Atoman #1

In "The Making of The Mightiest Man!" from Atoman #1 (1946), a secret committee at the Atomic Institute debates the peaceful uses of atomic power—just as Mr. Twist and his henchmen begin targeting its members. When Barry Dale is kidnapped and discovers he’s become radioactive, he transforms into the mysterious Atoman to fight back.

When the eccentric millionaire Ralph Barton checks into the Hotel Harmony, the Kid Crusaders—Fisty the newsboy, Freckles the bellhop, and Ginger—learn of his unusual curse: he hasn't laughed in years, despite traveling the globe searching for a cure. The trio teams up with the mysterious Dr. Pepper, who claims he can make Barton laugh in public by Saturday night, setting the stage for a wild evening of schemes and surprises at the hotel. As the children watch from an unexpected vantage point, they discover that helping cure a man of his sadness is far more complicated than it seems.

An efficiency expert named Mr. Gimmick faces a suggestion from a worker about putting wheels on a truck to save time—a practical idea that threatens to upset his plans. When the worker offers the helpful tip, Mr. Gimmick's true nature is revealed as he schemes to claim the credit for himself rather than let the worker get recognition. This short 1946 humor strip plays with the ironic gap between what an "efficiency expert" claims to be and what he's actually after.

"Wild Bill" Hickok rides into a scheme that threatens to destroy peaceful Indians' chances at reclaiming their land—when white men disguised in war paint stage a fake massacre to turn Washington against the tribe. With a quick draw and quicker thinking, Hickok pieces together the frame-up and confronts the conspirators before their deception can reach the Senate and seal the Indians' fate.

When con artists running a fake vocational school begin fleecing returning war veterans out of their hard-earned savings, District Attorney John Kendrick gets wind of the scheme and moves to shut it down—but the operation runs deeper and more dangerous than anyone expected. Working with Detective O'Toole and his war-hero cousin Frankie, Kendrick hunts down the racketeers behind the "education" scam, discovering that a notorious numbers operator named Joe Ruger sits at the helm of this predatory enterprise. In this tale by Marv Lev, a crusading lawman takes on one of post-war America's most despicable criminal operations.

When ordinary bookkeeper Marvin Smith transforms into the mighty Marvin the Great, he discovers a sinister plot: five millionaires have vanished in five days without any ransom demand. Racing to uncover the criminal scheme, Marvin follows the kidnappers to their hideout and learns of a far more ambitious crime in the works. Armed with newfound confidence and his incredible strength, Marvin the Great crashes the operation to stop the crooks and rescue the missing millionaires.