Comic Book Cats, number 92: Underworld #3, drawn by Tom Hickey, published by D.S. Publishing in June 1948.“Monk Maloney: The Terror of No Mans’ Land” is the tale of a brutal, ruthless mobster who loved animals: cats, dogs, birds, you name it. I suppose we can consider Monk Maloney the Dr. Dolittle of Organized Crime; in between shakedowns, hold-ups, gang wars, and cold-blooded ambushes, our pal Monk finances the construction of a hospital for homeless animals. After all, Monk proudly proclaims, “Animals desoives da best!”
Sadly for Monk Maloney, he meets his end in a shoot-out with police. As the narration proclaims: “And so, ironically, the only one who mourned Monk Maloney was… his pet pigeon!”
Tom Hickey’s career began in 1936 when his work appeared in More Fun Comics and New Comics. He remained in comic books thru to the mid-1960s. As with many other Golden Age artists, Hickey drew stories for a variety of genres: adventure, sci-fi, crime, war, Westerns, funny animals, and romance. He passed away in 1984.
Jim Thompson clued me into Underworld #3 when he sent me scans of the previous story in this issue, which sees budding serial killer Belle Guinness setting fire to her pet cat. Um, thanks but no thanks! If I really have to choose a homicidal maniac, I’ll go with the one who at least loves our feline friends. But you can read both stories on the Comic Book Plus website.
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