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129,009
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in: M.C. Gaines/Executive Editor, Sheldon Mayer/Cover Artist, Howard Purcell/Cover Artist,
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The Big All-American Comic Book

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"Wonder Woman: "Danny the Demon Had Plans"": Thief Danny "the Demon" tries to rob General Courtney's safe, only to be caught in the act by the general himself. Danny shoots the general in cold blood but Steve Trevor hears the shot and comes to investigate. He judo-throws Danny and confiscates hi

The Big All-American Comic Book is a one-shot with a cover date of January, 1945. It was published on November 1, 1944.

Synopsis for Wonder Woman: "Danny the Demon Had Plans"

Thief Danny "the Demon" tries to rob General Courtney's safe, only to be caught in the act by the general himself. Danny shoots the general in cold blood but Steve Trevor hears the shot and comes to investigate. He judo-throws Danny and confiscates his gun, but a staff officer hears the commotion and comes to investigate. While Steve's explaining what happened, Danny slips out, meaning the officer only finds Steve carrying the gun that killed the general, and has him put under arrest. When Diana Prince hears, she immediately speeds off to become Wonder Woman. She inspects the scene of the crime and finds a business card for an amusement park, and calls Etta and the Holliday Girls to meet her there. The park manager assigns Dipsy the Clown to lead the ladies around the fairgrounds to search for clues.

Meanwhile, Steve escapes from the stockade to help Wonder Woman in her search, and while slipping into the amusement park, trips over somebody on the floor who'd been all tied up. Steve's caught in the act by a pair of cops who try to arrest him all over again. Fortunately, Wonder Woman sees Steve from the top of the roller coaster and dives off to come to his rescue. The park manager identifies the unconscious man as the real Dipsy the clown, causing Wonder Woman to realize the criminal they're after must have taken his place.

The heroine, Steve and Etta chase the perp into the carnival's haunted house, where he traps them inside an electrified room. Fortunately the amazon thinks to peel asbestos wrappings off one of the fake spooks, uses them to wrap her arms and legs, and safely batters her way through a wall to freedom. Then she easily captures Danny the Demon and clears Steve's name.

Appearing in Wonder Woman: "Danny the Demon Had Plans"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Danny the Demon, safecracker

Other Characters:

  • General Courtney (Dies)
  • Colonel Fuzz
  • Bingley, park manager
  • Danny Deft, watchman
  • Dipsy the Clown
  • Officer O'Leary and his partner

Locations:

Items:


Synopsis for Scribbly: "The Ten Buck Nut"

One of Ma Hunkel's customers paid his grocery bill with tickets for the horse track. Deciding to go along with this, she goes there with the kids and gets a tip from a distinguished-looking man on which horse to bet on. When the horse she bets on falls behind, she charges onto the track, knocks the jockey from the saddle and tries to ride the horse to victory herself. She's thrown out for this brazen stunt, then chews out the man who gave her the tip. He says nobody should listen to anything he says, because he's a nutcase with no pants on.

Appearing in Scribbly: "The Ten Buck Nut"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Other Characters:

  • random racetrack crackpot

Locations:

Synopsis for Atom: "Putting on the Dog"

A show at the Rocket Theater demonstrates the intelligence of a dog named Rollo. Unfortunately, crook Big Mouth Bo-Bo and a few of his underlings are in the theater and get the idea to use the dog in their larcenous activities. After the show they kidnap Rollo, and use his training to get him to open the door of a wealthy widow's house for them. Al Pratt happens to be nearby, hears the dog's barks, and changes to the Atom to investigate. The thieves try to escape from the mystery man in a boat, but Rollo jumps overboard, swims back to the shore and leads Atom to their boat. After the crooks are thrashed (more by Bo-Bo himself trying to swat Atom with an oar and hitting his own men instead), they give up. Atom returns the stolen jewels, and walks off to find the dog's owner.

