MAY251444 (W) Lee Falk (A) Phil Davis Mandrake the Magician began as a daily strip on June 11, 1934, and whether Lee Falk knew it as a sophomore at the University of Illinois, he was making history. Mandrake the Magician whisked readers to exotic locales (often fictional amalgams of the Orient, the Middle East, India or Eastern Europe) and immersed them in extended narratives with memorable villains and a colorful supporting cast. Volume four presents: Mandrake in North Africa (September 4 – December 23, 1939); The Mountain Bandits (December 25, 1939 – January 20, 1940); The Museum Mystery (January 22 – May 4, 1940); The Octopus Ring (May 6 – December 21, 1940); and Dr. Griff’s Invention (December 23, 1940 – April 5, 1941).