(1928). Content The magazine’s genre was air adventure stories, some set against a war background, written by well-known authors such as Lester Dent, Donald E. Keyhoe, Joe Archibald, and Arch Whitehouse. With the exception of Keyhoe and Whitehouse, who was with the RAF in World War I, the authors had no personal knowledge of flying. The plot invariably centered on a hero — a military pilot — trapped in a difficult situation, from which he would extricate himself utilizing exceptional flying skills. The stories never featured any love interest or profanity. Attempts to introduce such elements were soundly rejected by the readership. According to Whitehouse, he tried hard to introduce a "seductive secretary" character to the Kerry Keene series, but the effort was met with numerous letters from readers demanding that he "Get rid of the broad. Get her out of the series of Kerry Keene stories." The cover art featured dramatic air battle scenes painted by notable commercial artists of the day, such as Alex Schomburg and his brother August Schomburg. Notable series and recurring characters Many of the stories published were part of long-running series, featuring well developed characters who appeared in every story. Kerry Keene/The Griffon Created by Arch Whitehouse, Kerry Keene, the Griffon, was a Department of Justice employee, and the pilot of an amphibian plane. The plane incorporated many modern design elements, such as folding wings and retractable landing gear (wheels and floats). This enabled the plane to land on water in Long Island Sound and then run up into a secret hangar on land, not far from Keene's residence in New York City. Keene was accompanied by his side-kick, an Irish mechanic named Barney O’Dare. Several features of the plane were incorporated into airplane models sold by the magazine’s advertisers. 43 stories were published between 1935 and 1942. Altus Press is doing a reprint series, with Pro Se Press doing new stories. Phineas Pinkham Joe Archibald created the character of Lt. Phineas Pinkham, a World War I pilot stationed in Bar-le-Duc, France, as part of the "9th pursuit squadron." Phineas, a freckled farm boy from Boontown, Iowa, was a fearless stunt performer, to the disapproval of the squadron commander, Major Rufus Garrity and the flight leader, Captain Howell. His creator describes him as "maybe the worst pilot to fly a plane…downed more Krauts with trickery than any other way." Like American World War I