Gorilla Man

To further celebrate Kong’s birthday today we have a strange pre-code man verses gorilla horror adventure from Robert Q. Sale. It’s not a giant ape or anything but the story itself is hugely important in the Atlas / Marvel U as it’s the first official appearance of Ken Hale (aka The Gorilla Man), who would later re-appear in the post code superhero realm and rub hairy elbows with The X-Men, Avengers, the Howling Commandos Unit, and The Agents of Atlas.

From the March 1954 issue of Men’s Adventures #26

For more info about The Gorilla Man and his other incarnations click HERE.

Midnight in the Morgue

Dick Ayers Weekend continues with another super spooky, corpse clogged chiller. This story is a good example of how curiosity is not the only thing that can kill the cat… so can the imagination.

From the March 1954 issue of Men’s Adventures #26

I Crawl Through Graves

Yesterday we prowled by night and buried the living, today we crawl through graves with a creepy Dick Ayers classic!

From the April 1952 issue of Adventures into Weird Worlds #5

Monster Lore!

The Achilles heel of Hell spawn exposed! Don’t let monsters get you down--- fight back! From the April 1952 issue of Black Cat Mystery #34, helpful “insider” facts for those of you out hunting monsters this weekend.

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I Bury the Living (TRAILER)

Out of a time rotted tomb crawls an unspeakable horror...

The Corpse Who Prowled by Night

Today’s the big wrap-up to Web of Evil #15. And before you throw up your hands and shout “Scooby-Doo ending!” you’ll find there’s one additional, clever little twist in this before the horrific conclusion nails the coffin lid down tight with a lasting shivery note. I hope everyone enjoyed seeing this issue in it’s entirety, and remember you can see more complete issues the first week of every month right here at The Horrors of it All! It’s my new thing...

From the June 1954 issue of Web of Evil #15

The Demon Coat

The idea of a demon coat sounds about as scary as a pair of demon mittens, but what is actually very scary in this story is the mummy! Will ya look at that thing!! With its grotesque skull face and ancient bandages blowing around madly from some unseen demonic wind, that has to be one of the best illustrated mummies in all of comicdom. Now who the hell is responsible for the big blue diaper on the red demon though? Demon diaper!!!

From the June 1954 issue of Web of Evil #15

Red As a Lobster / Jim Mooney (R.I.P.)

I have a bonus story for you today, paying tribute to the late great Jim Mooney who sadly passed away last weekend at the age of 89. Mooney is best known for his legendary work at Marvel and DC on major superhero titles, but he also delivered a handful of really great pre-code Atlas horror stories as well for titles like Strange Tales, Astonishing, Journey into Mystery and more. R.I.P.
From the March 1953 issue of Adventures into Terror #17

Thanks to Patrick Owsley for bringing this news to my attention.

The Haunted Forest

Ahhh, the glamorous lives of The Debunkers of the Supernatural. Anytime you get a fellow (or two) in a pre-code story with the grand idea of “exposing some truth” you just know it’s going to turn out bad for them. We’re halfway through our look at the June 1954 issue of Web of Evil #15, two down and two to go!

Web of Evil

Well, it’s not Cheesaurus Rex. But to anyone who is disappointed to find instead the start of Web of Evil #15 here in it’s entirety this week (4 stories / 4 days) I say “boo hoo.” Or just “boo!” Or April Fool’s Day, or whatever. And as you will see, this is a very good issue; all the stories are spooky and weird and have really great art. Someone at Quality Comics must have really liked the ghost skeleton on the cover too because the damned thing made an almost identical appearance two years earlier on the November 1952 cover of Plastic Man #38. Apparently, “quality” also means resurrecting your own cover creeps!

UPDATE! Found yet another QUALITY cover (Web of Evil #8) with the obvious same ghost skeleton recycled again, this time wearing a hooded cloak though like we wouldn't notice...

The Dreaded Crypts of Horror

April officially kicks off with the first eerie story from Web of Evil #15, about an evil man with a very evil collection. If you’re a fan of Fritz Lang’s awesome film Secret Beyond the Door (’48), then you’ll immediately know where this idea probably sprang from.

From the June 1954 issue of Web of Evil #15