Blonde Phantom Comics #15
The Man Who Deserved to Die!
Upon learning that talent agent Bert "Chestler" Hogan has been conning young girls out of money with false promises of stardom, Mark Mason pays a visit to him and a fight breaks out. Louise Grant believes that Mark is getting too rough and changes into the Blonde Phantom to stop the fight. Out in the hallway she runs into a young woman named Jennifer Scott a client of Hogan and leads her into Mason's office and orders the famished girl some food. Mark returns to the office and tells Blonde Phantom that he has dealt with Hogan. Talking to Jennifer they learn that she gave Hogan her last $50 to secure a role working with Colonel Bella -- a theater producer whom Mark and the Blonde Phantom informs has produced nothing but flops for years and that Chestler hasn't landed any stars in over a decade. Jennifer is distraught and Blonde Phantom tells her that she'll try to help. Just then the delivery boy arrives with the food that Blonde Phantom had ordered and informs Mark that the police are searching Hogan's office.
Soon Inspector Flint comes to the office with one of Mark's letter openers and informs him that it was used to kill Hogan. Since Mark just finished fighting with him and the evidence pins him as the most likely suspect, he is arrested by the police as a man secretly listens in on the arrest. Blonde Phantom tells Mark that she will try to clear his name. She goes to Hogan's office where the police allow her to search the murder scene. Going through Hogan's files the Phantom finds that the last number of girls that Hogan had hired on women who have specific language skills. When she mentions one of the girls, fluent in Dutch, being hired to work for Max Harding, one of the officers on the scene informs her that Harding is a collector of expensive Dutch paintings. Finding that Jennifer had been hired for Whitney Bowman, she goes and questions her. Jennifer tells her that she was hired to attend a party in order to talk to Bowman about the fine China that he collects. Telling Jennifer to stay put, Blond Phantom pays a visit to Bowman and he shows her his priceless collection of fine China, unaware that Jennifer has left to do snooping of her own. He laments that some pieces have become inaccessible due to the war. When the Blonde Phantom suggests that some items were looted by the Nazis and that some people have been paid to obtain these items, essentially stolen property, Bowman clams up.
Meanwhile, Jennifer pays a visit to Colonel Bella about the party she is to attend that night. Bella explains that he needs her to talk to Bowman about fine China that was looted by the Nazis that is currently being sold in Mexico and his plan to swindle Bowman when he goes down south to purchase the phony merchandise. When Jennifer threatens to contact the police, Bella pulls out a gun and forces her to work on his plan to deal with the Blonde Phantom. Elsewhere, Blonde Phantom is meeting with Max Harding explaining the situation when a radio report about Mark's arrest is broadcast. Blonde Phantom then guilts Harding to explain what happened, and he tells how he was tricked into going to Mexico and had his money stolen by Colonel Bella. With this Blonde Phantom pays a visit to Colonel Bella's residence and the butler greets her at the door with a gun and she is taken prisoner. Bella then admits that he had killed Hogan for wanting too much of a cut and framed Mark for the murder. After making his confession, Bella is shocked when the police burst into the room and makes a grab for Jennifer, threatening to kill her. Mark comes out from behind and pistol whips the Colonel and his butler and Blonde Phantom knocks the Frenchman down with a single blow.
After Bella is taken away by the police, Blonde Phantom informs Jennifer that she has convinced Bowman and Harding to invest money in a new Broadway play and has convinced them to hire her on as the lead role.
Recurring Characters
Blonde Phantom
Mark Mason
I Hate Me!
On a quite day at Mark Mason's detective agency, Louise Grant takes note that her employer Mark is fantasizing about the Blonde Phantom again and laments about how he moons over her alter-ego but ignores her. At the end of the work day Louise is about to leave but Mark stops her and almost asks her out on a date but changes his mind. Angry, Louise storms off, slamming the door shut, leaving Mark to wonder what he did wrong.
That night as she prepares for bed, Louise reads romance comics until she falls asleep. She has a dream where Mark romances her, but before they can kiss they are interrupted by the Blonde Phantom. Mark instantly stops paying attention to Louise to fawn over the Blonde Phantom, angering Louise. Louise falls out of bed, waking up and realizing it was only a dream. Grabbing her Blonde Phantom dress she wishes her alter-ego could stay out of her dreams. The next day, Louise takes out her anger over her dream on Mark, who can't figure out why Louise is so cross with him.
