Comic Cavalcade #19
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeComic Cavalcade #19 occupies a poignant place in Golden Age history as one of the final published works scripted by Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston, who died of cancer on May 2, 1947, just weeks after this issue went on sale. It also carries a sleeper key status: its 'Just a Story' backup feature introduces the unnamed fugitive later retroactively identified as Johnny Peril — a character who would go on to headline his own features across multiple DC titles through the 1950s and return in the Silver Age. As a representative issue of Comic Cavalcade's superhero era, it showcases the anthology's unusual depth, packing Wonder Woman, the Flash, Green Lantern, and a proto-noir vignette into a single 76-page package at a time when most comics ran 64 pages for a dime less.
In "The Battle for Eternal Youth," Gardner F. Fox spins a time-spanning tale featuring Jay Garrick, as the Flash takes center stage in a wild yarn that leaps from the present to prehistoric times and races toward a future on the brink of doom. E. E. Hibbard’s dynamic art brings the journey to life, with full interior and cover pencils and inks by the same hand.
In "The Battle for Eternal Youth," gangster Ambrose Venture schemes to claim the secret of everlasting life by enlisting the daring Roba Jewel to infiltrate Paradise Island and steal the waters of the Fountain of Youth from the Amazons. With danger and deception on every page, this 1947 adventure blends high-stakes intrigue with the timeless allure of myth.
In "The Race through Time!" from Comic Cavalcade #19, Jay Garrick spins a wild tale where the Flash hurtles through history—from the present to prehistoric eras and onward to a distant, apocalyptic future—chasing a mystery that spans millennia. The story unfolds as a thrilling, time-spanning adventure, grounded in the classic Flash mythos and told with the playful flair of a Liar's Club anecdote.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
Comic Cavalcade was published bi-monthly by National Comics Publications, Inc. (the corporate entity behind DC's All-American line), and by early 1947 had settled into a fixed triple-feature format headlined by Wonder Woman, the Flash, and Green Lantern. Issue #19's Wonder Woman lead — 'The Battle for Eternal Youth' — was scripted by Marston under his pen name Charles Moulton (a combination of his own and publisher M.C. Gaines's middle names) and drawn by his longtime collaborator Harry G. Peter, the newspaper artist who had designed Wonder Woman's visual identity from the character's 1941 debut. The cover was supplied by Everett E. Hibbard, who also drew the Flash story inside. The anthology's editorial mix also relied on deadline-driven flexibility: writers not normally associated with a character would step in when needed, a practice the title used throughout its superhero run.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Cover date: February 1947; published bi-monthly by National Comics Publications, Inc. (DC); 76 pages at a 15¢ cover price — larger and more expensive than the standard 64-page, 10¢ comic of the era.
- Wonder Woman story 'The Battle for Eternal Youth' scripted by William Moulton Marston (published as 'Charles Moulton') and drawn by Harry G. Peter; Marston died May 2, 1947, making this among his last published comic book scripts.
- First appearance of the character known only as 'Mr. Nobody' in the 'Just a Story' backup feature, created by Howard Purcell; Justice League of America #116 (March 1975) retroactively established Mr. Nobody as an alias of Johnny Peril, making Comic Cavalcade #19 his de facto first appearance.
- The Mr. Nobody/Johnny Peril story from this issue was reprinted in Justice League of America #116, giving the obscure Golden Age vignette a second life for Bronze Age readers.
- Johnny Peril was not named as such until Comic Cavalcade #22 (August 1947); he subsequently starred in features across All-Star Comics, Danger Trail, and Sensation Comics through 1953, then returned in The Unexpected in 1968.
- Flash story 'The Race Through Time' drawn by Everett E. Hibbard, who also provided the cover; Jay Garrick narrates a time-spanning adventure at a session of the Liar's Club.
- Green Lantern story features Alan Scott and Doiby Dickles switching daily roles — Alan tries cab driving and runs afoul of a protection racket.
- Most Flash and Green Lantern stories from Comic Cavalcade's superhero run were never reprinted in collected form, though the Wonder Woman stories eventually appeared in DC's Wonder Woman: The Golden Age trade paperback volumes.
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Reprints
Reprinted in Justice League of America #116 (1975), Wonder Woman: The Golden Age Omnibus #3 (2019)
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