The Phantom comic strip made its first appearance in Australia on the 1st of September 1936, only 8 months after the Phantom first appeared in USA. In The Australian Woman’s Mirror on page 49, in Volume 12, Number 41, we see a full page Phantom comic strip, the commencement of ‘The Singh Brotherhood’.
In the edition prior to the one above, a small advertisement appeared on page 49, preparing readers for the Phantom’s arrival, ‘Who Is The Phantom?’ as seen below.
Phantom Books
In 1938 (from May 1938 to September 1940), The Australian Woman’s Mirror published a 5 comic book series solely dedicated to the Phantom. The Phantom books were sold at newsagents and via mail-away direct from The Australian Woman’s Mirror. The front and back covers can be seen below.
In February 1938, several months prior to the first Phantom book being released, we see the below advertisement, notifying readers of the upcoming release of the Phantom book series.
Plus another advertisement as seen below.
The Phantom books were actively advertised in regular publications of The Australian Woman’s Mirror. Below we see some of these advertisements, generally containing an image of the front cover of the Phantom book.
Various other advertisements were seen in The Australian Woman’s Mirror, mainly updating their reading audience on the progress of the release of the Phantom books.
A coloring-in competition was seen in the first edition, with 12,000 entries sent into The Australian Woman’s Mirror.
A ‘Special Gift Offer’ promotion was also seen in Phantom book number three. It was in the form of a cap gun titled ‘The Phantom Gun’, which also came with a belt and holster.
A ‘Phantom Crossword’ puzzles was published in the Phantom book series. We see the solution to the Crossword Puzzle in edition number three printed in The Australian Woman’s Mirror.
Make A Phantom Acrobat
The Australian Woman’s Mirror, 30th of August, 1938 edition contained instruction on making a Phantom acrobat toy.
Knitting The Phantom
The Australian Woman’s Mirror, 6th of November, 1946 edition contained instruction on knitting a Phantom doll.
Comic Cover Page
In July 1946, The Australian Woman’s Mirror printed a cover page for those compiling Phantom comic strips into a ‘book of clippings’.
Frew Publications Advertisement
Frew Publications also advertised in The Australian Woman’s Mirror, as can be seen in the below advertisement, published on the 4th of October, 1950.
The Phantom 