Book Review: The Complete Chester Gould's Dick Tracy Volume 3: 1935-1936, by Chester Gould (2007)

The cover of The Complete Chester Gould's Dick Tracy Volume 3: 1935-1936, published by IDW Publishing in 2007.

The third volume of Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy, published by IDW Publishing in 2007, takes the comic strip from January of 1935 to July of 1936. Throughout the volume we see Chester Gould experiment with different approaches as he honed his storytelling chops. Gould’s strip follows the titular detective as he battles criminals using his brain, his brawn, and the very latest in scientific advancements. From the very beginning, Dick Tracy was very popular, and very violent. 

As Max Allan Collins writes in the Introduction to Volume 3, Gould “has already started to focus on his primary mode of storytelling: the chase.” Many Dick Tracy storylines focus on the desperate decisions that criminals make as the noose around them tightens. Gould was a master of claustrophobic horror, as villains often get trapped in small physical spaces, mimicking the way in which their moral choices are also shrinking.  

Boris Arson telephones for Chief Yellowpony, March 27, 1935. Pawnee, Oklahoma, was Chester Gould's birthplace, and it gets referenced occasionally in the strip.

Volume 3 finds Gould introducing numerous supporting characters who assist Tracy and his sidekick Pat Patton at various points. Among these characters are: Chief Yellowpony, Toby Townley, Jim Trailer, and Memphis Smith. None of these characters became regulars in the strip, and it might be that Gould was simply trying different things out to see what worked the best. 

Chief Yellowpony and his wife and daughter, March 30, 1935. This is typical of Chief Yellowpony's stereotypical speech patterns.

Chief Yellowpony was a Native American who hailed from Pawnee, Oklahoma, also the hometown of Chester Gould. Chief Yellowpony is a broad stereotype, speaking in choppy sentences of broken English: “Much thanks! Me heap grateful.” Chief Yellowpony is ultimately a good and honorable character, as he helps Dick Tracy and Pat Patton track down Boris and Zora Arson and “Cutie” Diamond, but he is a stereotype, nonetheless.

Toby Townley was a cute blonde girl with big eyes. She’s a nice girl, but unfortunately her boyfriend was a bank teller who eventually “borrowed” some of the bank’s money to bet on horse races. Toby’s storyline takes up much of the summer of 1935, as she is wrongly convicted of murder, and the strip follows her to prison, where she’s blinded during a prison riot. Toby’s storyline is one of the few times in Dick Tracy when we see someone falsely convicted of a crime. (Of course, Tracy is able to prove Toby’s innocence and get her released from jail.) 

Toby may have been intended to serve as a love interest for Tracy’s sidekick Pat Patton, as it’s Pat who finds the specialist that cures her blindness. Toby and Pat go to a movie together, but that’s as far as things go. It’s curious Gould didn’t keep Toby around as a girlfriend for Pat, although maybe it would have been too much for the strip to have two long-suffering girlfriends of detectives. I also find it odd that Gould never fleshed out Pat Patton’s home life, especially given Gould’s interest in comedy—Pat was always the comedic figure during the early years of the strip, and Gould surely could have found some comedy in Patton dating Toby. Many years later, after Gould had retired from the strip, Pat and Toby reconnected and were married in 1982. 

Mobster Cut Famon, January 23, 1936. Famon was based on Al Capone, and had just finished serving a sentence for tax evasion.

Jim Trailer was a “G-Man,” 1930’s slang for government agent, who first assisted Tracy during the Cut Famon case. Trailer made sporadic appearances in the strip until 1940. Like many other characters, he returned to the strip after Chester Gould’s 1977 retirement. 

And then there’s Memphis Smith. Memphis is gangster Lips Manlis’ valet. Memphis is firmly in the Stepin Fetchit tradition of African American servants. Even by 1936 standards, he’s a terrible example of the worst racial stereotypes. Memphis’ chief personality characteristic is his cowardice, he speaks in a stereotypical dialect straight out of Amos ’n’ Andy and he frequently punctuates his speech with “yowsah.” In short, Memphis Smith is just the worst. Thankfully, Chester Gould had sense enough to drop Memphis fairly quickly. 

