GI Joe (1951 Ziff Davis) 38

Painted cover by Clarence Doore. Stories and art by Dan De Carlo, Rudy Lapick, Vic Martin, and Ernie Schroeder. Neither a tie-in with the later toy line/cartoon nor a grim war comic, this first-gen GI Joe focused on lighthearted tales of military life. The Yardbirds, featuring Pvts. Windy and Whitey, was straight-up comedy of the Beetle Bailey/Sad Sack variety. "Ready-Money Reilly" thinks his pal's new comic strip is the perfect thing to help sell his base newspaper, but no one expects the strip to become a national craze. Pvt. Windy tries to sneak away from a training exercise to go on a date, in a story by future Archie legend Dan De Carlo. Joe tells some Korean kids another fairy tale, a wacky military-themed version of Jack and the Beanstalk with art by Mike Suchorsky. Painted cover with bondage elements by Clarence Doore. Army Chuckles; Johnny-Come-Lately; The Yardbirds: The Great Escape; Private Jokes; Adventures in Wonderland; Dear Gertrude; Khaki Humor; Beautiful Benny of Company B. 32 pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.10.