List of Quality Comics characters
Quality Comics was a comic book company from the Golden Age of Comic Books. It operated from 1937 to 1956 and sold many anthology comic books that starred superheroes, many of which were adopted by DC Comics when they purchased Quality Comics, and others were not, entering the public domain.
711
711 was created by George Brenner and published by Quality Comics. 711 first appeared in Police Comics #1 and lasted until #15, when he was killed.Daniel Dyce was a District Attorney who was almost an exact twin of his friend, Jacob Horn. Jacob was soon to be sent to prison, but wanted to see his wife give birth, so Daniel agreed to become a prisoner in Jacob's place. However, Jacob is killed in a car crash on the way to the hospital, so Daniel was stuck in jail. Daniel was able to tunnel himself free, but instead of escaping, he decided to return to his cell. Each night he uses his tunnel to go outside and fight crime, then returns before the morning. Dyce adopts the name 711, a reference to his prisoner number. One of his enemies is the costumed villain Brickbat.
After two years of adventures Daniel Dyce was killed by the mobster Oscar Jones. The hero Destiny sees this take place, and starts his crime fighting career when 711 died, replacing his feature in Police Comics.
Like many early comic book heroes, 711 did not wear a traditional costume but rather was modeled after the traditional pulp magazine heroes. He wore a green cape, a brown business suit, and a wide-brimmed fedora which cast his eyes in shadow. 711's trademark was a calling card made of a mirror with bars painted over it; when an unlucky criminal would look at the card, they would see themselves behind bars.
Brenner replaced 711 with a new hero — a mysterious figure who discovers that he has the powers of clairvoyance and teleportation, and uses them to bring 711's murderer to justice. The new hero christens himself "Destiny", and continues the series.
Following the Golden Age, many of the Quality Comics characters were purchased by DC Comics, while others lapsed into the public domain. DC has used 711 only once in their publications, a Millennium Edition reprint of his first appearance.
Abdul the Arab
Abdul the Arab first appeared in Smash Comics #1. Abdul is an Arab sheikh who is aligned with the British intelligence agencies in the Middle East. He was originally created by Vernon Henkel.Ace of Space
The Ace of Space first appeared in Feature Comics #38.Angles O'Day
Angles O'Day first appeared in Ken Shannon #1.Archie Atkins
Archie Atkins, Desert Scout first appeared in Military Comics #1.Arizona Ames / Arizona Raines
Arizona Ames first appeared in Crack Western #63. His name was changed to Arizona Raines without explanation in issue #66.Atomictot
Atomictot first appeared in All Humor Comics #2.The Barker
Carnie Calahan was a circus barker who first appeared in National Comics #42.Betty Bates
Betty Bates, Lady-at-Law first appeared in Hit Comics #4. She is a tough criminal defense attorney in 1940's New York who relied on unconventional methods. She was notably one of the only female attorneys practicing at the time.Betty Bates in other media
Elizabeth Bates appears in the Creature Commandos episode "Chasing Squirrels", voiced by Linda Cardellini. This version is Weasel's lawyer.Bill the Magnificent
Bill the Magnificent first appeared in Hit Comics #25.Black Condor
The Black Condor first appeared in Crack Comics #1.Blackhawk
The Blackhawks first appeared in Military Comics #1.Black Roger
Black Roger first appeared in Buccaneers #19.Black X
Black X is a secret agent who first appeared in Quality's Feature Funnies #13. In August 1939, Black X moved from Feature to Smash Comics. In the first five issues of Smash Comics, the character was called Black Ace, then he reverted to the original name. His sidekick is Batu, a telepathic Indian.According to Jess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes, his enemies include "the foreign spy Baron Basil, the Death Squadron and their Suicide Torpedoes, Proxoss the Revolutionary, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, the Legion of Living Bombs, and the femme fatale Madame Doom."
In 1939, Black X tangled with the seductive spy Madame Doom, and over the course of several stories, he fell in love with her, wondering if he could betray his country to be with the agent of an enemy nation. Discovering that she's building an army of exploding human bombs in a 1940 story, Black X renounced his affection, and Madame Doom apparently died in an explosion—although she continued to return periodically through 1943.
The character continued in Smash Comics until issue #85.
Blaze Barton
Blaze Barton first appeared in Hit Comics #1.Blimpy
Blimpy first appeared in Feature Comics #64.The Blue Tracer
Captain Bill Dunn and Boomerang Jones, crew of The Blue Tracer, first appeared in Military Comics #1. The Blue Tracer is the name of Bill Dunn's super-vehicle, which can become a tank, airplane, or submarine.The Blue Tracer appeared in issues #1 through #16 of Military Comics. The characters were acquired by DC, along with the rest of Quality Comics' properties in the 1950s. However, these characters had lapsed into public domain before that.
