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Kara, the Jungle Princess is a fictional character who appeared in EXCITING COMICS , which was published by a company known variously as Nedor, Better, or Standard. Her first appearance was in EXCITING COMICS #39 , and her last appearance was in FIGHTING YANK #21. Kara was originally the U.S. army nurse Lieutenant Jane Howell. She was on a plane piloted by Major Christopher "Kit" Walker when it crashed into a lake in the jungles of Nairobi. Jane and Kit survived the plunge and walked away away from the crash with the aid of some powder given to them by the shaman Baldayo. There, they met the Arohitians, a race of warriors who had been living peacefully in their kingdom under the lake while awaiting the return of their lost princess Kara, the only child of their deceased ruler. Jane, an exact double of the missing girl, was welcomed as Kara and was installed on the throne of Arohiti (the real Kara apparently having died long ago). Kit was made the commander of her guard and...

The Woman in Red is a fictional character who first appeared in the period known to comic book historians as the Golden Age of Comic Books. Created by writer Richard E. Hughes and artist George Mandel, she first appeared in Thrilling Comics #2 (March 1940), published by Nedor Comics. The character was later revived by writer Alan Moore for America's Best Comics. The Woman in Red is the secret identity of policewoman Peggy Allen. Frustrated by the limitations of her job, Peggy creates a secret identity. As the Woman in Red, she wears a red, floor-length coat, hood, and mask. The Woman in Red made her debut in Thrilling Comics #2 (March 1940). Comics historian Trina Robbins has claimed that the Woman in Red is the first female costumed superhero, preceding such better known characters as Wonder Woman , Phantom Lady , and Mary Marvel , though the non-costumed Fantomah debuted one month earlier. While the Woman in Red never made a cover appearance, she continued to appear regularl...

Sheena, Queen of the Jungle is a fictional, American comic book jungle girl heroine, published originally by Fiction House. The female counterpart to Tarzan, Sheena had two things in common with Edgar Rice Burrough's Jungle Lord: Both possessed the ability to communicate with wild animals and were both orphans growing up and learning how to survive and live in the jungle. She was fiercely proficient in fighting with knives, spears, and bows, and improvised with makeshift weapons. Her primary ability was to surprise her opponents, either human or animal. She was the first female comic-book character with her own title, with her 1937 (in Great Britain, 1938 in the United States) premiere beating Wonder Woman #1 (December 1941). Sheena inspired a wealth of similar comic-book jungle queens. She was predated in literature by Rima, the Jungle Girl, introduced in the 1904 William Henry Hudson novel Green Mansions. Sheena debuted in Joshua B. Power's British magazine Wags #1 , in 1...

Miss Masque is a fictional masked crime-fighter. She originally appeared in comic books published by Nedor Comics, and was later revived by AC Comics, America's Best Comics, and Dynamite Entertainment. Miss Masque is the secret identity of Diana Adams, a young socialite who decides to fight crime and injustice in disguise. Miss Masque has no super powers, but relies on her wit and a pair of pistols. Her original costume was a mini-skirted red dress with red hat, gloves and cape, and a domino mask; yellow double "M" emblems on her chest and hat completed the ensemble. A later version of the costume had a bare midriff and shorter sleeves. Miss Masque first appeared in Nedor Comics' Exciting Comics #51 (September 1946). She also appeared in America's Best Comics (not to be confused with the DC Comics imprint), Fighting Yank, and Black Terror; her final Golden Age appearance was America's Best Comics #31 (July 1949). There was no writer or artist credited...

Today, comics readers are familiar to the point of stultification with the sight of a female superhero fighting crime while wearing a swimsuit (or less). Phantom Lady is tied with The Black Cat for the dubious distinction of having been the first. Both debuted in the August, 1941 issues of their original venues — the latter in Harvey's Pocket Comics, and the former in Quality's Police Comics #1. It was, however, Phantom Lady who lasted longer and achieved greater notoriety. In fact, while The Black Cat never did anything more socially unacceptable than a few mild cheesecake shots, Phantom Lady made the big time — one of her covers was printed in Dr. Fredric Wertham's 1954 anti-comic book tome, Seduction of the Innocent, as an illustration of an intolerable (by 1950s standards) corrupter of American youth. At first, she wasn't at all that way. Like Doll Man, Blackhawk and quite a few other early Quality Comics characters, she originally came out of the Eisner-Iger Studi...

