Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Best Seller!

Because you demanded it--- it's more Dark Mysteries! And half of you may agree that this is the most shocking crime you’ve ever seen!

From the June 1953 issue of Dark Mysteries #12







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Name That Film (CONTEST)

Can you name the film you see in the spooky picture below? Send your name, address, and answer/s to karswell@hotmail.com, and be sure to put NAME THAT FILM CONTEST in the subject line. Everyone who answers correctly will be thrown into a fishbowl and one name drawn wins a G-VG copy of Super Comics Eerie Tales #12 (which is actually a color reprint issue of pre-code stories from Avon’s Eerie #1 from 1951), with great stories about werewolves, the living dead, subway horrors and more! The contest ends on Friday May 23rd, enter now, and as many times as you’d like. And remember, guessing never hurts either!

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

is it the new iron man movie?

Unknown said...

I like how it identifies his two friends, and he kills them both. I get the impression he was not the best friend to begin with.

Chuck Wells said...

Best Seller was a riveting reading experience, but David got off too easy.

Dr. Wong should went all Jim Corrigan/Spectre on his ass (and Jane was such cheap tart, that I have no sympathy for her, either way).

The Name That Film contest is maddening .... I don't recognize it, so I've had to send off a few quick guesses. Wish me luck!

Pappy said...

No one wongs Doctah Wong!

The Vicar of VHS said...

Oh man, but I love this one! As a struggling writer myself, I can totally relate with David's plight. If I had a nickel for every successful friend I've killed in jealousy...

I love Jane's part in this story. "Maybe you like starving, but not me!" You can tell on the bottom of pg. 1 that she's missed a few meals...look at that waist line! But by pg. 5 she's put on a few pounds and regained her curves...must be those fatty dinners Bert was feeding her!

Of course by the end she's lost weight again...only half a slice of cheesecake for me in that wonderful final panel!

Such a great tale. Lockjaw virus in shaving cream (Gadzooks, what a fiend!), Wong's last words ("I'll get paid!"), Wong's freakishly small hands on the top of pg. 5--chilling!

Jane sums it all up when she says, presciently, "AIEEEEK!" Another fave, Karswell!

As for the movie still, it's obviously the Clara Bow sex tape. Come on, give us something harder!

(That's what she said...)

Anonymous said...

THESE DARK MYSTERIES ARE REALLY SOME OF THE MOST MESSED UP COMIC STORIES I HAVE EVER READ. LOVE THEM! WHATS EVEN MORE MESSED UP IS HOW THE NARRATOR OF THIS STORY LOOKS LIKE THE HBO CRYPT KEEPER! NOW WHO'S SWIPING WHO?

NO CLUE ON THAT MOVIE STILL......... GOT ANY CLUES?

Anonymous said...

What's with the fuzzy leading caps in "Best Seller"? Is it an electrifying story?

Does anyone else think David looks a lot like Hamish in the last panel of page 3? Why would he reincarnate as a failed writer? I bet he could get some good story ideas by lying in an empty grave.

And I agree that "lockjaw virus" doesn't quite strike the right tone of terror. Couldn't he have achieved the same result just by making Bert shave with a rusty blade?

You definitely don't want to cheat Dr. Wong. But the idea of arguing over David's advance makes we wonder what else they negotiated. "David, you can keep the TV and movie rights, but I want a share of any box office and ancillary products. And don't try to cheat me on the residuals. Now, let's talk about the book tour and what shows we can get you on."

At least we we now know where Homer got the cursed Krusty doll. "It comes with a free frogurt!"

The grisly narrator at the beginning was well done. It's a shame we didn't get to see more of him.

Oh, and the movie scene is from "Halloween: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace."

Anthony said...

Fun story, but I think my favorite part is Dr. Wong's retching cow chair. Because, after all, nothing says evil like... animal tongues?

Anonymous said...

damn! its like the wild opening kill scene in wrong turn 2

Patrick said...

Another great read today! Best line: "The room filled with a murky evil smelling cloud" - That sounds a lot like the real life horrors of hanging out with some of my friends after eating the wrong meal!

I dig the art work in this story too.

Todd Franklin said...

No clue what movie this is, but that guy looks like The Wizard of Speed and Time!

Anonymous said...

I wonder how Rod Serling thought about the "lockjaw virus"?.i agree,these DARK MYSTERIES are INSANE. as for the film....i don't know;but i'll ask a couple i know who have a copy of LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT!one was a beatnik with a red-striped white shirt and glasses,the other was a hispanic woman with a red trench coat and fedora,my only problem is that i can't find them at the moment...

Anonymous said...

As another struggling writer and successless slob who has sold his soul to a ghost in Chinatown about 6 times now I can completely relate to Devlin as well. I also have a crappy girlfriend so this story really hits home.

Mr. Karswell said...

Man! Another great day of comments, thanks everybody! Life was so much easier when it was just 4 or 5 comments a day and I could reply to them all, but now... ah, who's complaining, it's of course MUCH better this way.

I also apologise that the contest is so maddening to some of you. A few people who emailed me are alot closer than they realize. Some of you are WAAAAY off getting colder by the minute... and sheesh, some of you need to see more movies! But keep the guesses coming, this thing ain't over until Friday.

CLUES:

1. It's a SILENT era movie.

2. Apparently this film has been re-made over a half dozen times, once for televison even.

3. It's not the Clara Bow sex tape.

Mr. Karswell said...

PS: Does anyone have a copy of the Clara Bow sex tape that I could borrow?

Scott said...

Ask Bela Lugosi. :)

Anonymous said...

It's either THE CIRCULAR STAIRCASE or THE BAT,CAT & THE CANARY...i dunno,one of those old dark house sppok comedies.is it a lost film?if it's not i think i may be able to find out....

Mr. Karswell said...

>It's either THE CIRCULAR STAIRCASE or THE BAT,CAT & THE CANARY...

It's none of those HP, (and it's not a lost film) and also remember it's a CONTEST so email your answers to karswell@hotmail.com so as to not give away the answer!

>Ask Bela Lugosi.

Don't you mean Albe Biguso? (He's Count Alucard's neighbor.)

Okay, one more clue... if you're on The Horrors of it All blog then the answer (or one of them) is staring you right in the face.