The Blue Tracer's origin story is told in the first appearance, in Military Comics #1. William "Wild Bill" Dunn is an American engineer working with the army in a secluded section of Ethiopia. While working, his team is attacked by a group of supernatural beings named the M'bujies. The M'bujies wound Dunn and kill his teammates. Dunn is rescued by "Boomerang" Jones, an Australian soldier who had been given up for dead and is now fighting his own private war against the Nazis. After Dunn regains his strength, the two men create a super-vehicle out of captured Nazi equipment that they name The Blue Tracer. It can become a tank, airplane, or submarine. They then use it to destroy the M'bujies and escape the jungle. The two travel the world and fight the Axis forces during the rest of the war, with Dunn at the head and Jones as his sidekick.
According to Jess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes, the Blue Tracer's foes "range from Nazis to the Yellow Butcher of Koko Nor to Dr. Schwein, who has created a regeneration formula for German soldiers."
The last appearance of the Blue Tracer was in Military Comics #16, according to the Grand Comics Database.
Neither Dunn nor Jones have any superpowers, but Dunn is a good fighter and skilled engineer. The Blue Tracer allows Dunn and Jones to travel on land, under the sea, and in the air. It has many weapons, and can deflect small arms fire easily.
Creator Fred Guardineer drew a detailed half-page diagram of the vehicle in the fourth issue.
The Blue Tracer would later appear many years later in the 2018 Freedom Fighters series. The vehicle is portrayed as the Freedom Fighters mobile base and is piloted by a man named Cache.
Bob and Swab
Bob Masters and Swab Decker first appeared in Hit Comics #1.Bozo the Iron Man
Bozo the Iron Man and Hugh Hazzard first appeared in Smash Comics #1.Bruce Blackburn
Bruce Blackburn first appeared in Feature Comics #32. He became The Destroying Demon in issue #39.Burp the Twerp
Burp the Twerp first appeared in Police Comics #2.Candy O'Connor
Candace "Candy" O'Connor first appeared in Police Comics #37.Captain Cook
Captain Cook of Scotland Yard first appeared in Feature Funnies #13.Captain Daring
Captain Daring first appeared in Buccaneers #19.Captain Flagg
Captain Jim Flagg first appeared in Hit Comics #22.Captain Triumph
Captain Triumph first appeared in Crack Comics #27.Casey Jones
Casey Jones first appeared in Hit Comics #1.Chic Carter
Chic Carter first appeared in Smash Comics #1. He became The Sword in issue #24.Choo Choo and Cherry
Choo Choo LaMoe and Cherry Lane first appeared in Military Comics #35.Clip Chance
Clip Chance, student athlete at Cliffside College, first appeared in Feature Funnies #7.The Clock
The Clock first appeared simultaneously in Funny Pages v1#6 and Funny Picture Stories v1#1 published by the Comics Magazine Company. He debuted at Quality Comics in Feature Funnies #3.Comet Kelly
Lt. Douglas "Comet" Kelly first appeared in Hit Comics #22.Cyclone
Cyclone first appeared in National Comics #1.Daffy Dill
Daffy Dill first appeared in Smash Comics #41.The Death Patrol
The Death Patrol first appeared in Military Comics #1.Destiny
Destiny first appeared in Police Comics #15.Destroyer 171
Lt. Commander Harvey Blake, the skipper of the U.S.S. Pawnee, and Executive Officer Fred Conroy first appeared in National Comics #23. Blake's name was given as "Lake" in issues #23-24, #26 and #29, and as "Blake" in issues #25, #27-28 and #30-53.Doll Girl
Martha Roberts first appeared in Feature Comics #27. She became Midge in Feature Comics #77, followed by Doll Girl in Doll Man #37.Doll Man
Doll Man first appeared in Feature Comics #27.Don Glory
Don Glory first appeared in Hit Comics #8.Eagle Evans
Eagle Evans first appeared in Police Comics #1.Eric Falcon
Eric Falcon first appeared in Buccaneers #19.Ezra Jones
Ezra Jones first appeared in Blackhawk #9.The Fargo Kid
The Fargo Kid first appeared in Feature Comics #47.Fear
Fear first appeared in Modern Comics #49.Firebrand
Firebrand first appeared in Police Comics #1.Frontier Marshal
U.S. Marshal Bob Allen first appeared in Crack Western #63.G-2
G-2 first appeared in National Comics #27.The Gallant Knight
Sir Tyrone Neville first appeared in Feature Funnies #7.Ghost of Flanders
The Ghost of Flanders first appeared in Hit Comics #18.The Hawk
The Hawk first appeared in Feature Funnies #2.Hawks of the Seas
The Hawk first appeared in the U.K. in Wags #17. This story was reprinted in the U.S. in Feature Funnies #3. Note: This character is different from the 'T. James Harrington II' version.Her Highness and Silk
Her Highness and Silk first appeared in Hit Comics #27.Human Bomb
The Human Bomb first appeared in Police Comics #1. Hustace Throckmorton first appeared in Police Comics #15. The Bombardiers first appeared in Police Comics #21.Inferior Man
Inferior Man first appeared in Military Comics #7.Invisible Hood
The Invisible Hood first appeared in Smash Comics #1.Jack and Jill, Super Sleuths
Jack Doe and his wife Jill Doe first appeared in Hit Comics #1.Jester
The Jester first appeared in Smash Comics #22.Joe Hercules
Joe Hercules first appeared in Hit Comics #1.Johnny Doughboy
Johnny Doughboy first appeared in Military Comics #14.Just 'n' Right
