Top-Notch Laugh Comics/Laugh Comix

In a change of editorial direction, from issue #28 (July 1942) the story emphasis changed to humor strips and the title became Top-Notch Laugh Comics to reflect this. All the long-running adventure series from Top-Notch Comics ended between issue #24 (Feb. 1942) and #27 (May 1942), leaving only Black Hood and Kardak the Mystic Magician as non-humor strips in the title; although Kardak only lasted until issue #30 (Nov. 1942). This change of emphasis to humor strips had been presaged in Top-Notch Comics #25 (March 1942) when "Snoopy McGook, the Soapy Sleuth" joined the roster. From issue #28 he was joined by "Pokey Oakey", "Senor Siesta", the boxing humor strip "Canvas Back Corkle", "Percy The Three Monkey-teers" and, from issue #29 (Sept. 1942), "Gloomy Gus - the Homeless Ghost". One of these new humor strips, "Dotty and Ditto" by Bill Woggon

Bill Woggon

William Woggon was an American cartoonist who created the comic book Katy Keene.Woggon was born the fourth of six children in Toledo, Ohio, and he grew up there. Fascinated by an art correspondence course that his older brother Elmer Woggon was taking, he became interested in drawing...

 (best known for his "Katy Keene

Katy Keene

Katy Keene, a character created by Bill Woggon, has appeared in several comic book series published by Archie Comics since 1945. She is a model/actress/singer known as America's Queen of Pin-Ups and Fashions....

" comic) was unusual as it featured a continuing storyline as opposed to single-issue scripts.

A peculiar effect of MLJ retaining Black Hood, one of their most popular characters, on the cover of Top-Notch Laugh Comics was that he shared the covers in humorous situations with the other featured characters, despite maintaining the dark, violent tone of his previous stories within the issues.

Despite the switch to a humor theme, Top-Notch Comics first went to a bi-monthly schedule with #43 (Feb. 1944), and then was retitled Laugh Comix with issue #46 (Summer 1944) for three more issues before being canceled with #48. (Laugh Comix is not to be confused with the later Laugh Comics

Laugh Comics

Laugh Comics was a comic book produced by Archie Comics in two volumes, from 1946 to 1987 and 1987 to 1991. The showcased some of the early appearances of the "Archie gang." Beginning with issue #145, Josie began making semi-regular appearances , with art by Dan DeCarlo.- Publication history :The...

series).

Series features

• "The Wizard
  Wizard (Archie Comics)
  The Wizard is a fictional superhero character created by Will Harr and Edd Ashe, Jr. for MLJ Comics, which later became Archie Comics. He first appeared in Top-Notch Comics #1 in December 1939, and he was the headliner of that title until its cancellation in 1944...
  
  " - superhero (#1-27) titled 'The Wizard and Roy the Super-Boy' from #7
• "Scott Rand in the Worlds of Time" - science-fiction (#1-2)
• "Swift of the Secret Service" - spy/detective (#1-3)
• "Air Patrol" - (#1-27) titled "Wings Johnson of Air Patrol" from #4
• "The Mystic" - adventure/crime (#1-3)
• "The West Pointer" - adventure/war (#1-26) titled "Keith Cornell, West Pointer" from #7
• "Manhunters" - true crime detection cases (#1-3)
• "Dick Storm" - adventure (#2-8)
• "Stacey Knight M.D." - adventure/crime (2-3)
• "Bob Phantom - The Scourge of the Underworld" - superhero (#3-25)
• "Moore of the Mounted" - crime(#4)
• "Streak Chandler on Mars" - science fiction (#4-8)
• "Kardak the Mystic Magician" - costumed hero (#4-28)
• "Galahad" - medieval knight (#5-11)
• "Shanghai Sheridan" - adventure (#5-8)
• "The Firefly" - superhero (#8-26)
• "Black Hood" - costumed hero (#9-27)
• "Fran Fraser" - adventure (#9-24)
• "The St Louis Kid" - boxing/adventure (14-26)
• "Dotty and Ditto" - humor (#27-45)
• "Suzie" - humor (#28-48)