Lev Gleason, the publisher of Crime Does Not Pay comics, shared profits with the editor/artists of the best-selling series. Charles Biro and Bob Wood, notes Matt Fraction in the first volume of a planned reprint series of Crime Does Not Pay produced in 1942-43, created dozens of popular strips for the comic. Other artist/writers were churning out stories on “Crime Kings,” like “The True Story of John Dillinger” by Woody Hamilton (bottom). Other kings included Dutch Schultz and Legs Diamond. My favorite was titled “So Mean He’d Kill His Own Mother” and I’m dying to read “The Strange Case of the Four Legged Witness.”
The reprint, published by Dark Horse Comics, is a facsimile quality reproduction. But you’ll decide whether the $49.99 cover price is a crime. See a preview and get yours here.
