Hi-Ho Comics #1
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeHi-Ho Comics #1 is a compact artifact of the postwar Golden Age funny-animal boom, notable chiefly as the debut vehicle for a cast of anthropomorphic characters — Lil Chief Hotshot, Kitty and Bob the Hep Cats, Eddie Elephant, Percy Pelican, Bertie Bruin, Daffy Dragon, and the Monk duo — that Robert W. Farrell's Four Star Publications aimed at younger readers pivoting away from wartime superhero content. The issue also represents one of the earliest confirmed comic-book credits for Howie Post, a cartoonist who would go on to create Spooky the Tuff Little Ghost, Hot Stuff, and DC's Anthro, making this a quiet early waypoint in a significant Golden Age and Silver Age career. Its cover, inked by L.B. Cole in his signature flat 'poster color' style, situates it within Cole's prolific body of Four Star work, a body of covers now recognized as among the most visually distinctive of the Golden Age. The title ran only three issues, making it a tight, self-contained snapshot of how small publishers restructured their line after World War II by repurposing existing distribution slots for humor-oriented content.
In "Better Late Than Never...", a clever cat impersonates the charming Frankie Sinodora, tricking Kitty into agreeing to a date. When Bob tries to win her back by bringing the real Frankie Sinodora to the hall with his band, Kitty’s choice takes an unexpected turn. Written and illustrated by Howie Post, with cover art by Ellis Chambers and L. B. Cole, this 1946 Hi-Ho Comics #1 tale delivers a lighthearted twist on love and deception.
Eddie the Elephant oversleeps and rushes to avoid being late for school, but a detour with friends at the swimming hole leads to trouble—and tempts him to play hooky rather than face his teacher's wrath. When a dream shows him the consequences of his choices, Eddie learns that showing up, even if tardy, is better than the alternative.
Percy Pelican gets drafted into the U.S. Army and must survive basic training, from eye exams and medical shots to grueling marches—all while hoping to stay on the sergeant's good side and avoid kitchen duty. This funny-animal romp follows our reluctant recruit as he tackles the peculiar challenges of military life with typical cartoon mishaps and humor.
Bertie Bruin builds himself a slingshot and can't wait to test it out—but his new toy quickly lands him in hot water when a chipmunk takes offense to being used as target practice. What starts as a clash between two stubborn creatures spirals into chaos, with each one determined to get the upper hand, leading to a wild back-and-forth that leaves Bertie without his prized slingshot and plotting his next move.
When a young dancer named 'Lil Chief Hot-shot wins the Indian War Dance Contest at the HiHoville Town Hall dance, he celebrates his victory among friends—but his triumph pales next to the impressive jitterbug numbers that Kitty and Bob bring to the floor, and the fashionable late arrival of Daffy Dragon in his dapper seventeenth-century costume. Meanwhile, Monty of the Mad Monks attempts to follow his brother Killer-Diller's criminal footsteps by starting his own protection racket, only to discover that intimidation works better on small merchants than on established business owners like Mike who won't tolerate his schemes. A lively night of dancing, competition, and misguided ambition unfolds in this colorful tale of the HiHo gang.
In "The Hep Cats," Jo and Bob navigate a mischievous mix-up when a cat impersonates the famous Frankie Sinodora to win Kitty’s affection. With a band and a real celebrity in tow, Bob tries to reclaim the night—but Kitty’s heart might have already found its rhythm.
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Four Star Publications was one of several imprints operated by publisher Robert W. Farrell, whose organization was incorporated at 420 DeSoto Avenue in St. Louis with editorial offices at 28 East 10th Street in New York. The Grand Comics Database records that issues #2 and #3 of Hi-Ho Comics carry indicia stating 'formerly Captain Flight Comics,' indicating the title took over a slot that had been held by Four Star's wartime aviation-hero anthology; issue #1 itself does not carry that note but emerges from the same publishing restructuring. Interior art across the run was handled primarily by Ellis Chambers, who also supplied cover pencils, while L.B. Cole — then operating his own comics studio and packaging covers for multiple publishers between 1942 and 1948 — contributed the cover inks. Howie Post, barely out of his teens and already selling work to New York publishers by 1945, contributed script and pencils to at least two stories in issue #1, with Ellis Chambers providing inks; the GCD entry for the issue cross-references a Post interview in Comic Book Artist #5 as a primary source for the attribution.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of the recurring cast of Hi-Hoville: Lil Chief Hotshot, Kitty and Bob the Hep Cats, Eddie Elephant, Percy Pelican, Bertie Bruin, Daffy Dragon, Killer-Diller Monk, and Monty Monk all debut in this issue.
- Published by Four Star Publications, an imprint of Robert W. Farrell's network of Golden Age comic book companies, with the indicia listing the publisher as 'Four-Star Publications, Inc.' at St. Louis and New York addresses.
- Cover pencils by Ellis Chambers, cover inks by L.B. Cole — Cole's contribution connects the issue to his broader body of 'poster color' Golden Age cover work for Four Star and other publishers.
- Interior stories credited to Howie Post (script and pencils) and Ellis Chambers (inks) include the Lil Chief Hotshot and Kitty and Bob the Hep Cats features; Post's involvement is documented in a GCD cross-reference to Comic Book Artist #5.
- The series ran only three issues in 1946, making Hi-Ho Comics #1 the opening chapter of an extremely short-lived title; issues #2 and #3 carry indicia identifying the series as 'formerly Captain Flight Comics,' a Four Star wartime aviation anthology.
- Format: 52 pages, full color, at the standard Golden Age cover price; content is entirely original humor stories with a two-page prose text story accompanying the comic-format features.
- The complete three-issue run was reprinted by Gwandanaland Comics in 2016–2017 both as individual issues and as a collected volume titled 'The Complete Hi-Ho Comics' (Gwandanaland #740), scanned from original copies without digital remastering.
- Some stories in the series, including a Lil Chief Hotshot tale in which Japanese soldiers appear, reflect racial stereotyping conventions of 1940s American humor comics; modern reprint publishers have acknowledged this context explicitly.
Full credits
Reprints
Reprinted in Frisky Animals #47 (1951), Gwandanaland Comics #740 (2017)
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