The Ghost Rider (1967) # 4

"...And Men Shall Call Him Sting-Ray!"

Cover Date: August 1967; Publication Date: May 1967

Writer: Gary Friedrich'; Artist: Dick Ayers; Inker: Vince Colletta; Letterer: Al Kurzrok; Colorist: None Credited; Editor: Stan Lee; Cover Artist: Dick Ayers

At a barn dance benefit to raise money for text books, the people of Bison Bend are robbed by a costumed villain named Sting-Ray.  While Carter Slade escapes to get his Ghost Rider outfit, the Sting-Ray uses his "paralysis bullets" to freeze Sheriff Brooks and Clay Rider in their tracks when they try to stop the robbery.  Sting-Ray escapes, but when Ghost Rider arrives to purse him he is instead chased by a posse led by Sheriff Brooks.  Using his ghost tricks, the Ghost Rider is able to escape the men and return to the barn as Carter Slade, just as Natalie Brooks is leaving with her fiancé Clay.  Meanwhile, the Sting-Ray has returned to his identity as the operator of the town drugstore, where he concocted his "stun bullets".  He thinks back to his previous criminal identity as the Scorpion, and after he escaped prison he began his string of robberies as the Sting-Ray.  Now, in Bison Bend, he is ready to enact his plan to become "emperor of the West".

The next day, Ben Brooks talks with his men about catching the Ghost Rider, unaware that one of the men is secretly the Sting-Ray.  That night, while the men ride off to set a trap at an incoming gold shipment, the Sting-Ray kidnaps Natalie to hold hostage in exchange for power.  He takes her to the drugstore, but before he can hurt her he is confronted by the Ghost Rider, who followed the villain to the hideout.  The two men fight and Ghost Rider unmasks Sting-Ray just as the Sheriff and his posse arrive.  They attempt to arrest Ghost Rider, who barely manages to escape using his tricks.  When Brooks attempts to fire his gun at the fleeing Ghost Rider he is suddenly disarmed by the Tarantula, who claims friendship with the Ghost Rider.  The Tarantula rides away, but Brooks is now convinced that the Ghost Rider has to be a criminal despite Natalie's disbelief.

The Ghost Rider (1967) # 3

"The Circus of Fear!"

Cover Date: June 1967; Publication Date: March 1967

Writer: Gary Friedrich; Artist: Dick Ayers; Inker: Vince Colletta; Letterer: John Verpoorten; Colorist: None Credited; Editor: Stan Lee; Cover Artist: Dick Ayers

The Ghost Rider approaches the town of Bison Bend just as a band of outlaws perform a bank robbery. The outlaws are chased by Sheriff Benjamin Brooks, who manages to shoot the gang's leader. The rest of the robbers are apprehended by the Ghost Rider at the edge of town, but when Brooks arrives to arrest them he attempts to arrest the vigilante as well. The Rider barely manages to evade arrest at Brooks' hand, leaving the Sheriff with doubts as to whether he can perform his job.

The next morning, Natalie Brooks enters Carter Slade's schoolhouse and tells him that a circus has just arrived in town. Slade dismisses his students and laments to himself about how he is in love with Natalie despite her being engaged to another man. After the circus sets up in town, owner Barton refuses to give his star attraction, animal tamer Andriani Adano, a raise due to his former background as a criminal called the Cougar. Furious, Adano storms off and swears revenge, unaware that he's been overheard by Slade's ward Jamie Jacobs, who tells Carter. When the circus begins later that evening, the show is disrupted by Barton's murder at the hands of a cougar. Brooks immediately arrests Adano, thinking him guilty as he's the only animal trainer present.

That night, the Ghost Rider frees Adano from jail, believing the man to be innocent and needing his help to find the real murderer. Their escape is witnessed by Ben Brooks, who gathers up a posse to arrest the two men. Ghost Rider and Adano arrive at the circus, but the Rider is knocked unconscious from behind. When he awakens, he finds Adano's brother-in-law Phillip standing over him. Now thinking Adano is guilty, the Rider goes off to find him, only to be attacked by a cougar. Brooks saves the Rider by shooting the animal, but then turns to arrest him. Ghost Rider escapes and confronts the true killer, knocking him unconscious just as Brooks and his men catch up. Adano emerges from a nearby trailer, having also been knocked unconscious, and the killer is revealed to be Philip. The Ghost Rider scares Phillip into confessing that he killed Barton in order to get out of Adano's shadow. While the Ghost Rider departs on his horse, Brooks is still convinced that the vigilante should be arrested.

The Ghost Rider (1967) # 2

"The Macabre Menace of the Tarantula!"

