Crime Does Not Pay #130

Lev Gleason's long-running true-crime anthology reaches issue #130 with a cover by George Tuska that crackles with tension — a uniformed officer has cornered a desperate man crawling across the floor, gun drawn and warning "friend or no friend, I'm going to shoot," while a green-hatted accomplice scrambles to escape and a sunglasses-wearing figure lurks in the background. A small inset portrait identifies real-life criminal Homer Beloux, a hallmark of the series' grounded, ripped-from-the-headlines appeal. If you're drawn to the hard-boiled crime comics that defined 1954 newsstand drama, this issue — featuring the story "The Other Side of the Bars" — delivers the genre at its most gripping.