Luke Malone
Created by Mike Ploog

He was bounced from he "Frisco" cops after he botched a bank robbery call that resulted in the death of his wife, Mary ("What a broad!"). He became a P.I., with hopes of maybe one day tracking down those responsible, but things didn't quite work out. He used to have an office, 'til the roaches drove him out. Now he works out of Paddy's Bar. His pals tend to be fringe characters -- hookers, derelicts, ex-fighters. His real name's Lucius G. Malone but only his mother gets away with calling him that. Everyone else calls him LUKE MALONE, MANHUNTER!

Actually, it's a pretty good if rather obvious take on hardboiled private eye stuff, especially considering it managed to slip by by The Comics Code Authority. And a definite step step up from Timothy Trench or Jason Bard.

Luke appeared as a back-up feature in the short-lived (three issues!) Police Action comic book published by Atlas in the mid-seventies, also known as Lomax, N.Y.P.D., after the feature character.

THE EVIDENCE

• "Just fix me up, Sam! I don't need a sermon!"
  -- Luke orders a drink ("Requiem for a Champ")

COMIC BOOKS

• POLICE ACTION
  (A.K.A. Lomax, N.Y.P.D.)
  (1975, Atlas/Seaboard Publishing)
  Back-up feature starred private eye Luke Malone
  Written by Mike Ploog, Gary Friedrich
  Art by Mike Ploog and Frank Springer

• "Requiem for a Champ" (February 1975, Police Action #1)
• "Whatever Happened to Luke Malone?" (April 1975, Police Action #2)
• "Rock and Robbery" (June 1975, Police Action #3)

RELATED LINKS

• Found Object: "Police Action"
  Roy Edroso deconstructs Police Action #1.

Report respectfully filed by Kevin Burton Smith. Thanks for the lead, Marty.