All-American Comics #27
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeAll-American Comics #27 (cover date June 1941) holds a firm place in Golden Age history as the debut of Charles 'Doiby' Dickles, the scrappy Brooklyn cab driver who became Alan Scott's Green Lantern sidekick for the remainder of the decade. Doiby was, as comics historians Kurt Mitchell and Roy Thomas put it, the first of the comic-relief sidekicks that came to define the All-American approach to super-heroics in the early '40s — a template that influenced how the publisher's stable of heroes was built out with street-level supporting casts. His introduction also shifted Green Lantern's strip toward a buddy dynamic, giving the title a warmth and working-class texture that stood in contrast to more remote, godlike heroes of the era. The issue's lead story was titled, with deliberate fanfare, 'Meet Doiby Dickles' — a title that signals the editorial confidence All-American placed in the character from his very first page.
When cab driver Doiby Dickles saves Irene Miller from thieves twice in one day, he catches the attention of Green Lantern, who personally thanks him. As Alan Scott investigates a suspicious businessman named Barton, Doiby takes matters into his own hands—donning a Green Lantern costume to rescue Irene when she’s taken hostage, aided at the last moment by the real Green Lantern.
In "Prisoners by Choice," Dr. McNider is baffled when Jack Gillian is murdered—especially since the prime suspect, "Gallows" Gallagher, is behind bars. The Man of Night takes matters into his own hands, breaking Gallagher out of State Prison to uncover the truth, only to discover a twisted conspiracy involving Gallagher’s brother and the prison’s corrupt warden.
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The creative team behind the lead story was writer Bill Finger — the uncredited architect of so much of DC's Golden Age — with layouts and finishes by Martin (Mart) Nodell, the character's original series artist, and inks by Irwin Hasen. An interview with Hasen and Nodell published in Alter Ego #148 (September 2017) adds a wrinkle to the standard creator credit: Hasen stated that he and Finger conceived Doiby together, with the visual inspiration coming from character actor Edward Brophy, who played broad, comical Irish roles in 1930s Warner Bros. films. The Grand Comics Database notes an unusual production footnote: the issue's own indicia incorrectly lists it as #26 rather than #27, with the correct number established by copyright registration. The book was published under the J.R. Publishing Co. banner — All-American Publications' corporate imprint — with M.C. Gaines as managing editor and Sheldon Mayer as assistant editor.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Charles 'Doiby' Dickles (All-American Comics #27, cover date June 1941), Alan Scott's Green Lantern sidekick, who appeared alongside the character from 1941 to 1949.
- The lead Green Lantern story is titled 'Meet Doiby Dickles' (also solicited as 'Introducing Doiby Dickles!') and was written by Bill Finger with art by Martin Nodell (layouts and finishes) and inks by Irwin Hasen.
- Doiby Dickles is depicted as a stout Brooklyn cab driver whose nickname derives from the derby hat he perpetually wears; his visual design was inspired by character actor Edward Brophy, per Irwin Hasen in Alter Ego #148 (2017).
- The cover of the issue, drawn by Howard Purcell, depicts Doiby himself wearing a Green Lantern costume — a visual that also plays out in the story's climax, where Doiby dons the GL outfit to save a hostage.
- The issue's indicia mistakenly numbers it as #26 rather than #27; the correct number is established via copyright registration.
- The issue is an anthology and also includes a Dr. Mid-Nite story ('Prisoners by Choice') featuring Charles McNider, as well as Atom and other features — edited by M.C. Gaines (managing editor) with Sheldon Mayer as assistant editor.
- The Green Lantern story from this issue was reprinted in Golden Age Green Lantern Archives Vol. 1 (DC, 1999), a hardcover Archive Edition collecting Green Lantern stories from All-American Comics #16–30 and Green Lantern #1.
- All-American Publications, which published this title, later consolidated with National Periodical Publications to form what is now DC Comics.
Cast · 3 characters
Full credits
Reprints
Reprinted in Golden Age Green Lantern Archives #1 (1999), The JSA All Stars Archives #1 (2007)
Key issues in All-American Comics
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