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The opening story of the premiere issue of Linda Carter, Student Nurse grandly announces: "Linda Carter, destined to become one of your most beloved friends! Let us watch as a new chapter of her life begins ... a life filled with humor, thrills, and glamorous romance!"
The series follows the romantic and mildly comical adventures of young and pretty Linda Carter as she arrives at the doors of Metropolitan Hospital to begin her training as a student nurse. She spends little time in the classroom but lots of time bringing trays of food to patients, going out on dates, and gabbing with the other students.
Stern, rotund Nurse Barker keeps a watchful, bespectacled eye on Linda and the other fledgling nurses, including plump redhead Dolly Noonan, who quickly becomes Linda's loyal pal.
While Linda strives to do a good job, handsome young doctors Steve Stuart and Jackson J. Jangle compete for her affections, to the disgust of her envious and scheming classmate, beautiful blond Gwen Glitter. But the blithely innocent Linda considers Gwen a true friend--since Gwen's nefarious plots usually backfire and actually help Linda (quite similar to the dynamics in Nellie the Nurse, wherein Pam plotted futilely against Nellie).
The last issue (January 1963) is of particular interest. In one story, the nurses are all a-twitter as TV's Dr. "Ken Kasey" comes to Metropolitan Hospital looking for two nurses to appear on his show to lend a touch of realism. At the time, Vince Edwards was a major heartthrob as television's surly neurosurgeon Ben Casey, in the series of the same name.
In another story, long-time comic book heroine Millie the Model becomes Linda's patient and warns Gwen Glitter about the pitfalls of a modeling career.
In addition to the stories, the comics featured pages of cut-out paper dolls, with off-duty fashions submitted by readers, for Linda, Gwen, Steve, and Jackson. Later issues also include reader-designed hairdos for Linda.
Linda also made an appearance in the Patsy Walker comics (February 1962), visiting Patsy and Hedy's high school on a recruiting mission. The high school girls aren't receptive to the idea of nursing--what'll happen to their social life?--till they see boys falling all over the glamorous Linda, and decide that nursing has its good points, after all.
Cover illustration by Al Hartley, from Linda Carter, Student Nurse, issue no. 1, September 1961, copyright © 1961, Atlas Magazines.
Information on issue numbers and dates comes from The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, 27th edition, 1997.
Copyright © 1996-2003. All rights reserved.
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