clothes and passes off as his mute "brother," Baby Face cages his victims (including the hero Twilight) as his gorilla was once caged, then plans to use a reducing liquid to shrink them. "For years people poked fun at me because *I* was small! Now I'll laugh!" But a blow from Twilight sends the spray toward "Brother," who kills Baby Face in a rage before shrinking into "a small pitiful monkey."
The Banshee: foe of Buckskin Blake.
Varna Bari: August 1941, Victory Comics #1 (Hillman).Varna is a bit of a mystery. The British think she's a spy for them, and the Nazis think she's in league with them, helping them destabalize the country Damora through assassination. While the hero the Conqueror manages to thwart the assassination through the possibly willing or unwilling aide of Varna, he isn't sure of her loyalties.
Barlow, James: 1940, Amazing Man Comics #11 (Centaur). This was the incumbent mayor of Pittsburgh in 1940. As crooked as they come when he was overthrown by reformist Jeffery Haines he promptly blackmail Haines to concede his post by threatening to divulge information of sexual improprieties. His partner in this was Bob Fredrickson. His plot was exposed by Prince Zardi and he spent several years in prison.
Barmell, Anton, Dr.: 1939, Amazing Man Comics #5 (Centaur). This mad scientist has a fascination with shrinking people. He used his knowledge and technology to shrink an unknown number of people before he shrunk Minimidget and Ritty. He promised to restore Minimidget to his normal size in return for killing several of Barmell's relatives (for the inheritence). After Minimdget was captured by the F.B.I., he turned on Barmell and helped them capture the madman.
Baron Blue: 1944, Scoop Comics #8 (Chesler). Baron Blue is a ruthless and crafty criminal. A master of disguise, no one really has a clear description of him. In his first appearance, he appears as a slightly portly middle-aged man in top hat and suit to match and dark glasses. Underneath his bulk, he's powerfully strong. He manages to escape the Law even after he's shot and partially gassed by ether. Policewoman Dolly O'Dare manages to catch him in the second story in the comic and he seems destined for the electric chair.
Baron Doom: Captain Battle Comics (Lev Gleason). Doom is a masked costumed Nazi who was after a treasure hidden by pirate Captain Kydd. Baron Doom raced around the world hunting up clues and fighting Captain Battle and Hale all along the way. Unfortunately, I only have one reprint of this multi-issue storyline.
Baron Kraft: 1940, Silver Streak Comics #4 (Lev Gleason). German ace who led a blitzkrieg raid in Poland that killed the pregnant wife of Paul Storm. This led to Storm adopting the identity of the Sky Wolf (I).
Baron Schlang: This bald german agent was captured and put into an asylum by the Halo. He is visited by the "most eminent criminologist in America", a bald cherubic clergyman known only as the Bishop and confides to him that he is working on an encyclopedia outlining every crime committed by human hands and that the last volume will be dedicated to the murder of Love, Music, and Religion that he plans on committing himself. He escapes from the asylum and sets out to make good on his promise. Only he runs afoul of the Halo once again. Note: the Halo himself is an interesting and obscure hero. He's tall and lean and basically the Spirit only with a mustache. However, his secret identity is that of the short bald and pudgy Bishop!
Baron Siva: 1941, Big Three #4 (Fox). On one hand Baron Siva is just another of a long line of bald madmen and would be conquerors that crossed Samson in the pages of this comic. On the other hand he visibly stands out with a large bulbous head (in a globe at one point) and a wiry body weaing a see-through shirt. He kidnaps the members of America's "Defense Board" to force her to surrender. He has various super-weapons like a small paralyzer ray gun. He is actually captured alive by Samson and David.
Baron Von Kampf: 1939, Speed Comics #1 (Harvey). Baron Von Kampf is an evil genius aiming to take over the world. He is able to invent ray guns and other diabolical devices such as a large ray machine that shuts off airplane motors and their radios. He also has a knack of getting armies of men to follow him. He looks a bit like Dr. Sivana only with extremely pointed ears and a military styled outfit. A step above many villains in that he appears in several early issues, his plans routinely foiled by Shock Gibson. He returns in issue 11, teaming up with the master villain Comrade Ratski from issue 10. At this point, Von Kampf is hiding out in the Florida everglades. He has command of an army of "zombies" (See under their own entry). They are unable to outfight Shock Gibson and the duo's plans stopped again by Shock Gibson, it looks like the end for them as the pair are surrounded by alligators.
Baron Von Twotree: 1942, Cat-man 15/16 (Holyoke). A toothy genius with slits for a nose, he went up against the Hood. His first story was actually #16, but he has a cameo in the last panel in the previous issue.
Baroness Blood: Air Fighters Comics (Hillman) Buxom blonde Nazi villainess in red costume with a white swastika on her chest and a purple cape. Foe of the Black Angel.
Baroness Von Elsa: 1941, Prize Comics 13 (Feature Publications). With a dim-witted giant and cunning dwarf, she went after a formula that increased the power of explosions. However, she ran afoul of the Green Lama.
Baroni, John: 1941, Shadow Comics v1#11 (Street & Smith). The Hooded Wasp and Jim Martin are invited to a costume party by a friend, Doc Johnson. It turns out that Johnson had received a threatening note and wanted the Wasp to look into it. After the first murder by a knife, the Hooded Wasp and Jim find themselves up against a killer with deadly aim and incredible agility. When Jim is captured, the Wasp looks into those that had already been killed and realized they were all on the jury that convicted Killer Baroni and sentenced him to death. Capturing this new murderer, he stands revealed as Baroni's son and is a circus acrobat and knife thrower (his missing Jim with his knife throws may be attributed to him not wanting to kill someone that had nothing to do with his father's death). He bites down on a poison capsule rather than go to jail. A colorful villain in his hat, mask and topcoat and able to go toe to toe with the heroes thanks to his incredible skills, a shame that he didn't take on a colorful name or make a return appearance.
Oliver Barron: Anthony Durrant writes: This murderous crook was the partner of a criminal known as Joltin' Joe, and together they hatched a scheme to put empty cargo cases onboard the ships that Barron insured in his capacity as an insurance agent, then Joltin' Joe would place an explosive device on the target ship and then skedaddle in a boat with his henchmen before the ship exploded. They were stopped by Luckyman, real name Frank Parr, a crook-catcher with incredible good luck who flipped a coin whenever he had to make a decision, but who was also a talented fighter as well. NOTE: Normally, this bio and criminal wouldn't interest me too much as the villain seems your common variety criminal. However, what we do have is a noteworthy hero. One, I've not heard of the guy. Two, he also reminds me of the 2 heroes named Lucky Coyne, one who was at MLJ and another by the Chesler Studios. Could this be another re-working of the same character, a not too uncommon practice ala Dan Hastings? And is there any link between them and the coin flipping bad-guy Two-Face?
