Cryptology #3

House on Haunted Hill TM & © William Castle Productions • The Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman TM & © Warner Bros.

Mars Attacks! TM & © Topps • Grizzly TM & © Pyramid • Adventure into the Unknown TM & © American Comics Group

FROM THE DEPTHS OF RETRO CREEP CULTURE COMES…

CRYPTOLOGY

No.3 SPRING 2025 HORROR & SCI-FI POSTER ART

PUPPET TERROR! “HAMMER TIME!” “KILLER Bs!”

1970 s PAPERBACKS

HORROR COMICS EXCESS!

MARS ATTACKS!

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Behind a previously unpublished cover, CBC #40 celebrates the life and art of the great DAVE STEVENS in a special double-sized issue completely devoted to the late artist! For this deluxe issue, friends, fans, and family share testimonials, photos, and fascinating artifacts, plus a gallery of amazing artwork by the Rocketeer creator, some never before seen.

There’s also three interviews with Dave conducted by CBC editor JON B. COOKE, two Q+A’s with Dave by guest associate editor STEVEN C. RINGGENBERG, and JEFF GELB’s conversation with the artist recorded during the making of The Rocketeer motion picture. Dave’s sister JENNIFER BAWCUM shares about her brother in an exclusive chat, and we also interview some of Dave’s closest friends, including MICHAEL W. KALUTA, about their memories of the man. Plus: a conversation with KELVIN MAO, the director of the 2022 film documentary, Dave Stevens: Drawn To Perfection, about making the movie and its recent success on streaming services, which has resulted in an entirely new generation of Dave Stevens fans. And, of course, no such tribute would be complete without a heartfelt salute to America’s sweetheart BETTIE PAGE!

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LEN WEIN’s life as writer/editor from creating Swamp Thing and Wolverine, to MOORE and GIBBONS’ Watchmen, and more! Plus the sad demise of WILL EISNER’s P*S Army Preventive Maintenance magazine, interview with romance and pin-up artist JAY SCOTT PIKE, more of STEVE WILLIS, and SHAUN CLANCY reveals the saga of ADRIAN LOPEZ’s Harpoon/Apple Pie humor mags! FRANK CHO cover!

PAT BRODERICK discusses his career, from the Crusty Bunkers to unforgettable work on Firestorm, Micronauts, Captain Marvel, and more! Plus JACK KIRBY’s humiliating return to Marvel in the ’70s, the 1940s KKK-crushing district attorney FIGHTING LAWYER, profile of PAUL BUHLE, SHARY FLENNIKEN interview, 1972 heroes by WRIGHTSON, REESE, WINDSOR-SMITH, and others for Esquire magazine, and more!

Informative conversation with “Big” JOHN BUSCEMA and a biographical essay about the Marvel legend by JON B. COOKE, including an awesome art gallery. Plus we share about the life and tragic fate of BILL MANTLO (co-creator of Rocket Raccoon and Cloak and Dagger), inside comics printer Eastern Color Printing by SHAUN CLANCY, more with SHARY FLENNIKEN, chat with RIC ESTRADA, and more!

CARMINE INFANTINO radio interview by KEN GALE and ED MENJE, JON B. COOKE on Carmine’s stint as DC editorial director/ publisher, ROBERT KANIGHER’s 1989 conversation with STEVE WHITAKER and TIM BATEMAN, World War 3 Illustrated with PETER KUPER and SETH TOBOCMAN, DAVE COCKRUM’s Aurora model kit pamphlets, GLEN CADIGAN’s interview with horror comics writer JOE HILL, and more!

GENE COLAN showcase with TOM FIELD, Gene’s 75th birthday celebration from Comic-Con 2001, MARK WHEATLEY spotlights former boss MYRON FASS’ Heavy Metal rip-off GASM, JON B. COOKE’s visit to defunct comics publisher CROSSGEN, CAROL LAY interview, more with JOE HILL, SHAUN CLANCY’s look at HILLMAN PERIODICALS (publisher of Crime Does Not Pay and Airboy), HEMBECK, and more!

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Volume 1, Number 3 June 2025 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Peter Normanton PUBLISHER John Morrow DESIGNER Michael Kronenberg EDITORIAL ILLUSTRATION Pete von Sholly COVER ARTIST Reynold Brown (Art originally appeared on the poster to William Castle’s House on Haunted Hill, 1959) SPECIAL THANKS Roberto Barreiro Heritage Auctions • Phil Hore Steve Kronenberg • Tim Leese Justin Marriott • Will Murray Michael Price • Pete Von Sholly COPYRIGHTS: House on Haunted Hill TM & © William Castle Productions • The Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman, Mars Attacks film 1996 TM & © Warner Bros. • Mars Attacks! TM & © Topps • Strange Tales, Marvel Tales, Adventures into Weird Worlds TM & © Marvel Comics • The Creature from the Black Lagoon, Revenge of the Creature, Tarantula!, The Land Unknown TM & © UniversalInternational • Tailspin Tommy TM & © Bell Syndicate • The World in his Arms TM & © Universal Pictures • The Raven, I Was a Teenage Werewolf, The Masque of the Red Death, It Conquered the World, Invasion of the Saucer Men TM & © American International Pictures • Army Times TM & © Sightline Media Group • Mars A Task TM & © Pete von Sholly • Martian Soldiers figures TM & © Super7 • 12” Supreme Martian Ambassador, Mars Attacks Brain Disintegrator, The Martian Flying Saucer TM & © Trendmasters • 50th anniversary Mars Attacks Model TM & © Moebius Models • Super7 4” Glows in the Dark Figures TM & © Super7 • No Place to Hide Model TM & © Screamin’ Products Inc. • Mars Attacks Wacky Wobbler Bobble Head TM & © Funko • Commies From Mars TM & © Last Gasp • Alien Worlds TM & © Eclipse Comics • Mr. Monster Attacks TM & © Michael T. Gilbert • Pocket Comics Mars Attacks TM & © Pocket Comics • Amazing Stories TM & © Ziff-Davis • The New York Daily News TM & © New York Daily News • Baltimore Evening Sun TM & © The Evening Sun • Orson Welles image page 45 TM & © Associated Press • War of the Worlds 1906 Edition Belgium TM & © L. Vandamme & Co. • The Manster TM & © United Artists • The Many Ghosts of Doctor Graves, Ghostly Tales from the Haunted House, Ghost Manor, Ghostly Haunts, Monster Hunters, Tales of the Mysterious Traveler TM & © Charlton Comics • London After Midnight TM & © MetroGoldwyn-Mayer • London After Midnight graphic novel 2022 TM & © Quadriculando • Dawn of the Dead, The Ghoul, Legend of the Werewolf TM & © Sphere • Martin, Squirm TM & © Day Books • The Brood TM & © Virgo • Rabid TM & © Mayflower • Halloween, The Vault of Horror, Tales from the Crypt TM & © Bantam Books • The Eyes of Laura Mars, Asylum TM & © Bantam Books • Dr. Phibes, Dr. Phibes Rises Again! TM & © Award • The Incredible Melting Man, Piranha, The Drums of Dracula TM & © New English Library • Werewolf vs. Vampire Woman TM & © Guild Hartford • Queen Kong, Zoltan Hound of Dracula TM & © Everest Books Ltd • Day of the Animals TM & © Ballentine • Grizzly TM & © Pyramid • Captain Kronos TM & © Fontana • The Omen TM & © Futura • The Great Gabbo TM & © James Cruze Productions • Dead of Night TM & © Ealing Studios • The Twilight Zone TM & © CBS Network • Devil Doll TM & © Galaworldfilm Productions & Gordon Films • Asylum TM & © Amicus Productions • Trilogy of Terror TM & © ABC Circle Films & Dan Curtis Productions • Magic TM & © 20th Century Fox • Puppet Master TM & © Full Moon Entertainment & Empire Pictures • Child’s Play TM & © United Artists • The Gorgon TM & © Hammer Film Productions • Adventures into the Unknown TM & © American Comics Group • Fantastic Fears TM & © Farrell Publications • Strange Tales TM & © William Clayton • Black Magic TM & © Headline Publications Inc. • This Magazine is Haunted TM & © Fawcett Publications • Mysterious Adventures TM & © Story Comics • Horrific TM & © Comic Media • Tomb of Terror TM & © Harvey Comics

SPILLING MY GUTS: Editorial by, and letters to, The Cryptologist. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 THEY’RE ALIVE: REYNOLD BROWN’S POSTERS FROM PURGATORY. . . . . . . . . . 4 Classic B-Movie posters from one of the industry’s finest artists

FORGOTTEN HORROR FILMS: The Scowling Goofiness of Paul Blaisdell’s Movie Monsters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Regular Cryptology department featuring selected obscure horror movies MARTIANS, MONSTERS, AND MAYHEM: The Strange Saga of Mars Attacks! . . . 16 A gum card-styled Martian invasion MARS A TASK UNCOVERED: Pete von Sholly Recalls Mars Attacks!. . . . . . . . . . . 24 Storyboards and original art from Tim Burton’s Mars Attacks!

MARTIAN MEMORABILIA: Mars Attacks Toys and Models. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Mars Attacks collectors’ items from 1996 to the present day MARS ATTACKS THE COMIC BOOKS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 A return to the hysteria generated by Mars Attacks in comic books LIVE TO AIR: The War of the Worlds Broadcasts! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Orson Welles’ infamous radio broadcast, and those that came before and followed in its wake A MARTIAN PORTFOLIO: The Otherworldly Art of Henrique Alvim Corrêa . . . . . 43 The influential artwork showcased in the 1906 Belgian edition of HG Wells’ War of the Worlds

KILLER B’s: The Manster. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Regular Cryptolgy department featuring selected horror and sci-fi B-movies A REQUIEM FOR CHARLTON HORROR, PART 1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 A brief history of Charlton’s horror comics from the 1960s and 1970s LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT: The Story Behind the Lost Film . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Tod Browning’s film that continues to elude the most ardent film collectors DAWN OF THE READ: Horror Movie Tie-in Paperbacks from the 1970s. . . . . . . . 61 The craze for paperbacks spawned by the horror films of the 1970s CINEMATIC PUPPET TERROR: The Dolls, Puppets and Dummies from Horror Cinema. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 From Hugo to Chucky, the dolls that came to life to terrorize film watchers HAMMER TIME: The Gorgon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 Regular Cryptology department featuring selected Hammer Studios films HORROR COMICS EXCESS: Kill, Puppets, Kill!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 A catalog of atrocities from the crime and horror comics of the 1950s CRYPTOLOGY™ issue 3, Spring 2025 (ISSN 2997-416X) is published bi-monthly by TwoMorrows Publishing, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614, USA. Phone: (919) 449-0344. Periodicals Postage Paid at Raleigh, NC. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Cryptology, c/o TwoMorrows, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614.

Peter Normanton, Editor-in-Chief. John Morrow, Publisher. Editorial Office: CRYPTOLOGY, c/o Peter Normanton, Editor-in-Chief, 619 Whitworth Road, Lower Healey, Rochdale, Lancashire, OL12 0TB, England.

Email Peter Normanton: peter.normanton@btinternet.com. Six-issue subscriptions: $76 Economy US, $95.70 International, $29 Digital. Please send subscription orders and funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial office.

All editorial matter © 2025 TwoMorrows Publishing and Peter Normanton. Printed in China. FIRST PRINTING.

SPILLING MY GUTS The Cryptologist

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pring is upon us, horror fiends! Yeeucch!! Okay, well at least there’s something to cheer about with this new issue of my nasty little mag, Cryptology. This time around, the Martians have landed, but believe me, they’re going to know about it. Despicable little creatures! “We come in peace”—who do they think they’re kidding? They’ll be going home in pieces if I have any say about it—which I most certainly will. This, after all, is my magazine and what I say goes—and they will!

I have to confess, I didn’t put up too much of a fight when Mars Attacks was suggested for an appearance in these festering pages.

We’ve got plenty of those despicable cards lined up for you. You remember those, I’m sure; they’re the ones those self-righteous mums and dads set about banning all those years ago. Too bad it didn’t do them any good; these cards were never going to go away, just like those gruesome comics they kept moaning about.

Parents! Who needs ’em?

In spite of all that unpleasantness, those untrustworthy Martian ne’er-do-wells did manage to spawn a generation of comic books and toys, not to mention a radio broadcast or two, along with some amazing artwork. Maybe those do-gooding parents should have kept their mouths shut, because what they left behind is tucked away in here, so don’t go letting any of them find out. They’ll be closing me down next!

If you like your monster posters (and who doesn’t?), look no further. We begin the unruly merriment with a display of Reynold Brown’s fearsome creatures, many of them fond acquaintances of mine; especially that over-sized spider—you couldn’t wish to meet a nicer fellow. I’ve also managed to sniff out London After Midnight, the best time to see the place! Be sure to check out the handsome creep strutting his stuff in this film. Just in case you’re Don’t STEAL our getting bored, I’ve thrown in a few of my tatty Digital Editions!

Cryptology Ad Rates old paperbacks along with some of my more C’mon kiddies, DO THE RIGHT interesting toys for good measure. Be on guard Back cover or inside cover: $900 ($800 for two or more) THING! A Mom Full-page interior: $700 ($600 for two or more) Half-page interior: $400 ($350 for two or more) with those puppets though—they bite! & Pop publisher Quarter-page interior: $200 ($175 for two or more) like us needs There are B-movies aplenty, as well as a AD SIZES: every sale just to COVERS & FULL-PAGE: 8.375” wide x 10.875” tall trim size, add survive! DON’T Hammertime presentation where we lay before 1/8” bleed. (7.625” x 10.125” live area.)

DOWNLOAD HALF-PAGE: 7.625” x 4.875” live area (no bleeds).

QUARTER-PAGE: 3.6875” x 4.875” live area (no bleeds). your eyes a real beauty, but be careful not to OR READ ILLEGAL COPIES ONLINE! Call or e-mail for frequency discounts!

Buy affordable, legal downloads only at look her in the eye; she’s a bit shy that way.

So Run ads across our full magazine line www.twomorrows.com for even greater savings! what are you waiting for? Come on in! or through our Digital Storefront at We accept check, Send ad copy and payment (US funds) to: money order, and all www.comicshistory.org major credit cards; TwoMorrows Publishing 10407 Bedfordtown Drive Raleigh, NC 27614 919-449-0344 E-mail: twomorrow@aol.com

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include card number and expiration date.

Sanguineous Salutations,

The Cryptologist

& DON’T SHARE THEM WITH FRIENDS OR POST THEM ONLINE. Help us keep producing ghastly publications like this one!

AND NOW THE SCREAMING STARTS! Letters to The Cryptologist Dear Cryptologist, I loved the first issue of your disgusting muck-mag! Conveniently, it arrived before Halloween, just in time to scare away all the kiddies with their sticky, greedy little fingers looking for a handout. I read every single article, cover to cover, and enjoyed each one immensely.

Your ghoulish line-up of writers dished out the loathsome lore admirably. I’m so glad I subscribed in advance and am looking forward to future installments of your delightfully devilish rag.

Horribly, Mark Reznicek Hurst, TX I’m glad to hear my terrible tome frightened off the kiddies—and if you want to sing along, Halloween is just the most wonderful time of the year. – The Cryptologist Congratulations Cryptologist, On another excellent addition to the TwoMorrows family!

I enjoyed Cryptology #1 from start to finish. Full disclosure: I subscribed preemptively. I knew I was gonna like this. “Retro Creep Culture” succinctly describes the content found within. The Addams Family/Munsters articles were hugely fun and informative without being tediously encyclopedic.

Totally dig the movie sections…”Killer B” and “Hammer Time.”

The reprint comic cover article only made we want to see all of them, not just the tantalizing selection presented. “The Horror Comics Excess” article is a terrific tease to what promises to be an interesting series about cultural impressions and repercussions.

By the time I finished the magazine, I had already ordered a Blu-Ray, queued up some shows to stream, and pulled some beloved books from the shelf to put on the “to be read next” pile.

For someone who loves comics and books and movies and TV, your broad approach in covering all of these aspects of horror with such enthusiasm is gleefully intoxicating.

But you had me at the cover (and then page 4). I too discovered Mr. Wrightson via the Warren magazines, and I too sought out all of his work (I used Overstreet, as my folks were kind enough to support my passion back then). He was one of my absolute favorites.

I grew up, went to medical school, and became a surgeon. I have the privilege of being a Medical Consultant for The Hero Initiative.

Because of that, one day many years ago, I ended up not only his fan, but his physician.

And as time went on, his friend.

Whenever I see an article about him, it always brings a bittersweet smile to my face. The one here, examining such a specific part of his work, makes you appreciate (or re-appreciate) his greatness in a way you kinda hadn’t before.

Well done, my friends at TwoMorrows.

Dr. Mo Mauricio Heilbron Jr. MD Los Alamitos, CA

Doc, the world needs more people like you, you make it a better place. Enjoy that Blu-Ray and those shows, you deserve it!

– The Cryptologist Dear Cryptologist, Wasn’t sure how I’d take to Cryptology. I lost my taste for monsters around the time of Frankenberry and Count Chocula. Liked the Universal monsters for their distinctive looks, the films, TV reruns, model kits and appearances in Famous Monsters. Fifty-some years later? Too much splatter in current horror films for my enjoyment.

However, I saw you had some comic book content and strive not to prejudge.

I was happy with your first issue, more than I expected to be. Oh, I still think you can fine tune a few elements, as you go, but there were numerous aspects and articles that definitely connected.

High atop my list was the repackaged Atlas/Marvel horror offerings. How the covers were altered or outright changed—that was fun to judge head-to-head. While I mostly preferred the earlier renditions, a number of the newer ones had some improved elements or better overall presentation. Tomb of Darkness #12 gives the vampire more sense of menace and surprise, with the left upper corner seemingly emulating the earlier cover to DC’s House of Mystery #174, where an unseen figure is motioning to come inside. Chamber of Chills #9 benefits from having harsher eyes and more action. Chamber of Chills #12 has more suspense as the lady is totally unaware.

Also, enjoyed the look back at Bernie Wrightson’s horror output.

No end of wonderful examples, but there were few Wrightson biographical details. Possibly you can rectify that in some future article or reprinted interview?

I very much enjoyed your extended Addams Family and Munsters coverage; the shows, merchandise and comics. Three individual concerns with the same subject matter—a nice touch. I remember both shows from sixty years ago. I didn’t see them as competing but supplementing one another. We didn’t have to chose but could enjoy both. Perhaps, later, if you look at monster trading cards, you can feature ones from both shows. I know I had the full set of Addams Family as they had a puzzle on the back.

One thing I thought particularly insightful was Mark Voger’s observation as to the merchandise being most welcome, giving us a chance to see the characters when the show wasn’t on and, especially, to see what they looked like in full color. That was something to be cherished.

As to horror comics excess, my guess is you could have a twentyyear run and never run out of examples. Feel free to test out that theory.

I’ll be back, next issue, to see what you’re offering up about Don Heck. I thought he was quite talented and severely underrated.

Joe Frank, Scottsdale, AZ Don’t you worry Joe, we are going to begin by fine-tuning that useless editor of mine. We’ve got more on that Wrightson fellow in future issues, and maybe one of these days I will dig out my old monster cards for you. – The Cryptologist

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THEY’RE ALIVE! REYNOLD BROWN’s POSTERS from PURGATORY

by Steve Kronenberg

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t’s a stunning, stop-on-a-dime image. Sexy, scantily clad B-movie siren Allison Hayes is a giantess—fifty feet of female pulchritude, and she’s not in the mood to go clubbing.

She’s very, very angry, straddling a highway overpass as she prepares to drop a car and its terrified occupants to the ground below. It’s not a photo and it’s not on film.

It’s the poster created by Reynold Brown for Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman (1958). Brown’s unforgettable, iconic painting doesn’t even depict an actual scene from the film, but that doesn’t matter. Movie posters were intended to lure patrons into theaters, and no artist could match the sheer immediacy of Brown’s work. His art transcended all genres, but monsters became his metier. Film historians and academicians link Brown’s posters to the angst and repression that pervaded America in the 1950s, but Brown dispelled that notion.

He always viewed himself as a storyteller, and the posters he created for the horror genre wordlessly tell tales of terror that seduced and captivated monster mavens of all ages.

Reynold Brown’s alluring design for Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman certainly hit the mark when it first appeared in 1958, four years after his fearfilled presentation for Creature from the Black Lagoon. TM & © Warner Bros. TM & © Universal-International.

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Hal Forrest scripted and penciled the daily syndicated newspaper strip Tailspin Tommy, while Reynold’s lush brushstrokes supplied the inks for this aviation tale from 1936. TM & © Bell Syndicate.

William Reynold Brown was born on October 18, 1907 in San Gabriel, California. He and his two sisters were raised to appreciate art and culture, taught to play music and to paint and draw. From infancy, Brown took to drawing, scribbling illustrations with a pencil his mother tied to his hand. In elementary school, he filled notebooks with sketches of soldiers, aircraft, and weaponry. While in high school, he assisted Norman Rockwell with a cover painting for The Saturday Evening Post, an experience that profoundly influenced Brown’s artistic style and career path. In 1928, he began working with Hal Forrest, drawing and inking the popular Tailspin

Tommy newspaper strip.

Underpaid and overwhelmed, Brown left Forrest to create technical drawings for North American Aviation, where he devised three-dimensional cutaways (known as “phantom drawings”), which detailed both the inner and outer workings of the airplanes manufactured by North American. It was a brilliant concept, resulting in some of Brown’s most impressive early work.

Noirish Dread

In 1946, Brown and his wife Mary Louise left California to move to New York, where his career as a commercial illustrator truly began. He became a prolific and tireless cover artist for a panoply of popular periodicals, including The Saturday Evening Post, Popular Mechanics, and Life. His chiaroscuro-flavored interior drawings for magazines like Argosy were steeped in noirish dread. His covers boldly staged horrendous, nearly impossible catastrophes (his cover for the March 1948 issue of Popular Science shows a car and its petrified passengers careening off the top of a building).

Brown’s watershed moment as a poster artist occurred in 1951, when he met Universal Pictures’ art director Maurice Kallis (father of celebrated poster creator Albert Kallis). Impressed with Brown’s work for the Art Center College of Design, where Brown taught, Kallis commissioned him to design a poster for Universal’s 1952 production The World in His Arms. “He was very unsure about the whole thing,” recalled Mary Louise, “but they absolutely loved the painting and used it on the poster and that was the beginning of Reynold’s career as a movie poster artist.” The studio marveled at Brown’s facility for accurately replicating the faces and physiognomies of actors, but his most important stylistic contribution was his ability to depict furious, forward-moving action.

His creative process involved examining a film’s script for action scenes, then using either still photos or his own imagination to conjure up the image of a monster or set piece. Pencil sketches would segue into India ink drawings which were then layered with watercolors until the desired nightmarish effect was achieved.

An Exploited Talent

Raoul Walsh’s The World In His Arms (1952), was merely the beginning of Reynold’s amazing career. TM & © Universal Pictures.

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Universal may have loved Brown’s work, but the studio exploited his talent with dirt-cheap checks that barely paid the rent (when Norman Rockwell rejected a $10,000 offer to create a poster for Universal’s 1955 film To Hell and Back, Brown took the assignment for a paltry $300). “Reynold

Above, Reynold’s painting of Julie Adams being taken down by the Creature from the Black Lagoon. TM & © Universal-International.

never got the respect he deserved,” observed Universal illustrator Ruth Corbett. “Reynold was a true original.”

Despite Universal’s mistreatment, Brown continued to craft memorable posters for the studio, none more beloved and bewitching than his creations for the horror and science-fiction genres. His photographic memory allowed him to faithfully recreate images he’d see in stills and publicity materials. His work with monsters began with poster creations for Universal’s groundbreaking Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954). Though his 27" x 41" onesheet is the movie’s most renowned poster, Brown’s 14" x 36" insert captures designer Millicent Patrick’s Creature concept in all its scaly glory: the monster appears in full form, reaching out for a terrified Julie Adams, who’s seen swimming just above artist Ken Sawyer’s pen and ink renderings of the film’s action scenes.

Creature’s success prompted two sequels, Revenge of the Creature (1955) and The Creature Walks Among Us (1956). Brown’s artwork for Revenge’s posters is even

Such was the success of Jack Arnold’s film, he returned a year later with Revenge of the Creature (1955). TM & © Universal-International.

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more arresting than his work on the original. The one-sheet exemplifies Brown’s assaultive style, replete with action that leaps from the canvas.

The Creature stands tall, head to toe, carrying a comely captive in the classic pose so popular in the 1950s. Brown modeled the monster’s lovely captive after his own daughter Marie. “He had me drape myself over the couch for a picture one day,” she recalled. “The next thing you know the image was transformed into the sensual woman in the arms of the Creature from the Black Lagoon.” But the devil is in the details: the Creature is seen hovering over a mass of frantic onlookers, running for their lives toward the edges of the frame, as if to escape from the poster itself. The entire painting is awash in a grey, cloudy mist, creating an uncanny mood missing from Brown’s water-centered 1954 piece. His three-sheet for Revenge is even more

THEY’RE ALIVE!

Eight-Legged Horror

Arachnophobes had to be daunted by Brown’s poster campaign for Universal’s Tarantula (1955). The film simply features a real tarantula back projected against a desert landscape. The posters depict a fanged eight-legged horror, its eyes, jaws, and hairy legs fully detailed, ready to jump out of the picture and onto every monster lover’s shoulder.

