Captain America Comics #55
The Hands of Sensitivo
A sculptor named Anders tells the tale about how he helped Captain America and Bucky capture the criminal known as Sensitivo:
Sensitivo was born with large hands and as he grew he found that they were sensitive enough to allow him to hear vibrations of just about any kind of movement. As an adult, he began using his unusual talent for crime and soon became a wealthy mob leader. One day, he and his gang broke into a building where old and valuable letters written by famous writer were being kept. However, above the office was a Turkish Bath where William Nasland and Fred Davis Jr. are busy playing handball.
When their ball accidentally falls down the stairs, Fred goes after it discovering the thieves who try to fool the boy into thinking they belong there. Telling William, the two men go into action as Captain America and Bucky. They fight their way through the gang and catch Sensitivo as he is cracking the safe that contains the letters. During the fight, Bucky is pushed out a window, forcing Cap to go to his rescue and allowing Sensitivo and his gang to escape.
Meanwhile, Sensitivo is furious that one of his fingernails is broken, so one of his men suggests that he get his nails manicured by his girlfriend Marge. Left alone with Sensitivo, Marge accidentally hurts the mob boss and he furiously strangles her to death. He returns to his gang, not telling them that he strangled the girl to death.
Elsewhere, Cap and Bucky are going through police files on Sensitivo, while Cap wonders why the crook commits his crimes during the day. However, their attention is pulled when the police learn of Marge's murder. Cap and Bucky search the murder scene and find that Sensitivo's fingerprints are on the girl's neck. Finding leather fibers on the body, they correctly deduce that Sensitivo and his men are hiding out at an old glove factory down by the river front. There they clash with his gang and when Cap announces that he's taking Sensitivo in for the murder of Marge, Marge's boyfriend snaps and tries to shoot his boss but is gunned down instead. Sensitivo then tosses a grenade and escapes, while the blast wipes out the rest of his gang. Finding the mortally wounded thug who turned on Sensitivo, who tries to explain why Sensitivo only commits his crimes during the day, but only can say the word "Aster" before dying.
Making some deductions about this new bit of information, Captain America decides to lay a trap for Sensitivo. They seek out the help of Anders the hand sculptor and put an ad in the newspaper stating that hey are having their hands modelled by the sculptor, and that Anders intends to also model Sensitivo's hands after he is captured. Reading this story, Sensitivo furiously attacks the studio. However, Captain America and Bucky are ready for him and douse the lights. With a special infra-red light, the two heroes trick Sensitivo into thinking there is a gun by his feet, but it is really a hand sculpture. With the lights back on, Sensitivo realizes his mistake too late and is easily beaten by Captain America. With Sensitivo defeated, Cap explains that ironically enough he suffered from Astereognosis, which led to his defeat.
Recurring Characters
Captain America, Bucky
Just What the Doctor Ordered
At the Perkin's household, Patsy Perkins returns home a filthy mess and is scolded by her parents that if she continues to be a tomboy she will be punished. After cleaning up and putting on a new dress, Patsy goes back outside to play and is confronted by two young boys who throw mud at her. Returning home, her father is furious and sends her to her room, promising the girl that she will be sent to private school to teach her how to be a lady. Not wishing this fate, Patsy decides to run away from home, riding her bike to the next town in the hopes of living with her aunt.
In the next town, Captain America and Bucky are on sight at the local hospital where they are protecting the transport of a medicinal serum that is needed to treat a disease outbreak. A local group of criminals have been robbing the supplies knowing the doctors will pay anything to get the medicine back. When the gang attacks the hospital, Captain America and Bucky step in to stop them. However, during the course of the fight Captain America is struck from behind and the crooks get away with the medicine.
As the police put out an APB on the crooks getaway car, they decide to avoid capture. When they spot Patsy riding into town they pay her a dollar to deliver the package of medicine to their hideout, so that the police would have nothing to arrest them on. Patsy accepts the job, unaware of the dubious intention, and worries that she doesn't know where the address is. Along the way she literally bumps into Captain America and Bucky, who give her directions unaware that she has the medicine they're desperately looking for. The pair note that the address is in a bad neighbourhood and decide to wait outside for her. When Patsy does not come out the two heroes decide to go in an get her.
Inside, Patsy is shocked to see that she is delivering her package to the same men that gave it to her and demands to know what's going on. When the crooks try to silence her, Captain America and Bucky come bursting in and a fight breaks out. However, Cap and Bucky stand down when the mobs leader takes Patsy hostage. Cap and Bucky are tied up, and most of the gang is sent out to steal the next shipment of medication. Patsy pretends to start crying to let the crooks guards down and manages to use Judo to knock out guard and frees Cap and Bucky.
