Monday, December 23, 2013

Christmas Comics Repost VAULT OF HORROR "...and All Though the House..."

Since the original post's links to the videos are no longer working...
...we're re-presenting this sordid story from EC Comics' Vault of Horror #35 (1954) with new links!
This horror-day classic (sorry, couldn't resist) written and illustrated by Johnny Craig had been reprinted numerous times and been adapted twice, once as part of the 1970s anthology movie Tales from the Crypt...

and as the second episode of the1990s Tales from the Crypt TV series...

We'll be back after the New Year with more proof that Crime Does NOT Pay..but it sure is FUN!
Merry Christmas
&
Happy New Year!

Monday, December 9, 2013

The Gifts are Afoot, Watson!


OK, it's a silly paraphrase of a classic line, but we at Atomic Kommie Comics™ take our Sherlockania VERY seriously...
As part of our Crime & Punishment™ collection, we've given The Greatest Sleuth of All™ his very own section!
12 different designs, including several with Basil Rathbone, the man who is to Sherlock Holmes as Sean Connery is to James Bond, not the first, but to many (including myself), the definitive portrayer!
Add to that, several classic comic book covers, a variety of other movie posters (including the campy A Study in Terror with Holmes as "The ORIGINAL Caped Crusader"!), the coolest cigar box art I've ever seen (based on William Gillette), and 1st Edition covers from A Study in Scarlet and His Last Bow!

If you're looking for a cool Christmas gift for the Holmesian, Sherlockian, or Baker Street Irregular in your life, you can't go wrong with one of these mugs, bags, t-shirts, e-reader covers, or other goodies!

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

BURKE'S LAW "Who Killed the Hollywood Hopefuls?: The Third Victim" Part 2

Captain of Detectives Amos Burke investigates several murders of Hollywood actors apparently commited by classic movie monsters!
When several leads peter out to dead ends, the captain's aides decide to take a different approach...
Well, this looks like another dead end...or is it?
You'll discover the astounding answer tomorrow as the story concludes where it began, at our "brother" blog Secret Sanctum of Captain Video!
Writer Paul S Newman and artists Frank McLaughlin (penciler) and Dick Giordano, Sal Trapani & Vince Colletta (inkers) will keep you guessing as they finish this tale from Dell's Burke's Law #3 (1965).

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

BURKE'S LAW "Who Killed the Hollywood Hopefuls?: The Third Victim" Part 1

Movie actors are being killed by beings resembling famous monsters.
Captain of Detectives Amos Burke and his aides follow a trail of clues leading to the film studio that made the movies the creatures originally appeared in...
Be here tomorrow as we show how movies were screened in the pre-BluRay (and even VCR) days!
(and there'll be more clues, too...)
Note: you didn't miss a post here.
The first part appeared at our "brother" blog Secret Sanctum of Captain Video!
Burke's Law (1963-1966) was produced by Aaron Spelling, who later did such genre series as Charlie's Angels, TJ Hooker, Matt Houston, Hart to Hart, Starsky and Hutch, The Rookies, SWAT, Mod Squad, and Honey West (a spinoff from Burke's Law we've featured HERE.)
While it was a police procedural, the plot was often secondary to the parade of high-profile guest stars playing victims and suspects, making it "CSI meets Love Boat".
Classic movie stars like Buster Keaton, Don Ameche, Basil Rathbone, Dorothy Lamour, and Broderick Crawford joined up-and-comers like William Shatner, Barbara Eden, Tab Hunter, Annette Funicello, and Telly Savalas as the weirdest grouping of West Coast eccentrics outside of San Diego ComicCon!
As you can see, translating it to the comic page proved difficult, since the editors felt the guest star aspect couldn't be carried out in a licensed comic.
Depite that, writer Paul S Newman and artists Frank McLaughlin (penciler) and Dick Giordano, Sal Trapani & Vince Colletta (inkers) did a commendable job trying to capture the light-hearted feel of the series in this tale from Dell's Burke's Law #3 (1965).
Trivia: Every episode's title was "Who Killed (Insert Noun)?", much as Man from U.N.C.L.E.'s titles were "The (Insert Noun) Affair" and Wild, Wild West's episodes all had a "Night of the (Insert Noun)" title (even if they took place during the day)!

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

SHERLOCK HOLMES "Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Challenge"

Far afield from his usual British haunts...
...the Greatest Sleuth of All deduces the truth about a murder mystery in the wilds of Canada!
This never-reprinted tale from Charlton's Sherlock Holmes #2 (1955) is an original story of Holmes (minus Dr Watson) aiding the RCMP in present-day Canada.
Both the writer and artist(s) of these tales is unknown and the art style seems to be a combination of the techniques of several different illustrators.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

SPIRIT "League of Liars"

Of all comic strip/book detectives, none was as complex as The Spirit...
...even when creator/writer/illustrator Will Eisner wasn't the man behind the story, as in this case, where future Oscar, Obie, Pulitzer, and Writers' Guild award winner Jules Feiffer scripted and laid out the tale...
The Spirit was unique among comic heroes since he had not only his own feature in an anthology comic (Police Comics), his own monthly/bi-monthly comic book (from Quality, and later Fiction House), and a weekly comic book (distributed with Sunday newspapers throughout the country) from 1940 to 1952!
The newspaper weekly comic contained new stories which were then reprinted in the other comic books.
It also didn't have slick covers, using the same newsprint stock as the inside of the booklet, making them extremely fragile and hard to find in good condition today despite having a circulation of several million (you read that right) per issue!
This particular story initially appeared in November 25, 1951 newspapers before being reprinted in Fiction House's Spirit #3 (1952), where this version is taken from.
Written and laid-out by Feiffer (who started as an art assistant in Eisner's studio), the penciling and inking was done by Jim Dixon with Eisner himself editing, art directing, and occasionally retouching to keep characters "on-model".

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

SPACE DETECTIVE ""Metal Murderers of Mars"

Art by Joe Orlando & Wally Wood
Note: this was at our "brother" blog, Atomic Kommie Comics™, so faithful readers of this blog haven't missed anything!
Now, on with Part 2...
The story concludes tomorrow back at  
Atomic Kommie Comics
Nobody's been able to identify the writer or artist(s) of this middle of a kool 3-part tale from Avon's Space Detective #2 (1951).
Personally, I see elements of Wally Wood, Joe Orlando, and Joe Kubert in the art, but nothing definitive.

Friday, March 8, 2013

Tell a Tale of Terror TWICE! #2 THIS IS SUSPENSE "Short Step to Oblivion"

We saw this tale of terror and justice uncut in Part 1...

...at our "brother" blog Seduction of the Innocent™!
Now let's see how it looked after the Comics Code Authority took their censoring scissors to the reprinted version...
The knife, seen in panels 5-7 on the original page HERE, is now missing!
The knife in panels 3 and 5 HERE is missing in the reprint page!
Despite being removed from the previous pages, the knife is shown to be the murder weapon!
But how did the knife get there if it was deleted from the earlier pages?
Ruth's word balloon in the last panel is rewritten to eliminate reference to the knife shown HERE on the original page!
Why is Ruth screaming? It's not like there's a dead body, like there was in the original page HERE!
Why did the villain fall to his death?
Maybe it's the fact that Holiday shot him in the original version of the first panel HERE!
This Comics Code Authority-eviscerated reprint appeared in Charlton's This is Suspense # 24 (1955).
The writer is unknown and the illustrator is George Evans.
A comic with no more violence or blood than a TV cop show of the period is gutted by the CCA to Protect the Morals of the Youth of America.
Take a good look at your parents.
Did it work?