And speaking of African American characters in Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy, the unfortunate truth is that there simply aren’t very many. Memphis Smith is the most prominent African American character that Chester Gould ever put into Dick Tracy. The only major African American character in the strip, female detective Lee Ebony, was introduced in 1980, after Gould no longer wrote or drew it. To my knowledge, Chester Gould never had Dick Tracy taking on an African American criminal. The positive spin on that is Gould didn’t create African American villains who were crude stereotypes. The negative spin is that Gould didn’t include African Americans at all in his fictional universe—even as bystanders, innocent victims, police officers, etc. Gould’s blind spot towards African Americans is especially jarring since the unnamed city where Dick Tracy works shares many similarities with Chicago.  

Chester Gould always felt that he was competing not only against other comic strips, but also against the news headlines of the day. In Volume 3 Gould is working from real life: Boris Arson’s escape from prison with a gun carved from a potato echoes John Dillinger’s escape with a wooden gun, Cut Famon is meant to be Al Capone, and the photo that Zora Arson and “Cutie” Diamond pose for echoes the famous snapshot of Bonnie and Clyde. During the gangster era of the 1930’s, Gould had more than enough real-life material to pick from. Dick Tracy always reflected its era, but perhaps never more so than in the early days of the strip. 

Dick Tracy has some words of wisdom for the Mayor of Homeville, November 13, 1935.

The major stories in Volume 3 are all quite different from each other. Boris Arson and his sister Zora embark on the type of chase that will become a Dick Tracy classic. This is straight-forward action comics at its finest. Then we have Toby Townley’s storyline, which occupies much of the summer of 1935, and is a more melodramatic tale of an innocent caught up in circumstances beyond her control. Toby’s storyline might have been an attempt by Gould to interest female readers in the strip. Towards the end of 1935, Tracy gets an offer to serve as chief of police for the small town of Homeville. He gets a leave of absence from Chief Brandon and goes off to clean up the corrupt small town. It’s an interesting interlude, and it finds Tracy getting enmeshed in small town politics as he battles mobster Cut Famon. After that, it’s on to the “Hotel Murders,” a rare example of a whodunit in Dick Tracy. That case introduces us to Lips Manlis, and although Manlis is innocent of the murders, he plays a large role in the strip for months to follow as Tracy convinces him to go straight. 

For me, Lips Manlis always conjures up an image of Paul Sorvino playing him in the 1990 movie Dick Tracy. Specifically, I think of the scene where he’s noisily slurping down oysters. In the comic strip, it’s never made very clear what exactly Lips Manlis does, or has done. Manlis is questioned in the hotel murders, but he’s not the guilty party. When Tracy questions Manlis again two months later, Tracy suddenly gets the notion that Manlis should go straight. 

Dick Tracy waxes philosophic to Pat Patton, May 16, 1936.

It's an interesting plot twist, and Tracy raises some fascinating questions about human nature, and how we perceive people. As Tracy says to Pat Patton in the May 16, 1936 strip: “Did it ever occur to you that maybe a gangster wouldn’t be a gangster if he was treated like an ordinary human?” But because we don’t really know much about Lips Manlis, it’s hard to be very invested in his rehabilitation. And Manlis’ desire to go straight happens so quickly, it doesn’t have much drama in it. The guy just tried to blow up Tracy in an elevator, and now Tracy thinks he can go straight? The storyline is an interesting contrast to the later Dick Tracy strips of the 1960’s and 1970’s, where Gould was often critical of the judicial process, and the whole “innocent until proven guilty” thing. 

Dick Tracy spreads the good word to Lips Manlis, May 20, 1936. Despite Tracy's "reborn" phrase, he's actually not talking about religion.

Tracy gives Manlis a new name, calling him “Bob Honor.” And while Manlis’ rehabilitation might seem like a lame beginning to a new storyline, it does introduce us to his girlfriend, Mimi, who will wreak havoc and chaos in the strip throughout the summer of 1936, spanning Volumes 3 and 4. Ultimately, Mimi proves to be a more interesting villain than Manlis ever was. 