The Bat: 1941, Cat-Man Comics (Holyoke). This masked and cloaked villain started a huge fire in the American west in order to gain control of a gold shipment in the small mining town of Red Creek. He's a cool customer, even when he attempts his escape from 'Chute' Harmon by running into the flames. Even the next issue blurb wasn't sure if we'd seen the last of the Bat.
Bats: Air Fighters Comics #6 (Hillman). A Nazi plane crashes into a cave in a English petrified forest. When Defense Police investigate they find only skeletons of the pirates and giant man-sized bats. Soon these giant bats are terrorizing production factories. The Black Angel investigates to find the skeletons were planted and human faces underneath bat masks. When they take to the air with bombs, she follows in her plane and shoots them down. Dead, they reveal their secrets, Nazi agents in costumes with small helicoptor rotors strapped to to their batwinged costumes.
Bat-Winged Fiends: (Street & Smith) Germans shell the paradise island home of Astron and accidentally release the bat-winged fiends. These demons of superstition first do battle with the Germans and then with Astron, her boyfriend "Man of the sky" pilot Cassidy, and her large crocodiles. The demons are nearly invulnerable, it was only by drowning them that the crocs were able to finish off many of them.
Beast: 1941, Weird Comics (Fox). Bug-eyed, hooded villain with an iron claw for a right hand. Recurring foe of the Eagle.
The Beggar King: 1946, Red Seal Comics #18? (Chesler). A large powerfully built man with long red hair and spiked beard, he builds an organization of criminals and is not above a little murder and mayhem himself. He's captured by the Black Dwarf.
Spats Bertelli: (Better) Anthony Durrant writes to me: His claim to fame is that he underwent plastic surgery to impersonate Grant Mannering, the brother of the deceased millionaire Hector Mannering, in order to profit from the sale of Hector Mannering's business to a worldwide aviation firm owned by the U.S. government. Unfortunately, he was stopped by the American Eagle, at which point it was revealed that he had killed Hector Mannering by drugging him during a business conference and injecting an air bubble into a vein. After the surgery, he looks just like Grant Mannering, but you can tell him apart because he dresses in a green suit, while the real Grant Mannering dresses in an old brown suit and has a triangle birthmark on his left shoulder, a means of identification used by Hector Mannering in his will, so that his brother could be identified if he was ever found.
Big Bertha: 1949, Guns Against Gangsters v2 no1/no7 (Novelty). Anthony Durrant writes us: A tall redhead, Big Bertha was the world's strongest woman. When her manager, E. J. Hodes, caught her in the act of stealing from the studio, Big Bertha murdered him with her bare hands, but left a teacup with her blue lipstick at the scene of the crime. The detective Toni Gayle discovered the murder when she came in for an audition. Big Bertha overpowered Toni when she sneaked into her dressing-room, and forced her to go with her to a nearby park, where she planned to kill Toni. Toni, however, had smeared Bertha's blue lipstick all over the sole of her shoe, and so her friends were able to follow them and stop Bertha from killing Toni.
Black Band: 1936, Spicey Detective Stories (Culture Publications, Inc.). A band of crooks identified to each other by a ring with their secret symbol. When they murdered one of their own, they must send a member to retrieve the ring from the body. But he runs afoul Sally the sleuth and her chief.
The Black Baron: Airboy Comics vol. 9 #9 (Hillman). 200 years ago, a ship was built using the trees from the Wassau swamp in Poland to take colonists to the new world. The captain of the ship was a baron and he had no intentions of taking them to be colonists but to sell them into slavery. He made several slave runs and when that trade dried up, he turned to piracy. The years past and the crews were replaced but the Baron and his ship endured as have the stumps from which the timbers have come. It turns out that it's the same swamp that gave birth to the Heap and he is drawn to the ship of evil and finds it and its evil captain in North Africa, now operating as a prison ship in the hire of Arabs. The Black Baron and the Heap fight across the ship, until a lantern sets fire to the ship and both fall into the waters. With the ship's death, the Baron also dies. Back at the swamp, wildflowers start to grow where the stumps once stood.
Black Buzzard: 1942, Super Mystery Comics v3n2 (Ace). A hunchbacked saboteur and expionage agent. Had a poison that could skeletonize those that ingested it. Stopped by Buckskin.
Black Death: 1940, Thrilling Comics 10 (Better). Originally a costumed murderer in a play by the same name, it appears as if jealous actor Perry Knight has turned the role into reality by shooting his rival and kidnapping actress Linda Lytell whom he loves. The Woman in Red catches the real Black Death, Mr. Weber. The Black Death dresses in a black form fitting costume head to foot with the emblem of a skull on his chest.
The Black Doom: 1942, Wonderworld #33 (Fox). The Black Doom is a saboteur in the service of the Nazis. He wears a regular suit but with a black hood. He has a special burrowing "torpedo" that he uses to travel underground and allows him to set explosives deep in mines. Apparently killed fighting the Flame, his last appearance.
The Black Dragon: 1941, Silver Streak Comics #10 (Lev Gleason). The Black Dragon and his Deaglos (bird-men) are foes of Captain Battle. One of his Deaglos, was an orphan named Nathan Hale, who when cured became Captain Battle's sidekick. He is "the last word in evil sorcery, bewitches all prisoners into these giant Deaglos. In his feudal castle in Asiatic mountains, this incarnation of evil rules as an absolute tyrant. He chafes at any form of freedom for others, hence his sworn enmity against all democracies. The Asian powers are but a front for him and having failed miserably to even dent our cousin's navy, he is taking a hand by sending a division of Deaglos. Black Dragon having used the spirit of an extinct bird, the dodo, for these transformations, the Deaglos are proof against physical death, as we know it. They laugh at the sailors' efforts to shoot them. Deaglos retain their human speech and thought but are completely dominated by him." Deaglos are giants about 20 feet tall with yellow bird like faces, bulging red eyes and green beaks but pointed ears and a few of the nastier ones have red crest-fins. They have blue-gray wings and feathers about the shoulders and chest but human torsos otherwise. The Black Dragon himself is a very normal looking man in red robe and skull cap. Captain Battle discovers the Deaglos can be killed simply by radio beams, but the Black Dragon himself escapes. Created by Carl Formes & Jack Binder
The Black Dragon Society: In the comics: The Black Dragon Society was a feared secret society of Japanese espionage group and several comic characters and groups would clash with them such as the Justice Society of America. A group of them faced Captain Future in Startling Comics #18.
