As far as I can tell, this is the second story featuring Joe King, the Cowboy Sahib! There are a few online sources here and there that reports there are more published stories starring the Sultan of the Six-Shooter, but I can't find any confirmation of it other than a few sparse entries about an appearance in an unnamed book with the mention of "contains a Cowboy Sahib story". In most of the entries the title of the comic book and issue number is not mentioned, making confirmation difficult.
Interestingly, I have not found much mention in Leonard Starr's credits claiming he worked on the character. Perhaps the notion of Sheer High-Concept Awesomeness is not one of the criteria Starr's biographers use when compiling a record of the body of his work. If there are any more Cowboy Sahib stories out there I sure can't find them.
The presumed second tale of Cowboy Sahib continues his battle against the vengeful Sultan Malevo after a fashion. Since issue #27 was published in the early 1950s no comic book story is considered marketable without some reference to the Red Menace of communist Russia. So for this issue an appropriate villain in the form of the Rasputin-like Konchak the Cossack is introduced to the story dynamic. The card-cheating Sultan Malevo and the rabid Konchak team up against Cowboy Sahib and all out war ensues, not to mention that the psycho girlfriend is back and still can't make up her mind whether to smooch or stab the westerner.
The stereotypical Konchak is heck-bent on building a peaceful worker's paradise in India through violent, bloody anti-Freedom revolution and only Cowboy Sahib stands in the way of his mad dreams of taking over the entire country. Alliances shift, friends become enemies, confused lovers toss hand-grenades into the boudoir and all while Cowboy Sahib tames himself a wild elephant, the better to lead his jungle animal friends and native army to war against the despicable Konchak.
Tags: Cowboy Sahib
Didn't the Joker use the pseudonym Joe King a few times?
ReplyDeleteWhy do I keep thinking Cowboy Sahib is an eleborate hoax you're springing on us?
ReplyDeleteCowboy Sahib is very real.
ReplyDeleteRiding a tiger is much more awesome. How can you beat that?
ReplyDelete