The end of the Golden Age of Comics wasn’t especially kind to super heroes. Whereas once they’d been the primary drivers of sales of the colorful magazines, in the postwar period, their appeal among readers dwindled, and other genres such as teen humor, westers, romance, war, crime and horror began to be those that primarily scooped up the audience’s dimes. One by one, the great champions of the era hung up their skintight costumes and returned to comic book limbo, with only the most popular among them, such as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, being able to weather these rough seas and carry on. Captain America, whose CAPTAIN AMERICA COMICS had been Timely’s top-selling title by far for most of the war years, was on the rocks by the time 1949 was rolling into 1950.
In an attempt to appeal to a wider audience, the series began to run the occasional crime or horror-based story that was merely introduced by Captain America. He played no active role in these tales. Whether the feedback to them proved them popular or that Timely publisher Martin Goodman could see the writing on the wall, with the books’ 74th issue, its title was changed to CAPTAIN AMERICA’S WEIRD TALES. In that first issue in the new format, cap journeyed to hell to battle the Red Skull one final time, a story that we’ve already gone over here:
But by the second and final issue, #75, Cap was himself a ghost, appearing nowhere within its pages. The only evidence that he had been there at all is his once-proud name still appearing in script above the more prominent WEIRD TALES logo on the issue’s cover.
so what did readers of their era get for their dime if not the exploits of the era’s most patriotic figure? A trio of one-off horror/suspense stories, none of which was especially noteworthy. The first one, “Hoof Prints of Doom!” as well as the cover to the issue were penciled by a young Gene Colan, whom fifteen years later would work on DAREDEVIL and IRON MAN and the revived SUB-MARINER. Colan’s style hasn’t yet developed, and so his work seems pretty generic here. It doesn’t really help things that for some reason Timely had decided to dispense with splash pages, instead starting each story off with a title in a 1/6 of the page space, typically accompanied by an image from later on in the tale. Colan is forced to operate within a very strict grid format here, so his natural inclination towards more expressive page layouts is effectively contained.
Credits for the rest of the stories within this issue are elusive. A portion of Colan’s cover art is repurposed as the header image for the second story, “The Thing In The Chest!” The balance of the artwork might be by Bill Molno according to the Grand Comics Database. It’s functional, but pretty undistinguished, though his “Thing” has a certain goofy charm to it.
The art and story credits on the issue’s final tale, “The Bat”, are completely unknown at this point. But they are similarly functional and not much more. There isn’t a whole lot within this issue to grab the attention of readers, and so it’s really no wonder that CAPTAIN AMERICA’S WEIRD TALES was discontinued at this point. Four years later, the book would be brought back as a part of Timely’s–then Atlas’s–brief foray into reviving their Golden Age super heroes circa 1954, even continuing the book’s original numbering to give the impression of it being a long-running continuous series. But that revival only lasted for three issues, even though it boasted some fine art from a young John Romita. But at this point, in the eyes of his original readers and fans, Captain America had quit the battlefield, likely forever.
