FEAR IN FOUR COLORS: HORROR FROM THE TOMB

Monday, November 25, 2024

HORROR FROM THE TOMB

Hang on to your heads, horror comics fans -- this one's both obscure and a humdinger! Rooted firmly in the EC tradition, readers will be subjected to deceit, murder and revenge along with a werewolf ripping the tender flesh off its victims and a professor who puts his body back together after a string of mishaps.

But wait, that's not all! There's be-headings, dismemberment and rotting corpses! There's also horror hosts The Graveyard Keeper and Grandma Gruesome if you're still not convinced of the EC influence.

New York-based Premiere magazines was a small company that only published a handful of comics, and only one issue of HORROR FROM THE TOMB, which unfortunately promised to be a pretty good title. By the note at the end of the last story it looks like intended to continue, but it was not to be. Their only other Pre-Code genre title was MYSTERIOUS STORIES #2 that continued the numbering when HFTB was summarily dropped under threat from the CCA's draconic policies. Five more issues followed with the CCA stamp of approval on the cover before it, too, disappeared from the stands.

There's some question on whether or not pre-MAD George Woodbridge and EC's Angelo Torres collaborated on the cover and the last story of this issue. They have credited work in MYSTERIOUS STORIES, and since the art is quite similar to my eyes, I'm going with them. African-American cartoonist Carl Massey and later DC and Marvel artist Jack Abel combine for a good-looking story. Other art by Jon D'Agostino and Mannie Banks complement the rest with some nice are, too. Too bad the stories have gone uncredited because they are pretty darn good compared to a lot of the marginal material that was cranked out by the ream during this period.

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