FANTASTIC MONSTERS OF THE FILMS NO. 4 (PART 1)

FANTASTIC MONSTERS OF THE FILMS

Vol. 1 No. 4

1962 (No month)

Publisher: Black Shield Productions, Inc.

Editor: Ron Haydock

Managing Editor: Paul Blaisdell

Associate Editor: Jim Harmon

Research Editor: Bob Burns

Contributing Editor: Larry Byrd

Crumbling Editor: Mad Mummy

Cover: Photo cover (It Conquered the World)

Pages: 68

Cover Price: 50 cents

Monsterologists tussle over the best monster magazine from the early years. Most would agree that FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND takes the top spot, but there is a contingent of naysayers claiming that CASTLE OF FRANKENSTEIN is the best of the bunch.

Regardless, I think FANTASTIC MONSTERS IN THE FILMS deserves third place in the mix. It's the first continually-published monster magazine using tinted and full color in its pages. It also covered a lot of material that the others do for another justifiable reason. I mean, who else would devote three pages to the Mexican monster mash-up, SHIP OF MONSTERS? And, this issue doesn't have one, it has two articles written by famous film personalities of the day: Vincent Price's article is in defense of horror films and Kirk "Superman" Alyn's is a reminisce about the TV character that made him famous. Actually, there's three, if you count editor Blaisdell's  article on prehistoric monsters in the movies (not famous, per se, but nevertheless in the biz). Plus, I think it's Bob Burns that sneaked in a couple of articles on Saturday Matinee teenage monster movies and a visit with the then-resident Los Angeles TV horror host, Jeepers (aka, Jim Sullivan), whose weekly show aired as "Theatre Thirteen" (formerly "Jeepers Creepers") on KCOP-13.

The issue kicks off with a feature on IT CONQUERED THE WORLD (AIP, 1956), starring the legendary "carrot monster" created by Blaisdell himself. Oh, and it also starred Peter Graves, Beverly Garland and Lee Van Cleef! It's nonstop from there, with "The Devil's Workshop", that shows you how to create your own monster with life casts and makeup, plus tons of other monster goodness. And don't forget to check out the letters page where Larry Ivie (CASTLE OF FRANKENSTEIN, MONSTERS & HEROES) grouses about the color pages being "annoying"! Do you agree that this is Number Three?