The 7th issue of Green Hornet Comics was a comic book published by Harvey Comics. It was released on April 1, 1942 with a June 1942 cover date. It was the first Green Hornet comic book published by Harvey Comics, who had succeeded Helnit Publishing in publishing the series, and kept the numbering from the previous publisher.
The issue contained three Green Hornet stories: the eight page "The Green Hornet and the Case of the Murdering Clown", the six page "Case of the Museum Mummy", and the three page text story "The Story behind the Cover," which acts as a prequel the first story. These were preceded by a single page introductory feature, "Meet Our Heroes", acquainting Harvey Comics readers with the Green Hornet Comics cast. The issue also includes a two page "Green Hornet Buzzers" section.
The issue's indicia identifies it as "Green Hornet Comics volume 2, number 7, June, 1942." However, since subsequent issues each identify the series as "Green Hornet Comics volume 1," the reference to this issue being part of volume 2 is presumably either an error or a decision which was later revised.
"Meet Our Heroes"[]
Appearances[]
Characters[]
- Britt Reid, the Green Hornet
- Kato
- Lenore Case
- Michael Axford
- Ed Lowry
Synopsis[]
A single page feature giving a synopsis of the Green Hornet character and brief introductions to the principal cast members of Green Hornet Comics, under its new home at Harvey Comics.
"The Green Hornet and the Case of the Murdering Clown"[]
Appearances[]
Characters[]
- The Clown
- Police Department
- Michael Axford
- Britt Reid, the Green Hornet
- Kato
- Sgt. Moran
- Prison Warden (one-off character)
- Lenore Case
- Ed Lowry (cameo)
Locations[]
- The City
- Abandoned building (revealed in "The Story behind the Cover" to be the Clown's hideout)
- Tompkins Square (mentioned only)
- Prison
- The Sentinel offices
Misc.[]
- The Sentinel (newspaper)
- The Black Beauty
- The Clown's make-up kit
- Hornet Gun
Synopsis[]
The splash page teases that forty people witness the violent criminal known as The Clown die in the electric chair, yet somehow he's returned to fight the Green Hornet again.
Michael Axford calls his employer, Britt Reid, notifying him that the police are engaged in a shoot-out with the Clown who is holed up in an abandoned building. Soon after, the Green Hornet arrives on the scene, attacking the Clown from behind, and knocking him out. The police apprehend the villain and, due to "irrefutable evidence", he is sentenced to death. As his dying wish, the Clown asks to die in his clown makeup. The prison warden acquiesces, seeing no harm in the request. However, the Clown lures the warden into his cell, where he incapacitates him and then uses his makeup kit to swap their identities. As a result, the Clown is able to escape the prison while the warden dies in his place.
Shortly after, an unknown gunman attacks the Sentinel office. Britt Reid investigates and his captured by the Clown who transports him to the villain's farm house, and sets the building ablaze using copies of the Sentinel. Britt manages to burn through the ropes that bind him and escape in the nick of time. Lenore Case searches for Britt and is ambushed by the Clown, he tosses her over a guardrail toward the printing presses. Britt, once more in the guise of the Green Hornet, catches her, but the ordeal has caused her to faint. Britt then battles the clown, and the pair eventually tumble into the printing presses themselves, but the machinery is stopped by Kato. Britt uses his gas gun to knock out the Clown. Lenore realizes that she was saved by the Green Hornet, and asks Kato, who is in his civilian guise, to catch him. Kato plays along in order to keep up appearances, but the Green Hornet escapes. Meanwhile, Ed Lowry informs Britt that a fingerprinting analysis has revealed that the prison warden was killed in the Clown's place, explaining the villain's seeming return from the grave. With the Clown once more in police custody, he is now more determined than ever to kill Britt Reid.
"Case of the Museum Mummy"[]
The splash page teases ""When two mysterious deaths occur in a city museum, the Green Hornet steps in and encounters a baffling case..." The second half of the page then launches into the story.
