Detective Comics #77

May 21, 1943

"The Crime Clinic"

There is something charming about the innocence of the past. What I'm referring to is the opening of this issue where medical doctors are looked at as many things - healer, friend and confidant, public servant, and Good Samaritan. It's in the last role that I think about the past as doctors would waive fees or give people opportunities to make up costs. You wouldn't find that now. I was fortunate to have such a thing happen when as a young man in my 20s, I had no insurance, so my dentist allowed me to pay for my root canal in installments of $50 a month. I wasn't much of a good credit risk at the time either, so it meant a lot that he extended that courtesy.

But as the story continues, there's always that bad apple in the bunch - the Crime Doctor - who offers to help make a worrisome crime with careful doctoring. Customers who want to take advantage of this are checked via their fingerprints to see that they are legit crooks. Dr. Matthew Thorne, well off physician, works as a doctor of medicine and of crime! He gets a cut of any crime and even makes house calls, using an ambulance which police will not interfere with.

One night, the Doctor assists in the crime operation, helping to knock out the guard in a bank. But Batman and Robin spot the ambulance during their patrol and investigate, walking in on the criminals. They fight it out until the Doctor knocks Batman and Robin out with his anesthetic. He refuses to let his men kill the two as he is a doctor.

They are able to come around to see the ambulance take off. Batman hurls a tiny transmitter at the ambulance which they can follow in the Batmobile. This is it, folks - the first instance of a homing beacon being used to tail a criminal in Batman! They follow the ambulance back to Thorne's home.

There, the two fight Thorne and his men until Thorne is able to incapacitate Batman with a reflection from his head piece. The thing is, Thorne doesn't want to kill Batman. He just wants to get away. They are interrupted though by the arrival of a patient, a banker who has developed appendicitis. Thorne won't leave as he must save the patient and Batman assists.

After the successful operation, Thorne admits that while he values life, he also values crime. In fact, he stops Batman from bringing him in by dousing Robin in ether that he threatens to light up if Batman doesn't surrender. Thorne leaves the two tied up as he goes to look for the "Philosopher's Stone".

Batman frees them and the two head to a professor who has discovered the means to change basic elements. The Philosopher's Stone was a myth where one could change lead to gold. The professor's process can create gold. They are not able to stop the theft of the formula, but they are able to stop Thorne from using an atom smasher to make his gold. He captures Thorne, but as the final panel states, the Doctor will be back in Batman #18. And that's what's next, Citizens! (Well, the comic, not the Doctor. The first story is the return of Tweedledee and Tweedledum.)