The Tom Brevoort Experience 
This issue might have Captain America in it but it is the first Marvel appearance of Pandora and Pandora’s Box. The fact that Tom would choose this issue to talk about when yesterday I was looking up ( at comics.org ) the 1960s appearance of Circe ( Sersi ) in Strange Tales#109 ( June 1963 ) Human Torch story which also has a flashback of Pandora in it ( Torch’s foe the Sorcerer has Pandora’s Box ). The only reason I was doing that was because of what Kurt Busiek wrote about the Hulk prototype The Midnight Monster ( Victor Avery ) [ Journey into Mystery#79 (April 1962 ), so in imitation of the original Agents of Atlas I went in look for 1960s ( not part of the Marvel Age heroes ) like Circe, Frankie Jones ( mutant with extraordinary physical and mental abilities ) [ Tales to Astonish#43 ( May 1963 ) 2nd story “Frankie’s Fast Ball! — Mr. & Mrs. Jones ( his parents ) — a retelling of “The Rookie” from Marvel Tales#131 ( February 1955 ) ], Laura Wentworth ( rich girl witch ) [ Strange Tales#98 ( July 1962 ) 3rd story “The TV Fan!” – Pete Sloan ( a lazy cad turned into a fan/tv fan — the machine ) ]. Plus some Timely Heroes ( who could be active in the 1960s ) got reprinted in the 1960s: Destroyer ( keen Marlow), Toro [ Marvel Super-Heroes#12 ( December 1967 ) ], the Vision ( Aarkus) [ Marvel Super-Heroes#13 ( March 1968 ) — NAMORA ( Marvel fandom.com was no help on when she “died” in the 1960s )], Mercury ( Makkari ) [ Marvel Super-Heroes#14 ( May 1968 ) — Pluto ( Rudolph Hendler a.k.a. Kro ), Jupiter ( Zuras ), Minerva ( Thena ), Vulcan ( Valkin ), Aeolus, Diana, Apollo ( Ikaris? ) ], Black Marvel ( Dan Lyons ) [ Marvel Super-Heroes#15 ( July 1968 ) Running Elk ( Blackfoot medicine man ) — plus that unnamed criminal combine that could be The Corporation ], Patriot ( Jeff Mace ) [ Marvel Super-Heroes#16 ( September 1968 ) ], Whizzer [ Marvel Super-Heroes#17 ( November 1968 ) All-Winners Squad story — Future Man & Madame Death — MISS AMERICA ( no help on when she died in the one place on Earth she could not die of radiation poisoning thanks to the High Evolutionary having Jonathan Drew’s serum ( which he must have profected ) ]
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Pandora’s Box appears with a Mr. Dora in Uncanny Tales#54 ( April 1957 ) 1st story “Mystery in Midville” — see marvunapp.com profile on Pandora ( check her Box for Mr. Dora ) ]
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Dralla/Drallas ( a statue of a local hero that comes to life – flesh & blood life ) [ Journey into Mystery#70 ( July 1961 ) story “The Stone Man” — same issue as “The Sandman Cometh!” ( First story ) – see profiles for both at marvunapp.com ], Mr. Jordan ( a ghost ) [ Journey into Mystery#77 ( February 1962 ) 2nd story “I Don’t Believe in…Ghosts!” — a retelling of an Atlas Age story ( I have on my USB ) — see profile at marvunapp.com ], Mr. Zero ( a ghost ) [ Journey into Mystery#68 ( May 1961 ) 2nd story “Where Walks the Ghost” — see profile at marvunapp.com ], Aaron ( the sorcerer -gave up his powers for love ) [ Journey into Mystery#78 ( March 1962 ) 2nd story “The Sorcerer” — retelling of Journey into Unknown Worlds#48 ( August 1956 ) 2nd story “The Handy Man” — see profile at marvunapp.com — like Timely Comics Mantor he doesn’t need to say spells to use his magic — maybe Aaron’s people are his too ].
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Colan without the flourishes and innovation of his Marvel years looks to be one of the best Golden Age artists I’ve ever seen the work of!
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I wonder if they had any trouble with the WEIRD TALES pulp, which was still being published at the time, or if calling it CAPTAIN AMERICA’S WEIRD TALES protected them from a trademark-infringement claim?
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That. But also keeping the same title and numbering was a likely savings in regards to postal codes and/or Marvel /Goodman were reluctant to get rid of Cap completely?
Lacking the signature character in the title think it was a short term effort to save a buck either way. “Captain America’s Tales of Romance” or “Captain America’s Cowboy Action” could have been on the table.
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Oh, sure. There were a number of series that changed titles but maintained numbering, and at that point maybe there was someone at the USPS who was particular about the subscription mailing permits, resulting in Harvey’s BLACK CAT becoming, at times, both BLACK CAT WESTERN and BLACK CAT MYSTERY.