Neper: 1944, Speed Comics #31 (Harvey). In India Neper is the right-hand man of the Majarajah of Bahjur. He is also head of a local contingent of smugglers and Japanese 5th columnists. Pat Parker and her girl commandoes bring his operation to an end. Neper had a large black dragon tattooed on his chest.
Mr. Kato: 1942, Startling Comics #18? Japanese Scientist and mastermind passes himself off as Korean and hires Grace of the Agatha Detective Agency to procure a rare chemical called Extron that can be used to make things grow such as a small lizard to a huge dragon like beast. However, he didn't count on Grace's boyfriend secretly being the hero Captain Future and when Mr. Kato threatens to throw Grace off a cliff, it's he that goes to his doom.
Black Fury: 1947, Zoot #9 (Fox) In the jungles, Taho and her mate Umar are aware of gold in the local river and plot for ways to chase off the village. They almost succeed by somehow bringing in killer octopi, but Rulah manages to uncover Umar's part in it and he's given to jungle justice, death at the hands, er, tentacles of his pets. Taho flees into jungle and uses other old talents she has. She's a descendent of a cult of cat worshippers who could speak their tongue and command them. She adopts a costume and with a group of panthers, tries to rid the jungles of Rulah's influence. However, Rulah is forewarned by an old witchwoman, and she manages to outwit and outfight Taho by using fires caused by an erupting volcano to scatter her pets. Taho is flees past the fires to escape and is last heard as her beasts turn on her. Oddly, in this jungle, all the women seem to be young, beautiful and white, except for the old witch woman. Jungle girl vs. jungle girl.
Black Hood: 1940, Fantastic Comics #12 (Fox). Karl Wolff heads up the Black Hood organization, a group of 5th Columnists. His plans of sabotage are stopped by Yank Wilson and his plane is shot down by Wilson. Wolff and his men wear identical black masks and costumes with a skull over crossbones in a red circle on the chest. Wolff is differentiated from the others by his mustache. NOTE: While the strip started off in the future, by this point in time, it had all the earmarks of being contemporary to the times published.
Black Ned's Ghost: 1941, Thrilling Comics #12 (Standard). Beneath the mansion of elderly Phineas Steele is a large cavern in which legend tells of hidden treasure guarded by the ghost of the pirate Black Ned. Steele's nephew Douglas Long and his wife Eileen are visiting their uncle and second cousin Arnold who takes care of the old man. While the cousins are exploring the cave, Arnold disappears with a yell and Douglas thinks that his uncle had something to do with it, the legend being complete hogwash. Peggy Allen aka the Woman in Red is sent to investigate under the cover of being a nurse for Uncle Phineas. She soon discovers the ghost legend has substance and the uncle's actions are suspicious. However, in the end, it is Arnold who is unmasked as Black Ned.
Black Priest: 1944, Red Dragon Comics #9 (Street and Smith). 2000 years ago, a black priesthood sect died out in ancient Egypt save for one who was condemned to death by Queen Hat-Shet-Sup but managed to stay alive (though very old) by the book of Thoth. Active once more in modern times, he has Hitler calling him master, controls a gang of crooks, and possesses the Pool of Life. The pool shaves years in seconds and he duels with Chuck Ro-Magnon, the Immortal Man in the pool. But the Black Priest does not realize that the Immortal Man is far older than he and by story's end he's reduced to a baby though still possessing his adult mind. In addition to vast mind powers (able to read minds, control others at great distances) he possesses some magical knowledge, even able to call forth phantoms to fight for him.
Black Rufus: 1940 Keen Detective Comics #21 (Centaur). This was a criminal in control of a part of New Orleans. He was the first villain encountered by the novice mystery man, Rainbow. He swore vengeance on the Rainbow after he and his men were run out of town.
Black Satan: Billed as the "arch-enemy of America." He looked like a devil: bald head, goatee, horns and a black suit. He bedeviled the kid gang the Four Comrades.
The Black Terror: 1942, Dynamic Comics #3 (Chesler). Completely unrelated to the Nedor hero, the villain dresses in a dark suit, cape and domino mask. He's a murderous saboteur and kills Detective Dick Starr (stabs him in the back and then blows him up real good). The dog K-9 is wounded but heals enough to track down the Black Terror who had managed to join the army in efforts to avoid the cops. He's killed by his own bomb, thrown back at him by the heroic dog.
The Blitz: 1941, Wonderworld Comics #21 (Fox). Murderous criminal mastermind with an eye patch over his left eye. He had two loyal and equally murderous henchmen by the name of Geepy and Slug. He fought the Black Lion and Cub continuously for their six issue run.
Blitz II: Fighting Yank #5 (Better). A group of German saboteurs, practicing their craft in the Alps, uncovered a cave with their dynamite. Out of this cave came a blonde giant, a prehistoric man trapped in there for centuries. The long time in sub-zero temperatures made him bigger, stronger and made his body radiate intense cold. After slaying several of the Nazis, he falls under the sway of the leader Glunken who recognizes him as a German even if a prehistoric one. It is Glunken who gives the giant the name of Blitz. Glunken takes him to America to perpetuate several acts of sabotage but they were ultimately stopped by the Fighting Yank.
Prof. Blitzsnozzle. Foe of Dickie Dean. Created by Dick Briefer.
Blue Spark: 1940, Super Mystery Comics #2 (Ace). The Blue Spark was a scientific genius with a criminal streak. He invented a burrowing machine, a mighty ray gun that he could mount on top of cars or his burrowing machine and melt solid steel with it, and an electronic brain machine that he could hypnotize others, with which he built a criminal gang. It might be argued that he was running out of ideas when he also created inflatable rubber suits for his gang, when filled with air it made them almost impervious to the mightiest blows of the hero. 'Course, the villains couldn't actually run around inflated constantly and it took tanks of air, hardly an instantaneous tactic. He uses these devices to get people under control, rob banks, and extort industrial magnates. He is eventually captured by Magno who is able to release the hold on the victimes by overcoming the electrical hypnosis with his magnetic powers. The Blue Spark wears a dark blue tights suit covering his body but his eyes and hands with what looks like a crown underneath his mask. His men wear a light blue version, red trunks and a yellow circle on their chest where the valve is to fill the suits up with air.
