The Slave Traders

The Slave Traders
Start date:	January 30th, 1939
End date:	May 6th, 1939
# of strips:	84 (14 weeks)
Writer:	Lee Falk
Artist:	Ray Moore
Original colorist:	N/A
Preceded by:	"Fishers of Pearls"
Followed by:	"The Mysterious Girl"

"The Slave Traders" is the 9th Phantom daily story. The story was written by Lee Falk and drawn by Ray Moore.

Plot synopsis

Diana Palmer is aboard a ship leaving Bangalla through the Gulf of Manwar; While on board she meets a fellow passenger named Lieutenant Byron. The two are shipwrecked by a tropical storm and eventually captured by desert slavers. Hatching a plan, they both manage to briefly escape but Byron is the only one able to outrun the slavers. Byron decides to use every ounce of his diminishing strength to find the Phantom, to which he does and the two return to the desert to catch up with Diana and her captors. The Phantom finds Diana and the slavers but is overwhelmed and buried to be eaten by ants; Though he is later saved by Devil and a wandering Sand Hermit, Diana believes him to be dead. The slaver, Ali, then brings Diana to Lord Suliman to be sold, but Suliman sees an American slave as too visible a risk given slavery is still outlawed in his country and sends Ali away. Having no more use for her, Ali abandons Diana in the middle of the desert. The Phantom recovers at the Sand Hermit's hut and tracks down Suliman, who informs him of his refusal to purchase Diana; Colonial Services is contacted and several search parties are sent to find her. The Phantom then tracks down Ali and, after discovering his abandoning Diana, takes him prisoner and continues the search. Diana is eventually found by the Sand Hermit and taken to his hut, where she is eventually found by Lieutenant Byron.

The Phantom meets up with Colonial Services and turns over Ali, learning of Diana's rescue at that time; Her health deteriorating from her ordeal, however, Diana is quickly flown out to a hospital by Lieutenant Byron before the Phantom can catch up with them. After locating the hospital she has been flown to, the Phantom is forbidden from seeing Diana due to her frail condition, believing the shock that he is alive would kill her. The Phantom agrees to wait and allow Diana to recover.

Appearances

Recurring characters

• The 21st Phantom
• Devil
• Diana Palmer
• Byron
• Colonel Doolittle

One-time characters

• Ali
• The Sand Hermit
• Lord Suliman

Tribes

• Bandar

Locations

• Bengal
  • Morristown
  • Deep Woods
    • The Skull Cave
      • The Skull Throne
• Bay of Bengal
• Gulf of Manwar
• Arabia
• Arabian Sea
• Benali
• Branner
  • Branner Hospital

Behind the scenes

• Morristown is mentioned for the first time (although the same settlement appears in the previous episode, "Fishers of Pearls", without being named). It is described by Diana as "a little trading-post on the Bengal coast".
• This is the second time the outside of the Skull Cave appears in the strip.
• The Sand Hermit sees the Phantom without his mask, which makes him the second person in the strip to do so (following Diana). The Phantom tells him that he is "the first man who's ever seen my face".
• This is also the second story to be introduced with the story of the origin of the Phantom.

Related stories

Refers to

• "Fishers of Pearls" by Lee Falk and Ray Moore

Referenced in

• "The Slavers, the Women and the Bogey-Man" by Shane Foley

Remade as

• "The Slave Traders" by Lee Falk and Roberto Lemmi
• "Drama in the Desert" by Janne Lundström and Özcan Eralp

Reprints

This story has been published in the following publications:

Argentina

• Tit-Bits #1658 – #1673 (1941)

Australia

• "Diana & the Slavers", The Phantom #4 (1940)
• "Enter the Phantom", The Phantom #1 (1948)
• The Phantom #98 (1956)
• The Phantom #146 (1959)
• The Phantom #249 (1963)
• The Phantom #386 (1969)
• The Phantom #542 (1974)
• The Phantom #723 (1981)
• The Phantom #933 (1989)
• The Phantom #1249 (2000)
• The Phantom #1 replica, included with The Phantom #972 (1991)
• The Phantom #1831 (2019)
• "The Slave Traders", The Phantom #1937 (2023)

