Schomburg, Frazetta and Moldoff Work on Black Terror #22, at Auction

A comic book including work by three comic book legends in Sheldon Moldoff, Alex Schomburg and Frank Frazetta?  Sign me up.  The hidden gem in question is Black Terror #22, a March 1948 cover-dated classic from Ned Pines’ Standard/Better/Nedor. This issue features a “Xela” cover by Schomburg, a Black Terror science fiction story by Moldoff, and another Black Terror story with inks by Frazetta.  An underappreciated late Golden Age issue with appeal for a wide range of collectors, there’s a copy of Black Terror #22 (Nedor Publications, 1948) CGC FN- 5.5 Off-white to white pages up for auction in the 2023 February 23 The Thrillingly Exciting Heroes of Nedor Comics Showcase Auction #40219 at Heritage Auctions.

Somewhat surprisingly, Schomburg created around 240 covers for Standard/Better/Nedor from 1940-1951, more than he did for any other comic book publisher.  These including about 40 airbrushed covers 1947-1948, which are often referred to as the “Xela” covers due to Schomburg signing his work from this time frame using his first name spelled backward.  But Schomburg also did penciled and inked covers that he signed Xela during this period, and his cover here is a stand-out example.

In the lead feature by Sheldon Moldoff, the Black Terror encounters a nuclear physicist named Dr. Fission, who uses a time machine to send the him into the future to face “the challenge of the unknown.” In this weird future, a dictator uses high-tech visual dreams of beautiful women (and other visions, presumably) to subdue the population of Earth. The Black Terror resists this mind control and sparks an uprising against this tyrant.

According to GCD, Frazetta provided some inks for the Black Terror story “Violins for Villainy” in this issue.  This would have been relatively early in the professional career of Frazetta, who would have been 20 years old at this time.  His other work for Pines was largely for Standard/Better/Nedor’s funny animal line on titles such as Barnyard Comics, Buster Bunny, Goofy Comics and Happy Comics.

This copy of Black Terror #22 has been graded CGC FN- 5.5 Off-white to white pages, and there are only 23 entries for this issue on the CGC census.  A surprising confluence of the work of three legendary comic book artists, there’s a copy of Black Terror #22 (Nedor Publications, 1948) CGC FN- 5.5 Off-white to white pages up for auction in the 2023 February 23 The Thrillingly Exciting Heroes of Nedor Comics Showcase Auction #40219 at Heritage Auctions.   If you are new to Heritage Auctions to check out their FAQ on the bidding process and related matters.

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