The Boar: 1942, Daredevil Comics #8 (Lev Gleason). Foe of London. Created by Jerry Robinson.
Bogardus: Yankee Comics: 3 or 4 (Chesler) See Gorgon's Head entry.
The Bolt: 1942, Daredevil Comics #9 (Lev Gleason). "The Champion of Crime", the Bolt is in reality Flash Farnum, an Olympic Decathalon champion. However, Flash is a bully to the point that he couldn't find work and would get hired and fired in one day. He turns to a life of crime where his incredible athletic skills make him a formidble adversary of the Law. Even Daredevil has a tough job apprehending the crook (indeed when Daredevil was just plain Bart Hill and a junior in High School, Farnum had beaten him senseless). He kidnaps Tonia Saunders on a train in order to make good his escape but gets his foot caught in the tracks. Unable to save both, Daredevil rescues the girl while Bolt is run over by the train. Bolt wore no costume but seemed adept at staying in the shadows, and his athletic prowess along with his ruthless nature aided in his avoiding capture by the police. This tale may not be "true" as it's told by Bart Hill to a group of kids including one tough bullying kid to educate him on the sad life of bullies and the backstory of Bart in school does not jibe with either of his origins.
Borcia: 1941, Cat-Man Comics #3 (Helnit Publishing Co). A great inventor whose mind snapped and dreamed of ruling the world. He created the huge robot Najar (also spelled Najor) and captured the powerful Dr. Diamond. However, his step-daughter turns against him and frees Diamond who destroyed the powerful robot and captured Borcia.
Borgo: 1940, Big Three #1 (Fox). When Fred James fires Borgo for stealing radium, he vows revenge on him and his scientist brothers. Borgo recruits a gang and through a powerful mirror reflecting sunlight, manages to cause accidents killing three of the brothers. He captured Joan Mason who was writing stories about the James brothers' murder and took her to his lighthouse lair. Borgo was deranged, not above killing his own henchmen to keep them from talking, torturing the final two brothers and trying to kill Joan by tying her to a large drum to kill her with its vibrations. She and the brothers were rescued by the Blue Beetle who captured Borgo and the survivng members of his gang. Borgo used the lighthouse and mirrors to cast blinding light and carried a reflective mirror shield.
Boro: 1941, Star and Stripes #2 (Centuar). Boro is the leader of the Great Question's underground army. This army is one of monsters. Gray, they look a bit like rats only the heads are borderline human with long prehensile trunks like elephants. Boro himself is able to grow to a story or two high and is a physical match for Amazing Man. Boro and his men are drowned when the Great Question lets the sea in on the underground lair in an effort to kill Aman and the others.
The Boss and the Imp: 1946 or 47, Black Cat #4 or 6 (Harvey) Anthony Durrant writes: The Boss and Imp were two characters who came up against the Red Demon. They would take the butlers of wealthy citizens captive during the Boss's magical disappearing act trick, then Imp would rob the person's home disgused as the butler, after which they dropped off the real butler in a dazed condition. The Red Demon caught Imp, and the Boss - a blonde who had the face and figure of an angel - fell to her death from a cliff soon thereafter.
Brain I: 1939, Fantastic Comics #1 (Fox). Referring to himself as the Brain at the start of his attempt to conquer Earth, this villain with a large egg shaped head and little pince-nez glasses is the great Martian scientist Skomah, the 7th son of the great scientist Skomah who wanted to produce an offspring with such a great brain that no problem would be too much. No mention of what happened to his 6 older siblings or if they too were named Skomah. Controlling thousands of Martian Imp Men, he brings Space Smith and girlfriend Dianna to Mars where he intends to make Dianna into a being like him and his queen of the universe.
The Brain II: 1940, Green Mask Comics 3 (Fox). Yes, another villain called the Brain, this one a foe of the Green Mask and Domino.
The Brain III: 1941, Popular Comics (Dell) Sorel, Supermind's "former pupil with the wizard mind, seizes several of Supermind's super-inventions and the man himself in order to commit incredible crimes. He returns at least once to bedevil Supermind and son by stealing the machine that gives Dan Warren his fantastic strength and invulnerability. Each time he is defeated by the superior intellect of Supermind and the powers of his son.
The Brain IV: 1944, Fighting Yank 9 (Better) Anthony Durrant writes to me: He and his fiendish cohorts were based in a captured lighthouse and worked for the Nazias actually a dummy on top of a u-boat, as well as taking prisoners who had strategic knowledge. The brain and his cohorts were eventually stopped by the Fighting Yank, who single-handedly knocked the u-boat into the water and thereby destroyed their operation. Physically, the Brain was just that: a brain in a jar with an entenna on top who did all his gang's thinking, sabotaging the Allied war fleet by jamming the harbour with the explosion of a sailboat that whem, including the plan for capturing the lightship and taking its crew prisoner; they were using the lightship to send false signals and thereby cause further destruction.
Braina: 1944, Planet Comics #33 (Fiction): Anthony Durrant writes: Braina was a man from Jupiter who had lost part of his brain but had gained another one. He was seeking to kill Professor Tora, a delegate from Jupiter who was about to come to Earth to attend a meeting of delegates from all of the planets. To do this, he amputated a prisoner's arms and injected them with a radioactive solution so they would strangle Tora to death once placed in the vicinity of metal. His plan worked, and the amputated arms were substituted for the bomb Tora's secretary was carrying, but, ironically, the man Braina killed turned out to be an impostor who had subdued Tora and taken his place in order to destroy the interplanetary conference. Presumably, Braina himself was captured by the Space Rangers Reef Ryan and Flint Baker
Brima Stone: 1953, Purple Claw #1 (Minoan Publishing). Witch? Demoness? This red-headed beauty was queen of the underworld with hoodlums and demons serving her. Her best demon guardian was her gun. It brought gangsters under her control and she could kill with it any time. Despite this and her ability to appear and vanish in a flash of brimstone, she was brought low by the Purple Claw.
