THE CLOCK III: MAY 1940-SEP 1941

This weekend’s light-hearted, escapist superhero post from Balladeer’s Blog is my 3rd look at the original run of the Clock, who debuted in 1936 – BEFORE Superman (1938) and Batman (1939). PART ONE: 1936-1939. PART TWO: 1939-1940.

CRACK COMICS #1 (May 1940)

Title: The Story of Pug Brady

Villain: The Big Shot

Synopsis: Brian O’Brien, the wealthy playboy who is really the superhero called the Clock, acquires his very first sidekick. Pat “Pug” Brady, a former boxer becomes O’Brien’s chauffer in this issue.

Our hero takes Pug into his confidence and tells him he is really the Clock and the former prizefighter becomes his aide in crimefighting. This adventure finds the Clock bringing down a masked villain called the Big Shot who is trying to take over New York City via his gang of criminals and corrupt police officers.

The Clock exposes the Big Shot as Mayor Kozer and shuts down his entire operation.

CRACK COMICS #2 (Jun 1940)

Title: The Orchid

Villains: Silas Geer and Nick Peters

Synopsis: An evil uncle tries to murder his nephew, an heir who has just come of age. The mysterious heroine called the Orchid, who appeared in some of the earliest Clock stories, returns after all this time.

She helps our hero handle this case and hints that she knows the Clock’s secret identity.

CRACK COMICS #3 (Jul 1940)

Title: Gang Czar’s Right-Hand Man

Villain: Benny Selas

Synopsis: The Clock exerts himself to the utmost in this story, involving Pug and Captain Kane (the Clock’s version of Commissioner Gordon.) in his latest war on organized crime.

In the end he convinces a squealer to rat out his gangster chief.

CRACK COMICS #4 (Aug 1940)

Title: The Asp

Villain: The Asp

Synopsis: A homicidal jewel thief called the Asp uses time-released poisons to kill the owners of expensive gems, then steals them. After a few clashes, the Clock catches up with the villain after he steals the Black Pearl from millionaire Patrick Payne.

In a climactic shootout between the Clock and the Asp, the latter gets killed.

CRACK COMICS #5 (Sep 1940)

Title: The Jay Bird

Villain: The Jay Bird

Synopsis: With the aid of a coil and a biplane piloted by his thug Spike, the masked Jay Bird pulls off daring robberies and murders. After their first battle, the Clock is ready for his newest foe. With Pug as his pilot, our hero uses his own biplane (for the first time in a while) and a coil like the Jay Bird does.

The Clock captures the Jay Bird and Spike gets killed.

CRACK COMICS #6 (Oct 1940)

Title: The Skull Gang

Villains: The Skull Gang

Synopsis: The Skull Gang, a group of criminals who have heads like skulls due to chemicals they’ve been consuming, are on a crime spree. One of the places they try to rob is the penthouse apartment of Brian O’Brien.

Brian becomes the Clock and uses his first new weapon in a long time – a gun that shoots paralyzing pellets. (This is added to his body armor, metal-lined hat, walking stick that shoots bullets and its top, plus his bow tie that shoots knockout gas from one side and tear gas from the other.)

The Clock and Pug use ultraviolet light to track the radioactive footprints left by the crooks. At the Skull Gang’s headquarters, our heroes defeat all the gang members and turn them over to the police.

CRACK COMICS #7 (Nov 1940)

Title: Robbers from Hades

Villain: The Devil

Synopsis: A supervillain calling himself the Devil has used chemical treatments to make five men his thralls. With them he engages in a crime spree.

At length he sends the quintet to kidnap wealthy Brian O’Brien to be his next thrall, not realizing he is really the Clock. Pug follows the abductors to the Devil’s hideout which is decorated in an infernal motif complete with scattered fiery pits that one might fall into.

Pug saves the Clock, gives him his mask and hat & the pair fight it out with the six villains throughout their lair. Some of them are knocked into the fiery pits and die. The Devil himself is chased to the rooftop where he, too falls to his death in combat with the Clock.

CRACK COMICS #8 (December 1940)

Title: Man from Mongolia

Villains: Snoop Cadrone and the Man from Mongolia

Synopsis: Gangster Snoop Cadrone has obtained a large, freakish man from Mongolia whom he derisively calls “Stuporman.” The nearly mindless human is super-strong and bulletproof, making him unstoppable as Cadrone uses him to kill and slash his way through rival mobsters.