Brown’s panoramic posters for This Island Earth (1955) uniquely meld his gift for breathtaking imagery tempered by his eye for composition and balance: flying saucers speed past exploding rocket ships while the eminent Metaluna Mutant observes the carnage from below, all superbly synched and beautifully colored.

With his hyper-detailed posters for Universal’s dinosaur opus The Land Unknown (1957), Brown promised much more than the tepid film delivered.

As stars Jock Mahoney and Shawn Smith flee for their lives in the foreground, the background is flooded with reptilian imagery: a T-Rex tramples the ground under foot, sea serpents swim through roiling waters, pterodactyls glide over icy mountains. Skip the movie, and its laughable “effects,” and savor Brown’s matchless artwork.

Disillusioned by Universal’s refusal to pay him what he was worth, and the studio’s egregious alteration of his poster art for The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957), Brown began to freelance.

He accepted an invitation to work with Albert Kallis, art director for American International Pictures (AIP), a superb illustrator himself, and the son of Maurice Kallis. “Well, he was a master draftsman,” Albert said of Brown. “He had an imaginative style... and I don’t think anybody in the industry could draw as well as he did.” Brown’s first More Reynold monsters, Tarantula!

(1955) & The Land Unknown (1957).

TM & © Universal-International.

chaotic: the Creature stands over his female prize, unchained and furious, while terrified townsfolk seem to be running straight toward the viewer. Brown’s visceral, invasive style is best displayed in Revenge’s enormous 24-sheet. The large poster format required an expansive palette that brings the rampaging monster up-close and personal, his humanoid arms reaching out and nearly through the image, ready to embrace mesmerized moviegoers. The Creature and his lovely hostage dominate the foreground; behind and below them is a mass of mere mortals screaming in the streets. It’s less a poster than a monstrous mural.

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THEY’RE ALIVE!

It wasn’t just monsters Reynold had a taste for. Soon after becoming disillusioned with Universal, horror took over, as evidenced in his posters for The Raven (1963), I Was a Teenage Werewolf 1957), and The Masque of the Red Death (1964). TM & © American International Pictures.

THEY’RE ALIVE!

His canvas for House on Haunted Hill (1959) was truly creepy.

TM & © William Castle Productions.

assignment was a collaboration with Kallis on the iconic poster for AIP’s I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957).

Enter Edgar Allan Poe

Brown’s posters for AIP’s Vincent Price-Edgar Allan Poe series showcase his ability to replicate the faces and expressions of horror heroes like Price, Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre, and Basil Rathbone (check out his remarkably accurate portraits on posters for House of Usher [1960]; The Raven [1963]; and The Comedy of Terrors [1964]).

Kallis was ecstatic when Brown presented his finished painting for The Masque of the Red Death (1964), featuring the outsized, crimson-colored, desiccated face of Vincent Price, perfectly in keeping with the actor’s demented and decadent portrayal of Prince Prospero. “I assembled a lot of different stills from the film,” Kallis noted, “but I did not take the time to match any of those images to Vincent Price’s facial features. Reynold took off from my original concept and created one of the most amazing pieces of movie art I had ever seen.”

“My job was to make a movie seem better than it

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actually was,” Brown once said. “To make people think a pretty bad movie was really going to be good.” His words rang true for two of his most renowned poster campaigns, both done for penurious Allied Artists. Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman isn’t really as bad as its reputation, but Brown’s titanic depiction of a voluptuous Allison Hayes astride a highway far exceeds the film’s threadbare special effects. His poster art for the movie is now a cherished and highly collectible piece of ’50s memorabilia. Brown’s posters for Allied’s House on Haunted Hill (1959) are equally evocative, each an eye-catching, eyefilling composite of individual images from the film: a moody depiction of the titular haunted mansion, a scowling skeleton dangling a woman from a noose, Vincent Price grasping a decapitated head. No detail is overlooked: bats flutter in the background amidst gnarled trees, all bathed in dusky twilight. The movie itself is highly entertaining, but it’s no match for Brown’s malevolent montage.

By 1970, Brown had grown tired of making movie art, but it paid the bills and helped support his wife and eight children. The end came when AIP asked him to design the posters for its limp adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s The Dunwich Horror (1970). The studio wanted him to depict a semi-nude Sandra Dee about to be raped by an amorphous monster. “When you have to do that,” he said, “it’s time to quit.”

He and his family moved to Nebraska, where he devoted his remaining years to his first love, painting western landscapes. His output in that medium was prolific and profitable. In May 1976 he suffered a massive stroke which paralyzed his entire left side. With the support of his wife, Brown overcame his disability and continued painting until his death on August 24, 1991, due to complications from hip surgery.

No single article can encompass Reynold Brown’s inestimable contribution to horror and science-fiction cinema. Writers and filmmakers have paid tribute to his talent. Mel Bucklin’s 1994 documentary The Man Who Drew Bug-Eyed Monsters is a loving biography rich in visuals. In their lavishly illustrated book Reynold Brown: A Life in Pictures (Illustration Press: 2009), Daniel Zimmer and David J. Hornung thoroughly discuss Brown’s life and reproduce a wealth of his eye-popping creations. Lured by the promise and premise of his artwork, monster lovers everywhere continue to cherish his work and honor his imagination. ■ STEVE KRONENBERG is a Managing Editor of Noir City Magazine and the co-author of The Creature Chronicles: Exploring the Black Lagoon Trilogy, Universal Terrors 1951-1955.

FORGOTTEN HORROR FILMS

by Michael Price

THE SCOWLING GOOFINESS of PAUL BLAISDELL’s MOVIE MONSTERS

T

he recent discovery of three obscure comic-strip episodes from The Army Times (vintage: early 1950s) in a private collection sheds an unaccustomed light upon the moviemonster career of Paul Blaisdell. Celebrated posthumously as a primitive but crucial talent in the low-budget horror/ SF canon, Blaisdell went largely unacknowledged during his youthful prime of ragged artistry. The unsteady plateau lasted just long enough to leave such memorable impressions as Roger Corman’s mid-century productions of The Beast with a Million Eyes, It Conquered the World, and The She-Creature.

Those Army Times cartoons are reproduced herewith from the pen-and-ink originals, restored from well-preserved sheets

of Bristol board. Before his ill-managed breakthrough in 1955 into filmmaking, Blaisdell was among that exclusive tribe of talented soldiers who distinguished their uniformed service by creating comic-strip diversions for the enlisted rank-and-file.

One such artist, Pvt. Dave Breger, amused the troops with his self-caricatured Pvt. Breger gags, then re-entered civilian life with a Mr. Breger newspaper-strip spinoff. The great editorialist Bill Mauldin chronicled life among his fellow foot-soldiers with the Willie & Joe drawings of World War II and then persisted as a Pulitzer-bait artist upon returning from uniformed duty.

Reluctant civilian Milton Caniff, denied enlistment during WWII on account of chronic circulatory ailments, complicated his Terry & the Pirates workload by creating Male Call as a pro bono morale-booster comics feature for Uncle Sam’s strictly-for-soldiers publications.

Paul Blaisdell found steady post-Army work, but only just, by turning his skills at drawing and carpentry into a sculptural talent.

He achieved results that—when seen under the right unsubtle lighting—resemble nothing so much as a procession of Latinate-tradition party-piñatas.

He welcomed such assignments whether they paid or not, riding that vehicle through a four-year dead-end stretch.

When assigned to wear his She-Creature costume (modified against his preferences) for a gratuitous swan-song appearance in 1959’s Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow, Blaisdell doffed the mask on-camera to lament the demise of his uniquely absurd approach to creature design. American International Pictures had begun to outgrow the goofy-looking monster-faces as early as 1957’s Paul Blaisdell’s Army Times comic strips of the early 1950s prefigure his creature-design sensibilities and an interest in the outré.

Not of This Earth, featured last

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FORGOTTEN HORROR FILMS issue, whose space-vampire story anticipated the more mature-minded Gothic attitude of Roger Corman’s Edgar Allan Poe cycle of 1960 and onward.

(Blaisdell’s involvement notwithstanding, Not of This Earth required no such prominent monster-faces.)

Blaisdell’s constancy of purpose is crystallized in the first of the three Army Times strips: The opening panel shows a prehistoric couple poised to repel a sabertoothed cat. The beast sports the same grimacing scowl and slightly gotch-eyed aspect that can be seen in the invader of It Conquered the World.

This self-evident prototype reappears, by turns, in Blaisdell’s conceptions for From Hell It Came (1957; uncredited) and Monster from Green Hell (1958; uncredited), among others. Psychotronic Video publisher Michael J. Weldon has likened the tree-trunk menace of From Hell It Came to a vision from “a six-year-old’s nightmare”—a revealing insight, connoting the naïve but practical amateurism that accounts for the mingled charm and annoyance of Blaisdell’s work, not unlike some child’s attempt to relate a scary story with a surfeit of adjectives.

Beginnings...

Born in Newport, Rhode Island, in 1927, and raised in Quincy, Massachusetts, Blaisdell attended the New England School of Art & Design in Boston; married classmate Jacqueline Boyle; fulfilled military duties; and landed in California as a technical illustrator with Douglas Aircraft. A lifelong model-building enthusiast, Blaisdell also pitched artwork to various science-fiction fan publications and commercial magazines. A Los Angelesbased agent, Forrest J Ackerman, steered emerging filmmaker Roger Corman toward Blaisdell as an effects artist, however inexperienced. The result was an 18-inch puppet, representing Corman’s The Beast with a Million Eyes.

(A figurative exaggeration, that title. The film is more an Existential meditation

Blaisdell’s risqué alien-intrusion scene is representative of his attempts to develop a pulp-magazine rèsumé.

than a thrilling adventure.)

Blaisdell, working with wife Jackie, developed a reputation for fast-andcheap productivity. Ackerman, who never met a conflict of interest he did not like, meanwhile developed Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine as a payola-in-print device for promoting his clients and cronies. Famous Monsters devoted space accordingly to Blaisdell, who nonetheless found himself banished from the magazine after a falling-out with publisher James Warren. Ackerman came into eventual possession of the 18inch Million Eyes puppet—but in time the prop deteriorated while stored in the

Ackermansion.

The Blaisdells’ commune-like home in Topanga Canyon provided the workshop space when Corman assigned them to handle Day the World Ended (1955).

This one would be a three-eyed scowler, lacking a body mold but built upon a suit of long underwear with foam rubber, flexible glue, and paint to effect a crusty skin, with a pinhead profile built around a military-helmet liner. Like its monstrous counterpart in Million Eyes, this creature would be kept tantalizingly in shadow, emerging for the finale.

Since Republic Pictures’ The Purple Monster Strikes (1945), the cinema-at-

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FORGOTTEN HORROR FILMS large had seen 20 alien invasions at close imaginary range. The 20th such siege was Corman’s It Conquered the World (1956), with an antagonist of proposed fungoid aspect. The Blaisdells’ response more closely resembled a zucchini squash, with a fanged grimace. A friend of the Baisdells, fellow artisan Bob Burns, once gave this account to genre historian Jan Alan

Henderson: “The only disagreement Paul and [Corman] ever had [involved] bringing [the creature] out of the cave in It Conquered the World. Paul would have built [the figure] a lot different, had he known she was to emerge from [a shadowed opening in Bronson Caves, the shooting location].”

The creature of It Conquered the World represents Blaisdell’s scary-face style— a recurring element.

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The Blaisdells and their SheCreature suit.

(Blaisdell’s fabrications seemed more convincing in near-darkness.) Burns added that a press-preview audience, absorbed at first, started to laugh as the monster emerged, “and Paul just said, ‘Let’s get out of here. I knew this was going to happen.’”

Burns described the Blaisdells’ resources as “the seat of their pants.. pure imagination and spit and vinegar.”

Burns said he resented “people trying to compare The She-Creature with [big Universal Pictures’] Creature from the Black Lagoon.” Blaisdell often portrayed his own creations—wearing the get-ups on-camera, that is. He designed the creep-suits of Invasion of the SaucerMen (1957) to be worn by dwarf actors.

For American International’s The She-Creature (1956), tenured director Edward L. Cahn allowed the Blaisdells a greater latitude in design and mobility— their most persuasive such construction.

The Blaisdells supplied Not of This Earth with machinery and faceless flying-disk creatures. Cahn’s Voodoo Woman (1957) required an overhaul of Blaisdell’s SheCreature rig.

Outside the cheapskate shelter of American International Pictures, producer Al Zimbalist, Jr., ordered wasp-like designs in 1957 for Monster from Green Hell, with Blaisdell’s commitment to build an array of immense creatures. Zimbalist misappropriated the sketches for inferior, immobile construction and refused to pay. Producers Dan and Jack Milner commissioned an ambulatory tree-monster for 1958’s From Hell It Came—Blaisdell delivered the sketches, and the Milners reneged by giving the building job to Don Post Studios. The contorted face is nonetheless pure Blaisdell.

FORGOTTEN HORROR FILMS

...and Endings

Additional practical effects served the 1957–1958 onrush of Bert I. Gordon’s The Amazing Colossal Man, its sequel, War of the Colossal Beast, and Attack of the Puppet People and Earth vs. the Spider; as well as a mask for AIP-made insert footage to tamper with the imported prints of Alfred Shaugnessy’s British production of Cat Girl (1957). A menacing suit for Vogue Pictures’ It! The Terror from Beyond Space (1958) proved to be Paul and Jacqueline Blaisdell’s last original monster.

The genre as a class faced upheaval in a Gothic-horror revival of 1957 et seq.— provoked by the more dignified influence of Britain’s Hammer Films and a broadening interest in heightened realism.

The dire and cringeinducing Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow, with its

hedonistic teenage vapidity and concentration of rock ’n’ roll music, pointed toward an unlikely new spinoff for American International and its coattail-riders—the Beach Party cycle of slapstick musical-comedy indulgences of the 1960s.

The Blaisdells’ inventory proved extensive for so concentrated a stretch of self-invented artistry, but the collapse came altogether too soon. A near-final insult came when the masks for Cat Girl, Saucer-Men, and It Conquered the World were destroyed in a staged fire for the climax of Herbert L. Strock’s How to This foam-latex sculpture

by Michael H. Price and David Fuller (1991) is based on the Blaisdell design for Invasion of the Saucer-Men.

Make a Monster, fourth in Herman Cohen’s cycle of teenage-creature pictures.

Orders to alter the SheCreature costume for Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow demoralized Blaisdell to an extent that shows in a weary unmasked performance.

The surviving fragments of that outfit were destroyed in 1979 in flash-flooding at the Topanga Canyon house.

Paul Blaisdell retrenched in conventional carpentry.

He died in 1983, before a reawakening popular awareness would create a market for a line of smallscale modeling kits based upon his “six-year-old’s nightmare” creatures, not to mention studioauthorized video editions of the films per se. American International’s co-founder, Samuel Z. Arkoff, received percentages from such retail phenomena, but Jacqueline Blaisdell claimed no such profits—the long-term curse of freelance work-for-hire arrangements. She died in 2006, having remained in the mudslideravaged Topanga residence.

Melodramatic immaturity and impermanence of technique aside, Paul and Jacqueline Blaisdell remain a vital inspiration to anyone who prizes originality over polish or sophistication.

Their concoctions are essentially memorable, having sprung from a generosity of spirit and a defiance of constraints that would have discouraged many another shirtsleeves artisan.

Such childlike naïveté served their artistry well—to a point—but it also left them vulnerable to the treacherous undercurrents of the entertainment racket. ■ MICHAEL H. PRICE is lead author of the Forgotten Horrors series of motion-picture encyclopedias—longest-running genre study in commercial publishing, with 10 volumes and spinoffs since 1980.

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MARTIANS, MONSTERS and MAYHEM The Strange Saga of Mars Attacks!

by Steve Kronenberg

T

he tag line on a movie poster? The hype for some eagerly awaited TV show? Not even close. That titillating text appeared on the packaging for a pop culture phenomenon. In 1962, Topps Chewing Gum, Inc. made a bold move. After years of dominating the baseball trading card trade, the company hitched its wagon to an interplanetary invasion by releasing its gloriously gory Mars Attacks! card series. What Topps created became a legend: droves of kids eagerly traded their nickels for packages of these superbly drawn, garishly colored cards depicting malevolent Martians descending on and destroying planet Earth. Topps knew its audience— preadolescents with an affinity for horror films and outsized monsters. The goal of every Monster Boomer was to collect a complete set of all 55 cards, a daunting but worthy task.

The front of each card displayed an unearthly, painted

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scenario from the story, continuing sequentially with every consecutive card until the literally explosive conclusion.

The back of each card revealed a textual description of the illustrated scene, gradually unfolding the narrative and urging fans to stick with the story and purchase the next card in the series. The painted cards were delightfully lurid: the Martians were hideous, bulbous-headed brainiacs; Earthlings were seen disintegrating from ray gun blasts; the invaders turned ordinary insects into gigantic carnivorous monsters with an appetite for humans. Blood and guts flowed freely from the start of the sanguinary saga to its furious and fearful finale on the planet Mars.

Mars Attacks! was the brain(iac)child of Topps creative directors Woody Gelman and Len Brown. They modeled the concept after H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds. What they came up with was more like The War of the Worlds on

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MARS ATTACKS!

Soon after “The Invasion Begins”, the carnage gathered apace as these cards from the Mars Attacks series were eager to reveal. The sight of “Burning Flesh” would have raised concerns, as would the inference in “Beast and the Beauty.” TM & © Topps.

steroids. The series was test-marketed as Attack From Space and sold for a penny a pack, but when sales took off, Gelman and Brown substituted the more exclamatory Mars Attacks!, upped the ante to a nickel a pack, and watched the cards fly off store shelves.

The Martians’ general appearance was adapted from legendary artist Wally Wood’s cover art for EC Comics’ Weird Science #16 (November 1952), depicting a group of intergalactic invaders emerging from a spaceship after landing on Earth. Gelman and Brown copped the Martians’ exposed and bulging brains from the Metaluna Mutant in Universal Pictures’ 1955 science fiction epic This Island Earth.

“Those big-brained aliens were the perfect inspiration for the Martians in our trading card series,” wrote Brown in his intro to the celebratory book Mars Attacks! (Abrams: 2012), released to commemorate the cards’ 50th anniversary. Gelman and Brown initially approached Wood to illustrate the cards (some of Wally’s roughs are shown above), but his artwork proved too subdued. “We required more drama and excitement to be sure to catch our young audience’s attention,” Brown wrote. “Each Mars Attacks card needed to achieve the impact of a paperback cover with a dramatic story clearly detailed at first glance.” Bob Powell, who penciled Topps’ 1961 Civil War card series, was tapped to conceptualize each Mars Attacks! card with tight 5x7 pencil sketches on illustration board. Powell’s work was then forwarded to renowned pulp artist Norman Saunders to paint over his pencils with gouache. Saunders’ work was breathtaking. “We were very lucky to have Norm working with us on Mars Attacks!,” recalled Brown.

“I loved watching him paint over the Powell pencils. He created beautiful, colorful masterpieces working with a fine paint brush under a magnifying glass, filling each card with more and more dramatic detail.” Saunders’ patience was unshakeable: the original paintings for each card were smaller than the cards themselves, requiring a painstakingly deft and delicate hand.

“I was able to do one-and-a-half cards a day,” said Saunders. Topps president Joel Shorin objected to the violence and scantily clad women featured on

MARS ATTACKS!

Above, Norman Saunders’ dramatic painting for card #32’s “The Monster Reaches In”; then came the giant insects, but help was at hand when a courageous soldier stepped into the affray. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case for the “Prize Captive” from card #21. TM & © Topps.

much of the finished artwork, requiring Saunders to retouch the cards’ content and tone. Even after those modifications, Shorin still had qualms about the series. Fearing a backlash of bad publicity, he decided to release the cards under the corporate moniker “Bubbles, Inc.” Unfortunately, Shorin’s fears quickly materialized. The cards’ brutal, blood-spattered imagery aroused the ire of newspaper columnists, parents, and teachers (one student wrote a letter to Topps explaining that he and his friends loved the cards but were forced by their teacher to condemn them). The end came when a censorious DA from Connecticut deemed Mars Attacks! “unsuitable for children” and threatened to enjoin any further shipments to newsstands and comic book stores. After the original sets were pulled, Shorin asked Saunders to further sanitize the cards in order to return them to the marketplace without fear of censorship. Thirteen pasteurized pieces were completed and, in an act of rebellion, Saunders substituted a painted image of himself in place of the well-endowed woman who’s menaced by a Martian in card # 17 (“Beast and the Beauty”). These “cleansed” cards were kept under wraps until 1984, when they were finally released under the title Mars Attacks: The Unpublished Version.

Objectionable Content

The magnificently vivid artwork of Mars Attacks! more than compensated for its allegedly “objectionable” content. Certain cards are nothing

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short of extraordinary. Card #1 (“The Invasion Begins”) shows a hideous Martian leader commanding an army of invaders as their saucers head for the skies. The entire image is a showcase for Powell’s and Saunders’ sense of composition, color, and balance (the card remains the most valuable and collectible in the set). In card #2 the Martian saucers speed toward Earth as the invaders watch with undisguised glee (those saucers seem directly inspired by Wally Wood’s ingenious saucer design for the cover of EC’s Weird Science #13, May 1952). Cards #3-9 graphically show Earthlings being blasted, burned, and blown to bits

by Martian heat rays. Card #10 details the destruction of a New York skyscraper that closely resembles the Empire State Building, an unnerving image in our post-9/11 world. Serious bloodletting occurs in card #15, as the aliens invade China, their death rays reducing one man to skeletal remains. Card #32 delivers a giant Martian robot burning through a man’s skull, an image Brown lifted from the retro robots in serials like The Phantom Empire (1935) and Undersea Kingdom (1936). Other cards explicitly portray people being crushed by nefarious Martian machinery or frozen to death by lethal frost rays. “What other ways could they torture humans?” Brown mused with fauxsadistic delight. “What else could they do? First they burn them, so now let’s freeze them! Imagine spending time talking about these things!”

Monster movie maniacs salivated when giant insects were introduced to the series with card #27, as

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MARS ATTACKS!

The enormous spider was seen preparing to gorge on its human victims in Norman’s painting for card #42 “Hairy Fiend.” These monstrous insects continued with their feast in card #27’s “The Giant Flies” and #30’s “Trapped.” TM & © Topps.

MARS ATTACKS!

a swarm of monstrous flies grab victims in their hungry jaws. Successive cards show helpless humans devoured by an array of insectoid monstrosities. The creatures attack railroad stations and break into homes to abduct terrified women. Card #30 (“Trapped!”) is one of the series’ most chilling. The concept is simple: a comely woman is stuck inside a giant spider web as its monstrous owner advances toward her. But Saunders painted the thing with disturbing detail, focusing on its multiple eyes, spindly legs, crimsoncolored body, and gleaming mouth parts. “I know I came up with this one,” Brown said. “I really wanted to get that image in the series once we were doing insects as part of the invasion.” In card #41, a giant caterpillar winds itself around the Eiffel Tower, biting off the top of the landmark as Martian saucers vaporize Paris’ populace. Gouts of gore are spilled when Earth soldiers begin battling the outsized monsters. We see bayonets and bullets ripping through the beasts’ bodies, their innards exposed and exsanguinated.

The most controversial and notorious Mars Attacks! entry is card #36 (“Destroying a Dog”). We watch a malignant Martian kill a dog with a death ray as the pet’s young owner screams in horror. Saunders originally envisioned the dog reduced to bones and ash, but Joel Shorin insisted that only the animal’s flesh and fur be penetrated by the alien’s ray gun.

Martian Splatter

The bloodthirsty horror of card #38’s “Victims of the Bug” paled before one of the most notorious of the series, card #36’s “Killing a Dog.” However, the shock in “High Voltage Execution” gave us a glimmer of hope. TM & © Topps.

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The series’ finale unfolds in cards #46-54, as Earth’s avenging armies blast off for Mars to destroy both the planet and its inhabitants. These cards, splattered with Martian blood, provide a satisfying and sensational wrap to the story. Card # 55 is a checklist that covers each card in the series, allowing collectors to monitor the pieces they had and the ones they still needed to complete the set (blank checklist cards remain rare and coveted).

Brown wrote the narratives that appear on the verso of each card. “I’d have all the original paintings on my desk, going through them and writing about what I saw,” he recalled. “It didn’t take long because Woody and I had talked out each scenario, so I already

had a lot of our little thoughts about what to say in mind before I started to write.”

Over the outcries of puritan parents and politicians, Mars Attacks! became a pop culture sensation. Because the cards were pulled before mass distribution, their rarity and brilliant artwork have made them extremely valuable.

By the 1980s, individual cards and entire sets were selling for small fortunes. In 1994, Topps released a new series titled Mars Attacks Archives, reprinting the original 55-card set and adding 22 new entries drawn by artists Herb Trimpe and Earl Norem, based on unused concepts created

by Powell and Saunders. Unshackled from censorship, Trimpe and Norem conjured some nasty scenarios (#59’s “Blasted Into Oblivion” resurrected Wally Wood’s rejected 1962 sketch “Tied To Rocket Tubes”, showing a soldier tied to the barrel of a cannon as his insides are blasted out of his body). Later in 1994, Topps marketed yet another 32-card subset featuring new work from such artists as Simon Bisley, Frank Brunner, Drew Friedman, Norman Saunders’ daughter Zina, and Saunders himself, humorously depicting his own likeness being painted on canvas by a brush-wielding Martian.

