Mail-In Premium From the 1994 The Shadow Movie

When The Shadow movie was released in 1994, there were all sorts of movie tie-ins to go along with it.  For example, there were The Shadow board game, jigsaw puzzle, and action figures.  If you bought two action figures and mailed in the proofs of purchase, you would receive a free Shadow Agent hologram ring!

I happened to find one of these mail-in rings on eBay and quickly purchased it!  (I was secretly hoping I could wear it, but it is definitely made for kids!)  Here are pictures of the ring.

The Shadow hologram

"Darkness/Evil" symbol

"Light/Good" symbol

I'm sure this was a grand prize for any kid that wanted to be an official agent of The Shadow!

According to what I found on eBay, here is what the symbols on the ring mean:  "The symbol that looks like a check mark represents all that is dark, not just in ones heart but in the world as well. Evil abounds in everything and it is only a safe balance that makes us men.  The other symbol represents the light or good. The ring itself is a representation of our daily struggle to quell the evil in all of our hearts and to cultivate the good. The check mark or dark symbol should be worn to the outside of your body whatever hand you wear it...away from the heart in other words."  Now this is according to one eBay listing so I do not know the source or if it is accurate - I'll have to keep researching!

The Shadow Magazine #225

Recently I was able to add another original Shadow magazine to my collection.  It is the July 1, 1941 issue (the 225th issue in The Shadow series) which features the story, "The Star of Delhi."  

What's unique about this issue is it is only the second Shadow story to include Margo Lane.  As you may know, Margo Lane is a character that was created for The Shadow radio show which began airing in 1937 and it wasn't until 1941 that Margo's character was included in The Shadow magazines.  Margo's first appearance in The Shadow magazine was in the June 15, 1941 issue in the story "The Thunder King."

The cover features a great action scene with The Shadow fighting a muscular man and a policeman shooting from a window.  The cover art was by Graves Gladney.  It shows that The Shadow was published twice a month, and had a cover price of 10 cents.

The table of contents announces that it contains a complete Shadow novel entitled "The Star of Delhi" as wells as two short stories and regular Shadow magazine features of codes, The Shadow Club, etc.

Here are some of the pages featuring some great artwork, including pictures of some of The Shadow's agents!

These are pictures of Highlights on The Shadow, The Shadow Club and Codes.  These were regular features in The Shadow magazines.  I really wish they would reprint the Codes in The Shadow story reprints!

Here's the back cover which is a full-page ad for Chesterfield cigarettes.  Inside the magazine are ads for products that are still on the market today - Pepsi, Listerine, and Gillette razors to name a few!

On final interesting note about this issue is the information in The Shadow Club section.  It tells the readers to keep their eyes and ears open for "Fifth Columnists" that may seek to sabotage or spy on our country.  Remember, this magazine was published in July of 1941.  At this time WWII was being fought in Europe but the US had not entered the fight.  The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor would happen in just a few months, propelling our nation into the war.  It's always interesting to me to read things from around this time as it gives us a little insight into what was happening in our nation and how it influenced even the information printed in The Shadow magazine!