It isn't quite true to say the 21st-century output of Marvel Comics consists of all superheroes, all the time. But — close enough. But back in the 1950s, Marvel published a pile of material in other genres, such as westerns (e.g., The Rawhide Kid), jungle heroes (e.g., Lo-Zar), funny stuff (e.g., Homer the Happy Ghost), alliteratively-titled women in traditional female roles. Yes, that was once a genre at Marvel, ranging from the gloriously glamorous Millie the Model to the merely mundane Tessie the Typist, with Nellie the Nurse in-between. Sherry the Showgirl fell toward Millie's end of the spectrum. Actually, the whole genre was part of a larger genre of young female protagonists such as Della Vision, Patty Powers and Patsy Walker, whose major raison d'etre was to provide an excuse to till comic books up with cheesecake, i.e., pictures of attractive women, or as many comics fans like to call them, "good girl art". Sherry (surname Storm) debuted ...

PRINCESS PANTHA The "white jungle goddess" comic book genre started in 1938, with the American debut of Sheena, Queen of the Jungle. from Fiction House magazines (Sky Girl, Firehair). But for a long time it consisted only of Sheena and one or two knock-offs (like the same company's Camilla). It wasn't until the middle of the 1940s that its representatives, such as Rulah, Judy of the Jungle, Tygra of the Flame People and Tiger Girl really proliferated. For example, Princess Pantha (no relation), published by a company variously known as Standard, Nedor, or Pines Comics (whose other female protagonists include Jetta of the 21st Century and The Woman in Red), didn't turn up until 1946. It was in the 56th issue of Thrilling Comics, dated October of that year, that the company (which called itself "Better Publications" just then) introduced Princess Pantha. Unlike most, she didn't arrive in the jungle by accident (such as being born there). She was a circ...

Many comic book buffs believe Wonder Woman was the first female character to wear what amounts to a bathing suit while doing superhero work. Actually, several characters are tied for that dubious distinction — Quality Comics' Phantom Lady and Wildfire; and Harvey's Black Cat, all of whom beat Wondy into print by four months. (And the only reason they qualify for the "honor" was because Quality's Miss America ( no relation ) didn't have a costume yet and the others that debuted in August, 1941, Holyoke's Miss Victory, Lev Gleason's Pat Patriot and Bell Features' Nelvana of the Northern Lights, wore just a little bit too much.) The Black Cat was Hollywood starlet Linda Turner, whose first adventure began when she suspected her director of being a Nazi spy. Trained as a stunt woman, she was an expert on Judo, motorcycle riding, lariat throwing, and other physical skills costumed crime fighters find handy; and her father, an amateur detec...

Perhaps the first significant comic book character from Fiction House Magazines was Sheena, Queen of the Jungle (depending on how one defines "significant character") who pioneered a whole genre of female versions of Tarzan. Fiction House also has a credible claim of having published the first female superhero (depending on how one defines "superhero"), Fantomah. In fact, over the years, Fiction House was an industry leader in the female aspects of heroism — not because of any precocious 1940s devotion to the cause of feminism, but simply to attract more of the adolescent male readers who made up such a large portion of their customer base. Firehair , a woman who adopted the culture of the Dakota Indians, was their most popular western hero. At first, "Firehair" was the only real name the character had. She was introduced in Fiction House's Rangers Comics #21 (February, 1945), where she replaced Commando Ranger, a hero of the war that was just then wi...

Aviation adventure was a popular genre in American fiction during the second quarter of the 20th century, starting in 1927, when Charles Lindbergh made his famous flight. In newspaper comics, representatives included Tailspin Tommy, Barney Baxter and Scorchy Smith. In comic books, they included Hop Harrigan, Wing Turner and the entire population of Air Fighters Comics (Airboy, Bald Eagle etc.). Very few of them were women. There were Flyin' Jenny in newspapers and The Black Angel in comic books, but that was about it — at least until the 1944 debut of Sky Girl from Fiction House Magazines (Tiger Girl, Firehair), a comics industry leader in the feminine aspects of heroism — not because they were particularly enlightened, but so they could show a lot of their protagonists' skin. Sky Girl started in Jumbo Comics #68 (October, 1944), where Sheena, Queen of the Jungle was the cover feature. The series she replaced was The Creep with Inspector Dayton, detective stories that weren...