Cultural Import

Other Mars Attacks! card series have been more recently produced by Topps for such companies as Non-Sports Update (illustrated by

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MARS ATTACKS!

The tide was finally turning in Norman Saunders’ painting for card #48 “Earthmen Land on Mars;” one of the few occasions when the Martians were seen without their helmets. The unrelenting devastation tears the French capital apart, in “Horror in Paris.” TM & © Topps.

MARS ATTACKS! The war may have been taken to the Martian homeworld, but the cards were every bit as savage. Card #55, the checklist and synopsis, has always been difficult to pick up in mint condition—the kids just had to tick off their latest finds. TM & © Topps.

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Garbage Pail Kids artist Jay Lynch) and Pocket Comics. Topps also licensed the series to Moebius for the creation of Martian model kits. In 1997, Del-Rey Books got a piece of the action with several paperbacks adorned with eyecatching covers by Peter Scanlan and Ken Steacy. Through the decades, a mass of Mars Attacks! merch has flooded the collectibles market, everything from key chains to mouse pads. The cards’ cultural import culminated with Tim Burton’s disappointing 1996 film adaptation, also titled Mars Attacks! Burton adhered to Saunders’ Martian conceptions, but the movie did away with the giant insects and degenerated into campy comedy.

The Mars Attacks! commemorative volume contains a poignant and informative tribute to Saunders by his daughter Zina. “Just a bunch of bug-eyed monsters he painted for bubble gum cards,” was the way her father described the project. Zina touches upon her father’s irreverence—a sensibility deeply rooted in his impolitic illustrations for the Mars Attacks! series. He also knew that Baby Boomers had an insatiable appetite for horror, and he gave them what they sought. “Dad was the perfect artist for Mars Attacks!,” Zina wrote.

Saunders’ son David, also a fine artist, kept his father’s flame burning with a magnificent coffee table tome simply titled Norman Saunders (Illustrated Press: 2008). It’s a comprehensive overview of his father’s work in all media, with the chapter on Mars Attacks! being rich with stunning reproductions of the choicest cards, some expanded into full pages and multi-page gatefolds.

The book also reveals a childhood photo of David modeling for his father as the horrified kid in the infamous “Destroying a Dog” card.

Some academicians argue that Mars Attacks! arose from Cold War paranoia and the dread that plagued America amidst the Cuban Missile Crisis, the threat of nuclear war, and the fear of Communist enslavement. But why assume that Mars Attacks! evolved from depressing visions of existential doom?

Imbued with imagination, a sense of fun, and a love for all things Martian and monstrous, Woody Gelman, Len Brown, Bob Powell, and Norman Saunders simply knew what kids were dying to see. And they were right. ■

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MARS A TASK UNCOVERED A chat with storyboard artist Pete von Sholly

W

hile amusing, Pete von Sholly’s enlightening “Mars a Task,” from his book If Not Now, When? [below], reveals just how complex pre-production can be in the making of a film±certainly before CGI took a hold of the special effects in the industry. To bring Mars Attacks to the big screen was a step into the unknown, as evidenced in his sketch for one of these Martian

invaders. The original concept looked nothing like the Martians from the Topps’ Mars Attacks cards, who unbeknownst to Pete were poised to make their return, going on to reap a similar trail of large-scale havoc and destruction in Tim Burton’s 1996 film. Pete admits he was only playing with the ideas at this time, describing his doodles as nothing more than “a joke.”

Tim had been given a free rein with his proposals for what was going to be an amusing homage to the B-movies of yesteryear; so at that stage in 1995, there was already a plethora of ideas being thrown into the melting pot. If anyone understood the fundamentals of a B-movie, it was Burton, coming off the back of his tribute to the cult B-movie impresario Ed Wood in 1994—a fitting celebration of the man and his enthusiasm for these outrageous films, which in his hands became even more outrageous, as we shall see in a future issue of Cryptology.

“Mars A Task” reveals how Pete bagged himself a holiday over in England and got to see so many of the sites. Mars Attacks seemed to be on the back burner at this time, but it didn’t stop Pete from experimenting with his Martian designs. TM & © Pete von Sholly

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The excess in the original Mars Attacks card series was taken that one step further in Pete’s “Food for Thought” scenario. Below, a horrifying scene that never made it to Tim Burton’s film. TM & © Pete von Sholly

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MARS A TASK UNCOVERED

Tim’s passion for bringing these crazy cards to life was evident from the very outset of his film. While Pete shared this excitement for the project, he stands among those, who all of these years later, wishes it had been either funnier or more horrifying. This would have made it consistent with the excess that had erupted from these cards on their first showing. In Pete’s words, “We didn’t hit either one hard enough for my money. Also the absence of giant bugs was an egregious choice, sorry!”

The bugs, particularly the monster wrapped around the Eiffel Tower, were indeed conspicuous by their absence; and let’s be honest—the funding was available, as this was a big budget picture.

Pete further commented, “In the film, when the Martians burned people up, the skeletons were red or green... because Warner Brothers was timid about the horror element and wanted to play it safe.”

As a result, long time Mars Attack fans lost that ingredient they so reveled in: the gory horror that had been intrinsic to the excitement in these cards and in turn led to their being banned. Surely no one was going to ban a big budget film in the 1990s?

In our chit-chat, I asked Pete if, back in the day, he been one of those kids lucky enough to pick up any of these cards. After all, he was one of those at the heart of this

MARS A TASK UNCOVERED

cinematic venture. He replied, “No, somehow I missed them. We moved around a lot in those days (army family) and certain things slipped through the cracks. I would have grabbed them if I had the chance, though.”

This was such a great pity, for when you consider Pete’s amazing creative career in film, books, comic books, and toy design, these cards were just made for him. He kindly sent over his take on one of these cards, arbitrarily choosing card #13, which was originally “Watching From Mars,” to make his own humorous “Food For Thought.” Being the avid collector, this prompted me to wonder if he had ever considered creating any more of these?

His involvement with the film could have been a good selling point, but as he explained, “No, it seemed like those cards were getting plenty of new versions without my help. I didn’t have anything to add that needed adding.”

During the 1970s, Pete had worked for the San Francisco-based underground comic book publisher Last Gasp. Given the insanity of this series and the underground movement’s affinity for EC, the whole idea of Mars Attacks seemed to fit so well with their ethos. However, there doesn’t seem to have been an exchange of ideas for bringing the story in these cards to these comix. As Pete reminded me, “Tim Boxell did Commies From Mars, right? Again, the idea seems to have been pretty well mined.” We will

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At the top of the page, Pete’s concept sketch for this issue’s “Spilling My Guts” sits alongside his box design for a Martian Assembly Kit. TM & © Pete von Sholly. We finish off with two of the stop motion puppets used in the film. TM & © Warner Bros.

see just how well mined in a few pages time, when you will get to see a glimpse of the acclaimed Commies From Mars.

The film industry works in very strange ways, often to the detriment of those on whom they rely. Despite his creative involvement, Pete revealed, “...they screwed me out of my credit! Warners that is. Long annoying story there! I complained and am listed in the IMDB as ‘uncredited.’ Gripe.” You can’t credit some people, can you? Mind you, on his trip to England he did get to see Blackpool, albeit on a typically wet day, with the compensation of fish and chips at Harry Ramsden’s; the rarest of treats! ■ PETE VON SHOLLY has been the storyboard artist on over 100 feature films including Darkman, The Mist, Shawshank Redemption, and The Green Mile. He has also created comics and graphic novels crammed with monsters galore for Dark Horse, IDW and Boom! as well as editing the two volume Fantastic Fictioneers.

MARTIAN MEMORABILIA

by Peter Normanton

M

aligned from the outset, Topps’ Mars Attacks cards didn’t last too long at the neighborhood store. The lucky ones were certainly picking them up as fast as they possibly could, but the controversy surrounding their graphic content resulted in this mind-blowing series being unceremoniously pulled from the shelves, so few kids away from the big cities ever got to see them. The upshot for those frothing at the mouth for more, was not a single toy manufacturer in their right mind was going to go anywhere near them. They were trouble, serious trouble.

Much to their relief, the toy shop owners weren’t besieged by these Martian invaders and their deadly saucer machines.

Nor was there to be any dodging of the ray guns and the giant insects they engineered, and as for the killer robots, there was no chance of them going on the rampage. The entire concept was dead in the water long before these searing works of art ever got the chance to ransack our towns and cities. For the few

who were lucky to lay their hands on these cards back in ’62, there was nothing, but nothing to follow by way of collectibles.

Alas for the modern day vintage toy collector, Mars Attacks has drawn an absolute blank.

Those self-righteous propagandists, whose outcry precipitated the purge of these gruesome cards, soon forgot about them, but Mars Attacks never quite went away. The cards were reprinted in Britain between 1964 and 1965, although they were slightly smaller. They then returned briefly States-side with a re-issue in 1984, a decade prior to a further release, that was to add 22, and then in a subsequent release that same year, 23 more cards to a series now entitled Mars Attacks Archives. Finally in 1996 came the release of Tim Burton’s cinematic tribute to the genius of Woody Gelman, Len Brown, Bob Powell, and Norman Saunders. While Burton’s film divided fans of these spectacular cards, it was to spawn a wave of must-have memorabilia for a new generation of enthusiasts.

If you had seen the film or collected the cards, then Mars Attacks toys were a must! To the left, the Super7 7" articulated Martian Soldiers from the “Smashing The Enemy” card #50. TM & © Super7. On the right, the 12" Supreme Martian Ambassador. TM & © Trendmasters.

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MARTIAN MEMORABILIA

4" Doom Robot with its rotating head, as seen on card #32; the 2" Doom Spider, also known as S.A.D.A.A.M.A.; scaled down versions of the Supreme Martian Ambassador and the Martian Leader; the alluring Martian Spy Girl coming in at 6"; a Blue Martian Trooper; a Martian Trooper with body armor; his sidekick with a Proton Blaster; a 7" Paeec Overlord; and as any fan of the series would have taken great delight in, the Supreme Commander. Each of them was displayed in typically outrageous packaging, the Doom Spider depicting a hapless fellow ensnared by this predatory beast—the For the 50th anniversary of Mars Attacks, Moebius Models released their model kit aimed at the experienced incentive for youngsters modeler, but the box on its own would have attracted many other enthusiasts. TM & © Moebius Models. from every corner of town to descend in their masses, With The Press of a Button just as their elders had done when the cards first appeared Following their success with the Godzilla franchise, all those years ago. These flexible glow-in-the-dark figures Trendmasters released a series of Mars Attacks models, also came with gaming software on a 3½" floppy disc, which countless youngsters would have hurriedly latched which was compatible with Windows 95 (those were the onto. However, their appeal really rested largely with days), although there are only known to be three different the older fans who had been so cruelly denied three decades before. I was one of those lucky enough to receive the 12" Supreme Martian Ambassador when it first appeared, the very name evoking memories of the defunct Supreme Soviet, the prime legislators of the former Soviet Union. This devious fellow came with a brain that with the press of a button lit up, as well as uttering the diatribe associated with this warmongering breed.

For all of his bellicose ranting and raving, the Martian Ambassador was still hours of fun. Alongside this uncompromising denizen from the Red Planet came the similar-sized Supreme Martian Commander, also possessed of an illuminating brain and his own inimitable line of prattle; not that anyone was going to fall for the chicanery of this mindless pairing!

Trendmasters also issued a In 1996, Trendmasters supplemented their arsenal with the Mars Attacks Brain Disintegrator. The Basic Series of figures, the dread racket emitted by these guns would have made them an essential purchase. TM & © Trendmasters.

MARTIAN MEMORABILIA

The Martian Flying Saucer from the Trendmasters’ range was one of the highlights from the line of Mars Attacks collectibles in 1996. It came with a glow-in-the-dark Martian figure seated in the cockpit of the saucer. TM & © Trendmasters.

versions of these games, rather than one for each model.

As far back as the 1950s, toy ray guns had been sure sellers, as the team at Trendmasters knew only too well when they created their Martian Brain Disintegrators, one colored blue, the other green, each of them as potent as the other. It was likely the glaring lights and the noise they emitted would have eventually atomized the brains of their parents, which in less enlightened times would have no doubt precipitated another ban.

Flying Saucers

Now, if the kids hadn’t already tested the patience of their parents with the din from these ray guns, a Mars Attacks Flying Saucer or a Doom Saucer, with its detachable saucer, might have been found under the tree

come Christmas morning. Both models were equipped with blazing lights, the obligatory weaponry, a glow-inthe-dark Martian pilot, and another of those floppy discs containing details of the invading saucer’s mission. Maybe it wasn’t so bad being a puny Earthling after all!

Around the same time time Topps also licensed the designs for a set of Mars Attacks assembly kits from Screamin’ Products Inc. Sealed away in quite spectacular boxes, these kits were aimed at the skilled modeler with a passion for both the cards and Tim Burton’s film. The Air Assault Martian was a standalone figure; as was the scheming Martian Leader in Target Earth; so too was the Attacking Martian who could be posed ready for attack in several of these scenes; Slaughter in the Streets returned to the grisly devastation that had seemingly limited the life

The recent Super7 4" “glows in the dark” figures, directly inspired by the cards, have attracted considerable attention among latter day fans of this outrageous series. From left to right: “Burning Flesh;” “The Invasion Begins;” and “Destroying a Dog.” TM & © Super7.

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Screamin’s “No Place to Hide,” set on what was once a street corner, was a graphic display. TM & © Screamin’ Products Inc.

of these cards; Contemplating Conquest revealed the Paaec Leader in a typically gruesome scenario; No Place to Hide reveled in the excess of 30 years past; last but not least, The Terror in the Sky gave the enthusiast another much sought after flying saucer. Each of these models came with a trading card and an enticing advertising sheet.

In 2009, Hot Toys released their fearsome 12" high Mars Attacks figures of a Martian Soldier and the Martian Ambassador. These articulated toys with their moving eyes were well-received, but they have not been the easiest items to locate, becoming almost instantaneous collectors’ items.

Martian Manipulation

The 50th anniversary of these cards gave Moebius Models the chance to release their impressive model kit, again designed to attract the insight of the serious modeler. This scene, which could have so easily been plucked from one of the original cards, could be manipulated to excite the model maker’s imagination.

That same year Gentle Giant issued an amusing Mars Attacks Martian Saucer, piloted by a little fellow who kept you guessing as to whether it was a smile on his face or just a curling of his lip in readiness to strike. They also produced a Mars Attacks Martian Collectible Bust as a Convention Exclusive Limited Edition. Both models were packaged in noticeably eye-catching boxes.

The year 2012 also saw a Mars Attacks Bobble Head appear on the shelves, while Funko chanced their arm

This untrustworthy little fellow, the Mars Attacks Wacky Wobbler Bobble Head, was issued in Australia in 2012. TM & © Funko.

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with three glow-in-the-dark Wacky Wobbler Bobbleheads, each one of them intent on the complete subjugation of our world. No surprise there! Mezco Toys also released their version of a Mars Attacks Martian Commander.

A year later, Topps gave Quarantine Studio permission to create a limited edition statue of the Mars Attacks Martian Commander, standing at all of 14", this time observed stalking the devastated streets of Philadelphia.

Expertly sculptured and limited to a run of just 200, these figures were aimed at the high end collectors’ market, making for a worthy addition to the collection of any bona fide Mars Attacks aficionado. Mantic Games followed in 2014 with the similarly desirable Mars Attacks The Miniatures Game, a board game, with additional figures and scenes sold separately.

In the last few years Super7 have given us three Mars Attacks figures taken straight from the cards. Standing a little less than 4", these designs made a significant impact, emulating card #1 “The Invasion Begins,” followed by card #19 “Burning Flesh”, and last of all card #36 “Destroying a Dog.” While the dedicated were hoping for more, these same figures were also issued as a glow-in-the-dark series and the Ultimates standing at 7". Alas, no more of these takes on the cards have seen release, but those that did appear came with vivid must-have packaging interpreting the scenes banned more than 60 years ago. ■

MARS ATTACKS the COMICS BOOKS

by Peter Normanton

T

he ultra-violent spectacle that exploded from the Mars Attacks series of cards, should have taken the comic books of the day by storm. Unfortunately, in the wake of the furor of ’62, such an eventuality, if you’ll pardon the pun, was never in the cards, especially when eight years before, the comic book industry had been forced to clean up its act under the scrutiny of the Comics Code.

Those with a hankering for the atrocities committed in these scurrilous cards would have to wait another 20 years; only then were they given the slightest hint of anything broaching the warped phenomenon that had been Mars Attacks. It came in November of 1984, when Eclipse Comics released the eighth issue of Alien Worlds with a John Pound cover evocative of the

John Pound was so inspired by the insanity of Mars Attacks, he produced these covers for Commies From Mars #2 (TM & © Last Gasp) and Alien Worlds #8. TM & © Eclipse Comics.

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cards from two decades past and the inspiration behind them, Wally Wood’s covers for EC’s Weird Science. For John, this alien malfeasance was nothing new; he had attempted to resurrect the Martian threat on his celebrated cover for the second appearance of Tim Boxell’s Commies from Mars back in 1979. Five years later, he produced this stirring image for Alien Worlds #8, the first of the three editions published by Eclipse following the collapse of Pacific Comics. This scene was the prelude to the Bruce Jones scripted “Collector’s Item,” with Ken Steacy providing the artwork. Ken was an exceptional choice for this tale, his artistry imbued with the paranoiac air of the atom-age B-movies, his embellishment rekindling memories of Mars Attacks and the comics the authorities had once deemed to outlaw.

On this telling, the Martians were replaced by an invasion force from Venus, whose modus operandi was every bit as callous as their predecessors from the Red Planet. Although this account was squeezed into just five pages, there was an infectious tip of the hat to the excitement engendered by the Mars Attacks cards, in its presentation of four cards from the fictitious “Venus Invades” series. Regrettably, the rest of this set would elude each and every one of us—the Venusians were quick to see to that!

Overkill

series, which had only recently enjoyed a long awaited reissue. Pocket Books should have been duly applauded; these comics were lavish in their production, displayed in boxes redolent of the cards from a quarter of a century past, with stories written by Bruce Fuller and Mario Bruni, accompanied by a fine team of nifty artists, in the guise of Greg Capullo, John Hebert, Bruce Fuller, and John Green. The centerfold to each issue was a breathtaking reproduction of one of the original cards, beginning with the highly sought after “The Invasion Begins.”

The stories within attempted to tell of a 1980s styled invasion from Mars, one every bit as shocking as the original. Unfortunately, for all the genius in their splendidly conceived design, these comics didn’t catch on anywhere near quickly enough, making it impossible to continue the saga beyond issue #4—the back cover to that issue teasing with an advert for issues #5 and 6. It was a frustrating stroke of bad luck; these miniature comics could have become every bit as collectible as the cards, but it was as if a curse hung over this inflammatory series, or worse still, it was now forgotten.

The Martians returned with malice aforethought in the contents of Mr. Monster #5, dated February 1986, again published by Eclipse. Michael T. Gilbert’s story owed more to the 1953 film Invaders from Mars, referenced on the cover for this issue, but it is one of those entries that is well worth a mention. Michael returned, with finishes from Dave Dorman, with another dose of Mars Attacks styled imagery for the cover to Tundra’s Mr. Monster Attacks in

1992. The provocative scene created by this partnership, captured so much of the overkill of the cards, daring to take it that little bit further for a voracious ’90s audience. This pairing went further still for Penthouse Max #3, in Spring 1997, when Mr. Monster took on the Nazis from Mars, a tale later reprinted by Atomeka as Mr. Monster versus The Nazis From Mars in 2004; the cover to this issue was handsomely painted by Alex Horley.

As thrilling as “Venus Invades” and Mr. Monster’s escapades were, their endeavors failed to inspire a revival of Mars Attacks; but don’t vacate your seats just yet, for all was not lost. In 1988, Pocket Books announced their plans to publish 55 issues of a pocketsized 36-page comic, 3" by 4.5" in size.

For the Mars Attacks devotee this was manna from heaven, a concept that Tundra’s Mr. Monster Attacks #1 from 1992. TM would fit hand-in-hand with the card & © Michael T. Gilbert.

Topps Again

Fortunately, Mars Attacks wasn’t about to be erased from memory.

After considerable planning, Topps entered the comic book arena in 1992. If anyone could bring Mars Attacks to the comic shops of North America, surely it was them. They had experimented with their Krazy Little Comics way back in 1967, a test series of pocket-size spoofs parodying the popular superheroes of the day, printing up test issues of The Amusing Spider-Guy, Badman, The Bantam, Blunder Woman, Captive American, Fantastic Fear, The Flush, The Incredible Hunk, Jesters League of America, The Lone Rancher, The Meekly Thaw, Stuporman, Sub-Marine Man and Tarsam. Alas, their life was short-lived. During the test stage they failed to attract enough attention, so the idea was promptly shelved. As has already been mentioned, Mars Attacks

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Ken Steacy’s “Venus Invades” cards from Bruce Jones’ “Collector’s Item,” for Alien Worlds # 8.TM & © Eclipse Comics.

MARS ATTACKS the COMIC BOOKS

beginning of a five-issue miniseries. Rather than opting for an ongoing saga, Topps decided upon a self-contained story. They may have had a talented pairing of creators at their behest, but there was no guarantee Mars Attacks was going to be a runaway success.

From the outset the Martians wreaked havoc; one of their ships— or was it a warhead?—crashed, then exploded in the opening pages, culminating in a scene the team of Powell and Saunders would have been proud of. As the first chapter came to a close, Washington was once again in flames; an army base had been totally destroyed; and as the reader turned over for the final page, giant flies were swarming into our cities. With the President dead, Independence Day was all but a The second issue of Pocket Comics’ attempt to revive Mars Attacks in 1988 told the tale of memory. Any hope there had been Martian annihilation, ’80s-style. Sadly, this mind-blowing concept didn’t catch on quick enough, leading to this series being cancelled after just four issues. TM & © Pocket Comics. for mankind, had for all intents and purposes been abandoned. at this stage was never going to be an option for any comic The cover to this issue penciled by Keith Giffen, with book publisher, especially Topps, who had already had fan-favorite Terry Austin on inks, gave the would-be their fingers well and truly burned. Despite this, a little over two decades later, with the direct sales market now firmly established, Topps chose their moment to venture into comic book production. It was only a matter of time before the denizens of the Red Planet would again commence with their assault.

When the onslaught did finally manifest itself, it was spearheaded by the creativity of Keith Giffen, a writer and artist who had come to prominence during his well-remembered spell on DC’s Legion of Superheroes in the mid-1980s. With Keith entrusted with the scripting chores, the then unknown British artist Charles Adlard was appointed as the illustrator to depict the terror of the Martian offensive. Charles had been slowly but surely building a reputation over in Britain on Fleetway’s Judge Dredd The Megazine as well as picking up assignments with Marvel UK, ten years prior to rising to notability on The Walking Dead.

Between them, they recaptured much of the intensity from that venerated run of cards, making able use of several scenarios created by Bob Powell and Norman Saunders. However, recognizing this was a quite different world to that of 1962, they chose to take the story in a slightly different direction. Modern day readers had become accustomed to their villains having a feasible backstory, thanks to writers such as Keith Giffen, who set to fleshing out these Martian reprobates. Have no fear, the focus of his tale didn’t alter one jot; the Martian imperative was still as it had been 30 years before: the conquest of our world. However, as with those timehonored cards, the people of Earth weren’t about to take this lying down.

It was only fitting Topps should resurrect this series, courtesy of Keith Giffen and Terry Austin’s stunning cover. TM & © Topps.

The first issue, cover-dated May 1994, marked the

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MARS ATTACKS the COMIC BOOKS

To the left, Earl Norem’s flip cover for Mars Attacks #2 (June 1994), the re-imagined “Destroying a Dog.” Drew Friedman then embellished the cinematic flip cover for #3, while Norman Saunder’s daughter, Zina, dished out the agony in her flip cover for #4. TM & © Topps.

reader a fairly good idea as to what to expect within.

Flipping this issue gave you the bonus of an Earl Norem painted cover, a composition reminiscent of the artistry from all those years past. Len Brown’s short piece for this flip side of the comic, with Giffen now on art chores and Dave Simons providing the inks, let the reader into a well-kept secret: the Martians weren’t entirely in accord as to the likely outcome of their war-like endeavors. The free poster announced on the cover was a spread containing all 55 of those cards from 1962. With this being a five-issue mini series, we weren’t to get a repetition of the Pocket Comics center spread showcasing an individual card; that wouldn’t come our way until the 50th anniversary celebrations.

The Story Continues

Issue #2 opened with Giffen’s take on Harvey Kurtzman’s brushstrokes, as the annihilation of our world continued unabated. But there were chinks appearing among this seemingly invincible force, their calculations suggesting conquest wasn’t necessarily a fait accompli.

Maybe there was hope.

The flip side to this issue again came with an Earl Norem painting, a return to probably the most notorious of the original cards, “Destroying a Dog.” Len Brown told the story of this unfortunate little fellow, loyal unto the last. Pepper’s fate would act as a rallying call; these miserable Martians were going to have to be taught a lesson, but the question was, how?