Appearances[]
Characters[]
- Britt Reid, the Green Hornet
- Michael Axford
- King Tutankiem (mummified remains)
- Mr. Sneed
- Coroner (one-off character)
- Kato (off panel)
- Barat
- Victor Corbin (also misspelled as Actor Corbin)
- Police Captain (possibly a one-off character)
Locations[]
- The City
- The Sentinel offices
- Museum
- Britt Reid's home
Misc.[]
- Tutankiem's coffin
- Poisoned darts
- African blowgun
- The Black Beauty (vehicle)
- Daily Sentinel (newspaper)
Synopsis[]
An issue of the Daily Sentinel proclaims that the mummy of Tutankiem will be exhibited tonight. The newspaper's publisher, Britt Reid, tells reporter Michael Axford that they'll cover the story together. Axford mentions that, when the mummy's tomb was discovered, a curse was inscribed on it warning that whoever disturbed the tomb would die. However, the reporter ultimately brushes off such things as superstition. That night, a large crowd gathers at the museum to view the mummy. Mr. Sneed, the museum's director, begins to explain how he excavated the tomb, then suddenly collapses, dead. Britt calls for a police coroner who discovers that Sneed was killed by a poisoned dart. Two of Sneed's colleagues, Barat and Corbin, worry that the tomb's curse may be at work and that they might be next, as they were with Sneed when the tomb was opened.
That night, Britt ruminates over the events in the museum and ultimately decides to change into the Green Hornet outfit and have Kato drive him to the museum. As he's exploring inside, he discovers that one of the museum's blowguns is missing. When he reaches the Egyptian Hall, he runs into Barat, who warns him that Tutankiem's mummy is wandering the premises. Soon enough, they come across the mummy who dispatches Barat with a poisoned dart via the missing blowgun. As the Green Hornet, Britt gives chase and discovers the real mummy stuffed inside a closet. This confirms his suspicions that somebody is masquerading as the mummy and that Corbin is either its next victim or the one behind it all.
The Green Hornet soon finds Corbin changing out of his mummy disguise and talking to himself about how he'll now have sole control of the museum. The Green Hornet strikes Corbin who confirms that he killed his colleagues, and the meseum's security guards arrive just in time to overhear the confession. The police eventually take Corbin into custody, but when the police captain tries to question the Green Hornet, the masked crimefighter escapes.
Back in Britt's office at the Daily Sentinel, Axford admits that he can't tell whether the Green Hornet is "on the level" or not, but in any case he made good work of Corbin. Britt remarks that maybe someday they'll understand the Green Hornet's true intentions.
"The Story behind the Cover"[]
Appearances[]
Characters[]
- The Clown
- Bank messenger (one-off character)
- Payroll messenger (one-off character)
- Payroll messenger's guards (one-off characters)
- Britt Reid, the Green Hornet
- Lenore Case
- Michael Axford (mentioned only)
- Ed Lowry (mentioned only)
- Kato (mentioned only)
Locations[]
- Circus
- The City
- The Sentinel offices
- Clown's hideout
Misc.[]
- The Clown's make-up kit
Synopsis[]
Before he became a criminal, the villain known as the Clown was a mediocre circus performer where his arrogant nature and malevolent mind distanced him from his co-workers. He became irritated by his lack of recognition, as he felt he had a superior talent compared to other towns, and finally resolved to attain fame through criminal acts. His first crime consisted of robbing a bank messenger of $30,000 worth of securities. When this act failed to make front page news, he determined to make his next crime a violent one. He ambushed a payroll messenger and his guards and murdered them in a particularly grisly fashion before making off with the money. As a calling card, he left a small toy clown in the hands of the dead messenger. These murders were followed by others and the Clown delighted in his newly won notoriety.
The Green Hornet's civilian alter ego, newspaper publisher Britt Reid, launches a crusade against the Clown and is able to foil some of his plots. However, the villain still remains at large. In a stroke of inspiration, Britt writes a front page editorial suggesting that the Green Hornet is really the clown. Knowing that giving another credit for his crimes will infuriate the egotistical Clown, Britt stations two of his reporters, Michael Axford and Ed Lowry, at Centre Street.
Britt calls his valet and crime-fighting partner Kato, and changes into his Green Hornet attire. As he prowls the city's criminal underworld, major and minor figures alike give him information on the Clown, afraid of incurring the Green Hornet's wrath. The Green Hornet discovers the Clown's secret hideout while the villain is in the middle of applying his make-up. The Green Hornet accuses the Clown of being a "common punk" and stealing his identity, which enrages the villain who blindly charges his accuser. The Green Hornet easily dodges the attack and uses his boxing expertise to quickly defeat the villain. Britt leaves his own calling card, then stealthily changes back into his civilian attire and tips off Michael Axford about the Clown's hideout. By the time the Clown returned to consciousness, he had been surrounded by the police, leading directly into the events of "The Green Hornet and the Case of the Murdering Clown."
"Green Hornet Buzzers"[]
Synopsis[]
A two page puzzle section.