WILL EISNER created the The Spirit in 1940. For twelve years, the adventures of masked crime fighter Denny Colt appeared in newspapers and comic books around the United States. From his secret base in Wildwood Cemetery, The Spirit battled evil geniuses, criminal masterminds, and aliens; from Central City to the far-flung corners of the world — even to the moon! He attracted the most seductive and dangerous femme fatales and encountered the desperate, the devious and the damned with only his wits and his two gloved fists.

C O N T E N T S

Story by Story with Will Eisner by Tom Heintjes

1940
1. The Origin of The Spirit
2. The Return of Dr. Cobra
3. The Black Queen
4. Voodoo in Manhattan
5. Johnny Marsten
6. The Black Queen's Army
7. Mr. Midnight
8. Eldas Thayer
9. Palyachi, The Killer Clown
10. The Death Dolls
11. The Kidnapping of Daisy Kay
12. The Morger Boys
13. The Orphans
14. Orang the Ape Man
15. The Return of Orang
16. Ebony's X-Ray Eyes

The Wildwood News by Tom Heintjes
1. The Real Beginning
2. Setting Up Shop
3. Taking A Chance
4. Writing the Rules

I N   P R I N T

The Spirit first appeared in print as the lead feature of a syndicated comics section produced by Eisner's studio and publisher Everett Arnold. The stories were also published in comic book format in various Quality Comics publications, particularly Police Comics, also featuring Jack Cole's Plastic Man. The Spirit stories have been reprinted in several collections and editions from various publishers over the years. The main publisher was Kitchen Sink Press, who published the entire run of post-War Spirit stories as well as a selection of pre-War stories in The Spirit: The Origin Years. DC Comics are currently publishing The Spirit Archives, reprinting the entire series in high quality hard cover editions. • GC

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