Four Color #287

Champion takes center stage on this 1950 Dell outing, the beloved horse filling nearly the entire cover in a striking photo-style portrait — complete with ornate bridle and a holstered revolver tucked at his neck — while a smiling Gene Autry looks on from a inset photo in the upper corner. The cover by Morris Gollub frames the story "The Ghost of Black Mountain" with real western atmosphere, letting Champion's calm, powerful presence do the talking. With a generous 52 pages of all-comics content for just a dime, this is a fine snapshot of Dell's western storytelling at the midpoint of the twentieth century.