Appearing in Atom: "Putting on the Dog"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

  • Herminetta Wallabi

Antagonists:

  • Big Mouth Bo-Bo
    • Goo Goo
    • other stooge

Other Characters:

  • Rollo the Wonder Dog

Locations:

Synopsis for Little Boy Blue and the Blue Boys: "Three Fugitives from Clarence"

Tommy, Toughy and Tubby have discovered the hideout of fur robber Monk Healy and his gang, but are stuck babysitting obnoxious brat Clarence instead of going after the criminals as the Blue Boys. That night they don their costumes and sneak out to capture Healy, but Clarence sees them, thinks they're goofs pretending to be the Blue Boys to fool him, and tags along to spoil their trick. His own pranks aid in capturing Monk Healy, much to the costumed trio's irritation.

Appearing in Little Boy Blue and the Blue Boys: "Three Fugitives from Clarence"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

  • Clarence Bates
  • Mrs. Rogers
  • Dan Rogers

Antagonists:

  • Monk Healy
    • his mugs

Locations:

Synopsis for Johnny Thunder: "Little Peachy Pet Riding Hood"

A bunch of neighborhood kids are invited over for Peachy Pet's birthday party and run roughshod over the house. Still wound up at bedtime, Peachy Pet helps herself to a big snack from the icebox, and Johnny tells her the story of Little Red Riding Hood. She has a dream where she's Red Riding Hood, but grandma is Johnny who attacks the wolf instead of being swallowed whole by him. The story continues to go sideways when the wolf comes back with his wolf friends for help after being chased off the first time. They pull Peachy Pet from all sides until she bursts, the dream suddenly ending with her developing a stomachache from her big snack.

Appearing in Johnny Thunder: "Little Peachy Pet Riding Hood"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Big Bad Wolf (only in Johnny's story)

Other Characters:

  • Mrs. Thunder
  • her lady friends
  • Peachy's kid friends

Synopsis for Hop Harrigan: "The Fatal Charm of Tank Tinker"

Disguised as island natives, Hop and Tank try desperately to deliver a wooden charm containing their intelligence on the fortifications of a Jap-controlled island.

Appearing in Hop Harrigan: "The Fatal Charm of Tank Tinker"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

Other Characters:

Locations:

Items:

  • Microfilmed Intel
  • Special Cameras

Vehicles:

  • Japanese light bomber (stolen, destroyed)
  • three Japanese pursuit planes (one destroyed)
  • Japanese 2-man Submarine (captured)
  • Japanese Destroyer (Destroyed)
  • U.S. Destroyer
  • U.S. Cruiser

Synopsis for The Whip: "Warpath"

Rod Gaynor sees Yellow Horse, the prince of a once-proud Indian tribe, riding past him wounded. After catching up to the prince, Rod's surprised to hear Yellow Horse's father angrily turn the two of them away when Rod tries to deliver him home, saying Yellow Horse isn't fit to be his son anymore. As the Whip, Rod tries to get the truth out of Yellow Horse, who explains his people's crops and cattle aren't dying because of natural causes, but because they were poisoned. His father refused to listen because this contradicts the warnings of the tribe's medicine men, that their tribe's in decline because the gods are angry.

Indeed, a group of unscrupulous men have been poisoning the tribe's lands. They send one of their members to rub out the local chemist who they bought the chemicals they used in their scheme to keep him from connecting the dots and reporting them. The Whip happens to be visiting the same chemist hoping to have him check the soil and riverbed to validate Yellow Horse's claims, but the crook shoots him before pointing his gun at the chemist, who says the Whip isn't dead and he'll be hanged for shooting the chemist in front of a witness. The dull-witted hood leaves to ask his boss what to do in this perplexing situation, giving Yellow Horse time to come in and save the Whip and the chemist.

The next day, the head of the conspiracy comes forth to the chief of the tribe to offer to buy their land. However Yellow Horse and the Whip show up and tell them that the land's rich in bauxite, which is why the villains sprang their scheme. The enraged tribe run off the evil white men, and using his namesake weapon, the Whip steers them to jail.

