The Thief

The Thief
Start date:	June 13, 1960
End date:	September 3, 1960
# of strips:	72 (12 weeks)
Writer:	Lee Falk
Artist:	Phil Davis
Preceded by:	"Spooks"
Followed by:	"The Ambassador"

"The Thief" is the 107th Mandrake daily story. The story was written by Lee Falk and drawn by Phil Davis.

Plot Summary

One night Narda and Mandrake talking abouth whatt life will be like thousand of years frome Theatre now. Later, as Narda sleeps, a strange man materializes in her bedroom. Dressed in strange clothes, talked strange, ate and drank, before he took Narda's diamonds and faded away. Next time he appeared he took Narda with him.

Together with a time warden from 50 000 a.d. Mandrake went into the past, looking for Narda at the "Globe Theatre" in year 1601.

It turns out that the thief was an actor who had stolen a time-travel belt. So he could travel back in time to act in the first performance of Hamlet. With Shakespeare himself in the role as King Claudius and the time-traveler as Hamlet.

Appearances

Recurring characters

• Mandrake
• Narda
• Lothar, one picture in last strip only.

One-time characters

• The Thief, a timetraveller from 50 000 years in the future.
• The Time Warden, from 50 000 years in the future.
• Sir Walter, London year 1601.
• Shakespeare, London in 1601.

Locations

• New York
• Narda's apartment in NY
• London, in year 1601.
• Globe Theatre, London in year 1601.

Behind the scenes

• The title for this story is taken from the strip of June 13, 1960 (Beginning: The Thief) and June 11, 1960 (Next Week: "The Thief").
  • Note: At the deepwoods.org index the title for this story is "The Thief (The Time Traveller)".
• In the strip of August 4 a 1601 character asking: Think thou the Spaniards will construct another armada? The armada was destroyed in 1588, and it is not very likely that 13 years later there would be a danger of another.
  • In the same strip Sir Walter Raleigh put down his cloak for Queen Elizabeth calling her: "(your) Highness", instead of the more correct "Your Majesty".
    • Even if Queen Elizabeth looking like a young girl of 25 she was 68 years old in 1601.

Reprints

This story has been published in the following publications:

Australia

• "no title", Mandrake the Magician #40 (196?)

Brazil

• "O Homem do Futuro", Mandrake #53 (1961)
• "O Homem do Futuro", Mandrake Especial #12 (1988)

Finland

• "Varas", Mustanaamio #12 (1980)
• "Varas", Sarjakirja #1/1989 (1989)

France

• "Le voyage dans le passé", Les héros du mystère #4 (1967)
• "Le voyage dans le passé", Les héros du mystère Album #2 (1967)
• "Voyage dans le passé", Mandrake #196 & Mandrake #197 (1969)
• "Le voleur", Mandrake le Magicien (Collection Clair de lune) Volume 3 - 1957 à 1961 (2012)

Greece

• "Επιδρoμη απ' μελλoν", ΒΕΛΟΣ #70 (1969)

Italy

• "Viaggio nel passato", Il Vascello #61 (1961)
• "Viaggio nel passato", I Classici dell'Avventura #23 (1962)
• "Viaggio nel passato", Mandrake #80 and #81 (1968)
• "Viaggio nel passato", Mandrake - New Comics Now #79 (1983)

Norway

• "Tyven", Fantomet #14 (1983)
• "Tyven", Serie-pocket #151 (1989)

Spain

• "El ladron del tiempo", Serie Amarilla #42 (1959)
• "El Ladrón del Tiempo", Mandrake #16 (1997)

Sweden

• "Tjuven", Fantomen #4 (1980)

United Kingdom

• "Mandrake and Narda meet...the time travellers", Mandrake the Magician #15 (1960)

USA

• "The Thief", The Classic Mandrake Series (second series)/ Episode: "The Thief" (Pacific Comics Club) (2020)

Yugoslavia

• "Susret sa nevidljivim čovekom", Gigant #47 (198?)