Paul Wheelahan's The Panther #45
In "The Hawk Man," the Panther ventures into the rugged highlands of southeast Persia, where a missing boy has the village of Vardum in turmoil. When police lieutenant Korichi points to a reclusive hermit known only as the Hawk Man as the likely culprit, the Panther turns to an unlikely ally—a black panther from a traveling circus—to track the mysterious figure through the mountains. With the hawks and wolves of the highlands watching, the hunt begins. Written and illustrated by Paul Wheelahan, this 1961 adventure from Young's Merchandising Company features a striking cover by Wheelahan, capturing the tension between man and wilderness.
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Traveling through southeast Persia by car, the Panther stops for fuel in the town of Vardum, and seeing a crowd of agitated villagers he learns from police lieutenant Korichi that a boy is missing, presumably kidnapped by a strange hermit living in the mountains known only as the Hawk Man, a recluse whose pet hawks and wolves provide him with protection. Learning that there is a circus in town the Panther enlists the aid of one of its animals, a black panther. Together man and beast set off to rescue the missing boy. Confronted first by wolves, the pack retreats, intimidated by the big cat.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).