The Clock gets caught up in opposing Cadrone and his minion. With no other way of stopping the brute our hero maneuvers him into falling onto power lines, killing him from the electrical shock and the fall. 

CRACK COMICS #9 (Jan 1941)

Title: The Screw Gang

Villains: The Screw and his gang

Synopsis: A masked villain calling himself the Screw leads a gang of several men in running a protection racket on businesses in New York City. The Clock wages war on the villains to try taking them down.

Our hero’s detective work lets him expose the Screw as David Grattan, President of the Chamber of Commerce. The Screw and his underlings are defeated by the Clock and turned over to Captain Kane.

CRACK COMICS #10 (Feb 1941)

Title: The False Clock

Villain: Scat Bison

Synopsis: Career criminal Scat Bison dons a Clock costume and outfits himself with similar weapons. He frames our hero for multiple murders and causes a massive manhunt throughout New York City to bring in the Clock dead or alive for $50,000 (equal to $1,119,167.00 in 2025).

Through dying victim Raps Tinney the real Clock learns that Scat Bison is the imposter. Our hero nabs Bison and clears his own name.

CRACK COMICS #11 (Mar 1941)

Title: The Case of Pig Dorn

Villain: Pig Dorn

Synopsis: Career criminal “Pig” Dorn kills a cop. When he’s let loose on bail, he and two of his goons set out to eliminate witnesses to the slaying.

The Clock gets involved in order to save a witness by raiding Dorn’s waterfront lair. An action-packed encounter including a speedboat chase finds the Clock triumphant, the witness able to testify, and Pig & his goons being found guilty.

CRACK COMICS #12 (Apr 1941)

Title: The Murder of Hy Jakker

Villain: Big Boy Broge

Synopsis: Gangster Big Boy Broge has murdered his biggest rival Hy Jakker but has conjured up what seems like an unbreakable alibi. The Clock investigates.

Our hero breaks into Big Boy’s home and clashes with him, his thug Butch and an unnamed thug. When all is said and done, Broge’s guilt has been proven and he takes the fall.

CRACK COMICS #13 (Jun 1941)

Title: The Crab’s Extortion Plot

Villain: The Crab

Synopsis: A villain called the Crab demands 5 million dollars from Captain Kane and the city or else he’ll kill multiple cops. Kane mounts an attempt to corral the Crab without paying ransom but the villain retaliates by blowing up several cops in the building they raided.

The Crab still wants the money or he and his gang will kill again. Captain Kane calls in the Clock for help. Our hero and Pug track down the Crab and his four underlings and beat them up before turning them over to the police. 

CRACK COMICS #14 (Jul 1941)

Title: Klone and Scadone

Villains: Moe Klone and Scrag Scadone

Synopsis: The Clock intercepts gangster Moe Klone and two of his thugs before they can flee the country and turns them over to Captain Kane. Crimelord Scrag Scadone notes this and wants to get rid of the Clock for good.

Scadone manages to broadcast a challenge to our hero over the radio he normally uses to converse with Captain Kane. The Clock shows up despite knowing it’s a trap and gets overcome by Scrag’s goons. Pug saves his boss from being killed at Scadone’s hideout and the pair defeat the mob boss and his men.

CRACK COMICS #15 (Aug 1941)

Title: The Werewolf Murders

Villain: The Werewolf

Synopsis: A seeming wolf-beast is at large in New York City and has pulled off a number of slayings. Captain Kane is in danger of losing his job if the perpetrator isn’t nabbed.

The Clock is called in and traces the gimmicked, deceptively lycanthropic murders to a man named Prescott Taunton, a cold-blooded but clever killer.

CRACK COMICS #16 (Sep 1941)

Title: The Revenge of Bat Nillon

Villain: Bat Nillon

Synopsis: Notoriously violent criminal “Bat” Nillon breaks out of Hardway Prison and heads for New York City to get revenge on the judge who presided at his trial – Judge Maxin. Nillon successfully abducts the judge at gunpoint while Maxin is visiting with his tycoon friend Brian O’Brien.

Brian becomes the Clock and trails Nillon’s vehicle across the rooftops to his new hideout. Our hero breaks into the shabby room just as Nillon begins pistol whipping the judge. The Clock defeats Nillon and turns him over to Captain Kane. 

FOR MY LOOK AT WILL EISNER’S THE SPIRIT AND HIS GREATEST VILLAINS CLICK HERE.