Blonde Phantom Comics #20
Laughter on Judgement Day!
Louise Grant is shocked one day when a man armed with a gun walks into her bosses office. Mark Mason greets the man warmly and Louise soon learns that it is a joke, and that the man with the gun (a prop) is really Mark's uncle Henry Mason -- a retired judge. Henry has come to invite Mark to a banquet that is being thrown in his honour at the Lincoln. When Mark accepts the invitation, Henry tells Louise she cannot come along because it is a strictly men-only event. Louise accepts this but secretly believes they will not bar her alter-ego the Blonde Phantom from attending.
That night at the banquet hall, Blonde Phantom lurks outside the door as Henry Mason comes to the hall. Unseen by the Blonde Phantom, when Henry enters the hall he is taken hostage at gunpoint, as is Mark when he enters. Believing she has waited long enough for the guests to show up, the Blonde Phantom peeks inside and sees both Mark and Henry strapped to electric chairs by a bunch of hooded men. The men all unmask, revealing themselves to be criminals that Henry sent to jail over the course of his career. The crooks include Tonelli the murderer, Farrell the bank robber, Hank Weeds a kidnapper, Machine Gun Thompson, Manny Moop, and Foggy Wilson.
They put on a mock trial and find Henry "guilty" for sending them to prison. Before they can begin their execution, the Blonde Phantom rushes in and begins fighting off the crooks. However before she can stop them all, they tie her up in a lasso and force her to watch their execution. The Blonde Phantom is sat next to a machine gun which she hopes to use once she breaks free from the ropes. The crooks then put Henry in a hangman's noose, but before they can go further the Blonde Phantom breaks free and grabs the machine gun. However, when she shoots she finds that it is really a water gun.
Everyone is surprised when the crooks remove their masks revealing them to be not criminals, but Henry's various colleagues who were playing a prank. With the prank over with, Blonde Phantom presents to Henry Mason her gift to him: A silver gavel. The next morning Mark complains about a headache after the previous nights adventure.
Recurring Characters
Blonde Phantom
Mark Mason
Came the Spring!
Mark Mason is about to take his lunch break when suddenly owner of the Hobnob Novelty Company comes bursting in asking Mark to protect him and his company from a man named the Springer. He explains to Mason that one day a man named Mort Morbid came to see him to try and sell a pair of spring loaded shoes that could allow people to jump great heights. When P.H. shows his colleagues they find it ridiculous and refuse to market it and P.H. throws Mort out of his office. Mort vows to get revenge against the company by terrorizing them until they finally agree to sell his spring shoes. Mort, now calling himself the Springer, then began hiding spring traps every where in the company and even Hobnob's home. Hobnob begs Mark for his help and Mason agrees to take the case right away and leaves, telling Louise to mind the office while he's gone. When they try to leave a spring loaded boxing glove hits Hobnob in the face. As they leave, Louise examines the device and decides to get involved as the Blonde Phantom.
Shortly thereafter, Mason and Hobnob return to the toy company where they find more spring loaded traps terrorizing the other employers. They are soon confronted by the Springer himself who asks Hobnob if he is ready to buy his invention yet. When Mason tries to capture him, the Spring easily evades the private detective and robs the company's safe and flees the scene. He is witnessed by the Blonde Phantom who gives the Springer chase. Following the Springer to his home, the Blonde Phantom is kept on the defensive by all the various spring loaded traps and inventions that the Springer has created.
Finding an extra pair of spring shoes, the Blonde Phantom continues her pursuit of the Springer, chasing him all over town while many eye witnesses watch. With a police officer now chasing them, the Springer leads the Blonde Phantom back to the toy company where he returns the stolen money and then tries to escape out a nearby window. While Blonde Phantom continues to go after him, the officer collides into Mark and P.H. and threatens to arrest them for disturbing the peace.
Blonde Phantom then returns with the captured Springer, explaining that the fall was too high and his springs gave out on impact. When they hear a commotion outside the office, both Hobnob and the Blonde Phantom are shocked to find a mob of people who have come to buy pairs of the Springer's spring loaded shoes. Realizing that the product will actually sell quite well, Hobnob drops all charges and signs a deal with Mort, much to Blonde Phantom's exasperation. Later at his office, Mark once more goes on about his most recent encounter with the Blonde Phantom unaware the Louise has set a spring trap in his desk as a prank.
Recurring Characters
Blonde Phantom
Mark Mason
Science Says No!
At the lab of physics professor Elistis Diggenwell, Diggenwell comes to a final conclusion about his latest experiments. He rushes to the police station and asks the desk Sergeant if he has seen the Sub-Mariner. The officer takes Diggenwell to the home of Betty Dean who agrees to take them to her friend Namor.
Running to the nearby pier they are greeted by Namora and shortly thereafter the Sub-Mariner. Diggenwell then begins questioning the Sub-Mariner about how he swims in the water. After answering all of the scientists questions, the Sub-Mariner is shocked when Diggenwell tells him that it by the laws of physics he cannot swim because it is against the laws of science. Instead of listening to this, the Sub-Mariner tosses Diggenwell into the water and leaves him to be fished out later.
Recurring Characters
Sub-Mariner
Namora
Betty Dean
Continuity Notes
The conclusions made by Professor Elistis Diggenwell are of course incorrect because they do not take into account that Namor is an amphibian.
The Mental Maelstrom!
At the office of Mark Mason, private detective, Mason asks his secretary Louise Grant to enter his office. There she is shocked to find a man who appears to be stark raving mad, spouting nothing but gibberish. Before they can do anything they are confronted by an artist calling himself Morton Marion Maximillian Muse, and explains that the young man with them is named Danny, is his ward and quite harmless. He takes Danny away and invites Mark and Louise to stop by his home where he gives regular lectures on abstract art.
Louise, finding something strange about Danny's glassy eyes decides to investigate things further as the Blonde Phantom. She sneaks into Muse's mansion and finds that Muse has somehow put Danny in a hypnotic spell and is forcing him to paint abstract paintings for him which he sells for a fortune to support his own greed. When the Blonde Phantom confronts him, Muse pulls a gun on her then uses his hypnosis to make her see everything as though life is one large abstract painting. Disorientated, the Blonde Phantom flees the house and is struck by a car.
When she comes around in a hospital she finds herself free of the hypnosis and found with a clean bill of health. She covers for her secret identity by telling the doctor on duty that she was going to a costume party. Learning that it has been days, Louise recovers her costume and flees the hospital.
Changing back into the Blonde Phantom, Louise returns to Muse's mansion and sees a large group of people coming for a visit, Mark among them. She spies on the lecture and afterword Muse begins trying to sell some of his paintings. The Blonde Phantom is found by Danny, who is back in his trance like state. The Blonde Phantom manages to snap him out of it and learns that Muse used his hypnosis to kidnap him. Muse soon finds them and before he can use his hypnosis on the Blonde Phantom again, she squirts paint in his eyes and calls the authorities.
The following day Louise returns to work covers for her absence by telling Mark she was sick. To her surprise she finds that Mark paid for one of the paintings that Muse was selling, and decides to let him find out about his arrest later.
Recurring Characters
Blonde Phantom
Mark Mason
Money On Order!
With a rash of counterfeit money orders being issued, the police put Detective Skip McCoy on the case. He goes from bank to bank buying money orders. He eventually catches the teller who is dealing the phony orders and gets him to squeal on the entire operation. Afterword the counterfeiter asks Skip how he knew he was selling phony money orders. Skip explains that he placed an order for $150.00, which a legitimate bank would not issue.
Recurring Characters
Skip McCoy