Appearing in The Whip: "Warpath"

Featured Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Charley
  • Daggett
  • Shelby

Other Characters:

  • Pueblo Indians
    • Yellow Horse
    • Chief Laughing Dog
  • Professor Brahmer

Locations:

  • New Mexico
    • Gaynor's Ranch
    • Pueblo Reservation
    • Piute

Synopsis for Pint-Size Pete: "Simply Shocking"

Pint-Size Pete has terrible bad luck and complains about it a lot.

Appearing in Pint-Size Pete: "Simply Shocking"

Featured Characters:

  • Pint-Size Pete

Supporting Characters:

  • Minus, Pete's Pooch Pal

Antagonists:

  • B. Goat, City Dog-Catcher
  • Foxy Finageller
    • his crook gang: Snapper, others

Other Characters:

  • Cops

Locations:

Synopsis for Green Lantern: "Heroes Are Born... Not Made"

Baxton's a town with impressive parks and architecture and a thriving infrastructure. This is all the result of wealthy men trying to have the local town bells rung in their honor. As the bell-ringer, crusty old-timer "Pop", explains to Alan Scott and Doiby, however, the bells are only rung in response to great displays of heroism. Alan points out to Doiby a peaceful town like Baxton doesn't have many opportunities for heroics, just before he sees a hooded woman claiming to be the legendary Medusa attempt to blackmail Adams the wealthy banker. Alan goes to power up his ring for his confrontation with a new supervillain.

A group of gangsters confront Adams, and while Green Lantern and Doiby batter the hoods by bringing a bunch of fountain statues to life, Medusa turns her deadly gaze on the banker. By the time the heroes make their way over to him, Adams has been turned to stone and Medusa's gone without a trace. Locals who witness Adams' demise appeal to Pop to ring the bells because Adams refused to cooperate with extortion, but Pop refuses.

Green Lantern investigates the heir to Adams' wealth, who turns out to be a young woman named Leslie Banks. She's glad of what happened in a way, since the wealth will do a lot of good at the orphanage she runs. While there the duo notice a diploma written in French on the wall. Green Lantern's able to read the language and isn't shocked to learn it's a diploma from an art school specializing in sculpture. Inclining the hero to think Leslie Banks is Medusa, killed Adams to inherit his money, and made a statue of her victim to make it appear she has the power of petrification. Medusa's gang shows up then, and when the heroes brawl with them, the fight spreads into a hedge maze where the two are separated, and Doiby's overwhelmed and taken captive. Again people appeal to Pop to ring the bells for Doiby's brave attempts to stand up to crime, but again he refuses.

A blackmail note from Medusa lands near Green Lantern, demanding money or she'll petrify everyone in town. The hero admits defeat and encourages the townspeople to pay the ransom. When he goes to deliver the payoff, Green Lantern spots a name on the local war monument and has a realization. Medusa and her flunkies show up to collect the money, only to learn Green Lantern's actually carrying eggs that he mockingly pelts them with instead. Medusa responds to this outrage by unleashing her terrible gaze on Green Lantern. His ring easily protects him and he sends the villains running with a mighty emerald beam, right to Leslie Banks' orphanage, where Doiby's been imprisoned. He also finds Medusa's mask, hooked up to a concealed radio transmitter that could kill a man at close range, how the villain really claimed her victims. Leslie Banks comes in and breaks down, confessing to being Medusa.

To the townspeople's surprise, the bells start ringing. They figure this must be in recognition of Green Lantern defeating Medusa, but enter the bell tower to be welcomed by the grim spectacle of Pop having hung himself. Green Lantern explains: Leslie Banks really was Medusa, but not Leslie Banks the operator of the local orphanage. Instead Pop, her father, who she was named after. He was ringing the bells for the bravery she showed in willingly taking the fall for him. The unexpectedness of Baxton having found itself a hero gets Green Lantern to tell his friend, heroes are born, not made.