The winner in the title-change waltz is probably the EX series that launched as MOON GIRL AND THE PRINCE, became MOON GIRL for 7 issues (though the logos on the last two read MOON GIRL FIGHTS CRIME!) and then A MOON, A GIRL…ROMANCE for four more. After which point perhaps that possible USPS person departed, because after issue 12 it became WEIRD FANTASY.
In later years, no one seemed to care much if TALES TO ASTONISH became THE INCREDIBLE HULK, but in the late 40s and early 50s they often tried to disguise it more.
In this case, though, while maintaining the numbering and (partial) title would keep them from needing to pay for a new mailing permit, I can’t help but think Weird Tales, Inc. was not amused by the new title, which might explain why there were only two issues of it. Or maybe having Cap’s name in it would stave off the obvious lawsuit.
Whatever the case, they dropped the new title well before they’d have gotten any firm sales data on how it was doing.
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I ate this stuff up from when I got my first Comic book Price Guide. So comics!
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I also wonder why (per Goodman’s usual approach) it was not “Something Else # 75?”
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There was such a missed opportunity here. Original-flavor (grotesque) Red Skull would work so well as a “horror host”, at the very least. Even more, in real life many Nazis changed employers after the war, and used their war-time skills in horrible ways. It would be completely reasonable for the Red Skull to do that too. He’d probably consider going from working for Hitler, to working for Satan, as a step “up” in the world. Give him a vampire henchman to talk to, and maybe a demon minion, and there plenty of opportunity for horror stories at least loosely tied to Captain America. Come to think of it, stuff like Captain America fighting a vampire assassin could be a lot of fun. I can see a sequence now – Cap throws shield at vamp, who turns into mist to avoid, then unmists, gloats, and gets hit in back by rebounding shield. The shield is a great weapon against an adversary trying to bite, and smashing the fangs “disarms” them.
I know, the idea of the change was trend-following hackwork. But if you’re going to follow a trend, I can’t help but think that a bit of originality would help. It’s possible “horror” Captain America would find more of an audience than another mediocre generic story anthology.
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I was thinking the same thing yesterday and considering in his early ( as in during WW2 ) stories Captain America did Horror & Crime Stories ( Whodunit stories & there are Timely Comics Scooby-Doo like stories too ).
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Ra the Avenger ( henry Sanders — Scooby-Doo class bad guy ) [ Captain America Comics#8 ( November 1941 ) 1st story — Ruby of the Nile ], Satyre ( Brett Labale — a Scooby-Doo class bad guy) [ Captain America Comics#48 ( July 1945 ) last Steve Rogers issue — Torch’s Collector of Death/Danbury Fawcett is a crime drama ], Black Witch ( Mr. Feritt – Scooby-Doo class bad guy & also Inheritance story –Karin Lee ) [ Captain America Comics#8 ( November 1941 ) Captain America 4th story ], Inheritance Murders ( Crime Drama – First story ) [ Captain America Comics#46 ( April 1945 )], White Death ( Manuel Perez – inheritance killer ) [ Captain America Comics#9 ( December 1941 ) 1st story – Lucy Harrow, Matthew Clinton, Jim Slade ( dead ) & Phillip Avery ( dead ) — plus a Agatha Harkness looking house keeper ], Nick Pinto ( gangster/escaped death row convict ) [ Captain America Comics#9 ( December 1941 ) 2nd story — ( Crime Drama ) — possible Maggia cause of the technology used in his surviving the electric chair ], Killer Kole ( criminal whose brain is in a gorilla’s body & resurrection ( Horror story ) [ Captain America Comics#17 ( august 1942 ) 1st story ] — just a few examples.
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Captain America & Bucky did fight a vampire: Count Varnis & butler [ Captain America Comics#24 ( March 1943 ) 1st story — Vampire’s Mountain ].
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