Sam Broot: 1940, Jungle Comics #2/3 (Fiction). Anthony Durrant writes us: "Sam Broot was a small-time gangster from Chicago who killed a man and had to flee the country. He travelled to Africa, where he became the Chieftain of a brutal tribe. A huge man with a potbelly, Broot wore a top hat on his head, apparently as a badge of office. He burned down the house where Ann Mason lived, which caused her love Ka'anga to go after her. He defeated Broot after a terrible struggle and was able to remove him as chieftain of the tribe. The second enemy to ever be faced by Ka'anga, Sam Broot first appeared in Jungle Comics #2." The GCD lists this story as being in #3 but it's not always the most accurate.
Brown Terror: 1946, Sparkling Stars #33 (Holyoke). In the modern American West, the Brown Terror (has an alias as Colonel Holt but doesn't seem to be his real name) is the leader of a murderous gang but he himself seems to take orders from the mysterious XZ who is only mentioned but not seen. His gang is captured by Lank Strong and Gil Little, formerly ace pilots of the Hell's Angels. The Terror is mortally wounded in the final round up.
Baroness Brunhilde: 1944, Catman #23/24 (Holyoke). Baroness Brunhilde is mentioned at the end of Blackout's adventure in #23 as being a threat against the German Underground and even the hero seems to be taken aback.
B'Shini: 1948, Fight Comics #56 (Fiction) Anthony Durrant writes: B'Shini was a legendary giant warrior who was worshipped as a god by a tribe in the territory of Tiger Girl, the jungle crimefighter. He was impersonated by Trader Gregory, a legless trader who used stilts and an elaborate disguise to persuade the natives that he was B'Shini and make them plunder the cargoes of the boats traveling along the cargo lanes. He was stopped by Tiger Girl, who unmasked him, and then was eaten alive by a huge leopard.
Nadya Burnett: 1944, Super-Mystery Comics Vol. 4 No. 2 (Ace). A beautiful model, Nadya was chosen to model a fantastic diamond necklace. She hires some crooks to steal the diamonds during the show, only to alert the head of the agency anonymously. He then calls Mr. Risk in to guard the diamonds. During the robbery while doublecrossing her crook partners, a large light crashes against her, horribly scarring one half of her face. She now loathes and seeks to destroy all beauty, but is accidentally knocked out a window by Risk and falls to her death.
Butcher: 1941, Wonderworld Comics #21 (Fox). Bald white suited Nazi spy. He's incredibly strong (kills a British agent by throwing a large spear) and able to go toe to toe with the hero London. They had possibly met sometime outside of this story as both hero and villain recognize each other. However, he is outfought by London but is then killed by Tibbets, another undercover German agent because the two were in competition to prove which was Hitler's top operative and was afraid Butcher would now talk.
Torchy Byrnes: 1942, C-M-O Comics #2 (Centaur). Torchy Byrnes heads up a gang of arsonists (natch) and kidnappers. They intimidate Haynes, burning down his various properties and getting a huge share of the insurance money. They kidnap his daughter to insure he'll play fair, but the Invisible Terror makes things too hot for them and they are captured. Torchy has reddish brown hair, a goatee beard and likes playing with matches.
Captain (un-named): 1941, Cat-man Comics #4 (Holyoke). Dressed in a military costume, this un-named man commands a zeppelin, a weapon that casts destructive lightning bolts and his own secret island that he can submerge. With these, he is able to lay waste to entire cities on behalf of a foreign power bent on world conquest. Despite that, his plans to destroy America come to naught thanks to the intervention of Dr. Diamond. Diamond calls him "Captain" at the end, thus I refer to him as such here.
Captain Black Flagg: 1940, The Flame #2 (Fox). Horace "Black" Flagg is a river pirate along the Hudson River. Along with a murderous gang, he commands a small but powerful and swift launch and a base hidden in an old warehouse with a secret bay door on the waterfront. He's apparently sent to a fiery doom by the Flame. Otherwise, Flagg looks like a standard for the time bearded sea captain
Captain Colorful: May 1937, Don Winslow of the Navy (P), Vol. 1, No 1 (Merwil Publishing Co.) Captain Colorful is an 18th century pirate. His descendent is Charles Colorful who, with the mysterious blonde Adeline, is competing with the unscrupulous modern day pirate Captain Scarbo in finding Captain Colorful's treasure buried on Colorful Island, rumored to be haunted by his ghost. NOTE: This is one of two strips running in the Don Winslow pulp, the other being about a sailor and boxer, Jupiter Jones. Something of interest is that both strips are credited to M. Sheldon. The similarity in the name and in the cartooning style leads me to believe that this is none other than Sheldon Mayer. There are some other connections to Mayer to support this supposition: Merwil Publishing (the publisher of the pulp) first published comic strip reprints of Don Winslow before the character moved to Dell Publishing where Gaines and Mayer were working at the time. Merwil Publishing was also apparently started by Harry Donenfield and Jack Liebowitz making the company a sister company to "Detective Comics" where Mayer would be working in about a year when he brings that Superman character to editor Vin Sullivan's attention.
Captain Heroic: 1944, Prize Comics #46 (Prize). Foe of Boom Boom Brannigan. One can only assume that Heroic aka Percy Appleby was in reality less than heroic.
Captain Kidd: 1944, Reg'lar Fellers #27 (Eastern Color Printing). A thin bald scientist with dark glasses and what looks like some fanged teeth, Kidd has found by extracting oxygen from water, he can create a blanket of hydrogen that cancels out radio waves when directed at a radio tower. He uses this to extort money from Waldine, head of a radio station. Kidd is captured by Hydroman who reveals him to be Waldine's ex-partner Mark Kidwell.
Captain Klegg: 1940, Keen Detective Comics #23 (Centaur). He and his pirates boarded a ship carrying Air Man's father and killed him along with a number of other passengers. This served as the impetus for Drake Stevens to adopt the id of Air Man and soon tracked down and captured Klegg and his pirates.
Captain
Nippo: (Ace). 1943, Four Favorites #9 (Ace). Masked Japanese villain who regularly fought Captain Courageous. He eventually changes costumes and even faces Captain Courageous after the Captain no longer had super powers but was still defeated.
Captain Nomo: 1941, Fantastic Comics #18 (Fox). Nomo leads two lives, one as a respected member of the Coast Patrol and a second as a masked enforcer for a smuggling racket paid to get Sub Saunders out of the way. Instead, he gets captured.
Carro: 1941, Yankee Comics #1 (Harry "A" Chesler). Notorious New York gangster reads about Roger Chalmers returning to America from Africa with an enchanted dagger and decides he wants it. Unfortunately, all he does is draw attention to himself, and the Enchanted Dagger vows to fight his gang, "in fact all gangs, until crime itself has been wiped out."