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Given his conspiratorial involvement with “Venus Invades” ten years before, it was fitting Ken Steacy should be invited to paint the cover for issue #3, dated July 1994. With their glowing eyes, the Martians appeared even more cold-blooded, a characteristic Charles Adlard mercilessly exploited in his pages within. In all of three issues, his artwork was becoming so much more assured.

His imaginings thrived on this endless destruction, as he demonstrated in a series of pulse-pounding full-page spreads, portraying the Martians as the truly hateful

creatures they were. The flip cover ran with a Drew Friedman creation leading into “Horror in Hollywood” again written by Len Brown, now illustrated by Tom Sutton with Dave Simons supplying the inks.

Movie storyboard artist Ted Boonthanakit stepped in for the cover to issue #4, dated August 1994, giving us a splattering of the gore that had caused such a commotion back in ’62. Norman Saunders’ daughter Zina followed suit on the flip cover, her painting encapsulating so many of the ingredients intrinsic to the original bubble gum

Novelizing Mars Attacks I never saw the Mars Attacks gum cards when they were originally released in 1962, presumably because the controversial Topps Chewing Gum Company packs never reached Boston. I discovered them when they became a celebrated collectible a decade or so later.

In the 1980s, an artist friend recruited me to write the back copy of a planned unauthorized sequel card series he called Earth Beware. Alas, only one prototype card was ever produced.

So I had a solid idea what this card series was about when late in 1995 DelRey editor Steve Saffel reached out to ask if I would be interested in writing a Mars Attacks novel to tie in with Tim Burton‘s upcoming Mars Attacks! film, then being filmed for a December 1996 release. The catch was that the deadline was tight. The book needed to be written in approximately five weeks, over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.

At the time I was ghostwriting four books in the bestselling Destroyer paperback series, as well as other stuff.

Squeezing in a fifth novel would be challenging. Six weeks was approximately the time it normally took me to write a Destroyer. So I said yes.

Steve explained that science-fiction writer Lawrence Watt-Evans would be writing the first entry, Martian Deathtrap. He was a big fan of the card series and his thinking was to localize the novel to a strange maze-like house in order to replicate the concept of a single-card situation in a novel. I remember thinking at the time that this was taking the idea of an adaption to a literal extreme. But he pulled it off. More power to him.

I went in the opposite direction.

I was provided with reference material that included the recent Topps Comics Mars Attacks comic books.

In that series, the Martians had conquered much of the Western hemisphere. Unconquered Asia had been walled off from the rest. This was my jumping-off point because it sparked an idea for a story about the resistance.

When writing Destroyer, I had set several entries in modern Mongolia, finding the Mongol characters with their unabashed worship of Genghis Khan as a cultural hero to be a lot of fun to work with. Since I had already done tons of research on Mongolia, I pitched an idea where a descendant of Genghis Khan would rise up to challenge the Martians. Who better to take on the Martian threat than the descendant of one of Earth’s most bloodthirsty conquerors?

I called him Qasar. I chronicled his rise from lone nomad to inheritor of the mantle of Genghis Khan, and the man who reconstituted the much-feared Golden

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Horde as Qasar Khan.

Dogs of the Golden Horde was the title I gave the book, and during the week hiatus I had between Destroyer novels, I wrote like a madman, turning in the story on time.

I was very proud of the book, and if I remember correctly, Steve Saffel was taken aback by how ambitious it was. Well, I thought any novel involving an uprising against a Martian invasion should be epic in scope. I wrote it like a serious science-fiction adventure novel, but with traces of the mordant humor that was a trademark of the property. Some of my Martian characters were taken from the Topps comic book, further tying into that continuity. I also left the ending open for a sequel, but the movie flopped and no more novels were commissioned from anyone.

During the time I was writing up a storm, Steve announced that the book would be released in hardcover prior to the paperback. This had not been part of the original plan, but as I recall, the launch was chaotic. Contractually, DelRey needed to get the hardcovers out before the movie premiered. The hardcover edition came with a bonus, a new Mars Attacks card, using the cover to my novel as the front illustration. So that was cool.

I elected to put a pseudonym on War Dogs of the Golden Horde. Consequently, many people to this day do not know that, among my approximately 75 novels, I can include this Mars Attacks opus, written under the anagrammatic name of Ray W. Murill.

– Will Murray

series. On Earth the wholesale decimation continued without relent, but there were small victories along the way, which niggled these alien oppressors more than might have been expected.

The finale came with another stark Ted Boonthanakit cover, the flip cover painted by John Pound. For those anticipating a happy ending, think again; the closing panels were frustratingly inconclusive. On Mars there were grave concerns about our capacity for destruction, ostensibly resting with an untraceable fleet of fully-armed nuclear submarines patrolling the ocean depths; the end was nigh.

With the tension mounting, the final turn of the page left the reader with an undeniably hollow feeling. It was as if we had been duped; we wanted more, that more being the defeat of the Martians. In the letters page came the news we all wanted to hear: there would indeed be more.

Counterstrike

Fans of Mars Attacks had learned to be patient; that patience was going to have to endure for an entire year before the first of seven issues subtitled “Counterstrike” flooded the comic shops. If anything was going to sell this sequel, it was Ken Steacy’s commanding cover, which would have attracted oodles of attention when this issue was proudly placed on display. With Keith Giffen and Charles Adlard steadfast in their flying of the flag, there was still hope for our beleaguered world, even though there were those of our species who were turning to cannibalism.

While they were still plenty of shocks afoot, this arc of the tale was running out of steam, with both Keith and Charles moving on to pastures new. A fellow British artist was brought on board, Glasgow’s own Michael Docherty.

His draftsmanship was indeed admirable, his Martians genuinely heinous, but a spanner had been thrust in the works. Although Tim Burton threw himself into his film, giving it everything he had, his efforts aroused dissent among his audience, many thinking it had been played too much for laughs. The bubble had burst, culminating in the comic book being cancelled with issue #7, cover-dated May 1996, the fate of our world left hanging in the balance, never to be resolved.

A Mars Attacks Baseball Special with a Simon Bisley cover appeared a month later; Image tried desperately to revive the series by throwing their superheroes into the Martian melee; Topps went for a couple of Mars Attacks High School editions in the summer of 1997; but in just a short space of time it was all over. The series would return for its 50th anniversary courtesy of IDW, who repeated the same tale behind 55 variant covers made up of the original cards. It was a clever piece of marketing, but Pocket Comics had one over on them, in at least trying to tell a new story using these cards over the 55 issues they had planned. The war against the Martians continues, but as someone who religiously bought the Topps series back in the 1990s, an air of disappointment lingers, for we never got to know how this story bowed out. ■

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MARS ATTACKS the COMIC BOOKS

The compelling display seen to the left, saw John Pound return for the cover to Mars Attacks #5 (September 1994). It was left to Ken Steacy to announce “Counterstrike” on his spectacular cover for Mars Attacks Vol. 2 #1 (August 1995).M & © Topps.

LIVE TO AIR The War of the Worlds Broadcasts!

by Phil Hore

I

it turns out memories are short and some of those countries laughing should’ve looked into their own broadcast histories.

The first radio scare occurred on January 16, 1926. A BBC music broadcast from London’s Savoy Hotel was interrupted by a well-known public figure, Father Ronald Knox. In “Broadcasting From the Barricades,” Knox reported a crowd of unemployed men were rioting in London, having already destroyed Big Ben, stolen art from the National Gallery and captured the government minister for transport (the fictitious Mr. Wutherspoon), then hung him. There were realistic screams and gunfire in the background, making listeners grow so concerned they rang the police, offering help or demanding the Royal Navy send warships up the Thames to deal with this Bolshevik revolution.

The broadcast only aired for ten minutes and was clearly satirical. Many of the names used were fake, for example: “Mr. Popplebury, secretary of the National Association for the Abolition of Theater Queues.”

It looks like people just missed the joke, and to make matters worse, it snowed heavily the next day, making it impossible for some newspapers to get their daily editions out. For many this was evidence the paper had been one of the places destroyed in the riots.

Just one year later, Australian audiences in Adelaide heard a disturbing report, and what happened next headlined the nation’s newspapers.

“Serious alarm was created on Thursday evening by a playlet broadcast by 5CL. Hundreds of people believed that it described the progress of an actual air raid, and telephoned to the newspaper offices, the police, harbors, and telephone departments, and the fire brigades for confirmation of Frank R. Paul’s cover for the August 1927 edition of Amazing Stories epitomized the devastation of a full-scale Martian invasion. TM & © Ziff-Davis the statement… The alarm was

t’s arguably the most famous event in radio history. On October 30th, 1938, New York’s Mercury Theater broadcast live to air their interpretation of H. G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds, and what happened next is the stuff of legend.

There’s no doubt the broadcast caused concern and chaos among many listeners. Created to sound like a live documentation of a Martian invasion, with news flashes and updates, listeners who’d missed the beginning of the program had little to tell them this was a radio-play and not real events.

Across the eastern seaboard some listeners panicked, with armed men heading out to hunt Martians, while families packed essentials so they could go into hiding.

The smirking devil behind the broadcast was Orson Welles, who faced an angry press the following day, claiming to have been unaware of the panic he’d caused. We now know the Mercury Theater had deliberately constructed the show to hit important beats at specific intervals, for example having urgent bulletins appear at the very moment other radio stations went to an ad.

They knew listeners would likely be channel surfing for something else during this interval and would catch their disturbing broadcast. We also know Mercury’s producers were aware beforehand the potential public reaction they’d invoke, as everything they tried had been done before.

“COULD ONLY HAPPEN IN AMERICA”

Newspapers across the world, such as the Melbourne Herald, reported on the event with a somewhat superior chuckle, claiming such a thing could only happen in the USA and never happen there. Well,

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so serious that many women fainted, and children became hysterical, until information was given out that it was all a hoax. The play caused the Port Adelaide police considerable trouble. It was taken as a news item by listeners-in, and they kept the officer in charge at the Port Adelaide police station busy answering inquiries as to what the sensation was” (The South Eastern Times, 5 July 1927).

Just like the Mercury production, both earlier broadcasts began with live music from a local theater, that was suddenly interrupted by the urgent news of enemy forces invading the region. What’s rarely mentioned was 5CL tried the same thing a week later. This time they broadcast a science fiction story about a Professor Graviotti, an Italian scientist who’d created a special flying car, which he drove to Mars. “At an advertised time…

Listeners were then told to watch the sky above the city of Adelaide for the departure of the machine. Many saw the large rocket sent up… to heighten the allusion” (Port Pirie Recorder, 8 July).

Never in New York

A decade before Orson Welles, and using many of the same techniques, an Australian radio station had panicked the local population with a tale of military invasion, then followed it up with a visit to Mars.

Significantly, all of this was well documented in the New York Times (July 2, 1927).

“AIR INVASION BY RADIO SCARES AUSTRALIANS”

“… so realistic was the play broadcast from 5-CL radio station here representing an imaginary aerial invasion that many women and children became hysterical and even men were alarmed… Numerous protests have since been made that the announcements regarding the stunt were not sufficiently definite, but those responsible for the broadcasting maintain that due warning was given of a dramatic surprise which would be introduced in consequence of complaints received from listeners against the sameness of the programs. This is the second time within eighteen months that British broadcasters have nearly caused a panic by the realism of mimic catastrophes broadcast to credulous listeners-in.”

Embarrassingly, the paper earlier had boasted in “we are safe from such jesting” (Jan. 19, 1926) a similar scare could never happen there, as they had many more radio stations than these commonwealth nations.

More evidence the Mercury knew what they were doing appeared on July 7, 1967, when the BBC reporter Leonard Miall interviewed the Mercury’s true creator. “…John Houseman, who is now the Director of the Juilliard Drama School at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts… In 1938 he was the partner of Orson Welles in the Mercury Theater. Houseman, as a boy, had been in school in England and had remembered a production he had heard on April 16, 1926… …Father Ronald Knox’s famous broadcast… was so vivid that it caused a major alarm all over the country.

Houseman was therefore well aware of the kind of panic

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WAR OF THE WORLDS BROADCAST

The stage was set for Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds broadcast from New York’s Mercury Theater. Copyright of the respective owner.

WAR OF THE WORLDS BROADCAST

The headlines from The New York Daily News, dated October 31, 1938, echoed the nation’s fear. TM & © New York Daily News.

they ended their actual hourly news broadcast with the report that something weird was happening on Mars. This technique proved so similar to their normal programming that impatient listeners rang the station, asking when the “event” would begin.

It was during the Beatles “Hey Jude” that WKBW cut in with an urgent newsflash of a gigantic explosion nearby, and the Martian invasion began… interrupted at normal intervals with advertisements and a quick note this was all just a radio play.

WKBW’s phones began to ring, so to calm everyone down the producer wanted to interrupt the broadcast and remind everyone it was a play, but the director refused.

The two fought over what to do, and later many listeners admitted they’d become so enthralled with the realistic story that they’d never heard the warnings it was fake.

Unlike the earlier broadcasts, WKBW wasn’t blamed for the public’s reaction as they’d clearly advertised what was about to take place.

The idea that our modern, jaded, media-savvy sensibilities would surely override the primal urges these radio scares induced was again put to the test in 2013.

An Alabama radio station looking to change its format aired a series of humorous ads about aliens taking over their programming. It’s clear the aliens were talking about music, yet some locals became anxious when the invaders talked about terrifying local children. Somewhere the message of a radio station changing formats turned into aliens bombing schools on the date the new format would begin. Local police fielded so many complaints about this they were forced to patrol the town to ensure nothing happened.

really effective broadcasting could create. As a result he went to considerable lengths to announce before his production of The War of the Worlds that it was entirely a fictional account.”

Mass Hysteria vs. Mob Mentality Much has been made out of the fact that Houseman We’ve had a lot of fun at the expense of what was wasn’t in England when the BBC show aired, but the clearly a disturbing experience for many listening to these important fact is the producer admitted he was aware of performances, but make no mistake, there was an incident the earlier British version. Both had been reported in the when War of the World’s killed people.

New York Times, and Welles had also admitted knowledge of them when he fronted the media the following morning and asked if he’d been aware what was happening during their broadcast.

“Oh no, of course not…I’m terribly shocked by the effect it’s had. The technique I used was not original with me, or peculiar to the Mercury Theater’s presentation. It was not even new.”

If you’re reading this and smugly thinking “this was a simpler time and could never happen again”… well… …to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the original broadcast, in 1968 Buffalo’s WKBW decided to create their own version of War of the Worlds using regional locations. The station broadly advertised they had something special for listeners on For many, the Martian invasion was a call to arms, and with men like this, those alien Halloween eve. At the allotted time aggressors were going to have a fight on their hands. Copyright of the respective owner.

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Not for the last time in his life, Orson Welles had some explaining to do in the days after the October 30th broadcast. The esteemed actor had become big news! TM & © Associated Press.

Australia’s PHIL HORE is both a novelist and pop culture historian, who has worked for Markosia Publishing, The Prehistoric Times and Famous Monsters of Filmland, among so many others.

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WAR OF THE WORLDS BROADCAST

Actors pretending to be well known public figures reported what was happening, making the entire broadcast appear authentic, even to those who until now had been skeptical. It’s been reported that some in the station began pleading for the producers to announce clearly and often it was merely a radio play, but initially they had refused, only to later recant when reports flooded in their little joke had gone way too far.

Suddenly a radio employee broke into the broadcast and announced it was all just a joke—and where other nations had breathed a sigh of relief, smiled nervously at the jest and maybe started writing a nasty letter The “war fright” reached Baltimore as men and women went into hiding. The newspapers just to their local newspaper, in Ecuador couldn’t get enough of the hysteria sweeping the country. TM & © The Evening Sun. things turned deadly.

In February 1949 an Ecuadorian radio station by The panicked crowd, feeding on each other’s outrage the name of Radio Quito broadcast their own version and anger, stormed the newspaper office. At first many of the War of the Worlds. The broadcast used all the just threw stones at the station’s windows, but then familiar techniques, leading to panic-stricken listeners someone set fire to the building. Any hopes those inside again taking to the streets. For weeks the newspaper El had for police intervention were dashed when the police Comercio, which happened to house the radio station, admitted their officers were miles away looking for an seeded stories of mysterious UFOs in the skies around alien invasion. the nation. Then at 9pm on the night of February 12th It is estimated one-hundred people were in the a song was interrupted by an emergency bulletin that building when the rioters arrived, and many became Ecuador was under Martian attack. The police were soon trapped by the fire. Most eventually escaped, while inundated with calls the town of Cotocollao was besieged; tragically others were forced to move deeper into the officers from the capital Quito were soon dispatched building by the flames. When the spreading inferno to the region. A short time later reports claimed the blocked all the exits, these unlucky few started moving up population of nearby Latacunga were being killed by a to the roof, hoping someone could save them. mysterious cloud of poisonous gas.

As fire department units arrived, they were blocked Here is where the Ecuadorian broadcast made their from approaching the building by the angry mob. When biggest mistake. desperate notes from those above began to flutter down to the street begging for help, these were either ignored or simply thrown into the flames.

Finally, the army was called in to disperse the crowd, allowing the firemen to begin to fight the flames, but for many inside this was too little, too late. Estimates differ, but between seven and fifteen people lost their lives in the blaze, with dozens more injured and taken to hospital—a tragic end to a practical joke that went horribly wrong. ■

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THE OTHERWORLDLY ART OF HENRIQUE ALVIM CORRÊA

I

by Peter Normanton

t is impossible to underestimate the role played by H. G. Wells’ earth-shattering The War of the Worlds in the shaping of Mars Attacks. During the course of his narrative, Wells made clever use of the contemporary fascination with science and technology, the curiosity for which had slowly evolved over the best part of half a century. In the same way, Mars Attacks picked up on the technology of its day, astounding those who saw these cards with rocket ships lifting men into space, while horrifying with deathly weapons of mass destruction. These advancements were paramount to the design of this series.

In their clearly impossible conflict with the highly developed Martians, Mars Attacks drew much influence from Wells’ novel, which if it wasn’t the first, was certainly one of the earliest encounters with the war-like denizens of Mars. War of the Worlds, however, was the first of its kind to make the terrifying events it detailed appear as if they were actually happening, a ruse that would pave the way for others, as we have just seen. It would also stir

considerable thought and creativity in others of a similarly imaginative persuasion.

Following its serialization in Pearson’s Magazine and Cosmopolitan in the United States in 1897, an expanded and revised edition of The War of the Worlds was published in 1898 by William Heinemann, bringing its content to a far larger readership. Just a couple of years later, it was translated for an expectant French audience by the respected Henri-Durante Davray. Among those who succumbed to the resonance in Wells’ words was a young artist by the name of Henrique Alvim Corrêa, an aspirant whose legacy would excite writers, artists, and filmmakers alike for generations to come.

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Henrique had moved to Paris with his family after spending a short period in Lisbon. While in Paris, he studied art, his military-styled paintings gaining recognition in the gatherings of the Paris Salons between 1896 and 1897. Those around him anticipated a distinguished career ahead, but none of

Henrique Alvim Corrêa announced “The Arrival of the Martians” in the frontispiece to the Belgian edition of HG Wells’ War of the Worlds in 1906.

Above: to the left, horror as the “Martian Emerges” and to the right, “Martians Blast House.” TM & © L. Vandamme & Co.

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A MARTIAN PORTFOLIO

A Martian Portfolio

A MARTIAN PORTFOLIO

As amusing as they appeared, these machines brought nothing but death; “Martian Viewing Carnage.” TM & © L. Vandamme & Co.

them could have foreseen his eloping with his true love Blanche Fernande Barbant, the daughter of artist Charles Barbant. His caprice would leave him estranged from his family along with the influential Salons of Paris.

Now settled in Brussels and renounced by his family, this was to be a difficult period for the young artist, especially with a wife and child to support. Necessity ultimately became the mother of invention, impelling him to consider whatever work he could, anything ranging from advertising to painting houses. Then, having earned himself a reputation, and more importantly the resources, he established his own studio in 1900. Just three years later, Henrique fell under the spell of Wells’ masterpiece like no one else before him. Its apocalyptic perspective would prove a momentous turning point in his career.

It was as if in Henrique’s world, Well’s book had taken on a chilling life of its own, bringing the artist face-to-face with the ravages of the Martian occupation. He toiled in his studio to transform his imaginings into a series of arresting illustrations, in the hope others would come to share his intrigue with these alien beings. So excited was he by his inception, he took it on himself to present his portfolio to Wells himself.

Henrique would have been wise to tread carefully, because Wells had been rather disparaging of Warwick Goble’s illustrations when they first appeared alongside his narration in Pearson’s Magazine. When William Heinemann published War of the Worlds, Wells was invited to forward a few words of his own; unfortunately

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for Goble, Wells didn’t hold back in his criticism of his design for the Martian tripods, considering them overly rigid, devoid of the versatility that made them such effective fighting machines; machines Britain’s forces hadn’t got a hope of being able to contain. His caustic continued comments were unremitting, although many years later he mellowed in his views on Goble’s interpretation, at long last acknowledging the merit in the young artist’s observations. Well’s disapproval may have been a momentary setback for this neophyte, but Goble went on to enjoy a very successful career as an illustrator of children’s books.

After making the journey to London, Henrique’s audience with the literary giant ended on an extremely satisfactory note, with the esteemed writer encouraging the young artist to return to Brussels to conjure more of his unearthly creations. Using pencils, pen and ink, Henrique completed 32 visionary plates, each of them collected in a deluxe edition printed in 1906 by L. Vandamme & Cie, a highly sought-after volume limited to 500 copies.

The title page to this edition “L’arrivée des Martiens” set the tone for this impression of Wells’ showpiece, the Martian tripods striding with purpose through a ruined landscape, decimating everything in their path.

The backdrop depicting crumbling structures resembled the skeletal remains of a once proud metropolis, a sight destined to become an all too familiar feature across the forthcoming century. Amid the devastation, the lone canon was a stark reminder the Earth was far from

vulnerability—but only if those infernal tripods could be brought down, then there might be a way of bringing these aggressors to heel. Henrique excelled in capturing the pathos in the aforementioned portrayal; for a man of God to die in such a way made it abundantly clear these were godless creatures, devoid of any moral fiber.

Henrique wasn’t about to rely entirely on such poignance; his portrayal of the battle against these invaders was dramatic to say the least. Understandably, it is these pieces that attract the most interest among collectors, although every single plate in this volume exemplifies Henrique’s refined approach, his pencil work subtle yet expressive, making each and every illustration of note.

The previously referenced “Martians Blast House” made the reader quite aware of the enormity of the firepower and portability of these pernicious contrivances, while the exquisitely observed “Martians in the Forest” gave the impression, no matter what, their eyes were everywhere; this was ominously reiterated later on in plate 24 “Martian Machine Over The Thames.” If Norman Saunders had been on hand, plate 7 “Martian Viewing Carnage” could have been a contender for the Mars Attacks series. The Martians were indeed impressively armed, but every once in a while there was another of those small victories, meaning the fate of mankind was still in the balance. However, so many of these scenes made these heavily armed machines appear outwardly

In Henrique’s “Death of Curate”, the Martians again showed themselves to be without any sense of remorse. TM & © L. Vandamme & Co.

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A MARTIAN PORTFOLIO

ready to repel an invasion of such impossible magnitude, leaving the reader in no doubt this was verily the end of the world. The way of life detailed in the soft pencil work of “Falling Star” was now no more.

Curiously, Henrique made these killing machines appear sentient, a fascinating precursor to the biomechanics of H.R. Geiger’s nightmare imagining.

The likelihood of these machines actually being alive was again evidenced in the eighth plate to this edition “Martians Blast House” as presented in Chapter 8: “Friday Night.” Although they were machine-like in their creation, they imparted the sense of their being unnaturally lithe, their canons able to flex with ease, making escape from their fiery blast ultimately futile. Yet, there was a suspicion of childlike mischief in their appearance, despite their actions being consistent with the dictates of the cruel oppressor. This unfounded naivety was clearly evidenced in plate 26 “Martian Watching Drunken Crowd.” Such drunken shenanigans would have probably been beyond the comprehension of these evil invaders, for their command was to crush anything in their wake that wasn’t Martian; an edict they obeyed without contrition.

The first sight of the creatures secreted within these destructive automatons was captured in plate 5 “Martian Emerges.” They would later bear themselves to closer scrutiny in the scene detailing “Death of Curate,” their appearance surprisingly intimating a suspicion of

A MARTIAN PORTFOLIO

invincible; it was ostensibly an ill-conceived campaign, the odds stacked firmly on one side and one side only.

Sifting through these plates, Henrique’s meticulous application of soft pencils is evidenced time and time again, coming to the fore in plate 13 “Martian Fighting Machine in the Thames Valley”, then again in plate 16 the eerie “Martian Flying Machine”, where it appeared this device glided with uncanny stealth through the silence of this war torn landscape, readying to seek out its quarry like a bird of prey. This pairing deftly observes the way the smoke, having billowed from the incessant canon fire, has impaired the visibility in the background, augmenting the threat emanating from the obscured Martian fighting machines.

