Lovers #49

A tender moment practically leaps off this 1953 Atlas romance issue, with Jay Scott Pike's cover art drawing two figures — a dark-haired woman with eyes closed and a man leaning close — into an almost-kiss framed by red roses and a distant lighthouse under a cloudy sky. The composition is intimate and beautifully rendered, all soft curves and longing glances that perfectly suit the story title "Can I Forget You?" waiting inside. At just a dime a copy, Lovers #49 captures the bittersweet heart of early-'50s romance comics at their most emotionally earnest.