Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Captain's Library: GREEN HORNET "Proof of Treason" Conclusion

Why does Mayoral candidate Wilkes Sherman hire a criminal to bomb the home of nuclear scientist Professor Baldwin?
When the police track down the bomber, an assassin ends his life before he can talk.
The Green Hornet, who had followed the police, trails the murderer back to Sherman, and discovers the politician is a Commie spy!
In addition, he learns Professor Baldwin is a former Communist now working for the US, and the Commies want him brought back behind the Iron Curtain!
When The Green Hornet enters the meeting, the assassin tries to shoot him and is KOed by the Hornet's gas gun.
The Hornet then makes a deal to grab the professor and turn him over to Sherman for $5,000. (It was 1953, remember?) As a free bonus to Sherman, he'll "get rid" of the unconscious murderer (whom he turns over to the police.)
This b/w page was the inside back cover.
Curiously, though both stories in this issue are adaptations of radio episodes, this was published a year after the radio series was cancelled!
Art on both stories is presumed to be by Frank Thorne, but there are influences of several other artists, including Don Heck and Frank Giacoia, so it's possible they performed uncredited penciling and/or inking assists to meet the deadline.
The radio episode of the same name the comic story is derived from aired 10/17/52 during the final season of the show.
It's currently unavailable on mp3 format, but is available on the recently-released Radio Spirits compiliation Green Hornet: Endpoint (which curiously uses the cover of the Hornet's first comic book as it's cover).
The Hornet and Kato didn't appear again in comics until early 1967, when the first issue of their Gold Key series, based on the tv show starring Van Williams and Bruce Lee, was published.

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