Recurring Characters
Blonde Phantom
Mark Mason
Death Deals in Stamps!
Out on the waterfront, Namor and Namora are spending time together. Namora suggests they pay a visit to "Father Time", an old man who lives at a nearby lighthouse and has a valuable stamp collection.
At that moment, Father Time is putting stamps in his book when he is confronted by "Pirate" Fletcher who has come to rob him of his valuable stamps. When Father Time resists, Fletcher shoots him dead, takes the stamps and flees. When Namor and Namora arrive at the lighthouse they find that Father Time has been murdered, but before he died he drew a skull and crossbones on the ground. This allows Namor to deduce that Father Time was robbed by Fletcher and the two decide to pay him a visit at his cafe.
When they arrive they spot Arnold Rankin, a renowned stamp dealer, going into the back room. Bursting in, Namor and Namora catch Fletcher attempting to sell Father Time's stamps to Rankin and apprehend both men. When the police arrive to take them away, Namor turns the book of stamps over to the police and suggest that they sell them in a public auction and donate the funds to the Old Sailors Home, believing that is what Father Time would have wanted.
Recurring Characters
Sub-Mariner
Namora
Glamour Can Be Fatal!
At the office of Mark Mason, Louise Grant is looking over a newspaper article about the arrival of Dr. Fen the president of Tibet who has come to the United States with one million dollars worth of diamonds seeking to purchase modern American clothing for the women of Tibet. The article explains that Dr. Fen is being shown around by a guide. Mark, reading over her shoulder moons over the pretty female guide, while Louise spots notorious criminal Porky Potter in the photo. Angry at Mark for gawking at another woman, she tells him that she is going shopping but really slips away to change into Blonde Phantom to insure that Porky Potter does not attempt to steal the jewels from Dr. Fen.
Meanwhile outside the consulate of Tibet, Porky Potter and his men break in, intending to steal the jewels. While inside, Dr. Fen's guide, Nicki models different clothings for him. Potter and his accomplice burst into the room and shoot down Dr. Fen's aide. Fen soon realizes that Nicki is involved in the theft and is forced to open the safe containing the diamonds, but they find that it's empty. Dr. Fen tells them that the jewels were entrusted to Jack Barton, the pilot for Dr. Fen. They knock out Fen when suddenly the door bell rings. While Porky hides with Dr. Fen's body, Nicki answers the door and finds that Jack and Blonde Phantom have come calling at he same time. Putting on an act, Nicki tells them that Porky Potter kidnapped Dr. Fen. Jack realizes that if Fen should talk it would make him a target to obtain the jewels.
Nicki tells Jack and the Blonde Phantom that she "overheard" Porky and his men talk about Gable's Pier, one of the toughest waterfront dives in town. The trio head to the bar and when they arrive Nicki suddenly pulls a gun on them, revealing her connection to Potter. While Jack is left to be questioned about the diamonds location, Nicki takes Blonde Phantom outside to execute her, explaining that she is in it for the money and lives expensively, pointing to her $50 orchid that she is wearing. However, the Phantom quickly dives off the pier into the water. Firing bullets into the water, Nicki believes that she has killed the Blonde Phantom. Going back into the bar she finds that Porky has roughed Jack up enough to reveal the location of the diamonds at a storage locker at the railway station. As they prepare to leave, Nicki realizes that her orchid fell off and goes out to the docks to look for it.
The Blonde Phantom, having survived listens as Nicki cannot find the orchid and hopes that her sense of vanity will be her undoing. Rushing to a nearby floral shop with the police, Blonde Phantom's gamble pays off as Nicki enters and attempts to rob the florist of one of his most expensive orchids. Blonde Phantom steps in and throws a cactus at her and easily subdues the criminal. As she leads Nicki outside, she finds that the police have rounded up Porky's gang, but were forced to gun down Porky himself.
The next day, Mark reads about the incident in the newspaper, lamenting about how he was too busy gawking at the picture of Nicki to notice Porky Potter in the photo and wonders how Blonde Phantom manages to stay one up on him, much to Louis' delight.
Recurring Characters
Blonde Phantom
Mark Mason
