USA Comics #3
The Magic Crystal of Death
Professor John Wolf had just completed his new formula for a paint that would render an airplane invisible to the naked eye as it flew two hundred feet off the ground. He tells of his success to his friend Dan Kane, who suggests turning it over to the military and leaves to tell his friend Admiral Leeds. Unknown to both men, Wolf's maid is a Nazi spy who calls in the discovery to her leader Hans Thiller. Thiller and his Fifth Columnist allies break into Wolf's home and attempt to force him into revealing the formula. Hearing the commotion from outside, Dan changes into Captain Terror and goes into action. The hero is outnumbered, but the spies flee the scene at the sound of police sirens over the horizon.
Furious, Thiller seeks out the aid of their operative Black Carlo the "Gargoyle Gypsy" who uses his crystal ball to track Wolf's every move. He begins watching Wolf the next day and witnesses as military test of the new paint have also met with success. Black Carlo then begins plotting to kidnap Wolf to steal the formula. Meanwhile, Dan gets friendly with General Garvey's daughter Norma and the two go out for a drive. They happen upon a gypsy caravan, and unaware that it is the hideout of Black Carlo, stop and check out the entertainment. Dan gets his fortune read by a gypsy woman who warns him that there is danger in his future. Norma is concerned about this fortune, but Dan passes it off as superstition.
Later picking up Wolf and heading back into the city, Dan falls for Black Carlo's trap: Putting a mirror in the middle of a tight pass in the road, Carlo convinces Dan that there is an oncoming car, causing him to swerve out the way and crash his car. The two men are knocked out, and Carlo captures Wolf and leaves Dan behind. When Dan comes around he is confronted by the gypsy woman who tells him that Black Carlo took over her caravan promising her people riches and ousted her as their leader. Dan decides to help her out and sends her off to get the aid of General Garvey, while he follows after Carlo -- changing into Captain Terror while he is en route.
Black Carlo detects Captain Terrors approach and his men get the drop on the hero, binding him up and keeping him prisoner with Wolf. When demanding the formula from Wolf fails, Carlo attempts to use his hypnotic powers against the scientist, however the gypsy woman (having returned to camp after alerting the general) cuts Captain Terrors bonds allowing him to get the drop on Carlo. Gaining the advantage of surprise, Captain Terror beats Carlo and his men until Admiral Leeds arrives and holds the crooks at gun point. Fleeing the scene, Captain Terror goes back to his wrecked car and changes back into his civilian guise to maintain his secret identity.
That night while both John and Dan are resting under the Generals supervision, Hans Thiller breaks into the home and makes one more attempt to get the formula out of Wolf. Dan is ready for this and changes back into Captain Terror and sends the Nazi spy fleeing by car. Getting a lift from a military plane, Captain Terror catches up to Thiller and his men and beats them into submission. The following morning when back in his civilian guise, Dan convinces the others that he slept through the previous nights commotion.
Recurring Characters
Captain Terror, Admiral Leeds, Nazis
The Headless Horseman
Old legends stir up again in Sleepy Hollow when Hendrick Vermeer is strangled in front of his mad by what appears to be the spirit of the Headless Horseman. The following night, John Liberty reads about the Vermeer murder and remembers the man as his old college dean and decides to investigate it. He is visited by the spirit of Paul Revere who agrees to help him solve the mystery. The two ride Revere's ghost horse to Sleepy Holly.
Spying on the Vermeer home, they overhear Vermeer's lawyer reading the deceased will to his nephew Peter and his maid. When Peter learns that the estate is to be split evenly, Peter becomes angry and storms out. Suspicious of Peter's outburst, Major Liberty and Revere follow after him. They trail him to a barn where moments later the Headless Horseman emerges. They catch the Horseman in the act of attempting to kill the late Hendrick's maid, and the ghost of Revere frightens off the faux spirit. They chase him to a nearby grave yard where Revere summons the spirits of deceased colonials to aid. Their appearance spooks the Horseman's steed and he is thrown from the horse. They beat the Horseman into submission revealing him to be none other than Peter Vermeer in a costume. Vermeer explains that he had killed his uncle in the hopes of getting his entire estate to pay off his gambling debts. Major Liberty turns him over to the authorities and he and Paul Revere ride off into the night.
Recurring Characters
Major Liberty
The Vagabond
Mobster Orrible Oress has come up with a plan: Planting exploding light bulbs all over the town of Middletown, he forces city officials to enforce a black out. While this is going on the chief of police sends Pat Murphy to investigate the crime by any means possible. This goes according to Oress's plans, and he sends his men out to commit a series of robberies. Putting on his guise of the Vagabond, Murphy hitches a ride on the roof of one of Oress's getaway cars. The car is spotted by detectives who follow after them as well.
They are led to an abandoned windmill, and the two police officers charge their way inside to capture the crooks. However the officers find themselves outnumbered and are held at gun point until the Vagabond comes to their rescue and knocks out the thugs who caught them. The Vagabond sends the officers out to get reinforcements while he deals with Oress and his mob. The shifty tramp takes on the entire gang single handed, knocking all of Oress' men unconscious. On a one-on-one battle, the Vagabond proves to be the superior fighter against Oress, who ends up being thrown from atop the windmill and falls to his death just as the authorities arrive on the scene. While the police are shocked to find Oress' men defeated so easily, the Vagabond pays his leave with no need of thanks.
