Ghost of the Town!

In keeping with the kooky horror vibe of our last post, I thought we'd end the month on a somewhat lighter note as well, and then really kick it up into overdrive next month with the gaggy gruesome gores. Who's ready? Now you all know what a sucker I am for haunted house tales, and this one certainly plays by all the books: spooky old house in the neighborhood, chicken pants cutie and a midnight dare, the inevitable pranksters etc... you think you know where this is going, right? Maybe not quite this time, and it's all a ton of fun, plus really lovely artwork that balances cartoony and realism nicely, by artist unknown. So let's see what happens when, despite having a serious case of "The Clanks", Junie Prom takes that dare and enters into a world of the supernatural. PS: I love how the color blotch error in the splash is actually casting a shadowy hint of the darkness that awaits her... enjoy!

From the Fall 1948 issue of Junie Prom #4 

















FYI: On January 12th I slipped on a patch of ice in front of my house and fell down a flight of concrete steps, thus fracturing my arm and shoulder in 4 places. It's been a very rough month for me, and the surgery about killed me worse than the fall, but I've managed to stick with it here at THOIA this month and keep delivering the posts. I certainly don't wanna be a Debbie Downer or anything, but scanning, editing, and writing posts is now very time consuming for me while having to do everything with only one hand and loaded up on painkillers. I am off work now for a few weeks, maybe months, but when I begin the months of physical therapy ahead of me starting in February, it may cut a bit into my allowed blogger time. This is merely a heads up if for some reason there are sudden major delays between posts. I'll do what I can. Thanks again to everyone who continues to visit, enjoy, encourage, and most importantly COMMENT here at THOIA. You guys are the best, and I certainly wouldn't have stuck it out this long without the continued support of you :)

Buried Alive! or, Dig That Crazy Body!

Of all the nutty tales I've posted at this blog over the years, this one from the July 1954 issue of Nuts #3 has got to be the most--well, --nuts! Over the top, super funny writing, and hilarious artwork full of sight gags and Mad For Your Money moments, yes sir, they don't quite make 'em like this anymore. Enjoy! :)

The Witch of Shadow Glen!

Stickin' with the witches for another possessed post, and here's a fine example from the December 1952 - January 1953 issue of Witchcraft #5. And how about that incredible Kelly Freas cover painting? FYI I added another work of jaw dropping art for you at the very end of today's post as well-- enjoy!

Witch's Wish / Trapped from the Grave

Jack Katz pulls out all of the trash splash stops with a wild, witchy tale from the Oct '52 issue of Out of the Shadows #6. Seriously, ain't that a beaut?! And then "hang" around for a chilly little bonus one-pager (from the same issue) to wrap up our sensational summit with the supernatural!

Curse of the Jabberwock

Today we have a rollickin', highly atmospheric, old dark house creature feature, with super art by an unknown artist (any guesses?) --from the March 1952 issue of Crime Mysteries #12. I do wish Ribage had allowed said artist at least one more page to help flesh out a few more of the climactic visual details, (so that the out-of-left-field narrative didn't have to do all the talkin'), but still-- fun fun fun-- and that's a great lookin' monster to boot! And before Brian says anything about the girl in the last panel at the bottom of page 3, I have 3 words: Bathed. In. Moonlight.

The End of His Service!

Let's try a little change of pace around here for a bit with a timeless futuristic robo tale of man and machine, or man vs. machine... uh, are there actually any stories like this that have a happy ending? From the November 1951 issue of Strange Worlds #5, art credits at GCD list 3 different illustrators on this one: Norman Nodel, John Rosenberger (page 3), and Werner Roth (page 4.)

Yawning Graves! / Flowering Death!

Yawns 'n flowers don't sound too scary, do they? Well, let's just see how Kenneth Landau and Ed Good deliver on these everyday things from the 1954 issue of The Clutching Hand #1 one-shot from ACG. Spooky cover by Ken Bald too!