Appearing in Green Lantern: "Heroes Are Born... Not Made"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

Other Characters:

  • Banker Adams (Single appearance; dies)
  • Leslie Banks, Leslie's daughter (Single appearance)
  • at least 10 orphans

Locations:

  • Baxton, USA (Single appearance)
    • Bell Tower
    • Many Monuments
    • Secour Hotel
    • Orphanage
  • École Rodin, France (Mentioned only)

Items:

  • Baxton's Iron Bell
  • Green Lantern Ring
  • Medusa's Portable Short-Wave Transmitter (death ray)

Synopsis for Ghost Patrol: "Meet Honest John"

The ghostly trio arrive in Argus City on a railroad handcar. From a workmen they find out the city's new railroad station was built with a slashed budget with the difference pocketed by the crooked mayor and crooked architect. After using their ghostly powers to torment the conspirators for a while, the railroad station collapses and exposes their corruption, and the trio leave the crooked officials to the tender mercies of the enraged townsfolk.

Appearing in Ghost Patrol: "Meet Honest John"

Featured Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Honest John Gyppem, mayor
  • Big Charlie Bildit, builder

Other Characters:

  • Bricklayer

Locations:

  • Argus City
    • new train station (collapses)

Synopsis for Mr. Terrific: "Models for Crime"

A gang use model ships to conceal deadly weapons that fend off anyone who try to foil their robberies. When Mr. Terrific hears an avalanche of stories of model ships with real weapons carrying out robberies, he uses his own model-building skills to turn the tables on the thieves, finding the location of their next robbery with a concealed microphone in such a model, then showing up to pummel them into submission.

Appearing in Mr. Terrific: "Models for Crime"

Featured Characters:

Antagonists:

  • "Money" Lowy
    • his hoods

Other Characters:

  • Jack Tarr, ship modeler
  • Chickie Tarr
  • night watchman (wounded)

Locations:

Items:

  • Tarr's scale model ships, concealing deadly mechanisms
  • Sloan's scale model ship, concealing radio equipment

Synopsis for Wildcat: "Wildcat Meets the Kidder"

Ernest Kidder certainly lived up to his name by being an incorrigible prankster, even though it got him fired from job after job. The third time, he decided to turn this tendency toward crime. However, his gang makes the mistake of robbing the take at a boxing match where Ted Grant will be in the ring, and he switches to Wildcat to go after them. He chases down the crooks, but his new nemesis, the Kidder, escapes by squirting him in the face with sneezing powder. With the villain nowhere to be found, Wildcat heads back to the match and wins despite still recovering from his sneezing fit.

The next day an ad appears in the paper for a sale on new novelties. The Kidder's unable to resist, only to find out it was a trap laid by Wildcat, who springs out of a giant jack-in-the-box. The Kidder seems to take him out with another spray of gas to the face, only to be rendered helpless by a trick he's never seen before: a Chinese finger trap. This allows Wildcat, who'd only been faking helplessness, to capture him easily.

Appearing in Wildcat: "Wildcat Meets the Kidder"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

Other Characters:

  • D. Dunn, opposing boxer (K.O.)

Locations:

  • Boxing Arena
  • Toy Store

Items:

  • sneezing powder, squirting pens, cigarette charges, etc.

Synopsis for Hawkman: "A Hot Time in the Old Town"

An arsonist endangers Hawk Valley with a forest fire. Hawkman hunts down and out-fights his gang, while Hot Shot flees and hides in a walk-in freezer. Such a place is actually Hot Shot's worst nightmare, because he has an extremely strong phobia about cold. By bad luck, his special asbestos suit gets wedged in the doorway, delaying any rescue from the freezer, in which Hot Shot dies.

