💥 Beauty and the Beast-Gang! Published: October 1966 • On Sale: August 4, 1966 Series: The Atom (Volume 1) • Issue #27 Creators: Writer: Gardner Fox • Pencils: Gil Kane • Inks: Sid Greene • Editor: Julius Schwartz Young photographer Willie Farr secretly enters photos of Dawn Hudson—the girl he admires—into a beauty contest, not realizing he's also captured an image of a member of the Panther Gang. When a gang member inside the local newspaper recognizes the incriminating photo, the criminals move to destroy Willie's negatives before he can expose them. While visiting Willie, Ray Palmer is forced to slip away and become The Atom when the Panther Gang bursts in. He fights the crooks but is eventually knocked out and pinned to a clothesline while the gang escapes with the negatives. Using his momentum, the Atom swings the line close enough to a hot iron to burn through it, dropping himself safely into a tray of neutralizer and regaining mobility. Willie realizes the gang intends to steal the jeweled crown made for the upcoming beauty pageant, where Dawn is a contestant. At the event, the criminals attempt to use a blackout-flash camera—one of Willie's inventions—to aid their theft, but the Atom intervenes and defeats the gang. Willie himself knocks out the corrupt newspaper staffer exploiting his invention. After the police arrest the gang, the Atom introduces Willie to Dawn, hinting that the two may finally start the romance each secretly wanted. Key Characters: Atom (Ray Palmer) • Willie Farr • Dawn Hudson • Panther Gang Key Locations: Ivy Town • Connecticut 🎈 Stowaway on a Hot-Air Balloon! During an experiment with the Time Pool, Professor Alpheus Hyatt accidentally brings a flaming object through the portal. After helping extinguish it, Ray becomes the Atom and enters the Time Pool to investigate, materializing in mid-air onto a hot-air balloon in 1783 France. The Atom overhears two assassins plotting to kill a target as tensions rise following the American colonies’ independence. He thwarts their attack by rallying farm animals and knocking out the would-be killers—only to discover the intended victim is Benjamin Franklin. Shortly after, Franklin is visited by Joseph and Etienne Montgolfier, who are preparing to test early balloon flight. The Atom secretly assists the Montgolfiers by helping repair their storm-damaged balloon, then rides with the test animals to maneuver close enough to the Time Pool’s magnetic pull to return home. Before leaving, he snags an extra pair of Franklin’s glasses as a souvenir. Back in the present, Hyatt is puzzled by the vintage spectacles—unaware they truly belonged to Franklin—while the Atom slips away amused at the future revelatio Key Characters (from provided text): Atom • Ray Palmer • Jean Loring • Maya • Jason Woodrue • Dryads • Satyrs Key Locations: Ivy Town • Floria (the Plant World)
