For twenty years, Quality Comics was a major player in the comic industry. We’ve seen their last published comic book, but what about the first EVER Quality Comic? Your Major Spoilers Retro Review of Feature Funnies #1 awaits!
FEATURE FUNNIES #1
Writer: Ham Fisher/Bob Zuppke/Monte Barrett/Bernard Baily/Lank Leonard/Ed Reed/Les Marshall/Rube Goldberg/Jon Hix/Joe Metzer/John Welch/Ed Reed/John Devlin/Don DeConn/Al Zere/George Marcoux/Ed Whelan/J.P. McAvoy/John Streibel/Ed Cronin
Penciler: Ham Fisher/Walt Depew/Russell Ross/Bernard Baily/Lank Leonard/Ed Reed/Les Marshall/Rube Goldberg/Jon Hix/Joe Metzer/John Welch/Ed Reed/John Devlin/Don DeConn/Al Zere/George Marcoux/Ed Whelan/John Streibel/H. J. Tuthill/Ed Cronin
Inker: Ham Fisher/Walt Depew/Russell Ross/Bernard Baily/Lank Leonard/Ed Reed/Les Marshall/Rube Goldberg/Jon Hix/Joe Metzer/John Welch/Ed Reed/John Devlin/Don DeConn/Al Zere/George Marcoux/Ed Whelan/John Streibel/H. J. Tuthill/Ed Cronin
Colorist: Uncredited
Editor: John Devlin
Publisher: Comic Favorites, Inc. (Quality Comics Group)
Cover Price: 10 Cents
Current Near-Mint Pricing: $4,000.00
Previously in Feature Funnies: Not so long ago, Retro Review featured the last comic book published by Quality Comics before the sale of their entire outfit to DC Comics in 1956. But the history of Quality as a Golden Age publishing concern is an impressive one. At their peak, sales of the Blackhawk title were comparable to any other book, with sales rivaling those of Superman himself. Notable characters who originated at Quality include Phantom Lady, TV/cartoon crossover star The Ray, and the legendary Plastic Man, but none of them were there at the beginning. In 1937, Everett M. “Busy” Arnold teamed with The McNaught Syndicate, the Frank J. Markey Syndicate, and Iowa’s Register and Tribune Syndicate, three of the multiple syndication services of the era to reprint their newspaper strips in comic book form. This issue’s lead strip (and cover feature) is boxer Joe Palooka,
This presentation of existing strips by a known comic quantity was Arnold’s initial plan for Comic Favorites Inc. (which was never legally known as Quality Comics), and as was the custom of those pre-superhero days, Feature Funnies spotlights all manner of genres, styles, and features in its pages. Walt Depew’s “They’re Still Talking,” for instance, is all about sports history.
The thing that I find most interesting about this single-page feature is the lack of actual photographs, instead relying on line art to represent its subjects. Is it a technological shortcoming? An editorial choice? I’m not sure, but I find the whole thing fascinating. It’s a very thirties feature, followed by a strip that absolutely fascinates me with its art and proto-soap opera story telling the tale of Jane Arden.
The original “girl reporter,” predating Brenda Starr and Lois Lane, Jane had already been out and about since 1928, but there’s something about Russell Ross’ art that I could just look at for days. Jane’s adventures would expand into radio and movies by the end of 1939, but she never really became as popular as those who followed in her footsteps. She also appears in the form of paper dolls, a reminder that Golden Age comics were aimed at multiple demographic groups, and also that they were meant to be disposable.
Honestly, the fact that copies of this comic even EXIST eighty-five years later is a small miracle, but reading it makes for a lovely window into not only “Busy” Arnold’s repackaging strategy but the world of 1936-1937. A full-page profile of Marlene Dietrich (who, for young readers, would be the equivalent of Margot Robbie today) follows, then comedy-adventure strip Mickey Finn and an in-depth look at the B-17 Flying Fortress, for some reason?
Oh, and whatever this is.
My first thought is that it’s meant to be a competitor for Ripley’s Believe It Or Not, but if so, this edition really misses the interesting mark. Regardless, Feature Funnies #1 is a remarkable read (and, since it is in the public domain, you can find it online) with so many different features and creators making it feel like drinking from the fire hose, earning 2.5 out of 5 stars overall. It may sound like a low score, but I found every page of this book incredibly engaging, a portal into a world that no longer exists, or perhaps a barren field from which The Freedom Fighters, Blackhawk, and others will grow.
This issue, like so many others of the era, hadn't quite gotten everything together, and the complete lack of rules makes for an overwhelming package, but it's really fun to examine it as a historical document.Dear Spoilerite,
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FEATURE FUNNIES #1
Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.