Starting in February, 1946, every issue of the Captain Marvel Adventures comic book included a 2-page short story by "Eando Binder" (Otto O. Binder). All featured Lt. Jon Jarl of the Space Patrol. These juvenile space operas—designed to appeal to kids—featured the daring adventures of a two-fisted young member of the Space Patrol. In a solar system where seemingly every planet and moon can support life (and the asteroid belt harbors numerous space pirates and criminals), Jon Jarl always seems to save the day.
If you've seen the early TV adventures of Captain Video and His Video Rangers, Space Patrol, or Tom Corbett, Space Cadet—which were clearly influenced by Binder's writing (as well as the shared universe of "space opera" that had been developed in Amazing Stories magazine under editor Ray Palmer)—you will know what you're in for...a ride into the Wild West of outer space, where physics and logic never get in the way of a good story!