Recurring Characters
The Vagabond
The Monster Who Couldn't Be Stopped
Don Stevens and his boy sidekick Rusty are visiting a local carnival where they are impressed by the show of strength by the seemingly primitive carnival strong man called Mango. However, Mango is a very smart man named Oldow, who uses this bit of fakery to earn a good living. However, as he and his manager are counting their daily earnings the full moon causes Oldow to transform into a bestial form. Choking his manager to death, Oldow goes on a rampage on the fair grounds, prompting Don and his boy side kick to change into their costumed identities of the Defender and Rusty. In their initial fight against the monster-man, Rusty in injured, causing the Defender to break the fight off and allow the monster to escape, but the hero vows to capture him.
The following night the same carnival puts on a free show for the soldiers at Don's camp and Rusty convinces him to attend it. That night at the rise of the full moon, Oldow once more transforms into his monstrous form and goes on another rampage prompting the Defender and Rusty to go into action again. During this second fight, the Defender is knocked out, allowing the monster to capture Rusty and disappear into the night. Reviving, the Defender follows Oldow's foot prints to a cliff and prevents the man-monster from throwing his sidekick over the edge. The fight comes to a violent end when the Defender knocks Oldow off the edge sending the creature falling to his death on the jagged rocks below.
Recurring Characters
The Defender, Rusty
Rockman, Underground Secret Agent
Princess Alecia of Jugoslavia is kidnapped by the Pixies, an underground dwelling race. This prompts the king of Jugoslavia to enlist the aid of Rockman, who agrees to save the kings daughter and stop the Pixies from invading the surface world. While Rockman travels deep into the Earth in his rocket powered Mole-Ship, the king of the Pixies demands that Princess Alecia marry him and be his queen.
However, before he can force Alecia through the ceremony, Rockman arrives and attacks the Pixies. The diminutive creatures vastly outnumber the hero and he is captured. They neglect to remove his radio transmitter and Rockman calls his fellow Abysmians for help. An army of Abysmian soldiers then invade the realm of the Pixies, freeing Rockman in the process.
Seeing his empire crumbling and that the Abysmians stand to take the girl away from him, the king of the Pixies attempts to slay Alecia by dashing her with a giant rock. Rockman arrives and saves her and knocks the king out. With the Pixie army defeated, Rockman then places one of his people as the new Prime Minister of the Pixie people. He then returns Alecia to the surface to her grateful father.
Recurring Characters
Rockman
Jack Frost
Ambulance racketeer Mike Dolan pays a visit to Hillcrest Hospital where he demands that Doctor Norton, the hospital administrator, purchase his ambulances. When Norton refuses, Dolan then sets the hospital on fire. Witnessing Dolan escaping, Jack Frost goes into action, using his freezing powers to put out the blaze and come to the rescue of the hospital staff and patients. When the police arrive on the scene, they refuse to listen to Jack Frost's explanations and blame him for the fire, forcing the hero to flee the scene.
Tracking Dolan back to his headquarters, he fights his way through his men and confronts Dolan face-to-face. When the hero freezes Dolan's gun, he flees the scene as the police arrive. Once more the authorities impede in Jack Frost's ability to capture Dolan, prompting the hero to put a barrier of ice between them before resuming his hunt. Learning from some nearby children that Dolan fled by car down Christopher Street, Jack Frost flies after him. Trailing the crook to a mountain pass, he fails to stop the car. Flying ahead, the hero then causes a tree to collapse which leads to Dolan getting into a fatal automobile accident, ending his threat.
Recurring Characters
Jack Frost
Power of the Press
An armored car is robbed on a mountain pass by a number of masked men who use sleeping gas. When the story reaches the offices of the Free Press newspaper editor Cupid "Kewpie" Cueball sends his best men, reporter Tom Power and photographer "Candid" Kenny Roberts to cover the story. They arrive at the scene of the crime where they see Detective Clancy Mullaney being given a hard time from bank owner J.P. Morgan, who is furious that one of his armored cars was robbed.
Powers and Roberts find a discarded mask and glove used by the robbers and almost make away with it before the authorities can spot it. They are caught in the act by Mullaney and the trio agree to work together to solve the crime. They take the evidence to a police scientist who examines it and finds enough physical evidence to point to one man, a mobster named Muscle Moe. Knowing that Muscles is too stupid to commit such a complex crime, the trio deduce that Moe must be working for another man. Tracking Moe to his hideout, Powers, Roberts and Mullaney are held at gun point and are taken to Moe's leader, who turns out to be J.P. Morgan himself. Morgan explains that there was money to be made in crime.
A fight soon breaks out and the two newspaper men and the detective easily outfight Morgan and his hired thugs, finding the hiding place where the stolen money was kept. With the caper wrapped up, Powers calls in his scoop to the Free Press.
