GANGLAND'S DOOM - The Shadow of the Pulps (50th Anniversary Edition)

Frank Eisgruber’s 1974 book GANGLAND’S DOOM was the result of a herculean effort—reading all 325 Shadow pulp novels and gathering his insights into a very readable narrative. I devoured that slim volume (see HERE) with great interest way back when, and have perused it again several times since, but this new 50th Anniversary Edition from the gang at The Shadowed Circle offers a whole new experience. First, it’s a lot easier to look at (the original was set in in tiny typewriter type). Second, it has a fair amount of new material (much of it provided by the author himself!) And finally, it has far more visual appeal, with eight fine new illustrations by Joseph Booth. Mr. Eisgruber’s groundbreaking work has finally been showcased in the format it deserves.      

Kicking things off are new introductions by publisher Steve Donoso, and the most renown Shadowologist of our time, Mr. Will Murray. Then, along with the original Preface by Robert Weinberg, we get a new one from Mr. Eisgruber himself, offering insight on how the book came to be, his own relationship the with the character. And as a bonus, the book is capped off with a new and enlightening interview with the author himself. It’s all great stuff. 

The first twenty pages take a deep dive into The Shadow himself, focusing on everything known—and unknown—about our hero’s personal history and true identity. Another dozen pages delve into The Shadow’s many guises, both real and assumed. 

More than forty pages are devoted to the agents and allies, detailing where they appeared, the roles they played and their importance to The Shadow’s operation. Further chapters focus on the recurring villains (there are eleven of them!), The Shadow’s Sanctum, and the surprising variety of story settings, stretching across the country and around the world. There’s also an all-new chapter noting some surprising “easter egg” type discoveries. 

Then it’s onto the Appendices: Eisgruber’s response to Philip Jose Farmer’s Wold Newton assertions, the rundown on the magazine’s three raconteurs, and a list of all 325 stories. And if that weren’t enough, we’re treated to two letters the author wrote not long after the publication of the original edition, dealing with his interaction with Walter B. Gibson and his reaction to Will Murray’s Duende History of the Shadow Magazine. Very cool stuff you won’t find anywhere else. 

This 50th Anniversary Edition is available in both hardcover and trade paperback, with two equally great covers. Can you resist owning them both? Only The Shadow knows!

PLEASE NOTE: Ordering directly from The Shadowed Circle at the link below will help support their fine journal.

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THE SHADOWED CIRCLE Strikes Back! (No. 5)

Editor Steve Donoso and his agents are back—with another issue that will leave you itching to strap on your automatics, don your hat and cloak, and wreak some justice on your own corner of the world.

The late Dick Myers leads us off, digging into the expenses of the man in black’s many agents and associates. There’s plenty of food for thought: Does Moe Shrevnitz take other fares? Does Harry Vincent play the stock market? Was Burbank forced to be on duty for 35 years with no time off? How much do Cliff Marsland and Hawkeye make as mobsters? Are there special facilities to maintain all the Shadow’s vehicles? Myers adds it all up, reaching an astounding total, and prying open a mystery as great as any our hero faced in print or on the air—how the heck did he pay for it all? I expect he’ll offer some insight on that in Part 3.

Tim King then does some fine detective work, uncovering the location of the B. Jonas dead drop. And that never-ending font of arcane knowledge known as Will Murray investigates the amazing three months in which Walter Gibson didn’t write a single Shadow story. As in Will’s Dark Avenger (reviewed in this issue by Steve Donoso) his citations of various stories make them all sound like must reading. Jeez, Will. Unlike you and Walter, some of us need time to sleep!

Malcolm Deeley brings new life to a 1989 serial from The Shadow Strikes! comic, in which our hero tangled with history’s mad monk Rasputin and romanced the lost Princess Anastasia. I’m rereading that now!

M.J. Moran has begun the herculean task of reading both the Shadow and Doc Savage pulp adventures in order of publication, and delivers a thought-provoking comparison of the two series.

Todd Severin’s look at comic books of the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s provides a lot of new-to-me info about the “high-camp” Archie series (and its connection to the equally non-canonical Belmont paperbacks) and DC’s revival of the real Shadow, featuring Mike Kaluta (thumbs up) and Frank Robbins (thumbs down).

I also enjoyed Sam Oakley’s in-depth look at the one-and-only Shadow TV pilot, 1954’s “Case of the Cotton Kimono,” and Lloyd Auerbach’s reminiscence of an encounter with Walter Gibson, Ghostbuster.

