Bit behing things here, but I'll catch up. Toay I have a couple of crime stories from the early fiftie from moonlighting artists. From 1950 and Hillman's Real Truw Crime stories come what I believe to be an early Dan Barry story (from before he became famous with Flash Gordon). Did you know he actually wanted to do a crime strip rather than a science fiction one, but couldn't sell it? Dan Barry is on eof those artists who deserve a whole lot of recognition, but he won't get it as long as DC is sitting on the copyrights. Between 1948 and 1952 Bary did loads and loads of great comic book stuff. He was one of the first to marry the slickness of Rip Kirby's Alex raymond to the quick and easy inking style of Milton Caniff. His style influenced many of the later DC artists, such as Gil Kane, Mike Sekowsky and Carmine Infantino, many of whom did a bit of ghosting on Flash Gordon here and there (although I am not sure about Infantino, there). His style, together with that of Alex Toth, laid the basis for the DC house style. But like Toth, Barry's early work can't be fully appreciated if you can't eprint the DC work he did in those erly years. All we have now for Toth is his later work (which is awsome as well and has been reprinted bu IDW in a superb series of books) and for Barry his early work for Gleason and some pieces here and there such as this one.
In 1954, Joe Kubert did a couple of quick jobs for Gleason, after his partnership with Norman Maurer fell through and before he landed at DC. I like that heavy early inkine of Kubert.
In the same issue you get Pete Morisi. Although much has been made from the likeness of his style with that of george Tuska, if you see them side by side they are immediately recognizable. As stylized as Tuska was, Morisi seems even more so.
Howard O'Donnell is in the same 'school' as Tuska and Morisi. He did not do a lot of comic book art, in fat I only know of his few pieces for Stan Lee's Timely/Atlas. But here he is, doing a very enjoyable who dunnit. Don't peek, now.