Long-running
adventure comic strip. Created by
Lee Falk in
1934. Starred (natch)
Mandrake the Magician, a
debonair guy with a
mustache and
tuxedo who spent his time either performing
magic shows or using his skills in
sleight-of-hand and
hypnotism to solve
crimes. Hell, it was the
'30s.
Everyone was solving
crimes.
The comic strip was also one of the first to have a
racially-integrated cast, with the musclebound
Lothar assisting
Mandrake on most of his adventures. Mandrake's
girlfriend,
Princess Narda, also tagged along on the
magician's escapades.
Falk originally wrote and drew the strip, but soon gave up the
illustration chores to other
artists so he could concentrate on
writing. He died in March 1999, but the strip is still being produced and
published today.