Carnie Calahan is The Barker for Colonel Lane's Mammoth Circus, which hasht it big with a new attrac tion -- Belinda, the Bearded Lady. Belinda has the longest and most beautiful beard of any hirstute lady who ever hit the big top, and customers are flocking in. But Belinda is not only attracting customers; she's got the attention of grifter Swifty Norton, who spies an opprtinoty for some easy money. Norton declares his love for Belinda but she is not that receptive until he tells her about the big money they can make at another circus. Swift and Belinda run off and the Colonel sends The Barker to bring her back. Belinda insists on staying with Swifty so the Barker has to come upo with another plan. He heads to an escort agency and rents a handsome gigalo to pretend he is Belinda's husband. In the confusion, The Barker grabs Belinda and takes her back to the Colonel's circus. Then Belinda's wife and her two bearded kids show up. Turns out Belinda is really Benny and the Colonel is out one main attraction.
Quicksilver, the masked acrobat of justice in a blue and white body suit (don't ask), watches as a window cleaner is shot dead on the top floor of one of the city's buildings. Seeing a broken window across the street where the shot must have come from, he dives out the window and, with a few twists and turns, confronts the shooter. But the shooter still has the gun and is not afraid to use it. All Quicksilver has is his natural ability and his acrobat's rope. Things don't go well for the shooter, who had already killed a lawyer before he shot the window cleaner (who happened to spy the crime).
Steve Wood, the waterfrom private detective has taken his secretary Sally fishing on the wharf. Sally's line hooks onto a body, which turns out to be a dying ship's captain with a nasty knife wound. Steve and Sally row out to the ship, only to be repulsed. Undeterred, they go to the office of the boat's owner, who sloughs them off. Through some juducious snooping throw a waste basket, Sally comes across proof that the ship is being used to smuggle narcotics. The gang abpard the ship get the drop on Steve, but Sally pulls a gun on them as the police providently show up. Steve congratulates himself on his detective work, while Sally says, "What about me?" Steve says Sally helped by hook the kniofed sea captain with her fishing line. Women! They're just not appreciated in 1947!
Talk about not being appreciated. Police detective Sally O'Neil was the one to gather evidence to arrest lady crime boss Lulette, but the captain has assigned Detective McTagg to escort the felon to the coast for trial. A male cop wouold be better able to stop any atempt to free her, you see. McTagg, handcuffed to Lulette, has accidently dropped the key to the handcuffs. Sally recovers the key and hurries to return it to McTagg, but he and his prisoner have already boarded the train. Before Sally can get to McTagg, Lulette's gang has captured him, but they cannot free Lulette with the key. They head to a nearby blacksmith to free Lulette, followed by Sally. Sally and the blacksmith defeat the gang, while McTagg is knocked silly, and Sally ends up delivering the prisoner to the coast anyway.
In Granny Gumshoe's latest case, her granddaught Lippy sees a dog digging just before s dogcatcher nabs the mutt. Curious as what the dog was after, Lippy contnuies digging and pulls up a box full of money. It seems that Jake Sleek, the embezzler who stole a million dollars from the bank, eldude the dragnet to meet up with Dr. Ripp, crazed underworld surgeon. Ripp implants Sleek's brain and vocal cords into a dog. As a dog, Sleek can remain undetected while the police look for him. It was Sleek as a talking dog that Lippy spied the crook digging.Granny gumshoe goes to the pound and encounters the talking dog and brings him home. The plot is revealed, Ripp is arrested, and Sleek decides to remain a talking dog. After all, they can't arrest a dog for embezzlement, and a talking dog can look forward to a future of fame and fortune.
There are a few other inconsequential stories in this issue, including a two-page text story about The Barker.
A very mixed bag. Some interesting stories mixed in with some insipid ones. You can't have everything.
Give this issue a try. there may be something you like.
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