The trio then rush to the airport where they catch the gang attempting to steal the newest supply of medicine, but Captain America and Bucky make quick work of the gang and turns them over to the authorities. With the fight over, Patsy decides that she should face her responsibilities and returns home after Cap and Bucky thank her for her help on the case.
Recurring Characters
Captain America, Bucky
The Rest Home Mystery
The Human Torch and Toro come across a lynch mob who are about to string up local doctor, Dr. Allen. Breaking up the mob, the Torch is told by Ed Owens that his brother died while being treated by Allen, who Ed claims was killed due to malpractice. The Torch convinces the mob to stand down and let the law settle matters. Allen thanks the Torch and Toro for their help and tells them that all he gave Owens an injection but it couldn't have possibly killed him.
The Torch decides to investigate the matter so he and Toro go to the local morgue. Examining the body the Torch finds Allen's injection, but also another one at the base of the skull, the likely cause of death. Learning that Owens, who was blind, was under care at the Riverside Rest Home, the Torch and Toro decide to investigate.
In disguise, they meet with the rest home administrator Dr. Malvow under the pretence that they are seeking a home for their blind friend. Malvow allows them to tour around the property and talk to the patients there, telling them that everything there is top of the line, even the water which is pumped in from a local lake and purified on site. As Malvow is called to do his rounds, he locks his office striking the Torch's suspicions. Going outside, they flame on near a blind man and use the chimney in Malvow's office to gain access inside. There they find evidence that Malvow was attempting to blackmail someone.
Returning outside, they find a note from the supposed blind man, who reveals that he is not blind and asks them to meet with him so that he can inform them of what is going on at the rest home. When they do, they witness as a large roller is heading toward him but are too late in stopping it as the attack causes the old man's weak heart to give out. As he dies he tries to warn them about "lights". When Malvow arrives at the scene, the Torch and Toro play dumb to the scheme and leave Malvow to believe that they have left unaware of what's going on.
Staking out the location, the Torch and Toro spot light signals being sent between the rest home and the pumping station. They flame on to investigate and find that there is a gang of men working with Ed Owens and Dr. Malvow, who had discovered an oil pipeline and are tapping to make money. The Torch and Toro easily round up the gang, however Ed tries to threaten them with a gas bomb when he suddenly goes blind, allowing for the Torch and Toro to easily be defeated. Guilt stricken for killing his brother, Ed confesses the entire operation and says his brother and the others were killed in order to maintain the secret. The Torch and Toro then turn them over to the authorities.
Recurring Characters
Human Torch, Toro
The Merry Widow Murders
Actor Myron Delasco has finished the final shot for his latest starring role: The Merry Widow Killer, a horror film about a murderer who kills widows with a pair of scissors. On the set watching are William Nasland and Fred Davis Jr. who are impressed over Delasco's acting abilities. With the film finsihed, Delasco then decides to go on vacation at his private residence in the mountains. However, along the way he is caught in a rainstorm and his car gets into an accident. Stricken with partial amnesia, Delasco believes that he is really the Merry Widow Killer and leaves the accident scene determined to murder women for "revenge".
When the news about Delasco's accident hits the newspapers, William and Fred read the news and believe that Delasco likely died in the accident. However as they are out walking later that night they hear a woman scream and change into Captain America and Bucky. The pair find the woman being murdered by a man with a pair of scissors. But, when they try to capture the killer Bucky trips over the woman's corpse and knocks over Cap, allowing the killer to escape. Inspecting the body, Cap notices the similarities between this murder and the ones fictionalized in the Merry Widow Murderer movie. The two heroes then pay a visit to the films director Sidney Saunders and read over the script to try and find a means to trap the killer. However, there is news of another murder, and when Cap and Bucky investigate this corpse they find that the killer used the same modus operandi.
Suspecting that the killer is imitating the film, and that it's likely Delasco, Cap has Bucky dress up as a woman to trick Delasco into attacking. Sure enough, Delasco does attack Bucky. When Cap tries to stop Delasco from killing again, he is wounded and Delasco runs off with Bucky to kill him some place else. Remembering that the killer stopped his rampages whenever the clock tower rung midnight, Cap rushes to a nearby clock tower and pushes it ahead five minutes so that the midnight bell will chime. On another roof top, Delasco stops before killing Bucky. Catching up with them Captain America yells "cut" hoping to snap Delasco out of his state of mind, but instead of reverting to normal Delasco instead walks off the roof of the building and falls to his death. With the threat over, Captain America suggests that this a better end for Delasco who would have had to face the horror of his crimes had he lived.
Recurring Characters
Captain America, Bucky
