Perry Chase.... Press Guardian

Perry Chase, aka The Press Guardian was yet another of the many fun, but largely forgotten 1940's back-up filler hero features from the early days of the ever popular Pep Comics series, via Archie. And while he doesn't really possess any SUPER hero powers, --as we'll be seeing in some of our other featured hero posts all this month, --he is one terrifically tough, masked reporter with those fists, threatening the bad guys with strangulation and torn throats, all the while saving the lovely damsels in distress in his endless pursuit of justice, and truth. The two stories I have for you today are unique to the series, because it appears to be the few horror themed examples of Press G encountering his nemesis "The Claw" in a pair of adventures where old house mad science and subtereanean monsters fit THOIA's bill rather nicely. Not to mention, Mort Meskin's old school art style really lends a wonderfully surreal, eerie quality to the all-out scrappy, beast battle action. Enjoy! From the Nov. / Dec. 1940 issues of Pep Comics #9, and Pep Comics #10. 

Death from the Sea

Another Toby tale shambles forth from the ominous ocean, via the January 1953 issue of Tales of Horror #4. Pro team pals, Ben Brown and David Gantz amp up the atmospherics, with supernatural scare settings on SUPER SOAKER, as a cute blonde reporter on vacation finds herself in the middle of some rather sinister, seaside shenanigans! Also of interest: this tale was reworked for Road to Disaster (1982), one of the many wild Gredown horror reprint one-shot mags from Australia, and retitled, "The Slimy Haunt." As much as I'd love to see that, I'm actually much more curious about the cover story, "Supper in the Graveyard" (aka, "Michael's Last Supper"), you must see the last scan below-- I love that crazy cover!

 

The MC of Midnight Scare Theater!

Take it from me, being a horror host is hard work-- but sometimes it's downright MURDER! And you can take that tidbit from Jimmy Olsen! That's right, you groaners, today we have a Jimmy Olsen tale, but we're gonna put our own terror twist on this one because it's all about late night 50's TV horror hosts and monster movies... and yeah yeah, the meh-ending is dumb, but as most of these silly stories prove, without a doubt half the fun is getting there! (Also, Supe is barely even in this one so we have that going for us as well.) And I'll be the first to admit, if this yarn did have a better ending it might actually have made for a great William Castle movie because it really is a killer concept! So how about this-- everyone read the story and then let's all come up with a more THOIA-esque, appropriate ending, shall we? Make it downbeat and evil, extra gloomy, even suicidally sad. Or maybe keep it upbeat, but add a touch of deadly, icky irony! Or we can just bummeroo on the usual things associated with post code DC hero stuff, whaaaaatever ya's want. Personally, I think these bonkeroo Jimmy tales are a blast-- so let's have some fun with it! You guys like fun, right?! Afterwards, you can eat a big sandwich.

Originally presented in the July 1959 issue of Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen #38.

Invasion of the Windsuckers from Beyond the Stars

If this blog ever starts becoming too predictable, please please please remember that I posted this 4 page pants splitter about far-out fart lovers from beyond the stars. How many of you even knew there was a Nation Lampoon-esque magazine called Apple Pie published by Lopez in the mid 70's anyway? Yep, 8 whole issues! Learn something pew every day...

From the gag-inducing March 1975 "Flatulence" (debut) issue of Apple Pie Vol. 1 #1

The Secret of Sleed's Castle

And now, the fourth and final story from the April 1952 issue of Mysterious Adventures #7, dig the previous 3 posts for the other tales. This is a better than average Hollingsworth effort, though typically contains some laughable illustrative moments (like the perspective hand problem in panel 4 on page 5), but overall it's still a fun entry in one of the better collections from this precode series. Hope everyone enjoyed another full issue presentation here at THOIA-- lots more on the way for Halloween-- and beyond!

Horror Without a Head

One of my all time favorite precode Harvey stories is "Headless Horror" from the May 1952 issue of Chamber of Chills #8-- click HERE to read it in our THOIA Archive! It's surprisingly gory and superbly atmospheric, and seriously, I like it so much I put it in the "Scarifying Mr. Karswell Issue" of Haunted Horror #14! So again today we have an Eerie Pub remake/redraw, retitled "Horror Without a Head", and as usual we see an updated Harvey classic (this time with Nestor Olivera art) that is visually moody and cinematic, though I will say the 50's original is probably more effectively violent because we get to see all that glorious gore in FULL COLOR! Another interesting choice in the remake is to take the fabulous panel from page 6 of the original story and rework it a bit for the new splash. Like our previous posts this month, today's tale is also from the September 1981 issue of of Terrors of Dracula Vol. 3 #2. Anybody getting tired of these Eerie Pub remakes yet?