Just 'n' Right first appeared in The Doll Man Quarterly #1.Ken Shannon
Ken Shannon first appeared in Police Comics #103.Kid Dixon
Danny "Kid" Dixon first appeared in National Comics #1.Kid Eternity
Kid Eternity first appeared in Hit Comics #25.The Kid Patrol
The Kid Patrol first appeared in National Comics #1.Lady Luck
Lady Luck first appeared in The Spirit Section #1. Her adventures were reprinted in Quality Comics beginning with Smash Comics #42.Lee Preston
Lee Preston of the Red Cross first appeared in Crack Comics #1.Lion Boy
Lion Boy first appeared in Hit Comics #6.Loops and Banks
Loops McCann and Banks Barrows first appeared in Military Comics #1.Madam Fatal
Madam Fatal first appeared in Crack Comics #1.Magno the Magnetic Man
Magno the Magnetic Man appeared in Quality Comics from 1940 to 1956. The character was created by Paul Gustavson. His first appearance was in Smash Comics #13. He was one of the characters that were purchased by DC Comics when Quality Comics sold their assets. However, the copyright on these comics expired before that, making them public domain.Tom Dalton was a lineman for an electric company until he was shocked and killed by 10,000 D.C. volts of electricity. He was brought back to life by a coworker, who used 10,000 A.C. volts. Tom Dalton became Magno. He was powered by the very electricity that saved his life, and he used it to fight crime with his magnetic and electrical abilities. He sometimes ran out of power and had to recharge himself by touching exposed wires. He was featured in Smash Comics until issue #21. He then moved to two Ace Magazines comics: Super-Mystery Comics, from v1 #1 to v6 #4 ; and to Four Favorites, from issue #1 to #26.
In his fourth story, Magno was joined by a sidekick—Davey, a young man with the powers of magnetic attraction and repulsion. Davey was the little brother of female private eye Carole Landis. Davey's powers had no origin in particular. Magno and Davey became partners, and worked for the government on secret missions.
According to Jess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes, "Magno and Davey take on a variety of foes: human-sacrificing Aztec cultists, the four-armed, fanged Yellow Peril Professor Octopus, and Magno and Davey's recurring foe, the Clown, who works out of a traveling circus and uses hyper-intelligent trained rats to carry out his crimes".
Magno was briefly revived in 1984 for two issues of All-Star Squadron, #31 and 32. In this story, Magno is contacted by Uncle Sam hours before the attack on Pearl Harbor to join the Freedom Fighters and defend the base. Magno accepts, and dies while fighting the Japanese, along with the other members of the Freedom Fighters. While most of the other members are later revealed to have survived, Magno is not. He's also seen in Secret Origins vol 2 #26, in the origin story for Miss America.
Magno II
An unnamed, second Magno appeared in Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters v2 #3. Also having the power of electrokinesis, Magno was under mind control from Director Robbins' and was a member of his Crusaders team. After Red Bee evolved into an alien bug hybrid, she killed Director Robbins which allowed the Crusaders to be free from his mind control. Magno and the Crusaders then joined the Freedom Fighters' team.Manhunter
Manhunter first appeared in Police Comics #8.Margo the Magician
Margo the Magician first appeared in Uncle Sam Quarterly #2.The Marksman
The Marksman first appeared in Smash Comics #33.Marmaduke Mouse
Marmaduke was a talking animal character created by Ernie Hart in 1944 and was Quality Comics' third longest-running title behind Blackhawk and Plastic Man. He first appeared in Hit Comics #35 where he was a minor character for several issues, eventually receiving his own series in 1946 which ran for 65 issues, until December 1956. According to the Encyclopedia of Comic Books and Graphic Novels, the series "was, in the beginning, were solidly drawn and reasonably funny, but lacked a convincing sense of action and character."Merlin the Magician
Merlin the Magician first appeared in National Comics #1.Midnight
Midnight first appeared in Smash Comics #18.Miss America
Miss America first appeared in Military Comics #1. She did not don a costume until issue #4.Mitymite
Mitymite first appeared in All Humor Comics #1.Molly the Model
Molly Maloney first appeared in Crack Comics #1.Monsieur X
Monsieur X first appeared in Military Comics #6.The Mouthpiece
The Mouthpiece first appeared in Police Comics #1 and lasted until #13. He was created by Fred Guardineer. Although, like all Quality characters, he is ostensibly owned by DC Comics after it acquired Quality's assets, he lapsed into public domain prior to the said acquisition.Bill Perkins was a District Attorney who thought that the law was not strong enough. He decided to don a costume to apprehend criminals that escaped justice, and became the Mouthpiece. He carries a gun and handcuffs. He was ruthless, and was prepared to kill criminals when he needed to. Once, he even threw a harpoon into the back of a fleeing opponent, rather than let him get away.
He was a skilled brawler and marksman, an above-average detective and an expert in criminal law.