Volume: 3
Price: 0.10 USD
Pages: 68
On-sale Date: 1939-06-30
Editing: Vin Sullivan (credited as Vincent A. Sullivan) (editor)
Cover Thumbnail for Detective Comics (DC, 1937 series) #30 Edit Cover
Cover Gallery 

[no title indexed]
(Table of Contents)

cover / 1 page

Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
typeset
  • Genre:crime
Reprints (5)

Issue Data

  • Indicia / Colophon Publisher: Detective Comics Inc.
  • Indicia Frequency: monthly
  • Printer: [none printed]

Indexer Notes

On sale date from the publication date found in the Catalog of Copyright Entries, Part 2, Periodicals, New Series, Volume 34, 1939, Number 3. Class B periodical. Copyright number B 422127. Volume number not listed in the original comic indicia.

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 1)

All-American Comics; Movie Comics / promo (ad from the publisher) / 1 page

[The Return of Doctor Death]
(Table of Contents: 2)

Batman / comic story / 10 pages

Script:
Pencils:
Bob Kane (credited, signed)
Sheldon Moldoff (ghosted for Bob Kane) (backgrounds)
Inks:
Bob Kane (credited, signed)
Colors:
?
Letters:
  • Genre:superhero
Characters:
Mrs. Jones; Mrs. Jones's maid; Mikhail (villain, Dr. Death's assistant, death)
Synopsis:
Thought dead in a fire in his home, Dr. Death has survived, but is in need of funds to re-establish himself, so he sets his sights on diamonds owned by a Mrs. Jones.
Reprints (11)

Indexer Notes

The storyline continued from the previous issue.

The original script for this story has survived, confirming Fox's authorship. The original title of the story was "The Batman and the Diamonds of Death". Batman logo is The Batman.

Kane signs again on the final page.

[Criminal Photography]
(Table of Contents: 3)

Crime Never Pays / cartoon / 1 page

Script:
?
Pencils:
Terry Gilkison (signed as TG)
Inks:
Terry Gilkison (signed as TG)
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
  • Genre:non-fiction; crime
  • First Line of Dialogue or Text:In 1880, the noted French sûreté expert Alphonse Bertillon first planned a...
  • Keywords:Alcatraz
Characters:
Alphonse Bertillon; Herman N. Myers

[no title indexed]
(Table of Contents: 4)

Oscar the Gumshoe / comic story / 1 page

Script:
Bob Kane (credited, signed)
Pencils:
Bob Kane (credited, signed)
Inks:
Bob Kane (credited, signed)
Colors:
?
Letters:
  • Genre:humor
  • First Line of Dialogue or Text:Don't worry - He's as good as caught...
Characters:
Oscar; Filbert
Synopsis:
Oscar chases after a thief who robs a toy store.

Indexer Notes

Last appearance.
Letterer credit added by Craig Delich.

[no title indexed]
(Table of Contents: 5)

Stamp Collectors' Corner / Stamp Detective / Detective Stamp Page / text article / 0.5 page

Script:
?
Pencils:
?
Inks:
?
Colors:
?
Letters:
typeset
  • Genre:non-fiction
  • Feature Logo:Detective Stamp Page
  • First Line of Dialogue or Text:One of the most prolific of the stamp issuing countries is...
  • Keywords:Liberia

Indexer Notes

Page includes several small ads from stamps dealers.

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 6)

Brownie Stamps; Capital Stamps; Dolin Stamps; Eureka Stamps; Frontier Asthma Remedy; Globus Stamps; Midwood Stamps; Pilgrim Stamps / Pilgrims Stamps; Reyco Stamps; Roberts Stamps / advertisement / 0.5 page

Finger of Doom
(Table of Contents: 7)

Buck Marshall / comic story / 6 pages

Script:
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
? (red tones)
Letters:
?
  • Genre:adventure; western-frontier
Characters:
The Sheriff; Morgan; Vail; Slade

Indexer Notes

Story printed in red and black only.

[The Dictator of the United States]
(Table of Contents: 8)

Spy / comic story / 6 pages

Script:
Jerry Siegel (credited)
Pencils:
Mart Bailey (signed as M B)
Inks:
Mart Bailey (signed as M B)
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
  • Genre:adventure; spy; detective-mystery
Characters:
Senator Kingsley; Jack Steele; Ray Gordon

Indexer Notes

Bailey signs his initials on the final page.

