Gene Autry Comics #16

This 1948 Dell issue brings America's favorite singing cowboy to vivid life with a striking photo cover — Gene Autry crouches in his signature red studded shirt and white Stetson, pistol in hand, taking cover beside a wagon wheel with a watchful, determined expression. The tension on that cover sets the mood perfectly for the interior tale, "Secret of Skeleton Mountain," promising the kind of rugged Western adventure Autry fans lived for. At just ten cents, this June issue is a genuine snapshot of postwar Western comics at their most appealing.