The Cat: 1945, Exciting Comics #44 (Better). "Electrical wizard whose twisted, power-mad brain led him to fight his own country‹America" through the use of his invention, a flame ray that causes anything it¹s aimed at to burst in flames. With this attached to his gang¹s planes he looted trains and airplanes until he was stopped by American Eagle and. Despite a great name and invention, he was a rather pedestrian villain with delusions of grandeur.
Cavemen of the Mountains: 1941, Blue Bolt v2 #3 (Novelty). The cavemen of the mountains are large hairy brutes that can only see at night and live in a cave in the forests. Chocolate is like a drug to them, and lumberjack Pierre uses that to enslave them as workers for his boss Big Nick. The hero Twister happens to be nearby, investigating Big Nick for some untold (at least in this tale) underhanded dealings. He takes them all on, sending the cavemen back to their caves
The Censor: 1942, Green Mask Comics 9 (Fox). A city and its newspapers are terrorized by mysterious deaths that turn the victims blue accompanied with a calling card with a picture of a man with a devilish mustache and beard. The Nightbird (secretly photographer Lens Crockett) manages to uncover that the devil's face is a mask concealing the identity of Ricardi, the society editor. With the help of a crooked police commissioner, Ricardi had been getting dirt on and blackmailing the wealthy. In the end, he fell victim to one of his own poisonous devices.
Chameleon:(Better) A villain mastermind who appeared to be in several places at once. Stopped by the Grim Reaper.
Chang: 1941, Fantastic Comics #13 (Fox). An evil lama, apparrently slain opposing Flip Falcon
Checker: Clue Comics (Feature Publications). Decked out in a checkered mask and costume, this villain kidnapped whole buildings and held a city at ransom. His operations led to the formation of the costumed duo Nightmare and Sleepy who put an end to his plans.
The Chief (otherwise un-named): 1940, Crackajack Funnies #29 (Columbia). Robed and hooded criminal mastermind who heads a saboteur ring and goes after some valuable plans which bring in the Owl and reporter Belle Wayne investigating. When he kills the young industrialist Mitchell Carr it leads to socialite Barbara Belford donning a mask and costume to also get to the Chief, to possibly throw in with him. It's a ruse though, to get him to use a gun that she rigged to explode when used, the shrapnel ripping out his throat and killing him. Thus Barbara Belford gets revenge against her man-servant Thor for killing Mitchell Carr, her fiance.
Chief Crane: 1940, Silver Streak #6 (Lev Gleason). A strange flying winged creature (the Flying Dragon of the bare-bones entry?) is attacking boats in what looks to be China. Seeing it on his televisor, Sky Wolf flies to investigate and gets involved in an arial battle until magnetic rays force his plane down. What he finds is a gang headed by their mustached leader Crane who has used advanced science to rob and plunder and he hopes to force Sky Wolf to join him in his grand smuggling operations. Their den is wholly magnetized making attacks from conventional weapons useless while Crane and his men use plastics. The creature that started it all, was little more than a cleverly disguised propeller-less airplane, complete with a flame thrower in the "mouth". A very short story, light on details but interesting nonetheless. This Sky Wolf is not related to the Hillman character, he wears just plain monotone flying togs (in the comic they are orange but probably meant to be brown) and a white mask.
Chief Zombie: Mystery Men Comics (Fox). Down in the swamps of Louisiana, this white bearded man uses local superstition by hiring men to pose as zombies and terrorize people so he can buy their land cheap and sell at a profit later. However, he runs afoul of real magic when Zanzibar opposes him.
Chen Chang: Mystery Men #1 (Fox Features). Chen Chang is the "Master Mind," "highly cultured and wealthy" but desiring only "to bring disaster upon the White Race!" He's a Yellow Peril menace, head of a Mongol army and aided by the sultry murderous River Lily. His plans of conquest are continually foiled by the white man Richard Kendall.
Lu Cheng: 1940, Fantastic Comics #13 (Fox). Lu Cheng is a vampire whose lair is in a cave in the Gobi Desert where he has a group of Asian women hypnotized into believing they are vampires as well. He's blown apart by a grenade thrown by Captain Kidd, freeing the women from his control.
The Claw: (Lev Gleason) The most outlandish of the Yellow Peril characters taken to the extreme. Reports of this villain has him towering stories tall, a mouth full of sharp fang-like teeth, skeletal hands with long fingernails. Although obviously born out of the "yellow menace" hysteria, he seems to be beyond that, more of an embodiment of nightmares, hatred and paranoia. His goals seem to be nothing less than subjugation of mankind and he is frequently opposed by the heroes Daredevil, the Ghost, and Silver Streak. In his first appearance, he is a supernatural being, leader of a band of plunderers and has imposed a reign of terror on the mid-Pacific island of Ricca and its 1000 inhabitants. He operates out of a remote castle and on nights when the moon is full, his great form can be seen looming into the sky with a hypnotic hum that sends the natives scattering, save whoever his target is for enslaving. The Claw holds sway over his band through dreams, good dreams as addictive as any drug while nightmares are used to punish those that fail.
In Boy Comics # 89, the Claw resurfaces and gets a new origin, this time as an alien invader from the planet Zylmarx who is stopped by Rocky X of the Rocketeers.
Cleopatra: 1945, Speed Comics #38 (Harvey). In Egypt, Cairo dancing girl Tesmen Beh, working with Japan, pretends to be the reincarnation of the legendary queen. She is killed when she is struck by her asp while fighting the Black Cat. Anthony Durant provides: a dancer, who was hired by the Japanese to impersonate Cleopatra so that she could trick the Egyptians into attacking the Allied forces with weapons left behind ten years earlier by the Japanese in a pyramid near her underground hideout. She first saw Linda Turner, the Black Cat's alter ego, while dancing at a club with a cobra (yes, that kind of dancing!).
Cloud Clipper: 1948, Target Comics vol. 9, #8 (Novelty Press). The Cloud Clipper is acrobatic and the head of small gang of thieves that use a camouflaged plastic blimp to appear as if they are riding on a cloud and stage daring robberies on the top floors of tall buildings including going after the world's largest diamond. However they couldn't handle the Target and the Targeteers.