Bob Honor gets harsh with his ex-flame Mimi, June 4, 1936.

When Mimi finds Lips at his new job as a watchman at a warehouse, he pretends he doesn’t know her and sends her packing with this cruel parting shot: “I’ll give you two seconds to haul your fat face down the street—before I call a wagon and turn you over to the dicks.” That’s just harsh. But Mimi proves the adage, “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,” as she makes it clear she’ll stop at nothing until she gets Lips back. Mimi even causes a fiery car crash, in which her left hand is crushed. As Volume 3 ends, Mimi learns from an underworld doctor that her hand is infected and will have to be amputated. She blithely says, “Then amputate.” This is not a woman to mess with. 

There are some odd moments in Volume 3. Like when Tracy inexplicably tells Tess Trueheart’s kidnappers that he knows where they are and sends Toby Townley in to be the intermediary. It’s just a plot device to have her demonstrate that she’s on the side of the law. But realistically, it makes no sense. Tracy could have taken the kidnappers by surprise, but he chooses not to. 

Tracy, in disguise as Boyle, gets offered drugs by Cut Famon, January 25, 1936. Boy, you could really show a lot of stuff in the comics back in the day!

Another weird plot point that seemingly comes out of nowhere is when, at the end of the Cut Famon storyline, Tess reveals that she’s been dressing as a man and driving an oil truck in order to learn some clues. We never find out what those clues are. This plot device allows Tess and Junior to participate in the final ambush of Famon, but it’s quite odd. Also random: the time when Tracy, in disguise as a member of Famon’s gang, shoots up with a drug, presumably an amphetamine, at the urging of Famon before a robbery. Huh. 

Volume 3 of Dick Tracy is an excellent example of the strip’s combination of engaging villains, scientific policework, and thrilling action sequences.

Book Review: The Complete Chester Gould's Dick Tracy Volume 2: 1933-1935, by Chester Gould (2007)

Cover of The Complete Chester Gould's Dick Tracy Volume 2: 1933-1935, published by IDW Publishing in 2007.

Volume 2 of The Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy covers the period from May 1933 to January 1935. I reviewed Volume 1 of The Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy here. As Volume 2 begins, Stooge Viller and Steve the Tramp are both in jail. But not for long, as they make a daring escape and go on the lam. Stooge and Steve are both bent on getting revenge on Dick Tracy and his adopted son, Junior. 

Dick Tracy flattens Stooge Viller,and perhaps coins a famous phrase, September 6, 1933.

There were no sacred cows in Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy, and Junior’s father, the blind prospector Hank Steele, is one of the many innocents who meet their end at the hands of ruthless criminals. Stooge Viller shoots Hank when he has a chance encounter with Junior and Hank in Canada. It was probably inevitable that something was going to happen to Hank, so Junior would be able to live with Dick Tracy again. By September of 1933, Steve and Stooge are once again back in jail. And not a moment too soon, because their storyline went on a little too long for me. By the end, it seemed like even Gould was losing interest in the storyline. 

Jean Penfield fixes her huge eyes on Dick Tracy, January 22, 1934.

Jean Penfield, relaxing at home, and inviting Dick Tracy over, January 28, 1934. Jean was an interesting character, and obviously a way for Gould to work a cute female into his strip.

The next six months of the strip concerns racketeers and political corruption. Many villains are introduced, and it’s the most complicated storyline Gould had yet attempted. There are some strong moments throughout the story arc. The strip gets an infusion of energy in January of 1934, with the introduction of the character of Jean Penfield, an aspiring author. Penfield’s subject is gangsters, and the political corruption in Tracy’s city. Jean is a young brunette with large eyes, and she becomes a romantic rival for Tess Trueheart, Tracy’s on-again, off-again fiancée. Tracy is even seen kissing Jean, which she takes to mean that they’re engaged. When Jean plants a story about their engagement in the newspapers, Tracy is outraged. So is Tess Trueheart, and when the women encounter each other on the street, they get into a hair-pulling fight. 

