Marvel (Indicia: "Sphere Publications, Inc."). June, 1949. Good+ (2.5). Great eye appeal. Firm, voluptuous and supple with covers pleasantly slick to the touch, but with spine three-fourths split and chips at top right corner of front and back covers. Sun shadows to bottom and open edge of back cover. Off-white pages, edges tanning, marginal chips to several pages. All pages present and intact (page count: 52 including covers). If not for the bum spine, a solid 3.5-4.0. Cover pencils and inks by Dan DeCarlo. Stan Lee scripts, Dan DeCarlo art. First issue with DeCarlo art.

Millie, vacationing on a remote desert isle, narrowly avoids being ravished by an ape and eaten by cannibals. Despite page after page of titillating scenarios, the stories are rather mechanical and flat. Still, Stan Lee's perfunctory scripts are redeemed by Dan DeCarlo's "good girl art," seen here in its incipient stages. Millie the Model #18 was DeCarlo's first ish of a successful ten-year run. The experience he gained drawing Millie, Chili and their pals served him well when he started freelancing for Archie Comics, where his renderings soon surpassed Bob Montana's as emblematic of Archie's house style.

Meanwhile, on the editorial page, "The Editors" offer a tepid defense of their product in response to the critics of violent crime comics: "The grown-ups of this world owe you young people an apology, because we haven't made the world a very secure and peaceful place in which to live. Our comics portray, it is true, some of the unhappy things that happen in the world. But they are things you know about anyway – and in the stories, at least, the good people always win. All of us wish it was that way in real life as well."

A limited edition of 100 softcover and 15 hardcover catalogues are available. Over 200 pages, fully illustrated. Fun reference, great keepsake. Softcovers $40, dust-jacketed hardcover with limitation plate $200. To order, contact ivan@pbagalleries.com or call 415-989-2665

R. Crumb says, "I found [PBA's catalogue] so interesting that I am saving it for the texts that accompany the comics which were put up for auction. This is some of the best commentary I've yet seen on the quality of the content of comic books. I especially enjoyed the reviews of the post-war horror comics. Great. Priceless."

Consignments welcome for PBA's Spring 2021 Comic Book sale. Pre-Code Horror, Golden Age and Silver Age comics, original art and ephemera sought. Send inquiries to ivan@pbagalleries.com or call 415-989-2665