The Phantom

Phantom writer Tony DePaul gives a behind-the-scenes look at the currently unfolding storyline, exploring and retelling the birth of the Ghost Who Walks By Tony DePaul Originally posted January 31, 2025, on www.tonydepaul.net TODAY looks like my best chance for a while to say something about the origin myth, this most detailed version published by King Features since 1936 when Lee Falk created the Phantom. I’ll stick to the first of its two weeks. Here, we’ll deal with week 1, illustrated by the pencils and inks Mike Manley filed. For those who came in late… Falk’s classic line. His most abiding interest as a storyteller was on the stage, as you may know. Note the two narrative voices in the opening day. In panel 1, the narrator knows Captain Walker’s intentions. It knows his version of the future. In panel 2, it knows more: Captain Walker won’t navigate the Cape of Storms and emerge into the Atlantic. He won’t set course for England. The ship is a carrack, true to 1536, not a cog, not a galleon, not a clipper. Over the years, artists, both in-house and licensed by the syndicate, have depicted the ship […]

In 1953, The Phantom stopped a woman-trafficking operation, showing those punks what a real man is like!     Click here to continue reading this storyline. And for more vintage comics, you’re already in the right place: Comics Kingdom!

The Phantom found himself in the middle of a catfight in 1961!     Conitnue reading here. For more vintage comics, stick with us right here on Comics Kingdom!

?A sketch of the “The Phantom”, one of my favorite long-standing strips.

Egmont launched the Swedish edition of their PHANTOM 80th anniversary commemorative book at the Gothenburg Book Fair at the end of September along with much-beloved PHANTOM editor, Ulf Granberg. The Gothenburg Fair is the largest cultural event in Scandinavia and receives over 100,000 visitors annually. Ulf Granberg at the PHANTOM 80 release party

The first time I ever saw or read anything about “Phantom of the Opera” was when I bought my first issue of “Famous Monsters Magazine” when I was around 7! It changed my life! I learned a lot because the Editor, Forest J. Ackerman, was a very intellectual and cultured man who loved the classic horror films and introduced its readers to the literature behind it as well. The first book I ever sent away for was “Phantom of the Opera” by Gaston Leroux. I was about 10 and I’d seen an ad for it somewhere and my Dad wrote me a check. That was just the beginning of a loooong relationship!

Everyone knows the fans in Australia are SUPER FANS when it comes to The Phantom. To celebrate the masked hero’s 80th Anniversary this year, King Features Australian agent, Merchantwise, staged a competition. Entrants had to purchase The Phantom 2016 Annual from Frew Publishing, and refer to the back inside cover ad to find out how to enter. The big Prize Package, with a total retail value of $550, included: Three (3) x 12 “ limited-edition Phantom statues One (1) Funko pop vinyl Phantom One (1) 3D hero lamp One (1) 2016 collectible stamp pack Entrants had to answer this question in 50 words or less: “Why do you still read the Phantom and how has the Phantom influenced your life?” They also had to send in a photo of their personal Phantom collection. The single Major Prize winner has been chosen! Congratulations to  NOAH WARNEKEN!!! And it’s no wonder. Check out his answer: “I started liking Phantom comics when my pop gave me a copy of an old Phantom comic he had. “Now I’m ADDICTED. I use my pocket money to buy them. They make me WANT to read (I didn’t like reading before) […]

“The Ghost Who Walks” will soon walk a new path, thanks to the creative minds at Silly Kid Games, LLC. Following a successful crowdfunding campaign for their Golem Academy board game and a recent announcement to bring the cult classic film “The Warriors” to the tabletop gaming world, the company has done it again—recently entering into a licensing agreement with King Features Syndicate to give “The Phantom” his own go at game night. The multi-player deck building game will explore the world of the crime-fighting hero who materializes from the shadows to rid the world of cruelty and injustice. The game is currently in pre-production. Additional details and updates will be released on the Silly Kid Games website at www.sillykidgames.com, as well as on Facebook and Twitter. Check out the story at ICv2 here: http://fb.me/2m1yuvDu6

Today I invite your attention to The Phantom’s upcoming octodecennial  anniversary, which occurs next Wednesday. So I offer some Phantomcentric odds and ends from the treasure room. If you are a Phantom Phan, you are probably already aware of the longevity of “The Ghost Who Walks,” the creation of the fertile mind of Lee Falk (1911-1999). The Phantom seemed to be inspired by the jungle adventures of the early twentieth century, by popular writers like Edgar Rice Burroughs and H. Rider Haggard. But some have pointed to a much more obscure influence, at least in some small way. I don’t mean to stir up controversy, but it is a topic worth putting out there. Falk’s Phantom has been often called the first mask-and-costume superhero of the comics, but a nagging possible usurper to this title is the obscure “Phantom Magician” who appeared a year before Falk’s hero, in the series “The Adventures Of Patsy” by Mel Graff for the Associated Press’s vibrant but insignificant syndicate. The flamboyantly attired “Phantom Magician” among other colorful cast mates in The Adventures Of Patsy (29 April 1935) © 1935 A.P. All Rights Reserved. The […]

Dynamite Entertainment is proud to announce the January 2015 launch of “The King Event,” an epic comic book event that marks the 100th anniversary of King Features Syndicate. The celebratory event will bring history’s most famous comic strip heroes – Flash Gordon, Mandrake the Magician, Prince Valiant, The Phantom  and Jungle Jim, to comic books with an interconnected miniseries that builds to a grand crossover in May. The Phantom #1, by Brian Clevinger and Brent Schoonover, reintroduces the daring adventurer Lothar in his new guise as The Ghost Who Walks, as he explores the birthright of a heroic lineage — one not his by blood, but by heroic deed. Writer Brian Clevinger says, “I think it’s great that Lothar gets to be The Phantom. This guy has no direct connection to the legacy, but he respects it, and he’s the best guy around for maintaining it. This outsider’s perspective lets him question what it means to be The Phantom and it lets us play around with what its ancient legacy means in the 21st century.” Regarding the plot of The Phantom, Clevinger explains, “It’s the first time in 200 years that worldwide […]