The Flash #112

The Flash #112 was published in May 1960 (on sale February 25, 1960). It was a bimonthly, 36-page issue edited by Julius Schwartz, written by John Broome, penciled by Carmine Infantino, and inked by Joe Giella. The issue contains two full-length stories. In the main story, "The Mystery of the Elongated Man!", a new masked figure calling himself the Elongated Man appears in Central City, matching the Flash's feats and repeatedly beating him to rescues, unsettling Barry Allen, who begins to suspect that this newcomer is behind a series of thefts. The story also reveals the origin of the Elongated Man, whose real name is Ralph Dibny: as a boy he was fascinated by the "India rubber man" of a traveling circus, and as an adult he tracked down contortionists around the country, discovering that they all shared a taste for a soda called "Gingold," from which he extracted the essence of a rare tropical fruit and gained the ability to stretch his entire body. In the end the Flash uncovers the truth, teams up with the Elongated Man to capture the gang leader Perry Veto, and the two are jointly named "Central City's Men of the Year." This story is the Elongated Man's first appearance and origin. The backup story, "Danger on Wheels!", stars Kid Flash, Wally West: investigating why his teacher Miss Grant's fiancé lost the school construction contract, he exposes a fraud involving substandard building materials by "Big Ace Construction."