Jean Penfield and Tess Trueheart fight over Dick Tracy, March 31, 1934.

Corrupt lawyer Spaldoni hears about Tess and Jean’s fight, and he writes letters to each of them, purporting to be from the other woman. He hopes to escalate their hatred, and as Tess and Jean fight again, Spaldoni shoots Jean with a gun he has planted Tess’ fingerprints on. Tess is arrested for Jean’s murder. But Tracy knows there’s more to the story, and Spaldoni makes a deathbed confession after being wounded by Tracy. And then, just as this excellent, months-long storyline wraps up with Spaldoni’s death and Tess’ exoneration, the strip goes seriously off the rails.

J. Scotland Bumpsted, May 13, 1934. It's never a good sign when other characters in the comic strip make fun of your name.

Spaldoni’s mother appears at his deathbed. It turns out that she’s British, and her last name is Bumpsted, which Spaldoni changed when he entered his life of crime. She also has another son, one who has become a famous European detective. Okay, that’s cheesy enough right there. But wait until you hear the name of her other son: J. Scotland Bumpsted. Even the other characters in the strip think he’s ridiculous. J. Scotland Bumpsted wears a monocle, calls his mother “mumsy,” and is a parody of a British detective. Then Steve the Tramp breaks out of jail again, and he teams up with Larceny Lu, a female villain who was first introduced in 1932. It feels as though Gould had used up all his creative energy on the racketeers storyline, and when that wrapped up, he had no idea what to do.

Pat Patton uncovers a "clew," October 10, 1934. Gould used this spelling variation for years. According to a blog post, the Chicago Tribune, the home of Gould's syndicate, used odd spellings like this from the 1930's until the 1970's. This was at the behest of publisher Robert McCormick, cousin of Joseph Medill Patterson, who accepted Chester Gould's submission of Plainclothes Tracy in 1931.

When Steve the Tramp breaks out of jail for the second time in 1934, I was just done with him. He was a great villain when he was introduced in 1932, but to use him in a third storyline was just too much. When Steve is on the lam in 1934, he’s seriously wounded, which results in his left leg being amputated—an early example of Gould’s obsession with amputees. After Steve goes back to jail, he doesn’t reappear in the strip until 1941, when he has reformed and is released from prison. 

Chester Gould's narration asks one of the oddest questions in the history of the strip, December 6, 1934. Why, no, I never have seen the inside of a nitroglycerine plant!

Larceny Lu isn’t a very exciting villain, but she does introduce us to Mary Steele, Junior’s mother. Mary was married to Junior’s father, Hank Steele, but she left him for Steve the Tramp, who was cruel and abusive to her. Steve then left Mary and took Junior with him. Larceny Lu plays off Mary’s maternal feelings and attempts to blackmail her into claiming half of Junior’s inheritance from Hank Steele. Mary meets Dick Tracy and Junior, and while Tracy learns her real identity, she asks that he not tell Junior that she is his mother. As Volume 2 ends, Junior still doesn’t know who Mary Steele is, but he’ll figure it out in Volume 3. 

Pat Patton threatens a hoodlum, December 8, 1933. Needless to say, panels like this haven't aged very well.

The last villain in Volume 2 is Boris Arson. Despite his name, he doesn’t go around setting fires. He’s the leader of a group that was planning on blowing up six major banks in the U.S. at the same time. Arson’s political goals are never clearly stated, but he seems like an anarchist type. Tracy works for the federal government during the Arson case, and sidekick Pat Patton gets to show off his skills as he apprehends one of Arson’s gang and recovers the stolen nitroglycerine that was going to be used to blow up the banks. At the end of Volume 2, Arson is about to be apprehended again, but, spoiler alert, it won’t last for long. 

Volume 2 of Dick Tracy has its ups and downs, but at its best it demonstrates Chester Gould’s trademark mix of scientific police work and tense action sequences.