[The Old Man and the Kid]
(Table of Contents: 9)

Larry Steele / comic story / 6 pages

Script:
Bill Ely (credited as Will Ely)
Pencils:
Bill Ely (credited as Will Ely)
Inks:
Bill Ely (credited as Will Ely)
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
  • Genre:detective-mystery; crime
Characters:

Shadowed
(Table of Contents: 10)

text story / 1.56 pages

Script:
Frank Thomas (credited)
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
typeset
  • Genre:adventure; detective-mystery
  • First Line of Dialogue or Text:Chief of Police Benson sat at his desk in headquarters and...
  • Keywords:Bradley Department Store
Characters:
Chief of Police Benson; Detective Carr; Blinky Moroni

Indexer Notes

Text story with illustrations.

Locoscope
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 11)

The Model Builder Magazine / advertisement / 0.44 page

The Crossbow Mystery
(Table of Contents: 12)

Speed Saunders / comic story / 6 pages

Script:
?
Pencils:
Fred Guardineer (credited)
Inks:
Fred Guardineer (credited)
Colors:
?
Letters:
  • Genre:detective-mystery
Characters:
Dustin Rhodes; Nancy
Synopsis:
Speed investigates the murder of Dustin Rhodes.

The Tea Racketeers
(Table of Contents: 13)

Bruce Nelson / comic story / 6 pages

Script:
?
Pencils:
Tom Hickey (credited)
Inks:
Tom Hickey (credited)
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
  • Genre:detective-mystery; adventure
Characters:
Billie; Sam Wong; Yan Lee
Synopsis:
Bruce breaks up a racketeering operation involving the smuggling of tea.

Indexer Notes

Script previously credited to Hickey, but there is no evidence to suggest he did anything other than the art.

[The Imperial Insurance Swindle]
(Table of Contents: 14)

Cosmo, the Phantom of Disguise / comic story / 6 pages

Script:
?
Pencils:
Sven Elven (credited as Sven Elvén) (illustrated by)
Inks:
Sven Elven (credited as Sven Elvén) (illustrated by)
Colors:
? (red tones)
Letters:
  • Genre:adventure; crime
  • First Line of Dialogue or Text:As Cosmo and Inspector Gray...
  • Universe:DC : mainstream
Characters:
Inspector Gray; Gene Clausen; Captain Alvarez; Captain Midland

Indexer Notes

Story printed in red and black only.

Script previously suggested as by Elven, but there is no evidence that he did more than art and letters.

[The Granville Insane Asylum]
(Table of Contents: 15)

Slam Bradley / comic story / 13 pages

Script:
Jerry Siegel (credited)
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
  • Genre:adventure; detective-mystery
Characters:
Dr. Granville; Gloria Travers; Officer Kelly; Nick

The Comic Book of Tomorrow Is Here Today!!
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 16)

New York World's Fair Comics / promo (ad from the publisher) / 1 page

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 17)

Johnson Smith & Co. Catalog / advertisement / 1 page

my.comics.org
Tracked in 30 collections.
Issue at www.comics.org
View Change History
Table of Contents ToC
    Table of Contents
  1. [no title indexed]
  2. [no title indexed]
    All-American Comics; Movie Comics
  3. [The Return of Doctor Death]
    Batman
  4. [Criminal Photography]
    Crime Never Pays
  5. ["Don't worry - He's as good as caught..."]
    Oscar the Gumshoe
  6. ["One of the most prolific of the stamp issuing countries is..."]
    Stamp Collectors' Corner / Stamp Detective / Detective Stamp Page
  7. [no title indexed]
    Brownie Stamps; Capital Stamps; Dolin Stamps; Eureka Stamps; Frontier Asthma Remedy; Globus Stamps; Midwood Stamps; Pilgrim Stamps / Pilgrims Stamps; Reyco Stamps; Roberts Stamps
  8. Finger of Doom
    Buck Marshall
  9. [The Dictator of the United States]
    Spy
  10. [The Old Man and the Kid]
    Larry Steele
  11. Shadowed
  12. Locoscope
    The Model Builder Magazine
  13. The Crossbow Mystery
    Speed Saunders
  14. The Tea Racketeers
    Bruce Nelson
  15. [The Imperial Insurance Swindle]
    Cosmo, the Phantom of Disguise
  16. [The Granville Insane Asylum]
    Slam Bradley
  17. The Comic Book of Tomorrow Is Here Today!!
    New York World's Fair Comics
  18. [no title indexed]
    Johnson Smith & Co. Catalog
Related Links
Issue was modified by, among others
  • Katie
  • Ray Bottorff Jr
  • Keith Chandler
  • Peter Croome
  • Craig Delich
  • Gregory Fischer
  • Del Gruber
  • Merlin Haas
  • Matthew Head
  • Jerry Hillegas (R.I.P.)
  • Jerzy Kiekrz
  • Edgar Loftin
  • Mike Nielsen
  • Matthew Peets
  • Tony R. Rose
  • Per Sandell
  • Jim Van Dore
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