Appearing in Hawkman: "A Hot Time in the Old Town"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Hot Shot (Single appearance; dies)
    • Slick, hench thug
    • 3 more hench

Locations:

  • Hot Shot's specially overheated secret base
  • Hawk Valley
  • Amalgamated Metals Building

Items:

Vehicles:

  • Hot Shot's specially heated sedan

Synopsis for Bulldog Drumhead: "Leary Leery McSneery"


Appearing in Bulldog Drumhead: "Leary Leery McSneery"

Featured Characters:

  • Bulldog Drumhead

Supporting Characters:

  • L'il Oliver Wendell McDuffy, sidekick

Antagonists:

  • Leery McSneery
    • his gang

Other Characters:

  • J. Mortimer Goldenbucks

Locations:

Synopsis for Flash: "The Million Dollar Apple"

The three dimwits tell Jay Garrick and Joan Williams they've gotten respectable jobs working at Jocko Wolfe's theater (and neglecting to mention it's as cleaning staff, not as actors). Little do they suspect their new boss is actually a crook, aiming to steal a giant emerald discovered by a Professor Cromwell who's arriving in Keystone City that day. The detective guarding Cromwell comes up with the idea to hollow out an apple and hide the emerald inside to keep any unscrupulous party from stealing it. Cromwell's an old friend of Jay's, so he goes to meet Cromwell at the pier. As the old friends greet, they overhear a scuffle from Cromwell's cabin as Wolfe's men attack the detective to steal the emerald. Jay intercedes as the Flash, but as one of the gangsters flees, Joan makes the rash decision of throwing Cromwell's fruit basket at him (only to be told of their plans a second later). A fruit vendor picks up the apple, thinking it's just one of his wares that fell out of his wagon.

Jay sends Joan and Cromwell off to see the show at the theater Jocko Wolfe runs, while secretly staying behind at Cromwell's place to wait and see if the thieves come back to look for the emerald there. They do, and he pounds them as the Flash, then finds passes to Jocko Wolfe's theater in their pockets and gets suspicious.

Meanwhile, a comedian who was supposed to perform at the theater can't make it, so the three dimwits are put on stage to perform instead. The audience is quickly enraged at their terrible antics and start pelting the stage with fruit. Including the fruit vendor, who throws the apple hiding them emerald on stage. One of the dimwits bites into it in front of an enraged Jocko, revealing the gem inside. Fortunately the Flash has already zipped over to the theater and reclaims the emerald from Jocko.

Appearing in Flash: "The Million Dollar Apple"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Jocko Wolfe, theater owner
    • his gang

Other Characters:

  • Robert Cromwell, noted explorer
  • private detective
  • Tony, apple peddler

Locations:

  • Palace Theater
  • Five Penthouse Drive, Cromwell's apartment

Items:

  • Cromwell's emerald

Vehicles:

  • S.S. Luck

Notes

  • The Big All-American Comic Book was a one-shot comic book published in November, 1944 by William H. Wise & Company. The product of World War II paper restrictions, the book was a collaboration with All-American Publications: All-American provided the properties and wrote the content, while Wise & Company printed it using their surplus paper allotment.
    • The book was 128 pages, featured all original stories, and sold for 25 cents. Almost all other comics at that time were 64 pages and sold for a dime.
    • This issue is reprinted in The DC Comics Rarities Archives Vol. 1.
  • Green Lantern's oath is the second version, later used by Hal Jordan and the Earth-One Green Lanterns.
    • Doiby gets head-konked unconscious, one more time.
  • Hawkman gets head-konked unconscious, with a wrench.
  • Hop Harrigan: At the time of this story, the Battle of Tarawa has already taken place.
    • Story picks up with Hop and Tank disguised as Malay tribesmen, carrying a carved wooden figure packed with important microfilm.
  • Pint-Size Pete is a funny-animal-style black cat, wandering in a funny-animal world.
  • Wonder Woman: Steve Trevor is a major and Phil Darnell is a general, at the time of this story.
  • Also appearing in this issue of The Big All-American Comic Book was:
    • Mutt & Jeff by Bud Fisher.
    • Who's Who in Zooville: Meet J. Groaner Crooner by R. Santi.
    • Full-page ad for Ed Wheelan's Joke Book, Featuring Fat and Slat.

Trivia


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