The Belgian edition of The War of the Worlds may have appeared more than a decade before the advent of the science fiction pulps, but you wonder if Henrique’s embellishment sewed the seeds for these publications and the artists who added so much visual substance to

their memorable impact. Comic books in turn would derive so much inspiration from the deathly rays spewing forth from the Martian tripods. Sadly, Henrique wouldn’t live to see any of these wondrous publications; he died of tuberculosis at the age of thirty-four, only four years after this book saw publication. When Germany invaded Belgium in 1914, some of his drawings were either misappropriated or lost as the bombs rained down on the region in scenes alarmingly reminiscent of Henrique’s imagining of Well’s prophetic saga. Then in 1942, more of his legacy was lost when a German submarine torpedoed the ship that was returning his artistry to his homeland of Brazil. Thankfully, much of his work has survived, brought together to be exhibited to an appreciative audience. Henrique may have had a short life, but the works on show in these pages have gone on to inspire countless other creators, making the myriad worlds of science fiction all the more darker, yet for all of this, unquestionably fantastic. ■

The deathly tripod ran riot in the brooding scene depicting “Martian Fighting Machine in the Thames Valley.” TM & © L. Vandamme & Co.

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UPDATE #1

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by JEFF MESSER and DEWEY CASSELL From underdog to icon, MARSHALL ROGERS helped redefine Batman for generations, inspiring readers and up-and-coming artists alike. Initially savaged by editors at DC Comics, his style was uniquely complex with vast and angular architectural design anchoring his storytelling, and it immediately caught on with fans for his depictions of the Darknight Detective, Hugo Strange, The Joker, Silver St. Cloud, Dr. Strange, Cap’n Quick and a Foozle, and more. Now, Rogers’ story is told by friends, collaborators, and family members, delving deep into a complicated and conflicted man and his art, as we feature inker TERRY AUSTIN, friend and fellow artist MICHAEL NETZER, DAN GREENFIELD’s extensive interview with writer STEVE ENGLEHART (conducted for 13thDimension.com), and others recounting their time and camaraderie with Rogers, alongside an in-depth interview with MARSHALL HIMSELF, and a wealth of art both familiar and rarely seen. Written by JEFF MESSER and DEWEY CASSELL (authors of the Eisner Award-nominated Mike Grell: Life Is Drawing Without An Eraser), this book shines a light on the fan-favorite artist’s brightest moments and darkest days. Featuring a new cover collaboration by MARSHALL ROGERS and TERRY AUSTIN! (144-page FULL-COLOR HARDCOVER) $37.95 • (Digital Edition) $13.99 • ISBN: 978-1-60549-130-1 • SHIPS JULY 2025!

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From the Silver Screen to the Printed Page, by PETER BOSCH

In AMERICAN MOVIE COMIC BOOKS (1930s-1970s), author PETER BOSCH continues his remarkable history of Hollywood’s ongoing love affair with comic books. The sequel to AMERICAN TV COMIC BOOKS, this new book looks at hundreds of Tinseltown’s motion pictures that made the jump from the silver screen to the comics page, starting from the days of CHARLIE CHAPLIN and continuing through to the wonders of STEVEN SPIELBERG. Along with comics story pages from the industry’s greatest talents—including JACK KIRBY, RUSS MANNING, AL WILLIAMSON, FRANK FRAZETTA, ALEX TOTH, DAN SPIEGLE, WALLACE WOOD, STEVE DITKO, JOHN BUSCEMA, GEORGE PÉREZ, and WALTER SIMONSON (to name just a few!)—you will discover full-color photo covers, posters, original art, and much more! It’s the ultimate reference for films from the Thirties to the Seventies that were adapted to comics, including The Wizard of Oz, Ben-Hur, Around the World in 80 Days, Disney’s cinema classics and animated movies, Yellow Submarine, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars, Alien, The Planet of the Apes series, and many others. Don’t miss this blockbuster, perfect for anyone who enjoys movies and comics alike!

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FUTURISTIC

by MARK VOGER

ROCKETS, ROBOTS AND RAYGUNS OF SPACE AGE POP CULTURE Blast off to the SPACE AGE, when the future was always bright! FUTURISTIC is a FULL-COLOR HARDCOVER about a time of limitless possibilities... and anxieties. It covers all aspects of 1950s and ’60s pop culture from the “duck and cover” era of the Cold War, the Space Race, the UFO Craze, and the 1969 moon landing. Read about the movies (The Day the Earth Stood Still, Invasion of the Body Snatchers), TV shows (Tom Corbett: Space Cadet, The Jetsons), and collectibles (robots, rockets, comic books, TV tie-ins) that had us looking to the stars. Also featured are interviews with such comic book creators as WILLIAM GAINES, JOE ORLANDO, JULIUS SCHWARTZ, ROBERT KANIGHER, ROSS ANDRU, MIKE ESPOSITO, and LARRY LIEBER about their sci-fi work, plus recollections from sci-fi movie stars (KEVIN McCARTHY, PETER GRAVES, LINDA HARRISON), TV cast members (from shows including Lost in Space, Star Trek, and The Invaders), and others. A graphically immersive experience written and designed by MARK VOGER (Monster Mash, Zowie!), FUTURISTIC is a time trip to a future that never exactly came to pass, but lives on vividly in our imaginations!

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The FIRST COMICS COMPANION is the only book dedicated to the history of Chicago’s groundbreaking independent comics publisher, which took on the Big Two by storm between 1983–91. From a modest promotional comic hawking theater subscriptions, First soon blossomed into an ambitious, aggressive imprint with achievements that included adapting the fabled sci-fi play WARP; reviving beloved ’70s Charlton hero E-MAN; luring MIKE GRELL over from Pacific Comics to continue STARSLAYER and launch JON SABLE, FREELANCE; and releasing one of the ’80s greatest comic book series, AMERICAN FLAGG! by HOWARD CHAYKIN. Soon followed ELRIC, GRIMJACK, NEXUS, SHATTER, DREADSTAR, LONE WOLF AND CUB, super-hero ALTER EGO, and a resurrection of CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED. Featuring the recollections of founders MIKE GOLD, JOE STATON, and dozens more, this book continues RICHARD J. ARNDT and JON B. COOKE’s exhaustive “carpet-bombing” approach to documenting comics history in fascinating detail—first, last, and always, THE definitive account! Featuring new CHAYKIN cover art!

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KILLER B’s

by Steve Kronenberg

THE MANSTER F

lash back to the early 1950s, when horror comics permeated newsstands and eager kids were willing to give up a dime for cheap chills. No one delivered the goods better than Bill Gaines, whose EC Comics bundled a triptych of terror: Tales from the Crypt, The Vault of Horror, and The Haunt of Fear. What kept EC at the head of the pack was its imaginative stories and its bullpen of brilliant artists. Case in point: “The Basket,” an especially grisly entry in Haunt of Fear #7 (May–June 1951), written by Gaines’ collaborator Al Feldstein and illustrated by the multi-talented Jack Davis. It’s a gloomy tale focusing on a character named Vincent Cabez. He resides in a small village, and he’s the talk of the town because he’s never seen without a basket perched over his right shoulder. Locals wonder what’s inside of it, especially when Cabez’s physical appearance begins to deteriorate, and

his usually sunny demeanor becomes hateful and violent.

The blame lies within the basket: what it’s hiding is a second, malevolent head that grows out of Cabez’s shoulder and is slowly taking over his body and persona. The story ends with the tortured freak committing suicide with a shotgun blast.

Comic book buyers loved “The Basket;” bluenosed parents and politicians were shocked by its downbeat plot and violent graphics. What’s even more shocking is why it took so long to adapt Feldstein’s idea into a horror film. That finally happened with The Manster (1959, released in the US in 1962), a JapaneseAmerican production co-directed by George Breakston and Kenneth G. Crane. The psychotronics are set from the get-go with a pre-credit sequence depicting a shaggy, ape-like creature attacking a group of geishas and leaving a bloody streak across the screen. Veteran British actor Peter Dyneley plays Larry

Now transformed into a monster, Larry Stanford (Peter Dyneley) takes out his rage on the madman who injected him with an experimental serum, Dr. Robert Suzuki (Tetsu Nakamura), a man deluded in his desire to “help humanity.” TM & © United Artists.

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KILLER B’s Stanford, a reporter who travels to Japan to interview noted biologist Dr. Robert Suzuki (Tetsu Nakamura). Assisted by his beautiful companion Tara (Terri Zimmern), Suzuki is obsessed with experimentation in evolution. He plies Stanford with drugged whiskey before injecting his right shoulder with a new concoction. We soon learn that Stanford isn’t Suzuki’s first guinea pig: the hairy monster in the pre-credit scene was once Suzuki’s brother, and the mad doctor’s wife has become a mutated horror confined to a cage in his laboratory.

The inoculation has an insidious effect on Stanford. He angrily abandons his faithful wife (Jane Hylton, Dyneley’s reallife wife) and falls into Tara’s seductive arms. As he begins to savor Tokyo’s night life, he becomes increasingly surly and vicious. His splenetic scowl is gradually accompanied by some startling physical changes: his hand becomes a hairy claw, and he’s horrified to discover a huge eye growing out of his right shoulder.

The eye soon morphs into a second monstrous head that sprouts alongside his own. Stanford’s face becomes disfigured, and the poor dupe turns into a psychopathic killer, senselessly murdering several young women, a policeman, and even a Shinto priest in his own temple. The movie wraps with the two-headed creature killing Suzuki and abducting Tara to a nearby volcano, just before Stanford’s second head splits from his body fully formed as a separate monstrosity (actor George Wyman in a monster suit). The hideous twin throws Tara into the volcano and is then dispatched by Stanford, who reverts to his normal self. The film ends there, merely hinting that Stanford may either be prosecuted or institutionalized.

Dyneley draws little sympathy from us, but he effectively depicts Stanford’s transition from nondescript newspaperman, to sullen and sour layabout, to maniacal monster. His look of horror as he stares back at the huge eye on his shoulder is alone worth the price of admission. Before his death in 1977 at age 56, Dyneley developed an extensive resume of British stage and film appearances (fans might recall his voice work as Jeff Tracy during the 1965 season of the popular Thunderbirds

The transformation begins to take hold, as Stanford struggles with the monster within while in the company of the alluring Tara (Terri Zimmern).TM & © United Artists.

television series).

Tetsu Nakamura (who also served as the film’s dialogue coach) walks through The Manster with a sly and sinister smirk, doggedly and arrogantly determined to “help humanity” if he can just correct the mistakes he made with his wife and brother. Nakamura’s charm belies his psychosis, and his desire to experiment on an innocent victim is reminiscent of Charles Laughton’s Dr. Moreau in Island of Lost Souls (1932). Nakamura was no stranger to genre films, having appeared in several of Toho Studios’ kaiju productions, including The Mysterians (1957), The H-Man (1958), The Human Vapor (1960), and Mothra (1961).

Unfortunately, Jane Hylton comes off a bit too breathy and melodramatic as Stanford’s loyal and lovelorn wife.

She generates sympathy but persists in overacting when she learns of Stanford’s betrayal. It’s the movie’s weakest and least convincing performance.

Terri Zimmern, the most inexperienced member of the cast, is most memorable as Tara, conflicted between her loyalty to Suzuki and her growing affection for Stanford. Briefly married to Manster co-director Kenneth G. Crane, the multi-lingual Zimmern was of Eurasian descent, born in Macau, and raised in Hong Kong. She was

recommended for her role in The Manster by a family friend and quickly accepted the offer, knowing “what fun it could be.”

During filming, she bonded with Tetsu Nakamura, who acted as her coach and mentor. As Tara, Zimmern is stunning yet subtle, never flaunting her natural beauty.

She died on April 13, 2020 at age 89.

It’s hard to believe Manster screenwriter Walt Sheldon didn’t read “The Basket” in EC’s Haunt of Fear. His screenplay replicates both the story’s “second head” concept, and the lead character’s psychic transformation from mild-mannered to maniacal. But Sheldon does push the envelope by exploring Larry Stanford’s crisis in identity and his break with humanity. Sheldon effectively uses a slow burn to depict Stanford’s gradual metamorphosis, building suspense until the manic and monstrous payoff. Unfortunately, the script is saddled with some inane dialogue. While basking in the attention of some nubile geishas, Stanford tells Suzuki: “They smooch good… Ya know, Doc, I don’t know which I like better, Japanese saki or Japanese geishas.” Still, Sheldon’s scenario delivers everything a low-budget horror fan could ask for: a sinister mad doctor, an impossibly gorgeous lab assistant, two deformed mutants, and a dual-headed homicidal freak.

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KILLER B’s Despite the cut-rate budget, Breakston and Crane imbue The Manster with a bizarre sense of style. The exteriors are layered with volcanic smoke, reminiscent of the misty Gothic horrors of the 1930s.

Suzuki’s lab is overgrown with enormous vegetation, a throwback to Dr. Moreau’s demented experiments in Island of Lost Souls. Stanford’s second head may look a bit phony, but when we see him loping through the film with it, the effect is

surreal and disarming (special effects tech Shinpei Takagi created the freakish appendage).

Breakston was a jack-of-all-trades, collecting credits as an actor, producer, and director throughout his career in filmmaking (he’s probably best known for his role as “Breezy” in MGM’s Andy Hardy series). Crane’s genre experience included editing and directing the Godawful Monster from Green Hell (1957)

The Manster was also known as The Split and, in Japan, The Two Headed Killer. TM & © United Artists.

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and co-directing the US sequences to Toho’s equally atrocious Half Human (1958). The Manster is clearly Crane’s mansterpiece.

David Mason’s low-key lighting and shadowy cinematography endows The Manster with a somber and bleak ambience well-suited to the film’s deviant storyline. Especially notable are the jolting close-ups of the protuberant head juxtaposed with Stanford’s own deformed face, courtesy of makeup artist Fumiko Yamamoto.

Hiroki Ogawa composed the film’s cheesy but evocative musical score, highlighted by the twangs of a theremin whenever Stanford undergoes a transformation.

In the UK the movie was appropriately titled The Split. It was released in the States in 1962, part of a grossly incongruous double feature with Georges Franju’s masterpiece Eyes Without a Face (1960), which was inexplicably and egregiously retitled The Horror Chamber of Dr. Faustus. Despite being mismatched with a masterwork, The Manster stands on its own as an aberrant, highly entertaining entry in the cult film pantheon. Renowned genre writer Ramsey Campbell has praised the film’s “nightmarish quality” and “relentless somberness.”

Sam Raimi intentionally saluted it in Army of Darkness (1992) when Bruce Campbell’s Ash swallows a doppelganger and splits into two separate beings. The Manster undoubtedly influenced the abysmal Incredible Two-Headed Transplant (1971) and the equally incompetent Thing with Two Heads (1972). But the film also anticipates the body horrors in David Cronenberg’s early work, particularly Shivers (1975), Rabid (1976) and The Brood (1979).

The Manster remains one of the oddest and most overlooked B-movie gems of the late 1950s.

Perhaps it’s time to re-examine Dr. Suzuki’s mad lab and shine a closer light on Larry Stanford’s painfully injected shoulder. Pharmaceutical treatments can yield some very disturbing side effects. ■

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WORKING WITH DITKO

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a REQUIEM for

CHARLTON HORROR Part 1

By Will Murray

C

harlton Comics was the last survivor of the off-brand newsstand comic book companies that had managed to keep on going until the 1960s, with some lasting into the ’70s, after the industry-wide shakeout of the 1950s had left less than a dozen publishers still actively producing. A bottom-of-thebarrel publisher, the outfit specialized in generic-specific anthology titles, with one of their mainstays being horror comics. Their strengths were their weaknesses and their weaknesses proved to be strengths. They were survivors for all the wrong reasons, until finally their business practices caught up with them.

Charlton horror returned with The Many Ghosts of Doctor Graves #1 (May 1967) and Ghostly Tales from the Haunted House #55 (April-May 1966). TM & © Charlton Comics.

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This was the state of creativity at Charlton during most of its tenuous existence. For many years, one inhouse scripter penned over 90% of their comics, his tales crossing a variety of genres: veteran Joe Gill. “At Charlton,” said Gill, “[publisher] John Santangelo was underpaying artists and writers, and practically anything that artists and writers did was acceptable. There was very little criticism. The idea was to get the books out, and nobody at Charlton seemed to give a damn how good they were!”

Ghosts, Demons and Apparitions

These three titles continued steadily as the 1960s shaded into the 1970s. Readers were fed a diet of ghosts, demons, and similar apparitions, invariably colored green when they were presented on the covers, a comic convention going back to the defunct American Comics Group, if not before. Most of it was competent, but little was memorable.

Occasional scripter Paul Kupperberg lamented of his own Charlton work. “There’s not a single thing in any of the stories you haven’t read before,” he confessed. “They’re all straight O. Henry twist endings that anyone paying half a mind could see coming from a mile away. A lot like many of the other tales in the Charlton books, but it’s the type of stuff you write when you’re either young and inexperienced or they’re not paying you enough to think beyond cliches and retreads.”

Ghost Manor #1 (July 1968) became the third title in the Charlton horror line, becoming Ghostly Haunts with issue #20 (September 1971). TM & © Charlton Comics.

Shoddiest Comics

During this period, Charlton and Martin Goodman’s nameless pre-Marvel company vied for the dubious distinction of producing the shoddiest-looking comic books in a faltering industry, drawn by artists the more mainstream companies would not hire.

“They bought the cheapest ink, they had used presses that printed badly,” insisted Joe Gill.

“They had the worst distributors.

Charlton had Capital Distribution, and they didn’t have any roadmen at all. So we could be publishing the best comic books in the field, and we still wouldn’t be selling because they offered no inducements.”

A huge change took place at the top of 1971. The Comics Code was revised to permit previously taboo creatures, such as vampires, werewolves and sundry others—although zombies were still explicitly prohibited. Suddenly, Satan under his many aliases popped up in horror titles as a character or plot device, rapidly becoming a cliched crutch for lazy writers.

This opening triggered a resurgence in classic horror comics. Charlton jumped in with both feet. With issue #20, September 1971, the limping Ghost Manor was retitled Ghostly Haunts. Simultaneously, Charlton launched Haunted and a month later a new incarnation of Ghost Manor was released, starting all over with #1.

Midnight Tales appeared at the end of 1972. A gothic hybrid called Haunted Love followed

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A REQUIEM FOR CHARLTON HORROR

Charlton entered the new decade of the 1970s in an expansive mode after the 1966-68 “Action Heroes” debacle, which saw the collapse of the fan-favorite line and the loss of new editor-in-chief Dick Giordano to DC Comics early in 1968. During the “Action Heroes” period, Giordano seemed content with Charlton’s two fantasy-supernatural titles, Ghostly Tales from the Haunted House and The Many Ghosts of Dr. Graves. Both titles focused exclusively on manifestations of the supernatural. Other than the differences observed in the personalities of each title’s hostnarrators, Mr. L. Dedd and Dr. M. T. Graves, the stories were largely indistinguishable.

Coincident with Giordano’s departure, Ghostly Tales went monthly, and Charlton added their third title, Ghost Manor, which debuted with a July 1968 cover date and a cover by veteran Charlton artist Rocco Mastroserio. Compared to the other supernatural titles, Ghost Manor was a lackluster package. While it was probably conceptualized by Giordano, his replacement, Sal Gentile, edited it from its debut.

A REQUIEM FOR CHARLTON HORROR

in 1973. It died the death because supernatural readers resisted the love angle, while love fans balked at the buzzword Haunted.

The Sleeping Giant

Charlton became the testing ground for so many young artists. Monster Hunters #9 (January 1976) showcased the artwork of Mike Zeck. TM & © Charlton Comics.

Suddenly, Charlton Comics emerged as the chief proponent of a brand of Lovecraftian horror previously barred from the four-color pages. This new wave coincided with the hiring of George Wildman as managing editor. Before long, Wildman replaced Gentile as executive editor, and the lid came off. A progressive editor, Wildman instituted sweeping changes, redesigning the company logo and breaking the old story-length restrictions. He began promising the fan press, “The Sleeping Giant is about to wake up!”

“I started looking for new writers and new artists and the new styles, new techniques, new approaches and this caused a lot of headaches,” Wildman noted. “I was a real bastard to the internal people, you know, because I’d tell the regulars, ‘You’ve either got to start shaping up or—.’

And I started hiring new people, got new stories, and I remember Joe Gill wasn’t too pleased.”

Fresh blood included a raft of new artists such as Tom Sutton, Joe Staton, John Byrne, Bob Layton, Wayne Howard, and others. Don Newton broke in with “The Empty Room” for Ghost Manor #18, March 1974. Mike Zeck’s first full-length comic story ran in Monster Hunters #9. Wayne Howard conceptualized Midnight Tales, which was built around the occult adventures of Professor

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Coffin and his niece, Arachne. Staton designed Countess R.H. von Bludd, a horror host created by Joe Gill to narrate Scary Tales.

Charlton mainstays such as Gill and artists Steve Ditko, Pat Boyette, Charles Nicholas, and Pete Morisi continued with their contributions, but by 1974, the ubiquitous Ditko covers ceased to be so ubiquitous, all but replaced by painted covers by Boyette, Joe Staton, Mike Zeck, Don Newton, and Tom Sutton—especially Sutton.

Paper Shortage

“Things were so loose at Charlton that Tom would send in unsolicited covers as well as complete stories,” assistant editor Bill Pearson related. “Sometimes the covers would fit a story, but often we’d get a package out of the blue with two or three paintings or half-drawings/ half-paintings related to nothing at all. If George Wildman liked one, he’d show it to Joe Gill and ask him if he wanted to write a story about it. That was more than enough inspiration for Joe to write a story.”

A paper shortage late in 1973 hit the company hard, and their titles went on a forced hiatus for several months. On their return, the first title to roll off the presses was Haunted #16, dated June 1974. It was a strange problem for a company like Charlton, who ran its own printing operation, but it was an omen of things to come. Bad things.

After bouncing back, another more diverse wave hit in 1975. Haunted was re-branded Baron Weirwulf ’s Haunted Library early in the year. This was a spin-off of a Don

New Reality

As a producer of magazines, the company struggled on until March 1991 before its aging presses fell forever silent. By that time horror comics were fading from the scene, but that didn’t matter. A creature of the newsstands, Charlton was no longer a player in the new reality of the direct market, where fans drove sales and the casual newsstand reader was less a factor.

To understand the unique nature of Charlton’s bottom-rung horror line, and its ignominious demise, we must go back to the beginning.

The Charlton comic book group had the unlikeliest origin of any publishing company since Adrian Lopez won a small fortune at the track and, with his winnings, launched the Volitant Publishing Corporation, naming the new enterprise after the winning horse. Two white-collar criminals, lawyer Ed Levy and publisher John Santangelo, met in New Haven County Jail, and subsequently went into business together, initially printing song-lyrics magazines and later branching out into comic books. This was during the Great Depression.

By 1946, they were calling themselves Charlton Publications—a name derived from the fact that both partners had sons named Charles—and were operating a factory-style enterprise in which all printing was done in-house, as well as shipping, engraving, color separation, and distribution. Like the Street & Smith pulp magazine publishing company before them, Charlton was an allin-one operation in which the printing side dominated, dictating most editorial considerations.

A relatively new outfit, Charlton eked out a precarious existence while other, larger companies got out of comics or folded entirely, by acquiring the unpublished inventory of the retreating publishers. The Comics Code had just been instituted in response to the perceived excesses of EC Comics and other houses in publishing crime and horror titles. Charlton’s contribution was The Thing!, but they also acquired Fawcett’s This Magazine is Haunted.

Initially, Charlton’s version reprinted stories bought by Fawcett, which were hosted and narrated by Dr. Death, a creation of Sheldon Moldoff. When that material was exhausted, Charlton talent continued the format, with artist Steve Ditko retooling Dr. Death. But the same external censorship forces that killed The Thing led to the demise of This Magazine is Haunted in 1954.

The Ditko Stamp

Yet, the format was continued when Charlton licensed the Tales of the Mysterious Traveler radio program in 1956. When this proved successful, Charlton revived

Steve Ditko’s noir-styled cover for Tales of the Mysterious Traveler #4 (August 1957). TM & © Charlton Comics.

the dormant This Magazine is Haunted in the Summer of 1957, but with Dr. Haunt replacing the old pre-Code narrator. Once more, Steve Ditko was the artist who placed his stamp on the title and spectral host, as he had done with the Mysterious Traveler.

This was the last gasp for the era of old-time radio, so the format for these comics was really a four-color adaptation, a conceit that went back to The Shadow, The Whistler, and The Witch’s Tales radio programs, wherein an omniscient narrator related unconnected stories of mystery, suspense, and the supernatural—all of which were safe topics under the new Comics Code.

With television replacing radio, the format was fading, as were Charlton’s last surviving hosted titles. Both were gone by 1959.

But everything old eventually becomes new again.

Within less than a decade, Charlton reentered the fantasy field, as we shall discover next issue. ■ WILL MURRAY is the writer of the Wild Adventures (www.adventuresinbronze.com) series of novels, which stars Doc Savage, The Shadow, King Kong, The Spider, and Tarzan of the Apes. He also created the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl with legendary artist Steve Ditko.

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A REQUIEM FOR CHARLTON HORROR

Newton feature introduced in Ghost Manor #19. Beyond the Grave, Monster Hunters, Creepy Things and Scary Tales all debuted that summer. Only Scary Tales lasted.

Two years later, without warning, the comic book staff was fired and, after using up existing inventory, the line went all-reprint. “They just stopped publishing comics,” recalled Gill. “That’s understandable. I had expected to hear it in 1966, too!”

LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT THE STORY BEHIND THE LOST FILM

by Roberto Barreiro

F

or collectors and researchers of old films, many have remained elusive, frustrating the efforts of those attempting to uncover their whereabouts. Celluloid collectors and scholars alike have gone to great lengths to locate the censored half of Erich von Stronheim’s Greed, its first cut said to run to 10 hours; the pornographic short with Disney characters that was shown at a studio party as an inside joke (Uncle Walt promptly fired the two men responsible); a large part of the filmography of Theda Bara, the first great femme fatale of silent cinema; and a long etcetera of cinematographic material, largely from the silent era. Some searches have been successful: in Cuba, a copy of the 1931 Hispanic version of Dracula finally came to light, then not so long since scenes cut from Fritz Lang’s Metropolis were discovered in Argentina.

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However, there are still so many films that are ostensibly lost to posterity.

Among the missing, London After Midnight, directed by Tod Browning and starring Lon Chaney, has become one of the Holy Grails of lost cinema.

At the box office, it was one of the most successful collaborations of its day, an accomplishment which has since aroused the interest of those intent on tracking down this enigmatic silent. As we shall later see, as profitable as it may have been, the critics of the day were far from being universally appreciative in their reception. Browning and Chaney may have cut fine figures in the Hollywood of the Roaring Twenties, but this wasn’t about to save them from the wrath of these newspaper columnists.

Tod Browning (1880–1962) had started out in the circus, then moved into vaudeville, before arriving in Hollywood in 1913. It wasn’t long before he found work as an actor under the directorship of D. W. Griffith, picking up a minor role in Griffith’s 1916 classic Intolerance, prior to making the gradual move to the other side of the camera, initially as a scriptwriter, then taking his place in the director’s chair. Although he was moving in the right direction, Tod’s alcoholism contributed to this being a difficult period in his life, which almost put an end to his career. However, in 1925 he met Lon Chaney, an actor whose screen performances did more than just spark his interest; Lon’s portrayals were the personification of his own perception of cinematic storytelling.

Intriguingly, Lon Chaney (1883–1930) was the son of deaf-mutes, so from his earliest days he mastered the art of pantomime. Working in vaudeville and theater, he was doing a little of everything, until in 1919 he achieved his first breakthrough in The Miracle Man, where he was cast as a contortionist. Not only did he demonstrate himself to be a fine actor, he also revealed an aptitude for creating the most grotesque makeup. Success in films such as The Penalty (1920), Oliver Twist (1922), and The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) transformed Chaney into a superstar, “the Man of a Thousand Faces,” able to turn himself into deformed and mutilated heroes and villains, each of

whom, despite their physical and moral failings, tugged on the heartstrings of those who sat in the audience.

Whilst on set he was demanding, little given to rubbing shoulders with the rest of the Hollywood glitterati, regarding himself as being closer to the ordinary man on the street. It was when he was cast as a one-time ruffian from the circus, Chaney met Browning on the set of The Unholy Three in 1925. This was to be the beginning of a remarkably creative liaison.

The Grotesque and The Bizarre

From then on, Chaney and Browning frequently worked on films that satisfied their mutual fascination for the grotesque and the bizarre. Their relationship developed favorably, something rare for Chaney, who was known for being critical of those directing his films (going as far as directing large portions of them himself).

Their creative zeal was to reflect in their up-and-coming collaborations, each one of them a box office smash.

In 1927, Browning and Chaney embarked upon an adaptation of one of Browning’s own stories, “The Hypnotist.” Hypnotism was very much in vogue at that time and the script—written by Waldemar Young, a journalist specializing in criminal cases, who had previously worked with Browning screenwriting The Unholy Three and The Unknown—added an element of the supernatural to a scenario that was essentially a tale

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LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT

To the left, his circus days behind him, Tod Browning takes a moment to relax. He would add to his reputation directing London After Midnight, a film that chilled those who saw it to the very bone. TM & © Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT

of criminality. During However, those in the the course of the filming, industry would recall his the script was repeatedly work behind the scenes modified, spawning a as a founding member of quite different storyline. the Academy of Motion With most films, this Picture Arts and Sciences wouldn’t have been of and the Screen Actors any great concern, but Guild. Henry Walthall, the novelization of 1928 who had been there since was based on Young’s the beginning of the original script, rather than industry in a whole variety the version presented to of roles, was brought in cinemagoers on the big to play Sir James Hamlin. screen. In time this would Among the supporting have a significant bearing on cast, Edna Tichenor stands the reworking of this tale. out as Luna, the Bat Girl, Satisfied with Waldemar who by virtue of her Young’s script, Browning seductive allure attracted set to bringing his cast as much, if not more, together. Marceline Day, attention than Chaney a promising actress of the himself. As eye-catching day, best remembered for as she was in this film, she her performance alongside never made it beyond these Buster Keaton in 1928’s secondary roles, eventually The Cameraman, would drifting from the industry play Lucille Balfour, the during the mid-1930s.

Lon Chaney in his hideous makeup with Luna the Bat Girl (Edna Tichenor) heroine of this piece. Alas, in the haunted Balfour house. TM & © Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Browning completed she would soon disappear his film in a mere 24 from the cinema screen, a casualty of the advent of the days; surprisingly fast when compared to other ventures talkies. The quintessential romantic hero Arthur Hibbs undertaken by this eminent affiliation, and at a cost of was fittingly handed to Conrad Nagel. He would later have $152,000, which was unusually reasonable. The shoot a steady, if not overwhelming career in film and television. was wrapped up almost without incident, barring one

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With such a success on their hands, Metro Goldwyn Meyer were only too eager to have Browning renew his contract.

A novelization of the film, using the original script prior to the changes made during filming, was written by Marie Coolidge-Rask, a journalist for the Pittsburgh Press, who had previously written similar adaptations: namely La Boheme directed by King Vidor and Sparrows, starring Mary Pickford. An adaptation in Boys’ Cinema magazine would follow, along with a novel written in France by Lucien Boisyvon. Each of these interpretations would play their part in gaining an understanding of the film’s plot, but they were all noticeably different.

Lon terrifies in a classic pose as the man in the beaver hat. TM & © Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

particularly amusing occurrence. As he always did, Browning arrived half an hour before the rest of the crew, to find the cobweb-filled castle where filming was to take place completely cleaned up. It seems the cleaning staff hadn’t been notified. There was a delay of a couple of hours while the scenery was given a makeover, thus returning its gothic milieu. Browning, to his credit, had a lot of fun with this unfortunate mishap.

A Changing World

London After Midnight was released on December 3, 1927, with a musical accompaniment that came courtesy of synchronized records. That same year The Jazz Singer, the first film released with a sound recording, had astonished the entertainment world; all too soon Hollywood realized the silent era was coming to an end. Returning to Browning’s magnum opus, the critics were fairly mixed in their reviews. The New York Times definitely wasn’t so sure, considering it “a somewhat incoherent narrative, which gives Chaney an opportunity to wear an extraordinary disguise and also to manifest his powers as Scotland Yard’s expert in hypnotism.” The New Yorker wrote, “Mr. Browning can create painterly terrors and Lon Chaney can disguise himself in a completely repulsive manner, so their joint efforts are wasted when the story makes no sense.” This apparent lack of coherence would be echoed again and again: commentators would continue to write about the film’s shortcomings, concluding it did not rate among the best from this illustrious duo.

The general public, however, had a very different opinion. London After Midnight was to prove the tenth most profitable film of 1927, grossing one million dollars.

At the end of its run, London After Midnight was consigned to the vaults of Metro Goldwyn Mayer, where it would gather dust alongside a bounty of other creations.

This was now the age of the talkie, the appearance of which swiftly brought about the demise of the silent film.

By the mid-1930s, audiences had lost interest in these treasures from what was already considered a bygone era; no longer of any commercial value, they were condemned to remain hidden from view in the repositories of the film companies that had previously given them life.

This sad state of affairs coincided with the careers of stars and directors alike falling into decline. Not so for Lon Chaney, who was ready to adapt to this new world of sound production, giving a stirring performance in the remake of The Unholy Three in 1930. Soon after there was talk of Chaney and Browning adapting a play that was doing rather well on Broadway, none other than Dracula.

Sadly this never came to pass; soon after, Lon Chaney was diagnosed with throat cancer. He died on August 26, 1930, in a hospital in Los Angeles.

Browning would go on to direct Dracula with the actor whose performance on stage had made such an impression, a Hungarian by the name of Bela Lugosi. The success of

As Professor Burke (Lon Chaney), he gives the impression he is on with the investigation. TM & © Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

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LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT

Condemned to the Vaults

LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT

THE MOVIE THAT ORDERED TO KILL On October 23, 1928, Robert Williams was found in London’s Hyde Park next to the lifeless body of Julia Mangan. Williams had murdered her. She had just rejected his proposal of marriage. Then… Lon Chaney, dressed as the vampire from London After Midnight, had ordered him to kill her: “I felt like my head was going to explode and that steam was coming from everywhere. All kinds of things came to my mind. I thought a man had me in a corner and made faces at me. He threatened me and yelled at me that he had me where he wanted me,” Williams declared. That man— according to him— was the vampire from the movie he had recently seen.

According to Williams, that character had ordered him to kill Mangan.

His testimony was obviously not believed and Williams was found guilty. He was sentenced to death, but was later ordered to spend the rest of his days in a psychiatric institution. Let’s hope he didn’t see Lon Chaney again.

he had amassed, he would once again bring Lon Chaney and his works into the limelight… this would include London After Midnight. As Famous Monsters of Filmland swept the newsstand, the time seemed right for Browning’s film to be removed from the vaults at MGM to terrify a new generation of cinemagoers.

Tragedy Strikes

It wasn’t to be. Tragedy struck when part of the MGM film warehouse burned to the ground in 1965, killing one of the company’s employees. Many of the studio’s films were lost, including the only known copy of London After Midnight. Since then, archivists and researchers across the world have endeavored without success to trace this film, regardless of considerable hearsay. Rumors persist as to a print existing in Australia, but it has never been substantiated. For fans of macabre cinema, this film has indeed become the Holy Grail.

In 2002, TCM asked film archivist Rick Schmidlin to produce a reconstruction of the film. Using the final script and more than two hundred stills collected from around the world, Schmidlin produced a 45-minute photo film aired on TCM, later released as an extra in a DVD set collecting Chaney’s films. In the absence of the original, these 45 minutes are the closest we had to Browning’s lost masterpiece... …until 2022, when in Chile, writer Gonzalo Oyanedel and artist Enrique Alcatena (known for his work on Hawkworld and Eclipse’s The Spider) recreated this movie as a graphic novel. Oyanedel had taken his time in carefully reviewing the various versions of the story, using the script, the reconstitution of 2002 and the three previously fictionalized versions. From here, he put together an admirable script, allowing Alcatena to return to his studio to illustrate a faithful adaptation of this lost gem. Published in Italy, this graphic novel is yet to see release in English.

Maybe one day, in the not too distant future, an old film reel will be uncovered, revealing the terror in this age old masterpiece. We can but dream. ■

this film would give Browning the chance to produce the extraordinary, albeit reviled, Freaks (1932). The contentious nature of this film would have an adverse effect on Browning’s career. Yet, he would go on to have a modicum of success with the 1935 remake of London After Midnight, Mark of the Vampire, a film many movie watchers of the day considered to be superior to its predecessor. In this account, Chaney’s dual role was shared between Lionel Barrymore and Bela Lugosi, who, of course, played the vampire.

Browning would make just two more films before retiring in 1939 to live a comfortable life until his death in 1962.

The contribution Lon Chaney and Tod Browning made to the world of cinematic horror was once again acknowledged when a new generation of fans discovered their legacy during the “monster craze” of the 1960s. This was thanks to fantasy film magazines spearheaded

by Famous Monsters of Filmland under Forrest J. Ackerman’s editorship. In his extensive collection of film memorabilia, Ackerman had in his possession the top hat Lon Chaney had worn during the making of this film. With A page of Enrique Alcatena’s moody art from the Gonzalo Oyanedel the articles and photographs scripted London After Midnight, 2022. TM & © Quadriculando.

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ROBERTO BARREIRO has written on pop culture covering film, comic books and pulps in numerous magazines and books published in Chile and Argentina. He is the author of the acclaimed book History of Comic Fanzines in Argentina and has written for TwoMorrows’ Comic Book Creator.

DAWN OF THE READ THE PAPERBACK FANATIC RUNS HIS EYE OVER THE HORROR MOVIE TIE-IN PAPERBACKS OF THE 1970s

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By Justin Marriott

he Movie Tie-In (MTI) paperback and specifically the tieins to horror films, were very popular during the 1960s and ’70s. They were the easiest way for the “monster kids” of those years, whose age prevented them seeing “X” or “R” certificated films at the cinema, to access what was then forbidden fruit. Perhaps the greatest evidence of this symbiotic relationship between horror flicks and paperbacks could be found in the rear pages of the Warren magazines, which were teeming with tantalizing adverts for horror paperbacks available to order through their Captain Company mail order service. Apparently they were an invaluable source of income for the perennially impoverished publishing house. I am sure many of you will have shared my childhood habit of fantasy book-buying, picking “what would I buy if I had five dollars?” from these alluring adverts.

For the purposes of looking through these MTIs, I have treated a movie tie-in as a book written specially to order in response to a film script. So film first, then book published in the paperback format. This means books made into films, such as Dracula, Rosemary’s Baby or The Exorcist, do not qualify as a MTI for the scope of this article, even if the books were repackaged and reissued to coincide with the release of said film adaptation. I have also narrowed the remit to the 1970s, so both the film and the paperback must have appeared in that decade.

Television series have been excluded—let’s be honest; the likes of the Dark Shadows tie-ins would generate a catalog so large, it would fill an entire magazine. Hopefully, The Cryptologist will invite me back to write about the ’60s and the ’80s at a later date.

Horror Reinvigorated

I consider the 1970s to be the era when American directors made huge strides to reinvigorate the horror movie, with George A. Romero, David Cronenberg, John Carpenter, Tobe Hooper, and Wes Craven taking the lead in this revolution.

Romero is the giant on this list, both figuratively and literally (at 6 feet 5 inches), clocking up three MTIs in the 1970s. Night of the Living Dead, which is outside the remit of this article, Dawn of the Dead and Martin. All three of these books carry a fore/afterword by Romero, which is highly unusual for a MTI, appearing at a point where I assume the director to be too busy worrying about other aspects of the creative process to pay much attention. Each of these books are credited as being co-written with Susanna Sparrow, who has no other books attributed to her name, suggesting the alliterative co-author may have been a pseudonym.

It is quite possible whoever did draft the books had access to Romero’s screenplays, as they read faithfully to their parent

George A Romero and David Croneberg did much to stimulate interest in American horror movies, with several of their films returning in paperback. Dawn of the Dead TM & © Sphere; Martin TM & © Day Books; The Brood TM & © Virgo; Rabid TM & © Mayflower.

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films, with the MTI for Martin containing a scene which didn’t make the leap from Romero’s script to celluloid.

Perhaps Romero’s MTIs were a little too close to the originals, as they were dry with much left to be filled in, which obviously the big screen version achieves in its use of imagery and music. This is especially noticeable in the adaptation of Martin, a film swathed in a dreamlike quality where ambiguity surrounds the ostensible characters’ afflictions. And without the beguiling and boyish naivety of actor John Amplas, Martin becomes a much less sympathetic character in the MTI. Martin was published by Day Books in the US; a blink-of-the-eyeand-they-were-gone publisher.

Dawn of the Dead was a more successful novelization, adopting a markedly different narrative tone to that observed in Martin, with slang and the vernacular liberally endorsed throughout. Dawn’s plentiful action sequences work to the benefit of this adaptation, although the consumerism so vital to film’s subtext is completely lost in the novel. Also, much of the film’s dark humor, inspired by Tom Savini’s special effects, is missing.

Presumably scenes such as a severed arm left in a blood pressure machine were invented by Savini on-set and therefore absent from the script. In the US, Dawn of the Dead appeared in hardback in 1978, with Sphere UK issuing the first paperback edition in 1979.

Intellectual Gross-Out

Another director mixing the intellectual with the grossout was Canadian body-horror king David Cronenberg, whose genre-stretching films received two MTIs in the 1970s: Rabid and The Brood. Cronenberg’s challenging and subversive themes were to prove problematic for any tie-in author; The Brood by Richard Starks affirms this, being a flat read, with even the stomach-turning climax being one-

note—lacking the rabbit-punch of its film source. Author Starks had been a journalist, before going on to a successful career in publishing, working in a variety of areas. The first paperback edition was published by Virgo Press, appropriately based in Cronenberg’s Canadian homeland, another publisher that emerged in the late 1970s only to fold by the early ’80s.

Rabid is a better effort, with author Richard Lewis able to use the more action-orientated script to deliver a fast paced read that piles on the splatter. Lewis, real name Alan Radnor, did well in the UK with gory insect horrors such as The Spiders and The Devil’s Coach Horse, fruitfully surfing the wave of success created by the “when nature runs amok” bestsellers, The Rats and Night of the Crabs.

Halloween by Curtis Richards was the only one of John Carpenter’s films to receive a MTI during the 1970s, a well executed elongation of the original slasher film with hints of Celtic paganism, which is no surprise when you learn Curtis Richards was a pseudonym for Denis Etchison, who would go on to critical acclaim as a master of psychological horror in the short story format. Etchison had a side hustle in MTIs for Carpenter, as well as one for Cronenberg during the 1980s.

Another Carpenter connection to a MTI was a story he wrote that went to cinematic release, Eyes of Laura Mars, novelized by H(arriett) B. Gilmour, who would attain considerable commercial success as an author of tie-ins for young adults. Her success comes as no surprise, as she evidently treated Eyes as something more than a quick paycheck, interviewing the film’s director to better understand the characters’ motivation. She then drew upon her career in fashion and her life in New York as the background for this psychic detective story on the trail of a serial killer; with a nice twist to boot.

John Carpenter was among the directors whose big screen horror also made it to paperback, with Halloween TM & © Bantam Books and The Eyes of Laura Mars TM & © Corgi. Jeff Lieberman’s slimy terror Squirm was later published by Sphere in 1978.

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Cult Appeal

Hooper and Craven would have their day in the sunlight with MTIs during the 1980s, so I’ll turn to adaptations from directors who they influenced to try their hand at low budget horror films. Jeff Leiberman has rightly earned cult appeal for his ability to deliver satire and chills in films such as Just Before Dawn, Squirm and Blue Sunshine. Squirm was successfully novelized by British author Richard Curtis, who succeeded in including both the humor and the queasy excess of the film, with characters masticating bowls of spaghetti and drowning in a sea of worms. The book received two editions in the UK, with one carrying a disgustingly memorable illustration of the worms burrowing into a man’s face, with the coup de grace being a worm emerging through the roof of his mouth. File under “they don’t make them like that any more.”

Director Robert Feust had three of his 1970s cult horror films committed to novelization; The Abominable Dr Phibes; Dr Phibes Rises Again and The Devil’s Rain. The latter was part of the surge for satanic panic, suburbanites-fall-foul-ofSatanists films of the 1970s, an oil and water mix of serious treatment of the occult with camp window dressings.

Author Maude Willis discards the hokier aspects to deliver a book closer, I feel, to the vision of the film scriptwriter.

Willis’ real name was Eileen Lottman, a name appearing on many TV tie-ins, among them The Bionic Woman, presumably as an extension of her career as a film publicist.

Scriptwriter of the first Dr Phibes film, William Goldstein, turned in both of the Phibes novelizations.

Surprisingly, Goldstein jettisoned the camp humor which had made the films such fun, treating Phibes as a much more tragic and sympathetic character than Vincent Price’s on-screen portrayal. Goldstein later produced more self-published Phibes stories. Award Books, publisher of the original Phibes novelizations, was an offshoot of long-running sleaze paperback empire Beacon Books, who specialized in MTIs, most notably the “Man With No Name” spaghetti westerns. They also published Cat O’ Nine Tails, adapted by Paul Gilette from an early giallo by European prince of horror Dario Argento. This is the only

English language adaptation of an Argento film, which is quite astonishing considering the enormity of his critical and commercial success. Gilette went on to write Play for Misty For Me, adapted for a Clint Eastwood movie before hosting a nationally syndicated TV show on wine tasting.

In addition to the humorous Phibes, there were several tie-ins to horror films which were also played for laughs, or were at the very least, eccentric. The Incredible Melting Man script apparently originated as a comedy, but it delivered on the gory special effects of its disease-ridden astronaut with an appetite for human flesh, and on both of its UK editions, the packaging reflected just that: One carrying photos of Rick Baker’s famous special effects, and the other a painting by Joe Petagno, who would rise to fame as the artist for Motorhead’s album covers. Author Phil Smith, presumably a pseudonym, penned several solid occult potboilers in the UK in the 1970s, and does the same with the slim pickings in this film.

Legal Wrangles

Definitely not taking itself too seriously, was Werewolf vs. Vampire Woman, authored by Arthur N Scram (or Scarm, the publishers could never make their mind up), a candidate for the worst book ever written, and in perverse logic, now incredibly expensive to buy. It’s clear that neither Scram or Scarm or the publishers took the affair very seriously with a mocking back cover copy and stream-of-consciousness writing.

Queen Kong was another terrible tie-in to an equally terrible movie, which remained on the shelf for decades due to a legal wrangle with the owners of the King Kong copyright. Although the movie wasn’t released, the tie-in escaped, replete with a photo-cover of the titular giant ape, teasing movie-goers as to the visual treat they were missing. The book was penned by James Moffatt, infamous in the UK for his authorship of the cult Skinhead paperbacks of the 1970s.

Legal shenanigans also impacted the novelization of Piranha, with the film’s scriptwriter John Sayles suing publisher New English Library for incorrectly attributing

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Such was the fascination with these paperbacks, adaptations continued throughout the 1970s with Dr. Phibes TM & © Award; Dr. Phibes Rises Again! TM & © Award; The Incredible Melting Man TM & © New English Library; Werewolf vs. Vampire Woman TM & © Guild Hartford.

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Animal horror tie-ins began to appear in the book stores with, Queen Kong TM & © Everest Books Ltd.; Piranha TM & © New English Library; Day of the Animals TM & © Ballentine; Neal Adams’ cover for Grizzly TM & © Pyramid.

him as the MTI’s author, so a second edition hastily appeared, credited to the pseudonym of Leo Callan. Other animal attack tie-ins included Day of the Animals, Grizzly and Zoltan Hound of Dracula, with the former pair filmed

by William Girdler, a prolific low-budget director with an eye for a trend. Grizzly is the more noteworthy owing to the powerful Neal Adams illustration on the cover of the US MTI taken from the film poster, although Day does carry a well-observed eco-horror message. Zoltan, also known as Dracula’s Dog in the US, where it received a tie-in under the same title with Signet Books, was a mundane take on an uneven, yet it has to be said, rather ambitious movie.

Made in Britain

Unable or unwilling to respond to the rise of the grindhouse films set in contemporary America such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre or The Hills Have Eyes, British studios were still looking to the past for inspiration, with Hammer, Amicus and Tyburn continuing to plough an increasingly infertile furrow in the realm of gothic horror.

Hammer released only one film in the 1970s with a tie-in,

Kronos Vampire Hunter. Despite its encouraging premise, which sought to reinvent the vampire mythos with a script penned by the witty Brian Clemens, who had injected such verve into The Avengers TV show, it proved to be a dud.

Hugh Enfield’s novelization mirrored the film’s faults.

Amicus continued with their effective series of portmanteaus, turning to EC Comics with Tales from the Crypt and Vault of Horror, both of which received tie-ins written by Jack Oleck. Oleck was a prolific contributor to DC’s mystery comics, making him a natural for the sympathetic treatment of such material, each of which were completed with due aplomb, although they were inferior to both the movies, and not surprisingly, the comics. There was also a tie-in to Asylum, a cleverly framed portmanteau with a script from the dark imaginings of Robert Bloch. William Johnston’s tie-in is confusingly structured and blandly told; I only wish Bloch could have done the honors.

Tyburn were set up by Kevin Francis, the son of Hammer director Freddie Francis, in an ill-timed attempt to grab the market, just as it was set to evaporate.

Considering this, they did well to translate three of their

Vampires and EC related film adaptations became highly sought after upon their paperback release: Zoltan Hound of Dracula TM & © Everest Books Ltd.; Captain Kronos TM & © Fontana; The Vault of Horror TM & © Bantam; Tales from the Crypt TM & © Bantam.

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films into paperbacks. Sphere in the UK, who published a line in Hammer tie-ins during the early ’70s, put out MTIs to The Ghoul and Legend of the Werewolf, both with typically top-notch cover paintings by Les Edwards.

Guy N Smith was the author of The Ghoul, a writer who would strike gold when his Night of the Crabs became a bestseller—his cult status is still celebrated to this day. This is trademark Smith, told in a no-frills style, with noticeably larger font size than you would normally see, maybe on account of the story being so short—it wouldn’t come anywhere near filling a paperback—with a palpable air of dread coupled with gleeful descriptions of brains being splattered up the wall.

