The Calico Kid, the masked identity of Marshall Rex Fury, was one of many comic westerns in the late 1940s, and he could be found riding the trails in the pages of early issues of Tim Holt from Magazine Enterprises. But did you know the Calico Kid went on to become another, much better known character?

In Tim Holt #11 (November 1949), The Calico Kid and his Chinese companion Sing Song are confronted and beaten by a band of renegade Indians working for Bart Lasher, a fugitive who knows that the Kid is actually Marshall Fury. Lasher and his minions throw Fury and Sing Song off a cliff into the swirling waters below a waterfall. It seems to all watching that certain the duo has met their fate. Only they haven’t (Hey, it’s a comic book, you knew better!).

Swept into an underground cave, they survive, and Fury concocts a plan to get back at Lasher. Enter the Ghost Rider.

That’s right, the original Ghost Rider was actually the Calico Kid first!

Soon there after, in what would have been A-1 #27, Ghost Rider debuted in his own title. It said Ghost Rider #1 on the cover, and that’s what counts, right? And whether it was publisher Vin Sullivan, editor Richard Krank, or artist Dick Ayers (who drew both versions), the origin in Ghost Rider #1 had some very interesting differences when compared to the one in Tim Holt #11.

First, after collapsing in the underground cavern, Fury is awakened by the ghost of Wild Bill Hickok. Then the ghosts of Calamity Jane and Marshall Bill Tilghman show up.

After that, Hickok, Tilghman, and then Kit Carson take Fury under their wings and show him better skills in shooting, tracking, and fighting. He gains a ghostly white horse, a mask and outfit, and then he’s ready to go.

At that point he wakes up back in the cave where he and Sing Song collapsed. He thinks he dreamed the whole thing, but then outside he finds the horse, Spectre.

And the legend began. Again.

For years, many collectors have looked for the Ghost Rider premium mask. We haven’t seen one yet – but we did unearth the ad for the mask that ran in the comic. Take a look!