Ray Branner was “Star-Spangles” Branner, a teenager who wanted to join the Army and fight the Axis, but was too young to enlist (by a year, which would make him 17). He and his younger friends “Dixie” and “Candy” Kane (both boys) decided to fight the Axis on the home front by going after enemy agents. They earned money by working as messengers for the local Civilian Defense Corps. Ray, Dixie, and Candy had no powers, but they were good with their fists. Ray was also a skillful gymnast. Ray used a costume (from a “patriotic play” he starred in in high school) and a mask to disguise his identity in the first issue. Dixie and Candy went without costumes in both of their appearances. C-M-O Comics were commissioned by Chicago Mail Order Company. The characters wore clothes and used various products that could be ordered from the company catalogue. Many pages contained ads that mentioned each item by name and cited the catalog pages where each of those items could be ordered. This meant that contemporary readers could, for example, buy the costume Ray wore in the first issue piece-by-piece.
Description Ray Branner was “Star-Spangles” Branner, a teenager who wanted to join the Army and fight the Axis, but was too young to enlist (by a year, which would make him 17). He and his younger friends “Dixie” and “Candy” Kane (both boys) decided to fight the Axis on the home front by going after enemy agents. They earned money by working as messengers for the local Civilian Defense Corps. Ray, Dixie, and Candy had no powers, but they were good with their fists. Ray was also a skillful gymnast. Ray used a costume (from a “patriotic play” he starred in in high school) and a mask to disguise his identity in the first issue. Dixie and Candy went without costumes in both of their appearances. C-M-O Comics were commissioned by Chicago Mail Order Company. The characters wore clothes and used various products that could be ordered from the company catalogue. Many pages contained ads that mentioned each item by name and cited the catalog pages where each of those items could be ordered. This meant that contemporary readers could, for example, buy the costume Ray wore in the first issue piece-by-piece.