A few years hence, Robert Holdstock would become an award-winning fantasy novelist, but in the ’70s he was learning his trade as a jobbing writer under various pseudonyms, including Robert Black. Under this alias he produced tie-ins for Legend of the Werewolf, a competent account of an awful film, and The Satanists, which was

MOVIE TIE-IN CHECKLIST

Alien, Alan Dean Foster, US Warner, 1979 Asylum, William Johnston, Bantam Books 1972 Audrey Rose, Frank DeFilitta, Warner Books 1976 Black Christmas, Lee Hays, Popular Library 1976 Blue Sunshine, Ken Johnson, Sphere Books 1978 The Brood, Richard Starks, Virgo 1979 The Brotherhood of Satan, L. Q. Jones Award, 1971 Captain Kronos, Brian Clemens, Fontana 1972 Cat O Nine Tails, Paul J Gillette, Award 1971 Damien, Omen II, Joseph Howard (Joseph Goldberg), Signet 1978 The Dark, Max Franklin, Signet 1978 Dawn of the Dead, George A Romero and Susanna Sparrow, Sphere 1979 Day of the Animals, Donald Porter, Ballantine, 1977 The Devil’s Rain, Maud Willis, Dell 1975 Dr Phibes, William Goldstein, Award 1971 Dr Phibes Rises Again, William Goldstein, Award 1972 Embryo, Louis Charbonneau, Warner 1976 Eyes of Laura Mars, H B Gilmour , Corgi 1978 Grizzly, Will Collins, Pyramid 1976

announced but never made it to film, granting it a uniqueness among fans of British small studio horror.

I’ll finish on what I consider to be the best of the MTIs and I would imagine the best selling; The Omen by David Seltzer. This MTI definitely benefits from being penned by the film’s screenwriter, allowing for extra characterization rather than just a sterile translation, and of course, being a great movie obviously helps. The MTI also has a grittier and more grisly tone than the slickly executed film, which satiates the demands made by fans of horror fiction.

Stay tuned for further articles on horror fiction in paperbacks in future issues of Cryptology. ■ JUSTIN MARRIOTT is the editor of the long running magazine Paperback Fanatic, along with the fanzines Battling Britons, Men of Violence, Monster Maniacs and Pulp Horror, to name but a few. He is currently writing and editing the well received Comics Rule OK, aka CROK.

Halloween, Curtis Richards, Bantam Books 1979 Incredible Melting Man, Phil Smith, UK New English Library, 1978 It Lives Again, James Dixon, Ballantine, 1978 It’s Alive, Richard Woodley, Ballantine, 1977 Kingdom of the Spiders, Bernhardt Hurwood, Mayflower 1977 The Legacy, John Coyne, Corgi 1980 Legend of the Werewolf, Robert Black, Sphere 1976 Martin, George A Romero, Day Books 1977 Piranha, John Sayles/Leo Callan, UK New English Library 1978 The Pyx, John Buell, Popular Library 1973 Rabid, Richard Lewis, Mayflower 1977 Simon King of Witches, Baldwin Hill, Dell 1971 Tales from the Crypt, Jack Oleck, Bantam 1972 The Uncanny, William Lauder, Arrow Books 1977 Vault of Horror, Jack Oleck, Bantam 1973 Virgin Witch, Klaus Vogel, Corgi 1971 Werewolf vs Vampire Woman, Arthur N Scram, Guild Hartford 1972 The Wicker Man, Robin Hardy and Anthony Shaffer, Pocket 1979 Zoltan Hound of Dracula, Ken Johnson, Everest 1977

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Whether the film was a blockbuster or made merely for cult cinema, the paperback horror movie tie-ins kept on coming: Asylum TM & © Bantam Books; The Ghoul TM & © Sphere; Legend of the Werewolf TM & © Sphere; The Omen TM & © Futura.

CINEMATIC PUPPET TERROR

by Peter Normanton

J

ust a word of warning—even the most ardent horror fan can be creeped out by these wooden dolls; their overly exaggerated features exacerbated by the strange glint in their eyes imparting the impression of a human grotesque.

In the next few pages you will discover these creations have minds of their own, their intent anything but wholesome. Be they puppets, dolls, marionettes or ventriloquist dummies, their unsettling demeanor drags us back to that part of childhood we had hoped to forget.

For almost 60 years the dolls that inveigled their way onto the cinema screen were waged in a bizarre conflict with their

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masters, a succession of puppeteers and ventriloquists worn down by their psychological trauma. On each occasion, these surreal struggles would leave the audience guessing as to which of them held the upper hand. This rationale took precedence until 1988, when Tom Holland introduced his malevolent creation Chucky to the world, in his landmark film Child’s Play. Tom wanted nothing more than to make a horror movie, but he inadvertently spawned an entire franchise, with his evil progeny serving as the curtain-raiser for the modern day killer-doll. From thereon, puppets and ventriloquist’s dolls alike would become susceptible to possession by forces beyond

unwillingness to compromise was a bone of contention with the studio heads. In spite of this, his contribution to cinema is beyond reproach, a legacy little Otto would be hard pushed to deny.

The Dread Fitch

our mortal ken, conferring them the means of inflicting horrors of the foulest kind on those who crossed them.

However, Child’s Play wasn’t the first of these films to flirt with the malfeasance of possession, or the violence in these creations, but with Tom pulling the strings, it was escalated to a whole new level.

Many years before Chucky stole onto the scene, The Great Gabbo, played by Erich von Stroheim, who also co-directed this film alongside James Cruze, first exposed the cinemagoers to a doll with seeming lifelike qualities. It was way back in 1929 when this ventriloquist’s fall guy, Otto, was stirred into life as his self-serving master lost his grasp on reality. While neither von Stroheim nor Cruze had set out to make a horror film, the mocking visage of Otto would become the stuff of darkest nightmare for many of those in the auditorium.

As a director, von Stroheim was perceived Dead of Night had entertained its audience, then Hugo turned up to frighten them to death. Have a thought as a man of vision, but his for Maxwell Frere (Michael Redgrave); he never stood a chance. TM & © Ealing Studios.

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While it was never Otto’s intention to scare, he inspired those that followed The Great Gabbo. TM & © James Cruze Productions.

Otto’s performance would prove the inspiration for the most influential of these unnerving dolls, Hugo Fitch, the devious dummy from the anthology terror Dead of Night, released by Ealing Studios in 1945. The audience had to wait until the final part of this feature, directed by Alberto Calvalcanti, before they made the acquaintance with this rueful little chap, although many of them would wish they never had. Up until this point the film had certainly chilled, but no one could have counted on the machinations of Hugo Fitch and the consequent demise of Maxwell Frere, played by Michael Redgrave. The audience was left to ponder whether Maxwell really was stricken by a split personality, or was there something much more sinister about the grinning Hugo? While locked away in the confines of their prison cell, Hugo began to adopt an uncanny veneer of life; there really was something altogether too realistic about him.

There were some stellar performances throughout, but it was the caustic figure of Hugo Fitch that was to endure.

For all this, Dead of Night wasn’t a success; its failure quashing any plans Ealing Studios had for a return to horror. Yet, Dead of Night’s anthology format provided the model for the memorable Amicus horror portmanteaux of the late ’60s and early ’70s.

The B-movies of the 1950s should have been the perfect vehicle for these deathly dolls, but it wasn’t to be.

Hugo Fitch’s ghastly performance looked to have put the

CINEMATIC PUPPET TERROR

On the left, the loveable figure of ventriloquist dummy Willie as he first appeared in The Twilight Zone season 3’s “The Dummy”; then on the right, the dummy grimaces, having now taken over his owner Jerry, played by Cliff Robertson. TM & © CBS Network.

mockers on that one. However, before the decade was out, playmate you couldn’t wish to meet. However, Talking television took it on itself to revive one of these fearsome Tina had no love for Christie’s vindictive stepfather. That fantoccini. Twelve years after Hugo had cunningly sweet voice began to make some rather hateful comments, outwitted Michael Redgrave, Alfred Hitchcock Presents each of them directed squarely at this embittered bully. entertained with another of these mystifying dummies When his plans to destroy this sweet little doll misfired, in “The Glass Eye,” used to launch its third season, in you knew it wasn’t going to end well for him.

October 1957. The payoff observed in this narration had The Twilight Zone rounded off its fraternization with been a great favorite of the horror comics published in the these enigmatic dolls with “Caesar and Me,” first shown early 1950s; revealing this little fellow, named George, to in April 1964. Rod Serling warned from the outset this be nothing like his predecessors, for in reality he wasn’t a ventriloquist’s doll was a “wooden tyrant, with a mind and doll at all, in a story scripted by the Scottish writer John voice of his own.” Caesar proved himself to be just that, Keir Cross. duping his hapless owner into a life of crime. The Hugo With Alfred Hitchcock Presents having toyed with one of Fitch pedigree was definitely in evidence, coupled with a these dolls, The Twilight Zone followed suit. Viewers had to striking resemblance to season 3’s “The Dummy,” which wait until season 3’s “The Dummy,” broadcast in May 1962, isn’t surprising as it was the same doll. for one of these sinister reversal of Low Budget Dolls roles. As with Hugo That same year, Fitch, Willie’s lifelike the British made persona came to the Devil Doll, directed fore, leading to a

by Lindsay Shonteff, a chilling finale, quite low-budget virtuoso, in keeping with the chose the British pulp nature of this series. magazine London Those assembled Mystery Magazine as its around the source of inspiration. television for The The tale “The Devil Twilight Zone’s Doll,” penned by the “Living Doll”, eminently successful aired in season 5, writer Frederick November 1963, E. Smith had been would have been published in these pages in 1954. Bryant introduced to Haliday was cast as Christie’s pretty the treacherous stage little doll Talking She’s so cute isn’t she; the lovable Talking Tina from the Twilight Zone’s “Living hypnotist The Great Tina, a sweeter little Doll.” Erich Streater (Telly Savalas) thought otherwise. TM & © CBS Network.

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Lindsay Shonteff’s Devil Doll (TM & © Galaworldfilm Productions & Gordon Films) may have been low budget, but it has gone on to acquire quite a following. Dr Rutherford (Patrick Magee) will soon come to know Asylum’s “mannequins of horror.” TM & © Amicus Productions.

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Vorelli, whose act included a doll curiously named Hugo.

Hugo delighted audiences as he toddled to the front of the stage, but what lay behind this amusing facade was altogether unexpected. We would soon learn, this downtrodden dummy had a deep-rooted resentment of his master, and with good reason. Devil Doll joined Dead of Night in receiving unfavorable reviews, but over the years it has acquired a rightful cult following.

A strange marionette band would have had you dance to their tune in 1971’s The Abominable Dr. Phibes, as they mindlessly accompanied their organ playing master. On this outing they were nothing more than accessories; the wickedness in these proceedings being dispensed by Phibes himself. Similarly, Dario Argento’s mechanical doll, while alarming, was little more than a diversion for the killer in his 1975 release Profondo Rosso, or as we know it, Deep Red. The “Mannequins of Horror” from the Robert Bloch scripted Asylum, released in 1972, were anything but a diversion. As with Dead of Night, this the fifth of Amicus’ portmanteaux, saved its diminutive dolls for the last, to make for a rather disturbing denouement, one those in the audience would have certainly taken home with them.

As a result of the experimentation of their creator, Doctor Byron, played by Herbert Lom, these “Mannequins of Horror” had been implanted with human organs. Only Byron had the ability to give them life, by way of his mesmerizing willpower. Of course he was quite deluded; surely he had to be? The epilogue told a quite different

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An aboriginal fetish doll goes into a murderous frenzy in Trilogy of Terror. TM & © ABC Circle Films Dan Curtis Productions.

story, as one of these dolls executed his master’s deranged will in a bloodthirsty finale.

Another showing destined for cult adulation was originally made for television in 1975, Trilogy of Terror.

The last of the three stories, “Amelia,” scripted by Richard Matheson, brought to life a wooden fetish doll shaped as an aboriginal warrior, armed with pointed teeth and a decidedly sharp spear. When the gold chain, said to confine the spirit of this Zuni hunter, slipped loose, the doll turned extremely malicious. The warrior’s spirit now had to possess a new incumbent, a plot device soon to become so much a part of the mythos surrounding these evil dolls. A similar wooden doll would come to disrupt a family in Ko Youngnam’s Suddenly in the Dark from 1981.

The doll’s presence was deftly illusive, as disturbing visions took a hold in this jittery psychological drama.

troubled ventriloquist and magician, Corky, to deliver a spellbinding performance as the ill-fated performer, slowly succumbing to a complete breakdown. As with his blighted predecessors, Corky’s existence was consumed by his dummy, Fats, as their relationship became ever more sinister. Richard Attenborough was no stranger to the sinister, having excelled in roles in London Belongs to Me (1948); Seance on a Wet Afternoon (1964); and 10 Rillington Place (1971); films those with a hankering for suspense might want to seek out.

Tobe Hooper’s collaboration with Steven Spielberg on Poltergeist in 1982 might not have gone for the blood and guts of his previous movies, but this pairing set loose a truly terrifying clown with sharp teeth and a crazy shock of ginger hair. It may have started life as an innocent childhood toy, but when the ghosts and demonic entities besieging this house came down, it morphed into one of the most frightening of this creepy breed. Once caught in its grip, you were never going to forget its deranged gaze. The advertising for the 2015 remake cast aside the original, choosing instead to exploit our fear of these dolls.

Umberto Lenzi used the clown doll to hair-raising effect a few years later in his film Ghosthouse from 1988, this one haunted by agonies from the past and ready to sew its evil on the world. Similarly the cult Mexican weird terror film Vacations of Terror from 1989, directed

by Rene Cardona III, set loose a doll bedeviled by the vengeful spirit of a witch. Haunting and possession were now all the rage.

Over a decade ahead of his directing Independence Day (1996) and Godzilla (1998), German director Roland Emmerich offered his film Joey for release in 1985, retitled Making Contact in the United States. Roland wanted to entertain in his film of a young boy, who having lost his father, attempted to contact him using a small phone.

Joey brought on more than he could have ever bargained on, finding himself set upon by a possessed ventriloquist dummy calling himself Fletcher. This was an out and out battle between good and evil. While Roland’s film fell a long way short of his later efforts, it certainly didn’t

Another Sinister Partnership These curious dolls, puppets and marionettes were laid to rest for a few years, until 1978 when Richard Attenborough ascended to the director’s chair to disburse the disquiet in his film Magic. Anthony Hopkins took on the role of the

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Fats takes over as Corky (Anthony Hopkins) loses his grip on life, in the Richard Attenborough directed Magic; but you have to wonder if he ever had a grasp on life. TM & © 20th Century Fox.

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that came with it. Dolly Dearest, released in 1991, was a doll bewitched by nefarious Mayan spirit. Then came Demonic Toys in 1992, where a whole gang of demonically possessed toys were brought together, each with a strong urge to kill. A sequel followed in 1993, Dollman vs. Demonic Toys. To all intents and purposes the doll in the direct-to-video Pinocchio’s Revenge from 1996, appeared to be haunted, having been found next to the buried body of a child killed by his father. The unnerving elements in Kevin S. Tenney’s film have seen it go on to amass an extremely enthusiastic following, one keen to extol Armed with a gun discharging exploding bullets, Puppet Master’s “Six-Shooter” was an the virtues in its psychological resonance. extremely dangerous creation. TM & © Full Moon Entertainment & Empire Pictures.

The horror comedy anthology Tales detract from what has been a highly distinguished career. from the Hood, made in 1995, gave horror Possessed puppets were now the order of the day, as fans a very different doll in the last of its chapters, “KKK evidenced in Dolls released in 1987. Written by Ed Naha, Comeuppance,” a doll from the deep south, the vessel for with Stuart Gordon in the director’s chair hot off his a lost soul, one with seriously racist affiliations. success with Re-Animator, the psychological battles of Before we bid farewell to these frightening dolls, the past were now passé, as the viewer was drawn into dummies and puppets, we should reference the episode the plight of a dubious group of people sheltering from “The Lesson” from season 8 of the CBS crime drama a storm in the home of a perverse puppet maker and Criminal Minds from 2012, directed by leading cast his wife. There was a preternatural air to this narration, member, Matthew Gray Gubler. The imagery in this intensified by the dolls and puppets of this lunatic episode could have so easily been poached from Harry couple’s creation being possessed by the spirits of vicious Lazarus’ cover to issue #59 of the American Comics criminals, who through stop-motion, took immense Group’s Adventures into Unknown Worlds, dated Octoberpleasure in letting the blood flow. The blood may have November 1954, although its grisly portrayal went been flowing in the horror movies of the 1980s, but significantly further. Bodies were turning up with their the eccentric Canadian cult film Pin of 1988 preferred arms and legs having been brutally disjointed. A deranged to play upon the psyche and mental health issues of its puppeteer was on the loose, literally breaking the bodies protagonist, using a medical dummy, with a perturbing of innocent people to turn them into marionettes, to serve outcome. in his insane puppet show. The puppeteer was played by Brad Dourif, who provided the evil voice for Chucky and Inhuman Serial Killer serial killer Charles Lee Ray in Child’s Play. These devilish I am sure you can recall the name Charles Lee Ray, the dolls just wouldn’t go away. ■ inhuman serial killer, who as he faced death was heard to recite a ritualistic voodoo chant to transfer his soul into the body of a Good Guy doll. In the opening scenes to Tom Holland’s Child’s Play, from 1988, Chucky came into the world in a scenario that could have been plucked from the pages of a pre-Code horror comic. Now possessed by a merciless killer, this simple child’s toy would become the most notorious of these murderous dolls and only six-year-old Andy knew his birthday present was really alive. Six films would follow, along with a range of toy dolls and comic books to boot.

Chucky’s possession was now to take over from Hugo Fitch’s trials with his master’s grip on reality, inspiring Puppet Master the You wouldn’t want to mess with this little horror, the possessed toy Chucky. Tom Holland could following year and the franchise never have imagined his film Child’s Play would make such an impact. TM & © United Artists.

HAMMER TIME

by Tim Leese

the gorgon T

he year of 1964 was a particularly good one for Hammer Film Productions. Having already added The Blood of the Mummy’s Tomb and The Evil of Frankenstein to their distinguished roster, the autumn of that year saw the release of The Gorgon. This often overlooked film has become highly regarded by countless fans of the genre, considered by many to be one of Hammer’s more frightening outings.

Having established themselves as the prime mover in the domain of Gothic Horror, before going on to release a series of successful monster movies in the late 1950s and early 1960s, Hammer now turned to Greek mythology as the source of inspiration for their next creature.

The film is based on a short story written by J. Llewellyn Divine. Little is known about the author, other than he is believed to have written the story specifically for Hammer, basing the fiend in his tale on the mythological Gorgon.

In Greek mythology The Gorgons were three winged sisters—Stheno, Euryale and Medusa. Among the descriptions handed down through the ages, the most chilling details snakes writhing in their matted hair, intensifying their frightening appearance, which with a single look could turn a person into stone. Divine created a new Gorgon for his story, a terror he named Megaera, which is somewhat confusing as in

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Greek mythology Megaera was one The Furies, who with her sisters Alecto and Tisiphone, resided in the Underworld where they tormented those who had sinned.

Divine’s story was developed into a screenplay by John Gilling, working alongside the film’s producer, Anthony Nelson Keys. Gilling had worked as a screenwriter and occasional director for many years, mainly on costume dramas and crime films. Very much regarded as one of Hammer’s second tier writers, he was nevertheless responsible for The Gorgon and the cult classics The Plague of the Zombies and The Reptile.

Gilling was thought to have had a somewhat acrimonious relationship with fellow screenwriter and producer Tony Hinds, the son of Hammer founder William Hinds. Much to Gilling’s annoyance, Hinds edited the final draft of the screenplay, going as far as coming up with a title for the film, which had originally had the working title “Supernatural.”

The Gorgon also marked the return of legendary Hammer director Terence Fisher after a two-year absence. In 1962, Fisher had directed Hammer’s version of author Gaston Leroux’s popular novel The Phantom of the Opera. The film was one of the company’s most expensive productions, yet for all that was lavished on this endeavor, it was a commercial failure. Rather surprisingly, given their relationship with the prolific director, Hammer laid the blame firmly at Fisher’s feet.

HAMMER TIME

Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing are paired up again, this time as Professor Karl Meister and Dr. Namaroff in Hammer’s production The Gorgon from 1964. TM & © Hammer Film Productions.

During his two year hiatus, he made two films, 1962’s Sherlock Holmes and the Deadly Necklace (interestingly starring Christopher Lee as Conan Doyle’s famous fictional detective) and in 1964 The Horror Of It All. The latter is a horror comedy remake of English novelist and playwright J. B. Priestley’s The Old Dark House starring American singer Pat Boone. Neither film was a success, prompting Fisher to return to his rightful role as lead director at Hammer in 1964.

Casting began in early 1963, bringing together:Christopher Lee - Professor Karl Meister Peter Cushing - Dr. Namaroff Richard Pasco – Paul Heitz Barbara Shelley - Carla Hoffman Michael Goodliffe - Professor Jules Heitz Jack Watson - Ratoff Patrick Troughton - Inspector Kanof Prudence Hyman - Megaera the Gorgon Joyce Hemson - Martha Toni Gilpin - Sascha Cass Jeremy Longhurst - Bruno Heitz Joseph O’Conor - the coroner Alister Williamson - Janus Cass Michael Peake - the constable Redmond Phillips – Hans

to stone, a fact concealed by the local police, courts and Dr. Namaroff, a brain surgeon at the Vandorf Institute.

Following the death of the latest victim Sascha Cass, suspicion falls on her boyfriend Bruno Heitz, who shortly after is found hanging in Vandorf Forest.

An inquest rules murder and suicide, but Bruno’s father, Professor Jules Heitz, arrives in the village to clear his son’s name. Heitz is convinced an ancient evil creature known as Magaera The Gorgon exists in the ruined castle, so contacts his friend, and his son Paul’s tutor, Professor

Karl Meister of Leipzig University.

Meister agrees to help and so ensues the quest to track down and destroy Magaera, thus freeing the village of her evil spirit.

Of course this is Hammer, so there has to be a romantic interest; this time Navaroff ’s assistant Carla Hoffman captures the hearts of both Navaroff and Paul Heitz. Carla is played by British actress Barbara Shelley, who also starred in Hammer’s Camp On Blood Island (1958), Dracula Prince Of Darkness (1966), Rasputin The Mad Monk (1966) and Quatermass and the Pit (1967). She also starred in the 1960 science fiction horror classic Village of the Damned. As well as staking her place as a Hammer regular, Shelley was also cast in many UK television dramas as well as appearing on stage with the Royal Shakespeare Company. She sadly passed away in January 2021, aged 88, after contracting the COVID-19 virus following a routine hospital visit for a health check.

The dependable pairing of Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee are on fine form, although on this occasion there is something of a reversal of roles, with Lee playing the hero and Cushing a more villainous role, where he once again demonstrates why he is regarded as one of Britain’s finest character actors.

The story is set in the early 1900s, in the fictitious German village of Vandorf.

As with other fictitious Hammer villages Vandorf is located in the shadow of a ruined castle, in this case Castle Borski.

Over the last five years there have been a number of unsolved murders in the area.

In each case the victim had been turned

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Prudence Hyman terrifies in her role as Magaera, while on the right, the beauteous Barbara Shelley as Carla Hoffman. TM & © Hammer Film Productions.

His ability to work with props whilst delivering dialogue was legendary, with Lee openly awestruck by Cushing’s ability to work in this way. Observe the laboratory scenes at the Vandorf Institute to get an idea of this.

Another notable cast member is Patrick Troughton who plays the chief of police, Inspector Kanof. He went on to achieve success as the second doctor on the UK BBC television series Doctor Who, playing The Doctor in 119 episodes between 1966 and 1969. Unfortunately, because of the BBC’s policy of wiping tapes in the 1960s and 1970s, only 66 episodes have survived. Troughton also turned in a fine performance as the tormented priest Father Brennan in Richard Donner’s 1976 tour de force The Omen.

Hammer’s desire to keep the true identity of Magaera hidden until the climax, required a different actor to play the part through the majority of the feature, so British actor and former ballet dancer Prudence Hyman was cast in the role. Hyman’s experience as a ballerina gave her the strength to wear the Gorgon mask and headpiece, while her dancer’s

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posture added to the intensity of her performance.

In an interesting coincidence during the Second World War, Prudence Hyman was an ENSA artist, traveling around military bases entertaining the troops.

On one trip, she and her fellow artists were flown though a violent storm in a DC3, by none other than RAF Lieutenant Christopher Lee! Magaera’s headpiece was designed and created by makeup artist Roy Ashton working with special effects artist Syd Pearson. It was made up of a number of latex snakes which were fitted to a headdress and long dark wig worn by Prudence Hyman. By modern day standards, the special effects used in Magaera’s hair of snakes are almost laughable, and even in their day they were somewhat suspect.

Filming took place during December 1963 and January 1964, with almost all of the film shot at the Hammer-owned Bray Film Studios, Windsor Road, Water Oakley, Windsor, Berkshire, England SL4 5UG. The Vandorf Forest scenes were filmed at regular Hammer location Black

Park Country Park, Black Park Road, Wexham, Slough, Buckinghamshire, England SL3 6DS. Filmed in Eastman color, The Gorgon still looks remarkably good for its age, complimented by the spectacular studio sets designed by Bernard Robinson.