As usual, it’s all attractively packaged with new artwork by cover painter Joe Booth and several others. The back cover, by “Rover,” is sort of like the MAD feature “Spy vs. Spy” on steroids. Great work, everyone!

THE SHADOWED CIRCLE #4 !

Yep, it’s another issue of The Shadowed Circle, and it continues to amaze. Within this always-professional package are seven meaty articles exploring subjects of Shadowy interest.

First up is a remarkable piece penned fifty years ago by the late Dick Myers and published here for the first time here. For purposes of the article, Myers adopted a pose similar to that among some Sherlock Holmes fans that the Shadow and his agents were real people, and that Walter Gibson was a reporter recounting tales based on interviews with Shadow agents. This article, Part 1 of 3, theorizes on how the Shadow’s operation may have been financed. It’s fascinating stuff. Myers considers the cost of every aspect of the operation, right down to the number of bullets, abandoned automatics and lost or damaged cloaks and slouch hats. These musing force us to think of the whole operation in a new light, and I look forward what Part 2 will bring.

Will Murray, in “Shadowy Secrets,” then ponders a number of mysteries that have plagued him (and no doubt others) over the years, and, in the case of two of them—the Shadow’s fire opal ring, and Lamont Cranston’s Cobalt Club—posits likely solutions.

Ever wondered where the name “B. Jonas” came from. Tim King reports on some beyond-the-call-of-duty investigative work, with surprising results.

 I found Todd D. Severin’s deep dive into the Shadow comic strip and Street & Smith comic books particularly interesting. The comic strip has been reprinted a couple of times, and is not too hard to come by, but the run of Golden Age comics (which lasted 101 issues!) constitutes the most elusive area of Shadow scholarship, remaining beyond the reach of most ordinary mortals. And as Mr. Severin points out, the artwork for the final two years of the book (1947-1949) was handled by Bob Powell, one of the most stylish of Golden Age artists. The good news is that—if you can put up with a little fooling around and a few pop-up ads—all but a few of those issues can be read online, here: https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Shadow-Comics

Did you know the Shadow and Doc once met in one of those comics? I sure didn’t. Daryl Morrissey reveals all, followed by a blow-by-blow analysis of the pair’s 1990 “Double Danger Stories” meeting in DC comics.

Following up on his interview with Michael Uslan from issue 3, Darby Kern focuses on Uslan’s Shadow work for Dynamite comics. I wasn’t paying attention to them at the time – when Uslan brought our hero into meetings with the Green Hornet, the Avenger and Doc—but I will be now. We also get the inside scoop on a Shadow film that almost came to be.

For the finale, John Olsen delves into the script of the final Shadow radio broadcast (for which no recording is known to exist), putting period to our hero’s radio career.

Jeez, another great issue, with the promise of more to come!

THE SHADOWED CIRCLE #3 - The Good Stuff just Keeps on Coming!

I continue to be impressed with the quality of this pulp journal—not only with the professional production values, but with the excellence of the articles. After all these years, you’d think the last word on the Shadow had already been laid down, but editor Steve Donoso continues to find new and essential material. It leaves me thinking—Jeez, how it is we never knew this stuff before? All concerned with this and the two previous issues are to be thanked and congratulated.

Issue Three leads off with with a bit of fine historical analysis from Albert J. Emery on why the Shadow and other heroes couldn’t prevent (or win) WWII for us. Now we know! 

Todd Severin and Keith Holt continue their Shadowy history, shedding needed light on supporting characters, villains, editors, other publications, other scribes and the changing tastes of the public. 

Will Murray takes us on a sentimental journey behind the scenes on the set of Alec Baldwin’s 1994 Shadow movie—no foolin’, it’s almost like being there.

Tim King reveals his detective work in solving the mystery of where Walter Gibson got his inspiration for Burbank. 

Darby Kern begins an in-depth interview with Michael Uslan, who wrote Shadow comics before (and after) playing a vital part of in the comic book and film career of Batman. 

Steve Novak challenges us to do a little detective work of our own and discover some of the sights on the mean streets the Shadow must have walked. 

Editor Steve reviews a hard-to-resist volume, John Olsen’s The Shadow in Review. 

And Tim Hewitt brings it home with a fascinating look at the mysteries surrounding the Canadian issues of the pulp magazine.

It’s another great package, with the promise of more to come. Keep it up, guys. You’re doing the Shadow proud!