FOZZMO'S ROBOT WOMAN

Poor Fozzmo. The brilliant scientist has got everything going for him except his looks. In an aha! moment he decides to emulate Dr. Frankenstein and create his own mate. But remember, this is a pre-Code horror comic and things usually don't go as planned. The typical bizarre and superior art is by Basil Wolverton. Although the author for this story, "Robot Woman", goes uncredited, with a main character named "Fozzmo", I have a sneaking suspicion Mr. Wolverton may have had a hand in it.

From MISTER MYSTERY #18 (Stanley Morse, August 1954).

WEREWOLF!

A run-of-the-mill werewolf story and if the ending has been used once, it's been used ... well, you get the picture. What makes this the lurid-looking pre-Code horror story that it is, is because of some good and gritty art by the team of Mort Meskin and George Roussous (signed MR). From OUT OF THE SHADOWS #14 ((Visual Editions, Inc./Pines, August 1954).

CRYPTOLOGY NO. 3 NOW SHIPPING!

The third issue of CRYPTOLOGY is now available for purchase from TwoMorrows Publishing. It's another helping of retro horror served up by editor Peter Normanton.

From the publisher:

""Heh-heh-heh, it’s me again—the Cryptologist—and my ghastly little band have cooked up a few more grisly morsels to terrorize you with! Amongst them is Roger Hill’s conversation with diabolical horror (and superhero) comics artist Don Heck! For something even more gruesome, Steven Kronenberg slices up his favorite severed hand films! Barry Forshaw brings back the otherworldly horrors of Hammer’s Quatermass, while Tim Leese spends more Hammer Time on that studio’s output. Then, editor Peter Normanton prepares a viewing of horror-inspired covers from the Shadow’s own 1940s comic book! We’ll cover another Killer “B” movie classic, Conrad Veidt and “The Man Who Laughs!,” along with more pre-Code comic books, and Pete Von Sholly offers his twisted take on cartoon horror. So peer into the dark side with TwoMorrows Publishing’s latest terror—scribed just for retro horror fans!"

This new comics/movie/collectibles mag gets my highest recommendation!

See a preview and order HERE.

THE MYSTERY OF WILLIAM EKGREN

Archer St. John's horror comics weren't a high target on Dr. Fredric Wertham's hit list, but they nevertheless produced some very good stories, albeit without the excessive violence and gore of other, more notorious publishers.

One such title, STRANGE TERRORS was significant for another reason: the very bizarre and many times referred to as psychedelic cover of issue #4 (November 1952). Clearly signed on the bottom right is the name of the artist, "William Ekgren".

For years the man remained a mystery. Was the name a pseudonym? Was he dead? Was he an artist visiting from another planet?

This and the following photo is believed to be of Ekgren.

The answer was a long time coming, but comics historian Ken Quattro manged to contact Ekgren. According to Ekgren he met publisher Arthur St. John and Marion McDermott, editor of St. John's romance comics line at an art market in Greenwich Village. Ekgren sold the rights to his paintings to St. John for $100 apiece, which were of course, used on the covers because they were so unique and would stand out on the newsstands. St. John returned the art to Ekgren after they had been published and it is presumed he sold them again to someone else.

Quattro goes into more detail and shares a letter he received from Ekgren:

“One day in the Spring of 1952--at the Greenwich Village Outdoor Art Show--three men and a woman were murmuring between themselves looking at one of my paintings…after less than 5 minutes they had bought the publication right to it--for 100 dollars. After a week they gave me the painting back so that I could sell it again…the same procedure came about at the next Outdoor Show (and then the next after that)…the same persons coming back, acting in an almost impolite way and paying 100 dollars for each picture.”

"Family of Three" (1950) sold at Heritage Auctions in 2020.

"Girl at Piano" (1950) sold at Heritage Auctions in 2007.

He also responded to Quattro hearing about that he was possibly schizophrenic:

 “About that and that: yes, of course, I’m schizophrenic, thus being more nutty than a fine fruitcake. But thus far I’ve been able to handle this “mental thing” rather nicely, by using ingredients, as well as wholeness, as basic measures giving informative vividness and strength to all my creative activities.”

STRANGE TERRORS

Vol. 1 No. 4

November 1952

St. John Publishing Company

Editor: ?

Cover: William Ekgren

Pages: 36

Cover price: 10 cents

CONTENTS

"The Curse of Khar"

Script: ?

Art: Joe Kubert

"The Spectres in Shaft 13"

Script: ?

Art: Bill Molno

"Terror in the Tombs"

Script: ?

Art: George Tuska

"Murder by Myth"

Script: ?

Art: Charles Sultan

GHOST RIDER VS. FRANKENSTEIN

During the pre-Code comics era, there were numerous crossovers between horror and crime, horror and science-fiction, etc., but one of the strangest was it cross-pollinating with westerns. One example is a series of Ghost Rider stories that included horror elements in them.

This one from GHOST RIDER #10 is titled "The Ghost Rider vs. Frankenstein". Penciled by Dick Ayers and inked by Ernie Bache, there's a couple of nods to the 1931 Universal film with a torch-bearing posse and a burning windmill. Of course, the story is rooted in reality and not the supernatural, but we don't know that until the end.

GHOST RIDER

No. 10 (A-1 No. 71)

December 1952

Magazine Enterprises (ME Comics)

Editor: Raymond C. Krank

Cover: Dick Ayers

Pages: 36

Cover price: 10 cents