As with many of their films, Hammer reused sets that had been previously constructed for their other films so as to keep within budget. In the case of The Gorgon, the sets constructed for the 1964 film The Evil Of Frankenstein were given a new lease of life. The old mill house seen early on had been the Village Inn in the Frankenstein film, while the village police station became the Vandorf Medical Institute. The set built to represent Frankenstein’s château also made a return in The Gorgon as the exterior of Castle Borski.

The excellent cinematography was provided by Michael Reed, who worked on several other Hammer films during the 1950s and 1960s, notably 1965’s Dracula: Prince of Darkness and Rasputin the Mad Monk. He also went on to work on the James Bond films Goldfinger

HAMMER TIME (1964), Thunderball (1965), You Only Live Twice (1967) and On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969).

Music for the film was again provided by the ever-reliable James Bernard.

It’s possibly one of his best scores for Hammer; certainly one of his creepiest.

One stand-out moment comes when he combines the sound of a Hammond Novachord (an early type of electronic synthesizer) with the voice of a soprano singer to create Magaera’s siren song.

This draws Professor Heitz to Borski Castle where he fatefully catches sight of the creature’s deadly gaze.

The film was released in the UK on October 18, 1964, then in the US on Feb. 17, 1965 by Columbia Pictures. In both countries it was released as a double bill with Hammer’s 1964 film The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb as the support.

The Gorgon has had several home entertainment releases, the latest being the 2020 region free blu-ray edition from Indicator/Powerhouse films. This release contains a High Definition remaster of the original feature plus the following extras: ■ Original mono audio soundtrack ■ Audio commentary with film experts Samm Deighan and Kat Ellinger ■ Heart of Stone: Inside ‘The Gorgon’ (2017, 14 mins): an analysis of the film by Hammer expert Jonathan Rigby and cultural historian John J Johnston ■ Hammer’s Women. Barbara Shelley (2017, 10 mins): academic and author Patricia MacCormack examines the life and career of ‘the first leading lady of British horror’ ■ Appreciation by Matthew Holness (2017, 15 mins): the actor, writer, director and Hammer fan explores aspects of the film ■ Original theatrical trailer ■ Original Promotional Material: gallery of stills, lobby cards and posters ■ Comic-Strip Adaptation: Goodall, Goring & Coyas’ 1977 House of Hammer magazine strip ■ New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing The Gorgon is another fine low budget Gothic horror from Hammer, albeit somewhat neglected and shunned by

The end was nigh for Magaera as Meister swung his sword. TM & © Hammer Film Productions.

some fans of the genre. This no doubt as a result of it receiving mixed reviews at the time of its release, which hampered its success.

Much of the criticism from both reviewers and audiences was directed at the special effects used for the creation of Magaera’s serpent-covered hair. When the Gorgon is finally revealed in full at the film’s climax, the snake effect is clearly feigned, making it something of a letdown. This is unfortunate, as the other brief obscured glimpses of Magara’s face throughout the film are genuinely scary, creating a menacing sense of foreboding when the creature appears. With regard to the final reveal of the creature, Christopher Lee is said to have stated, “The only problem with The Gorgon film is the Gorgon itself.”

The underwhelming climactic appearance of Magaera should not detract from the fact that The Gorgon is a very entertaining film with much to admire. The lush cinematography, spectacular sets, and the Hammer mists and winds combined with James

Bernard’s eerie soundtrack, create a very atmospheric backdrop to some fine performances from an extremely talented cast. The combination of Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee and director Terence Fisher seldom disappoints, and it certainly doesn’t here. Sadly, this was the last time the trio of Lee, Cushing and Fisher worked together.

In conclusion, The Gorgon is a rather underrated addition to Hammer’s cannon of work. Its unique use of a Greek mythological creature transported into Hammer’s traditional world of Germanic villages, ruined castles and dark forests, really works. Its autumnal feel also makes it ideal viewing for a dark Halloween night.

Once again, highly recommended! ■ TIM LEESE is a Sherlock Holmes aficionado and long time horror movie fan. He only puts down his horror novels to share his fascination for this dark genre with Cryptology readers.

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by Peter Normanton

Kill, Puppets, Kill!

A

more shocking title you weren’t likely to see during the pre-Code craze for horror comics, one that willfully incited these deranged puppets, marionettes, dolls and dummies to revel in their bloodthirsty intent. Strangely, this incendiary appellation was the brainchild of a company never entirely at ease with the excess of these years, the American Comics Group, published as early as the second issue of their pioneering terror Adventures into the Unknown, dated December 1948–January 1949. The lunatic puppet master observed in Frank Belknap Long’s “Kill, Puppets, Kill!” displayed the traits evident in the maniac toymaker from Stuart Gordon’s film Dolls, released in 1987. As you can see here, the dramatic splash page for this nasty little offering didn’t pull any punches; a fitting

spearhead for the murderous spree upon which these vicious dolls were about to embark, beginning with the strangulation of the woman who had spurned their master’s advances, as a prelude to their returning through the years to continue in their relentless slaughter. As with so many of these comic book puppet terrors, Long’s creations had more in common with the violent farce of a seaside Punch and Judy show than the mental deterioration observed in Ealing’s Dead of Night; it was the devilish spectacles of this ilk that would have the kiddies demanding even more.

The boom in horror comics may have been a little way over the horizon, but with only its second appearance, Adventures into the Unknown had shown just how extreme this new breed of comic book could be. These macabre manifestations of puppetry gone astray had already been evidenced in the pulps, most notably on Paul Wesso’s cover for William

On the left, the splash page to Adventures into the Unknown #2’s “Kill, Puppets, Kill” (Dec. 1948–Jan. 1949). TM & © American Comics Group. The cackling witch and her doomed marionettes on the cover to Fantastic Fears #7 (May 1953) embodied the terror in these years. TM & © Farrell Publications

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HORROR COMICS EXCESS

Above, Paul Wesso’s cover for the pulp Strange Tales (March 1932) TM & © William Clayton, followed by Jack Kirby’s shocking cover for the debut of Prize’s Black Magic. Leonard Starr provided the artwork for the tale that complimented Jack’s cover, “My Dolly is the Devil!” TM & © Headline Publications Inc.

Clayton’s March 1932 edition of Strange Tales. Wesso, who had jumped ship in New Orleans after becoming disillusioned with his life as a merchant seaman, was to become one of the leading pulp artists of his day. His spine-tingling imagining was later used by LB Cole in his arresting cover for Continental’s Suspense Comics #7, dated December 1944, then by Paul Gattuso for his depiction of a diabolical puppet master on his cover for Dynamic Comics #19 in July 1946.

Such perturbing puppet play was a rare event in the comic books of the Golden Age; this would change following the advent of the horror comic. “Kill, Puppets, Kill!” didn’t quite set the ball rolling for these odious puppets, but that would soon change.

An Innocent Doll

When they put together their ideas for Prize’s horror title Black Magic, Joe Simon and Jack Kirby were determined to explore the more psychological aspects of horror, following in the footsteps of Dead of Night. They also introduced a disturbing doll in the debut of their new title, cover-dated October-November 1950. “My Dolly is the Devil,” rendered by Leonard Starr, adhered to this psychological approach, carefully escalating the tension in the wake of a series of accidents sequent to the arrival of an innocent little doll. The finale, which replicated the horror on Jack Kirby’s cover, may not have resorted to the grisly overkill of its contemporaries, but the reader was left in no doubt as to the horror at hand.

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“The Greatest Secret on Earth” from This Magazine is Haunted #14 (Dec. 1953).TM & © Fawcett Publications. Adventure into the Unknown’s “The Puppet Show” (Sept.–Oct. 1954) TM & © American Comics Group.

As suggested on the covers to the previously mentioned pulp Strange Tales and Suspense Comics #7 coupled with Dynamic Comics #19, there was a fascination with the abstraction of forces beyond our understanding manipulating our lives. Among the most striking of these were: Ken Bald’s cover for Adventures into the Unknown #26 (December 1951); Maurice Whitman’s “good girl” rendition for Ghosts Comics #2 (1952); along with the Iger Studios covers for Horrific #2 (November 1952), and the Fantastic Fears debut, numbered #7 (May 1953).

This twist on the human victim forced into a role of the powerless marionette was only occasionally used in the contents of these comics; it seemed as if the publishers preferred this disconcerting imagery to appear solely on their covers. Fawcett was one of the few to engage with the notion of our not being in complete control of our destiny, in a tale from This Magazine is

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Haunted #14, the last of the run, cover-dated December 1953. In the Sheldon Moldoff illustrated “The Greatest Secret on Earth,” beings from beyond our world were indeed controlling our lives. When one man uncovered this long-held secret, he set out to expose those behind this threat.

Alas, his disclosure only bought him a one-way ticket to the madhouse.

While not renowned for their gruesome bloodbaths, Fawcett published more than their fair share of unnerving yarns.

String ’Em Up!

Just a few pages ago, “Cinematic Puppet Terror” bowed out with a reference to the grisly events in “The Lesson,” from season 8 of Criminal Minds. Although this episode would have turned more than a stomach or two, those who had been privy to the horror comics of the 1950s would have been regularly acquainted with this degree of sadism; Harry Lazarus’

cover for Adventures into the Unknown #59 from September-October 1954, immediately springs to mind. It may not have been as gratuitous as this episode of Criminal Minds, but the accompanying story entitled “The Puppet Show,” again rendered by Harry, this time using a 3D-styled technique set to be discussed in issue #4, certainly gave it a run for its money. In this darkly comedic account, these diminutive dolls set out to avenge the murder of their beloved master in a way so true to these pre-Code horrors, which got a little hot as this tale gleefully waltzed to its blazing finale.

Horror maestro Hy Fleishman had taken a similar line in his splash page for “String ’Em Up,” presented in Story’s Mysterious Adventures #18, dated February 1954, although it did go considerably further in its graphic display.

Story was one of the most disreputable publishers of the period, an outfit who unashamedly thrived on their notoriety, as well as blatantly, if not crudely, swiping

HORROR COMICS EXCESS

Above left, “String ’Em Up” from Mysterious Adventures #18 (Feb. 1954) TM & © Story Comics; above, the vicious finale to Marvel Tales #110 “Peter and the Puppet” (Dec. 1952), and below, “The Wooden Man” from Adventures into Weird Worlds #6 (May 1952). TM & © Marvel Comics.

from EC. It will come as no surprise to learn EC had previously presented an unsavory offering they called “Strung Along,” embellished by Ghastly Graham Ingels for Vault of Horror #33, coverdated October–November 1953. In this narration, the marionettes took revenge on their master’s wife, stringing her up to transform her into one of them. In Story’s “String ‘Em Up,” the puppets didn’t take the spotlight until the denouement of this distasteful account, but when they did, the couple who had deceived and killed their master were set to endure an identical fate to that of the scheming wife of Vault of Horror’s creation.

In film and television, only Alfred Hitchcock Presents ever revealed its ventriloquist dummy to have been the real party. In the horror comics of the 1950s, such an eventuality was hardly unusual. A puppet was in complete control in Jim McLaughlin’s beautifully rendered “The Puppet Controls the Strings,” from the pages of Eerie #4, from January 1952. For no apparent reason, a man, intriguingly named Dorian Grant, walked headlong to his death on a busy road, his awkward gait akin to that of a mannequin. This failing ventriloquist had sought to resurrect his act by

creating his own purpose-built dummy, one whose manner was uncannily lifelike and nasty with it. Walking into the road oblivious to the oncoming traffic was the only way Dorian could save himself and those around him from his evil creation.

As he lay dying, his dummy was found mangled beyond recognition in his apartment.

When Love Blossoms

The three-page “The Wooden Man” from Adventures into Weird Worlds #6, May 1952, was probably far closer to John Keir Cross’ tale from Alfred Hitchcock Presents. This little fellow was definitely alive—not so, his inanimate partner. At least he didn’t fall in love with a beautiful ventriloquist with a rather spiteful doll; it was too late when he realized which one of them was the doll, as revealed in Strange Fantasy #2’s

“Fate Has a Thousand Faces” in October 1952. Love also blossomed in Marvel Tales #110, December 1952. “Peter and the Puppet” had got on ever so well, until Mary arrived on the scene, then love was in the air in a ménage à trois with a bizarre twist held back until the finale.

There was no love lost in the John Rosenberger illustrated “Death of a Doll,” presented in ACG’s Clutching Hand #1, July–August 1954. In this one and only issue of Clutching Hand, an embittered pint-sized creep managed to convince people it was he who was the doll, providing him with the opportunity to get close enough to enact his fatal revenge on those who had scorned him.

ACG was careful to avoid the customary sanguinary flow during these murderous scenes, but the sharp blade was clearly visible, as was the unfortunate aftermath.

By the 1980s demonic possession

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HORROR COMICS EXCESS The dolls were now out of control; to the left, Horrific #11’s “Deadly Doll” (May ’54). TM & © Comic Media. Below, Tomb of Terror #2’s “The Last Word” (July ’52). TM & © Harvey Comics.

Cadaverous Doll

had become the driving force behind the on screen appearances of these homicidal dolls, but witchery and the darker elements of the supernatural had been intertwined into this mythos in these creepy comic book stories since the early 1950s. “The Vengeance of Oswald Foop” in Adventures into the Unknown #46, August 1953, gave us one such dummy. Although they had been reluctant, ACG was obliged to go along with the times to ensure their survival, in this instance using a doll possessed by ancient magic. The doll cunningly mesmerized an ill-fated ventriloquist compelling him to steal it from this curiosity shop. Once in the ventriloquist’s possession the doll proved itself to be a genuinely psychotic creation.

As early as Marvel Tales #97, in September 1950, a doll created by the most foul incantations was given life in “The Wooden Horror.” It thought nothing of murder, but it soon became clear its sorcerous master wasn’t quite human. Another wooden horror appeared in Voodoo #13’s “Gallows’ Curse” from January 1954, following a gypsy stealing the wood from the gallows where a fellow gypsy, Canio, had

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breathed his last. When completed, this effigy looked frighteningly like the dead gypsy. It wasn’t so surprising, for this evil manifestation had been possessed with the spirit of Canio, with malice a forethought. A similar idea was observed in Fawcett’s Worlds of Fear #5, coverdated July 1952. This tale “The Devil Puppet,” told of a marionette shaped from a cursed tree, where the guilty were also strung up by the neck. The very sight of this treacherous puppet was warning enough.

A doll was foolishly carved from a dead man’s funeral casket for the terror in the third issue of Trojan’s Beware, numbered #15, in May 1953. Gerald Altman’s hideous splash page for “The Stolen Soul” introduced a dummy by the name of Joey; he really did have a mind of his own, one bent on returning to the grave. The finale witnessed the cadaverous Joey now in control, in a tale that was so typical of these ghoulish years.

Speaking of the ghoulish, a devil puppet forged in the underworld came to life in Horrific #11’s “The Deadly Doll,” in May 1954. This devious doll knew her mistress’ darkest desire, to murder her husband. Upon satiating her deathly yearning, she was introduced to the doll’s true master, an age old figure born in the fiery pits of hell.

It was a witch who breathed life into the cast of her insane puppet show in “Puppet Peril” for Weird Adventures #2, dated July-August 1951. The unfortunate death of one of her dolls had to be avenged; so resorting to the witchery in which she was so well versed, she plotted to transmute the woman who had accidentally dropped her doll into one of her puppets, with terrifying consequences.

After reading these comics, the puppet show or the entertainer with the talking dummy will never again be quite the same. In the comic books of the 1950s, these creations took on an unnerving semblance of life, one that had designs to put an end to ours, as evidenced in Tomb of Terror #5’s “The Last Word,” when this little fellow viciously took his revenge on his master’s killer. It really was the last word in a realm now fallen to these menacing marionettes. ■ Before agreeing to edit this magazine, PETER NORMANTON produced the long running UK horror comics fanzine From the Tomb, and has compiled three collections of it for TwoMorrows.

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ROGER HILL’s conversation with diabolical DON HECK, severed hand films, pre-Code comic book terrors, the otherworldly horrors of Hammer’s Quatermass, a Killer “B” movie classic, plus horror-inspired covers of the Shadow’s own comic book, and more!

Start the ghoul-year with retro-horror done right by FORSHAW, the KRONENBERGS, LEESE, RICHARD HAND, VON SHOLLY, and editor PETER NORMANTON.

Get ALEX ROSS’ gory lowdown on his Universal Monsters paintings! Spend Hammer Time with the “Brides of Dracula”, and 3-D horror movies and comics of the 1950s! Learn the origins of slasher films, chill to pre-Code artwork of Atlas’ BILL EVERETT and ACG’s 3-D maestro HARRY LAZARUS, see a Killer “B” movie, and more

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SKULL & BONES ISSUE! Ghost Rider from comics to movies, skeleton covers from Atlas Digests and pre-Code horror comics, HY FLEISHMAN’s 1950s skeleton covers and stories, Disney’s skeletons, ’70s Pirates of the Caribbean models and Last Gasp’s Skull Comics, the films of William Castle, and Killer B films: House on Haunted Hill, The Four Skulls of Jonathan Drake, plus our Hammertime section!

ZOMBIE ISSUE! The films White Zombie and I Walked With A Zombie, GEORGE ROMERO and LUCIO FULCI’s zombie apocalypses, zombie pre-Code comics, BERNIE WRIGHTSON’s undead creations, horror comics of Brazil, the contributions of black stars of classic horror cinema, Hammer’s The Plague of Zombies, Fantaco’s Night of the Living Dead, France’s Revenant, and more!

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ALTER EGO #193

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ALTER EGO #196

THE BIG ISSUE! We get on board MARK STAFFA’s giant (working!) steam engine, and show PAUL HETHERINGTON’s colossal LEGO creations, including the biggest version of It’s A Small World you’ll see outside of Disneyland! Plus BRICKNERD, BANTHA BRICKS: Fans of LEGO Star Wars, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions

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An abridgment of EDDY ZENO’s “Drawn to Greatness” book, showcasing Superman artists who followed JOE SHUSTER: WAYNE BORING, PAUL CASSIDY, FRED RAY, JACK BURNLEY, WIN MORTIMER, and others. With appreciations by ORDWAY, KUPPERBERG, ISABELLA, JURGENS, WAID, MACCHIO, NEARY, NOWLAN, EURY, THOMAS, and more! Plus FCA, Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, and more!

ROY THOMAS celebrates 60 years in comics! Career-spanning interview by ALEX GRAND, e-mails to Roy from STAN LEE, the history of Wolverine’s creation, RT’s 1960s fan-letters to JULIUS SCHWARTZ, and his top dozen stories compiled by JOHN CIMINO! With art by BUSCEMA, KANE, ADAMS, WINDSOR-SMITH, COLAN, ORDWAY, BUCKLER, FCA, Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, and cover by TONY GRAY!

NEAL ADAMS REVISITED! Interviews by ALEX GRAND and BILL FIELD, as well as EMILIO SOLTERA—and an overview of Neal’s merchandising art for Marvel and DC Comics and in other fields, conducted by JAMES ROSEN! Plus Adams art, as inked

by PALMER, GIORDANO, VERPOORTEN, ROUSSOS, SINNOTT, DEZUNIGA, and others! With FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT in Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, and more!

Concluding our presentation of EDDY ZENO’s book on the early SUPERMAN artists from ALTER EGO #193—with a focus on style-setting WAYNE BORING and classic cover illustrator WINSLOW MORTIMER! Featuring a fabulous, previously unprinted cover by BORING! Also: FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America), MICHAEL T. GILBERT in Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, and more! Edited by ROY THOMAS.

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COMIC BOOK CREATOR #38 COMIC BOOK CREATOR #39 KIRBY COLLECTOR #93

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RICK VEITCH discusses his career from undergrounds and the Kubert School; the ’80s with 1941, Epic Illustrated and Heavy Metal; to Swamp Thing, The One, Brat Pack, and Maximortal! Plus TOM VEITCH’s history of ’70s underground horror comix, part one of a look at cartoonist ERROL McCARTHY, the story behind Studio Zero— the ’70s collective of artists STARLIN, BRUNNER, WEISS, and others, and more!

THOMAS YEATES career-spanning interview about the Kubert School, Swamp Thing, Eclipse Comics, and adventure strips Zorro, Tarzan, and Prince Valiant! GREG POTTER discusses his ’70s Warren horror comics and ’80s reboot of Wonder Woman with GEORGE PÉREZ, WARREN KREMER is celebrated by MARK ARNOLD, plus part one of a look at the work of STEVE WILLIS, part two of ERROL McCARTHY, and more!

SUPPORTING PLAYERS! Almost-major villains like Kanto the Assassin and Diablo, Rodney Rumpkin, Mr. Little, the Falcon, Randu Singh, and others take center stage!

Plus: 1970 interview with Jack by SHEL DORF, MARK EVANIER’s 2024 Kirby Tribute Panel from Comic-Con, neverreprinted Simon & Kirby story, pencil art gallery, and more! Unused Mister Miracle cover inked by MIKE ROYER!

SPACE RACES! Jack’s depictions of cosmic gods and life on other planets, including: how Ego, Tana Nile, and the Recorder took Thor to strange new worlds, OMAC’s space age future, time travelers in Kirby’s work, favorite Kirby sci-fi tropes in his stories, plus: a 1967 LEE/KIRBY interview, MARK EVANIER and other columnists, never-reprinted Simon & Kirby story, robotic pencil art gallery, cover inked by TERRY AUSTIN!

MADNESS! Kirby’s most deranged work: Dingbats, Goody Rickels, Destroyer Duck, the Goozlebobber, Not Brand Echh, and wild animation concepts! Plus, a 1980s Kirby interview by JAMES VAN HISE, a look at Jack’s psychedelic coloring, Kirby’s depictions of Dr. Strange, Forever People art gallery, MARK EVANIER, a crazy 1950s Simon & Kirby story, behind an unused Machine Man cover inked by STEVE LEIALOHA!

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BACK ISSUE #158

Can your mind stand the shocking truth of… ED WOOD CAST CONFESSIONS? Plus: Ideal Toys’ Zeroids, television Tarzan RON ELY, Planters® Peanuts’ Mr. Peanut, CHARLES ADDAMS, TV’s The Fugitive, the forgotten 1981 Spider-Man cartoon, and more! Featuring columns by ANDY MANGELS, WILL MURRAY, SCOTT SAAVEDRA, SCOTT SHAW, ED CATTO, and MARK VOGER.

Here comes TV’s Dennis the Menace, with stars JAY NORTH, GLORIA HENRY, and JEANNIE RUSSELL! Plus: Hogan’s Heroes turns 60, TV Western Have Gun–Will Travel, Big Little Books, The Incredible Hulk in animation, MICKY DOLENZ as Circus Boy, and more! Featuring columns by ED CATTO, ANDY MANGELS, WILL MURRAY, SCOTT SAAVEDRA, SCOTT SHAW, and MARK VOGER.

We kick off with TV’s original Kung Fu starring DAVID CARRADINE, a NANCY DREW history, Disney animator FLOYD NORMAN, TOM CORBETT: SPACE CADET, collectible ’60s and ’70s cereal premiums, in search of SAM GOODY, and more! Featuring columns and contributions by HERBIE J PILATO, ANDY MANGELS, WILL MURRAY, SCOTT SAAVEDRA, SCOTT SHAW, MARK VOGER, and editor ED CATTO!

HEY, MISTER ISSUE! The FF’s Mr. Fantastic, STEVE DITKO’s Mr. A, the 40th anniversary of MICHAEL T. GILBERT’s Mr. Monster, Mr. X, the Teen Titans’ Mr. Jupiter, R. CRUMB’s Mr. Natural, Archie’s Mr. Weatherbee, and a Mr. Freeze villain history! Featuring BYRNE, CARDY, CONWAY, DeCARLO, DINI, ENGLEHART, the HERNANDEZ BROS., MIGNOLA, MOTTER, and more!

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SUMMER FUN ISSUE! Marvel’s Superhero Swimsuit Editions, Betty and Veronica swimsuit gallery, DC’s Strange Sports Stories, the DC/Marvel softball rivalry, San Diego Comic-Con history, Impossible Man Summer Vacation Specials, DC Slurpee cups, DC/Whitman variants, and more!

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BACK ISSUE GOES MAD! Things get crazy this issue as we cover Madman, Batman: Mad Love, MAD superhero movie parodies, the Mad Hatter, Madballs, and more! Featuring the work of MICHAEL ALLRED, BRUCE TIMM, PAUL DINI, GERRY CONWAY, DOUG MOENCH, MIKE W. BARR, JEPH LOEB, and others. Madman cover by MICHAEL ALLRED! Edited by ROGER ASH.

MONKEYING AROUND! Featuring simian favorites including Gorilla Grodd, GorillaMan, King Kong, Angel and the Ape, and more monkey business. With the work of CARMINE INFANTINO, JOHN BROOME, CARY BATES, GERRY CONWAY, MARK WAID, STEVE ENGLEHART, SAL BUSCEMA, DON SIMPSON, PHIL FOGLIO, HOWARD CHAYKIN, PHILIP BOND, and others.

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BACK ISSUE #159

CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS 40th ANNIVERSARY! Pre-Crisis tour of DC’s multiple Earths, analysis of Crisis and its crossovers, Crisis Death List, post-Crisis DC retro projects, guest editorial by MARV WOLFMAN, and more! Featuring BARR, ENGLEHART, GREENBERGER, LEVITZ, MAGGIN, MOENCH, ORDWAY, THOMAS, WAID, and more! With GEORGE PÉREZ’S Crisis on Infinite Earths Index #1 cover.