The Celebrated Cases of Dick Tracy, 1931-1951

by Chester Gould

A collection of early Dick Tracy comic strip adventures presents Tracy's battles with scores of underworld characters, including the Mole, the Blank, B.B. Eyes, 88 Keyes, and Breathless Mahoney.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Comic Strips, Mystery, Crime, Graphic Novels Comics, Detective

291 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1970

About the author

Chester Gould was a U.S. cartoonist and the creator of the Dick Tracy comic strip, which he wrote and drew from 1931 to 1977. Gould was known for his use of colorful, often monstrous, villains.

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

If my house was on fire, I'd grab this book.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

A generous collection of Dick Tracy’s best over a 20-year spread, including his first appearance. The over-sized volume opens with an interview with creator Chester Gould and an enthusiastic introduction by Ellery Queen (Frederic Dannay).

Tracy’s cases center on a non-stop cast of bizarre criminals with quirky habits and monikers. Gould delivers a constant stream of action introducing new perils in a stream-of-consciousness approach to plotting that morphs from one danger to another. His artwork evolved quickly during the early years and developed into a uniquely beautifully grotesque style that perfectly complements his content and characters.

[I.D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly solid stories from the early days of the strip. A few villains (flat top, mumbles, breathless Mahoney) that were in the movie show up here and it’s neat to see how they originally appeared. What struck me most was the level of brutality, violence, and death in these. People get shot, drowned, mauled, burned, etc unflinchingly. It’s also a well done continuous use of the daily format to keep people reading. Overall a very nice collection well worth tracking down.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

My grandparents subscribed to the Sunday Chicago Tribune, so as a child I would read Dick Tracy. I found this book in a library sale and was pleased to discover Mr. Tracy was even more fun than I'd remembered.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bizarre story lines, hideous villains, some rather violent action, and one of the best serialized comic strips ever created. Crime doesn't pay for square-jawed yellow trench coated detective Tracy's foes, but it sure entertains.

[Rosibel · Rating 5 out of 5]

You going back in time with this one, love it and so glad that I own this book.

[Rory Toohey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can appreciate it for what it was at the time, but reading 80 year old newspaper strips sometimes feels like decoding hieroglyphics.

[I Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

I actually shouted out loud for their success.

[Dan Blackley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another good collection. It covers more of the later characters. Flattop is in this one.

[Loyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-reading Chester Gould's classic Dick Tracy stories gives you some sense of how really twisted the crime literature of the 1930's really was. Gould's decisive line work is expressive and dynamic, his characters -- especially the villains -- bloodthirsty and vivid. The names are vivid enough: Flattop, 88 Keys, The Brow, The Mole, Little Face. Dick Tracy's colorful Rogue's Gallery falls somewhere between The Sopranos and Batman in terms of sheer grotesque.

When you read these stories the photos of Weegee come to mind -- gangland terrors rendered in stark black and white. The impossibly-square-jawed Tracy and his friends, despite the horrors swirling around them, embody a type of American hero that seems in short supply these days. Read this book and prepare to be shocked and surprised.

[J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprising in a lot of ways. My general pop-culture knowledge tells me that Dick Tracy was mostly about bizarre villains and gangsters, but it was really a police procedural series, which simultaneously follows villains and heroes. Anyway, the whole thing feels surprisingly fresh for a set of comic strips 60 years old. There are a lot of coincidences and weird happenings, but that sort of stuff is pretty standard in a serial. Invariably, although I'm not particularly going to seek out the Complete Dick Tracy or anything, I thought this was really good, and I would read more.

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The good-old days are often type-cast as a kinder, gentler time. Thankfully, Dick Tracy was anything but. It would be decades before comics would overcome the comics code to once again deal with gritty subject matter as well as Dick Tracy did.

[Ben Kreis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I stumbled upon this book many years ago at a little library in Wayne, Nebraska. I can't tell you how many times I checked it out. Probably the only library book that was ever in danger of me stealing it. And now I kind of wish I had stolen it.

[tanya ^_^ · Rating 5 out of 5]

love it!!!