EERIE TALES
Vol. 1 No. 1
November 1959
Hastings Associates, Inc.
Editor: Joe Simon
Cover: George Tuska ("Always Room For One More")
Pages: 52
Cover price: 25 cents
In the aftermath of EC's New Trend titles and a run-up to Warren's horror comic magazines, EERIE TALES is a one-off anomaly of horror comics. There is an obvious similarity to EC's Picto-Fiction line which it was apparently inspired by. The difference is that it uses word balloons in addition to the typeset captions.
EERIE TALES was produced by Joe Simon (of the Simon/Kirby team, creators of Capt. America) who went into magazine publishing after the downturn of comics sales. He also later wrote for the Archie Comics super-hero line where he created The Fly.
What also makes this an -- ahem -- eerie resemblance to the New Trend 'zines is that there are a number of EC alumni in its pages: scriptwriter Carl Wessler and artists Joe Orlando, Al Williamson and Angelo Torres.
Before scripting these weird tales, the prolific Wessler drew gag cartoons for a Canadian magazine, was an assistant animator at Fleischer Studios for over a decade in the 1930's and then was a cartoonist for the Sangor Studios. Later, after his work for EC Comics he wrote scripts for Marvel and Charlton, among others. During his career, Wessler used over a dozen pen names.
One amusing aspect was the crazy names given to the editorial and art staff -- Editor: Basil Darkerton (presumably Simon); Associate: Vanessa Vampira; Art Director: Richard Stalker; Production: Phillip Stealth. Charlton would a few years later adopt the same schtick for MAD MONSTERS and HORROR MONSTERS.
Not a bad mag, and could be nostalgically considered a last remnant of EC.
CONTENTS
"The Stalker"
Script: Carl Wessler
Art: Gray Morrow
"Gunk"
Script: Carl Wessler
Art: George Tuska
"The Suckspect!"
Script: ?
Art: Joe Orlando; Jack Sparling
"Burn!"
Script: Carl Wessler
Art: Joe Orlando; Jack Sparling
"Shroud Number Nine"
Script: ?
Art: Ken Battefield
"Frozen Stiff" (text story by Carl Wessler)
"The Unbeliever"
Script: ?
Art: Bob Powell
"Shocked to Death!"
Script: Carl Wessler
Art: Paul Reinman
"From the Greyble to the Grave!"
Script: Carl Wessler
Art: Angelo Torres
"Little Miss Gruesome"
Script: Carl Wessler
Art: Paul Reinman
"Lower Than Hell!"
Script: Carl Wessler
Art: Al Williamson
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