Thursday, October 2, 2008

Pool of the Skeletons

From the December 1953 issue of Tales of Horror #8, (the same issue that brought us yesterday’s Big Snake classic), comes a tale so sweet, so cuddly, it’s sure to warm the cockles of your heart with overflowing waves of joy and…







REMINDER: You've got two days to get in on the THOIA "Haunt from the Sea" Contest. Check last Tuesday's post for all the details!

18 comments:

blackwalnut2001 said...

"Blithely, the three simple hearted people set out together..."

Shades of the HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL (1959). Thought of it right away. Anyone else catch the connection? I wouldn't be surprised if author Robb White (or Wm Castle) was familiar with this one.

Prof. Grewbeard said...

"i'm planning revennnnnnnnge on my friennnnnds..." - Theme from Blood Waters of Dr. Z

this is a little too sweet and cuddly, Karswell. what's got into you?

The Mask on DVD is wonderful news indeed and i think i can whip up a related post myself...i think...

Mr. Cavin said...

"Hey honey, it says here that the man who hates us most in all the world--the child we taunted mercilessly when we were all in school together, the ugly little one, if you remember, who wanted to either marry you or "Big Rod", and who might've, too, if it hadn't been for the sad state of his puny worm--yeah, well, that guy wants us to come up to his house and swim in a pool full of black water. PS, it says, don't tell the police you're coming. Man, this sounds like a blast! Whattaya say, honey?"

Unknown said...

Cavin nailed it.

Pretty sick, but if the water was black before they went in, then there goes my empathy. La Brea Tar Pits has nothing on Seven Pines.

AndyDecker said...

It´s so hard to get good servants these days :-)

Great story. Well written, memorable lines, very funny. "three simple-hearted people" indeed. More like simple minded. "I hate the creep, but I will spend the weekend in Xanadu" *g

One shouldn´t read too much in these tales, but good old Rod, the gymnasium instructor in a men´s health club ... come on. If this wasn´t intentional, I don´t know what is.

Tim Tylor said...

That's an oddly subdued opening splash (pardon pun). It looks eerily surreal, and the villain's smugness practically radiates.

Frederick said...

"The Mask" was the first 3-D video I ever owned and I enjoyed it.
"Put... the mask... on NOW!"

Anonymous said...

BLACK WALNUT IS TOTALLY RIGHT, THIS IS HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL!! HOW AWESOME. THIS LOOKS LIKE A GREAT ISSUE OF TALES OF HORROR, DEFINITELY MUST GET THIS ONE AND OF COURSE THE MASK ON DVD!! THE TRAILER IS HYSTERICAL.

GREAT DAY OF POSTS............ THANKS

Todd Franklin said...

I can't wait for The Mask DVD. I wonder if my original Mask glasses will work? I'll be sure to watch it after I take a dip in the pool!

Mr. Karswell said...

Awesome observation BW2001, I read this just the other night and didn't even think about the obvious connection with House on Haunted Hill '59. Maybe Castle & Co were influenced by it since it appeared on comic shelves 6 years before the movie hit theatres?

So yeah, The Mask '61 DVD came out on Tues, anyone find it anywhere though? My city sucks on stuff like this, guess I'll have to order online... boooo!

Anonymous said...

In my opinion Avery's revenge was completely justified.I DO see the influence it could have had on Castle,his films aren't always perfect,but almost always fun.

The Vicar of VHS said...

Wow, what a fun one! I was thinking the splash page ruined it for everyone, but then the whole scene with the butler added the needed oomph--I figured the butler would push Avery in, having hated him all the years in his employ, so Avery pushing him in was a bit of a surprise before the expected comeuppance. Great stuff!

Some of the art here is questionable, though--like at the top of pg. 3, Rod is FREAKIN' HUGE! And the bottom of the same page, Frank goes absolutely bloodless! But the worst hass to be Ann, with the wasp waist and the swimmer's shoulders in the middle of pg. 4, only to become IMPOSSIBLY hourglassed at the top of pg 5! I kinda want to see what her skeleton looked like, see how many ribs she had removed.

Cool story, though--great stuff, K!

Emby Quinn said...

Add my name to the list of people who felt a strong House on Haunted Hill vibe from this story. The mysterious dinner party...the creepy house...the acid pool...the fact that none of the characters are really all that likable...

William Castle read horror comics as a kid, I guess. :B

Mr. Karswell said...

>William Castle read horror comics as a kid, I guess.

Well, Castle would have been in his late 30's when this issue came out so it's likely he read comics as an adult too. Or had someone read them for him.

Nice day of comments, thanks again to those of you who take the time to come by everyday, it's like we've become one big weird ass family here... and it's always nice to see all your leering, gibbering faces.

TOMORROW: Help Us to Die!!

Anonymous said...

love the concept in this one

its so perfectly simple and funny but in a creepy way

Dane said...

Sorry, once again, I'm the last one to the party. I read this at work, enjoyed the hell out of the story and the art, had nothing clever to say and didn't comment.

But I wanted to say something anyway, because this one was wonderfully vivid and stayed with me all day - so thanks for posting it!

Daniel [oeconomist.com] said...

Symmetrically, I note that either this story is the basis of “The Murder Pool” or that these stories are otherwise based on the same tale.

E said...

I know you don't do repeats Karswell, but this one...well something tells me that in the period between Christmas and New Years Eve, this one would still feel fresh as a daisy.