Kurtzman continued to do odd jobs in 1942 until he got his first break in the comics industry at Louis Ferstadt's studio, which produced comics for Quality, Ace, Gilberton, and the "Daily Worker". His first published work there was assisting on issue #5 (September 1942) of Gilberton's "Classic Comics", which features an adaptation of "Moby Dick". His first pencil job appeared in "Four Favorites" #8 (December 1942). He produced a large amount of undistinguished work in 1942 and 1943, which he later called "very crude, very ugly stuff", before he was drafted in 1943 for service in World War II.