Who Is Yarko the Great? Origin, Powers and Key Facts

Yarko the Great is a Fox Comics (US) comic book character, with over 50 comic issue appearances. Will Eisner substitutes a turbaned magician for Victor Fox's copyright-infringing WONDER MAN

Who is Yarko the Great?

Yarko The Great, Master of Magic was created by Will Eisner in 1939 for publisher Victor Fox 's Fox Feature Syndicate as the main feature in the 2nd and final issue of Fox's Wonder Comics. How that came about is more interesting than the character itself. In 1939 things were heating up in the nascent comic-book industry. A year earlier, from National Periodicals , there appeared on the newsstands ACTION COMICS #1 and with that the entire industry was changed. Lee Falk’s new comic-strip MANDRAKE THE MAGICIAN had debuted in the newspapers in 1934, and inside Action Comics #1 National featured their own knock-off of the character, Zatara The Magician : both were dolled up in dapper tuxedo finery, both looking like a less-ethnic Harry Houdini (who was born Erik Weisz, later Ehrich Weiss). As noted elsewhere , however, there was another model for comics magicians, the model of the Eastern-styled Mystic, someone who "Gained their mystical powers from the Secrets of The Mysterious East" or some such rubbish, usually following the solid example set by the wildly popular radio- and movie-serial character CHANDU The MAGICIAN . Will Eisner, a burgeoning comics creative powerhouse, was honing .

Key facts

Yarko the Great is of human origin and first appeared in "The Children's Crusade; The Iron Horse Goes Through.". The character is published by Fox Comics (US). With 50 recorded issue appearances, Yarko the Great ranks among the most featured characters in comics.