Brazil

• "Os Caçadores de Escravos", A Gazeta ?, 1939 – ?, 1939
• "Mercadores de Escravos", O Globo Juvenil #256 – #298 (1939)
• "Os Mercadores de Escravos", Álbum O Globo Juvenil #9 (1940)
• "Os Mercadores de Escravos", Fantasma #55 (1961)
• "Mercadores de Escravas!", O Fantasma #15 (1971)
• "Os Mercadores de Escravos", Gibi Semanal #40 (1975)
• "Mercadores de Escravas!", Fantasma - Edição Histórica #13 (1995)
• "Os Mercadores de Escravos", O Fantasma Omnibus: O Circulo Dourado e Outras Histórias (2023)

Canada

• L'Action catholique May 27, 1939 – June 8, 1939 - the last two weeks only, but with intro text

Estonia

• Uus Eesti March 31, 1939 – July 11, 1939

Finland

• "Orjakauppiaat", Mustanaamio 9/1983
• "Ihmiskauppiaat", Ilta-Sanomat February 29, 2016 – March 23, 2016

France

• Aventures 22-34/1939
• "Les rebelles du désert", Le Fantôme du Bengale #3 and "L'ermite des sables", #4 (1949)
• "Les marchands d'esclaves", Le Fantôme Spécial #54 and "La fin des marchands d'esclaves", #55 (1968)

Italy

• "I mercanti di schiavi", L'Uomo Mascherato #7 (1962; with additional art by Tullo Palasciano)
• "I mercanti di schiavi", I Classici dell'Avventura #46 (1963; with additional art by Tullo Palasciano)
• "I mercanti di schiavi", L'Uomo Mascherato Super Albo #61 (1963)
• "I mercanti di schiavi", Il Giustiziere in Calzamaglia (1975)
• "I mercanti di schiavi", Phantom #3 and "L'harem di Lord Suliman", #4 (1977)
• "I mercanti di schiavi", Phantom #9 (1992)
• "I mercanti di schiavi", Phantom #145
• "I mercanti di schiavi", The Phantom #2 (2015)

New Zealand

• The Phantom #117 – #121

Norway

• "Slavehandlerne", Fantomet 9/1983

The Philippines

• The Tribune June ?, 1939 – August ?, 1939 - a few first weeks missing

Portugal

• "Os Mercadores de Escravos", Mundo de Aventuras #208 – #214 (1977)

Spain

• "La ley del desierto", El Hombre Enmascarado #19 "Los chacales del desierto", #20, and "Por los tejados de Alejandria" #21 (ca 1941)
• "La ley del desierto", El Hombre Enmascarado #019 "Los chacales del desierto", #020, and "Por los tejados de Alejandria" #021 (1960)
• "Traficantes de esclavos", El Hombre Enmascarado #44 (1977)
• "La ley del desierto", El Hombre Enmascarado #42 – #43 (1990)
• "Los mercaderes de esclavos", The Phantom - El Hombre Enmascarado #8 (2020)

Sweden

• "Slavhandlarna", Fantomen 26/1982

USA

• Chester Times January 30, 1939 – May 6, 1939
• The Monessen Daily Independent January 30, 1939 – May 6, 1939
• The Nassau Daily Review-Star January 30, 1939 – May 6, 1939
• The Rome Daily Sentinel January 30, 1939 – May 6, 1939
• The Winchester Sun January 30, 1939 – May 6, 1939
• Ace Comics #64 – #69 (1942)
• Nostalgia Comics #3 – #4 (1973)
• Comics Revue #257, #218 – #230 (2003-2004, 2006)
• The Complete Newspaper Dailies: Volume Two 1937–1939 (2010)

Yugoslavia

• "Diana u rukama trgovaca robljem", Hrvatski dnevnik July 29, 1939 – November 18, 1939
• Mika Miš #420 – #453 (1940)
• "Nepoznati čovek", Biblioteka Nostalgija #7 (1988)