Cloud, Eve, Dr.: 1940, Amazing Man Comics #16 (Centaur). This mad scientist experimented with a shrinking formula on a island in the Pacific Ocean. He had shrunk one of the island's strange natives and then the Shark. He falls on a syringe with the shrinking formula and apparently dies as his lab goes up in flames. The small Shark is rescued by a befriended lab rat and eventually returns to his own size.
The Clown: 1940, Super Mystery Comics 5 (Ace). A malevolent psycho who at times seemed to work for himself and other times for Hitler. He was decked out in a clown's garb and a frequent foe of Magno.
The Clown II: 1942, Green Hornet Comics #7 (Harvey). Murderous thug in Clown attire, and avowed enemy of both Britt Reid and the Green Hornet. Despite his thuggish demeanor, he's fiendishly clever and make-up artist expert and manages to avoid his own execution. Harvey also had a hero by the name of the Clown.
The Clown III: 1943, Shadow Comics v2n11 (Street & Smith). This villain proved to be no laughing matter for Danny Garrett.
The Coal People: 1940, Amazing Man Comics #11 (Centuar). Centuries ago, a race of Indians were forced underground where they built a huge city. The strange gas and their eating coal (?!) turned them into giant coal people: about 12 feet tall, with coal like skin. When they see their first white man and with white hair, they think he's a god and so imprison him. However, when they later find a dead coal miner, they eat him and discover he's quite tasty and so start raiding the coal mines for other miners. Mighty Man discovers their hidden city and that they are a match for his strength. However, he also discovers they are afraid of fire and so escapes after rescuing their "god" and seals off the mine, sealing them and their city in.
The Cobra: 1942, Prize Comics 19 (Feature Publications). The Cranes inherit a castle with a hidden treasure and they hire private detective Terry Dane to help them find it. Unfortunately, they find themselves opposed by a gang led by a man with a cobra head mask. Though he's strong and devious, he is stopped by the Black Owl (Terry's boyfriend Doug Danville) and revealed to be Tom, the caretaker.
The Cobra: (Ace). German agent with fang-like teeth and dresses in a green snake outfit. His most frequent adversary is Magno.
Cobra Lady: 1943, Daredevil Comics #20 (Lev Gleason). Ally of the Claw; foe of the Ghost. Created by Bob Wood
Commander Darke: 1941, Bang Up #1 (Progressive). Nazi who opposed Cosmo Mann.
Comrade Ratski: 1940, Speed Comics #10 (Harvey). Ratski is the employ of a foreign government and kidnaps leading scientists to come up with fantastic inventions in his bid for conquest such as an earthquake machine and a way to grow giant insects. Stopped by Shock Gibson, he returns the next issue, teaming up with Baron Von Kampf, an early recurring villain of Shock Gibson's not seen for several issues. At this point, it's unsure if Ratski is still working for his home country or now an independent though he's still billed as "comrade". They meet up in the Florida Everglades where Ratski has command of an army of "zombies". Their plans stopped again by Shock Gibson, it looks like the end for them as the pair are surrounded by alligators. Ratski has a thick brown beared with a spikey waxed mustache.
The Condor: 1941, Big Three #2 (Fox). A modern day and ruthless pirate, he bribes city officials to not call out the Coast Guard while he launches his deadly raid. He apparently drowns while fighting against the Blue Beetle. He survives for a return visit, wearing a yellow cape. It is also revealed that he uses a claw-handle dagger. This time he's apparently killed when he falls into the hold of a ship onto the boiler. The Condor was a powerful looking man, dressed in a black suit, yellow cape and wore a black pirate's tri-cornered style hat when looting. Otherwise, he sported a dark widow's peak.
Conquering King (and the Conquering Knights): 1947, America's Best #21 (Better). A group of 40 crooks become would-be conquerors with an ultraviolet gun that blinds opponents. Defeated by Doc Strange.
Conqueror: (Centaur). Bolton Gates is a criminal mastermind was constantly thwarted in his attempts to conquer the world (or, at least, a large chunk of it) by the intervention of Dean Denton. He had a large organization of loyal followers and an impressively varied armory of chemical weapons. He tended to wear a red robe and hood.
The Conqueror: 1939, Amazing Mystery Funnies (Centaur). In the future, he's a mysterious figure, a scientific genius turned towards criminal activities, leading a band of outlaws on Saturn until the gang was wiped out and he disappeared for five years. Captain Tim, Professor Gray and Rita, the crew of the Air Sub 'DX', discover the villain and his forces on Mysterey Isle (sic). Clues suggest that the Conquerer might be explorer Montan who had disappeared on expedition to the isle 50 years before.
The Corpse: March 1943. Clue Comics #3. (Hillman). Ronald Byrd wrote: Suffering from a blood disease that renders him immune to pain, undertaker Westly insanely decides to make sure his friends precede him in death; as the Corpse, he poses as an apparition in which, thanks to a mirror-mask, each of his victims sees his own face. He succumbs to his disease shortly after being defeated by Nightmare and Sleepy.
Corzen: 1940, Keen Detective Funnies #24 (Centaur). Corzen used a ghost ship (a glowing tall ship) as bait for ships while they followed in a submarine. When their prey would stop to investigate, he and his crew dressed as classic pirates would board and loot them. His submarine was sunk by Air Man, presumably killing all on board.
Cougar: 1944, Super Mystery Comics vol. 4 # 1 (Ace). Fritz Martin was blackmailing the father of twins Tom and Tim Turner. Tim follows his father to learn who's bleeding his father only to be seen and recognized. Fearing for his life Tim calls in Mr. Risk. As the Cougar, Martin dresses in a black cat suit and has poisoned claws that he can throw with a deadly accuracy.
Council of Vampires: 1939, Wonderworld Comics #4 (Fox). Not much is revealed about the Council other than they are ruled by their queen, Anya. Anya's husband is the mortal Luigi Bishop, curator of the London Museum who is anxious to get his hands on the fabled Vampire Ruby that will allow Anya to co-exist among the living. However, when denied the ruby by the current possessors Dr. Fung and Dan Barr. Luigi sets fire to his castle in order to burn them all to death. Dr. Fung and Dan escape, but the ruby and the unholy couple are apparently burned to death.
Count Irban: 1944, Clue Comics #8 (Hillman). Ronald Byrd says: Descendant of a Swisslakian rebel routed by the Boy King's Giant 500 years earlier, Count Irban poses as carnival owner Rudolpho in order to steal Swisslakian gold and depose the Boy King. He is aided by trapeze artist Carlos, knife thrower Emil, trick rider Rondo, and the magician Captain Fingers. All are defeated by the Boy King, his brother Muggsy, and the Giant.
