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Edited by Jeff Fettes on 12 February 2013 at 6:05pm

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Some questions were posted about it.  It is the art to page 8 from BLACK CAT #11, published in 1948.  What I find particularly remarkable about it, is that it's practically in perfect shape.  While it's trimmed away from this scan, there are some smudges along the left margin of the page, and some fingerprints along the top.  Also some whiteout here and there to touch up panel borders.  But all of it looks like it is the result of production work, not mishandling, so it doesn't count.  No trimmed edges, rips, holes, etc. anywhere.  </P>

I love Elias' art, and I'm intrigued by how much ahead of its time Black Cat was as far as superhero storytelling goes.  Panel two, as an example, is wordless as Black Cat sees Turner being tied up.  In most '40s superhero stories, that panel would be filled with a thought balloon like, "Uh oh! Those two men in cowboy hats are tying Mr. Turner to a chair and gagging him!  I'd better save him!"</P>

Martin Arlt..................................</P>

Edited by Jeff Fettes on 12 February 2013 at 6:06pm

my first contribution to this thread, Portacio

Paul-

I was also surprised by the quality of the paper and the condition of the piece.  I have another Black Cat page that was reprinted in the Silver Age.  To make the art fit the Silver Age page dimensions, it was extended vertically, which involved cutting the page and inserting new paper. Of course, since this was post-Comics Code, Black Cat's breasts had to be made smaller with white out.  Other than these changes, this page was also in great shape, as are a couple of 1950s horror pages from the same publisher, Harvey Comics.

I'm guessing that these pages have been stored in some Harvey warehouse until recently, and the environmental conditions must have been just right to preserve them.

Martin Arlt....................................

For what it's worth, here's the second Black Cat page I own, from issue 65:

The issue itself came out in 1963, so the alterations to the art date to that year.  However, this is a reprint from an earlier issue (either 8 or 21, I believe).  You can see on the scan where the original page was cut and extended vertically in the top row of panels.  Also, in addition to reducing the breasts to post-Code standards, the woman with the gun was originally holding a knife, which has been replaced with a gun.  Rather than do all the changes to a stat, they used the original art, so the art on this page dates to the late 1940s and the early 1960s.

Martin Arlt...................................

Is there a Frank Robbins vibe there as well? (i love Frank Robbins)