Cover Date: April 1967; Publication Date: January 1967

Writer: Gary Friedrich; Artist: Dick Ayers; Inker: Vince Colletta; Letterer: Artie Simek; Colorist: None Credited; Editor: Stan Lee; Cover Artist: Dick Ayers

The Ghost Rider halts a group of rustlers from stealing a herd of cattle from some ranchers, then returns to his mountain hideout. Waiting for him is young Jamie Jacobs, the only person that knows the Ghost Rider is really school teacher Carter Slade. The Rider takes the opportunity to show Jacobs how he accomplishes his "supernatural" feats, using his blackout cape and a lantern that projects a ghostly image of himself. Meanwhile, the cattle rustlers return to their shack to find a masked man with a bullwhip named the Tarantula waiting for them. He shows off his prowess with the whip and declares himself the gang's leader, determined to prove that the Ghost Rider is merely a man and not a spirit.

The next morning, Slade and Jacobs are supervising the construction of the new schoolhouse. Ben Brooks and his sister Natalie talk to Slade about the Ghost Rider, with Ben convinced that the vigilante is really a villain that should be stopped. Natalie introduces Slade to her fiance, Clay Rider. That night, the Tarantula and his men ride into town and demand $100 a month from each settler, for "protection". Slade watches from the crowd while Tarantula leaves, saying he'll be back at sundown tomorrow. Ben Brooks is the only man who disagrees with paying the Tarantula, the other townspeople all afraid of their families being harmed. The following day, Slade falls from the roof of the schoolhouse and winds up in a hospital bed, though not seriously harmed (and given a good alibi for when the Ghost Rider shows up that night).

The Tarantula and his men return that night, and only Ben Brooks stands up to him. Before they can seriously harm Brooks the Ghost Rider appears and frightens away the gang of outlaws. The Tarantula is still convinced that the Rider is merely a man, not falling for any of the faux supernatural tricks the hero employs. When the Ghost Rider breaks the villain's bullwhip, however, the Tarantula grabs Natalie and threatens her life. Slade uses his black lariat to snare Natalie and lift her to safety, making it appear that he is using ghostly powers to make her fly into the air. While the Ghost Rider rescues Natalie, a frightened Tarantula escapes into the night. Ghost Rider leaves as well, returning to his hideout, while the townspeople convince Ben Brooks to become the sheriff of Bison Bend. Ben accepts and declares that he will bring the Ghost Rider in to face justice.

The Ghost Rider (1967) # 1

"The Origin of the Ghost Rider"

Cover Date: February 1967; Publication Date: November 1966

Writers: Gary Friedrich & Roy Thomas; Artist: Dick Ayers; Inker: Vince Colletta; Letterer: John Verpoorten; Colorist: None Credited; Editor: Stan Lee; Cover Artist: Dick Ayers

Carter Slade, a school teacher on his way out west, sees a ranch being attacked by a group of Indians. When he tries to intervene, the Indians shoot him, but not before he realizes that the "Indians" are actually white men in disguise. Left for dead by the marauders, a mortally wounded Slade is found by a young boy named Jamie Jacobs, the only survivor of the ranch attack. He manages to put Slade on his horse, and the two begin their march toward help. They stumble across a group of Sioux, who take the dying Slade to their medicine man, Flaming Star. Slade awakens, his wounds suddenly healed, and Flaming Star tells him of the prophecy delivered to him by his gods. He witnessed a falling meteor and was told to gather up the luminous dust left in the rock's wake and wait for the coming of a great champion, known as "He Who Rides the Night Winds". Flaming Star leads Slade and Jacobs to a white horse, whom Slade easily tames and gives the name Banshee. They leave the Sioux, and after making camp that night Slade offers to raise Jacobs himself. He then uses the glowing dust to fashion himself a costume and spooky identity as the Ghost Rider.

The next day, the faux indians have gathered at the ranch of their employer, Jason Bartholomew, who wants to chase off all of the settlers who have made their way to "his land". He orders his men, led by his foreman Blackie Clay, to burn down the schoolhouse in nearby Bison's Bend. When they do so, however, the townspeople easily see through their disguises, and in return Clay kidnaps a woman named Natalie, sister to settler Ben Brooks. Slade and Jacobs arrive in town and are told the news, prompting Carter to ride off to find Natalie.

That night, Bartholomew is chastising his men for bringing Natalie back to his ranch when the lights suddenly go out. The Ghost Rider appears before the men, seemingly impervious to their gunshots, and he makes quick work of the men that attempt to fight instead of flee in terror. Slade frightens Bartholomew into agreeing to turn himself into the marshals, then departs while Natalie herself escapes, unaware of what has really happened. The next day, Slade and Jacobs are invited to remain in Bison's Bend, and the two go off to start their new lives.