Count Morphine: 1945, Red Seal Comics #15 (Chesler). Bald half-Japanese bootleg baron who spent a stretch in jail. When he gets out, he pretends to going straight, opening up some kind of matchmaking service/dance club as cover. The reality is that he picks a couple, tortures the girl in order to coerce the guy to commit robberies. His scheme is exposed by reporter Lucky Coyne and crew.
Count Vesti: 1946, Yellowjacket Comics 8 (The Frank Publishing Co.). The entire village of Pabst in Balkania is affected by moon madness and when the weak-minded villagers are such the evil Count Vesti commands them to rob and kill any who oppose him. However, under the command of Zeus, he is stopped by Diana the Huntress who uses Mercury's caduceus to put the villagers to sleep and seals Vesti inside his castle.
The Crab: Speed Comics 20 (Harvey). A robed Yellow peril menace, this Japanese worked his evil in Korea. Only, in his case he's twins, allowing himself to appear in several places at once. His chief agent is by the name of Zero. He and the Crab(s) are captured by War Nurse and the Girl Commandoes, with the aide of two aviators and some Korean nationals.
Mr. Crambell: 1941, Silver Streak Comics #7. Daredevil Durrant writes: Mr. Crambell was a smuggler who was apprehended by his employee, Bart Hill (not the original Daredevil this time), a "timid soul" who was transformed into "a peerless dynamo of battling courage" when his doctor informed him he had a fatal illness that would kill him after sunset that day. Bart knocked out Mr. Crambell's henchman Aubrey, and then ran into his office where he found Crambell pointing a machine gun out the window! After a struggle with his employer, Bart captured Mr. Crambell and received an award for exposing him and his fellow smugglers. Bart Hill and Mr. Crambell appeared in a story entitled "Dynamo Hill" in Silver Streak Comics #7. They were slated to appear in the next issue, as the last frame suggests, but never did.
The Crane: 1943, Clue Comics #2-5 (Hillman). A German commander whose natural arms and hands were replaced with robotic ones that can telescope many times their normal length. He often made use of infernal inventions such as a huge robotic tyrannosaurus to put him on an even playing field with Boy King and his Giant.
Crime Syndicate: Amazing Man Comics #22 (Centaur). A powerful and murderous gang that wears blue coveralls and large gray hoods, completely masking their identities as they carry off daring crimes. They plan on pulling off the crime of the century tunnelling under and through the vaults of the Sub-Treasury Building. However, their actions attacted the attention of the mystery man known as the Voice and were no match for his hypnotic voice and incredible fighting ability.
The Crimson Abbot: 1942, V...-Comics (Fox). Investigating a murder, the Banshee sees a giant of a man dressed in red abbot's robes and there's an abandoned abbey nearby. He eventually uncovers the Crimson Abbot to be Cormin, the landlord of the local hotel. Cormin was using his hotel as a storehouse for stolen goods. The goods were hidden in a creek in waterproof bags so he wore stilts to wade in the creek and the robes to frighten off the curious.
Crimson Circle Gang: 1941, Big Three #2 (Fox). Murderous gangsters who mark their crimes with a large flaming circle on the fronts of buildings they attack. Stopped by the Flame.
Crimson Conqueror: 1944, Complete Book of Comics and Funnies #1 (Better). The first foe of the Magnet.
Crocodile: foe of Don Winslow and who flies through the air in an immense sky island called the Sky City and kills U.S. sailors in the South Seas by dropping ice cubes full of poison gas on them.
Crooked Arrow: Ajax-Farrell. Anthony Durrant writes: Crooked Arrow is the twin brother of Swift Arrow, the mighty Apache chieftain and warrior. The two brothers had been separated at birth, and eventually Crooked Arrow had agreed to settle in the mountains with a part of the tribe. He comes down from the mountains and raids a wagon train, which sends the Lone Rider after his brother, Swift Arrow, who is forced to reveal his brother's existence to the Lone Rider to save his own skin. He then retires to his wigwam to mourn the loss of his brother as the Apache death drums are struck and sound throughout the land.
The Crooked Nine: 1943, Clue Comics #5 (Hillman). A group of thieves while in prison form a baseball team. As luck would have it they are paroled at the same time and decide to embark on a life of crime using their baseball skills and costumes to steal jewels, especially diamonds. Nightmare and Sleepy put an end to their crime spree.
Crow King: 1944, Boy Comics #17 (Lev Gleason). Foe of Young Robin Hood. Created by Alan Mandel
Cruelblitz the Dictator: ~1941, Popular Comics (Dell). His army drove the people of Unpreparda from their homes and plans to slaughter the refugees as they try to return to their war-torn country but is opposed by Supermind and his son. Cruelblitz looks like Hitler and refers to himself as der Fuehrer and his soldiers look like Nazi troops, so it's obvious the names were changed since America was still a neutral country.
Crutch Killer: 1941, Wonderworld Comics #31 or 32 (Fox). A movie is being made under mysterious conditions that will expose the type of man that the deceased Ransford Booth was in life. However, accidents plague the set and its only by threats that the director can keep the movie going though earning him the enmity of all involved. He sends for Gary Preston who arrives with as the Flame with Flame Girl and their pal Pug in tow. Following him and trying various tricks to kill him and others is an older crippled man (with fangs for some reason). His crutch is actually a dart gun that fires quick acting lethal poisonous darts. He ultimately stands revealed as Ransford Booth, trying to prevent the movie from being made as it would have revealed he was head of a fascist ring and had faked his death to continue his efforts in that endeavor.
Curley: 1939, Amazing Mystery Funnies (Centaur). So named because of his curley hair, he's the despotic rule of an undersea country in the future and he wants Professor Gray's Air Sub 'DX', a vehicle that can fly through the air and travel under the seas with equal ease and armed with dissolving guns. With it, he thinks he can rule the universe.
Cyclops: 1940, Fantastic Comics #9 (Fox).In the Lost Valley, there's a race of one-eyed beast men. When Captain Kidd discovers it, he finds they are headed by one that speaks very good English. Rescuing a white girl that had been captured, Kidd takes the fight to the head cyclops, unmasking him as an explorer called Perez apparently gone insane and whom Kidd had been searching for. Perez leaps to his death to avoid capture. The story is unclear whether the other beast men are the real deal or natives he had made up.