Saturday, November 29, 2008

The Groping Ghost

Finishing out the weekend and month with our Standard Comics theme, here’s a wild one from the great Jack Katz, with some much appreciated “headlight” panels on the final pages. A "groping ghost" indeed...

From the October 1952 issue of Adventures into Darkness #6








TOMORROW: A soggy seaweed Sunday awaits yee...

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HORROR MAZE
Time for some fun 'n games, but don't have too much fun... remember, you are trapped in a land of terror after all.

15 comments:

sfdoomed said...

Always enjoy the ghost stories that begin with a group of distinguished gentlemen telling tales (best exemplified in the movie "Ghost Story").

On the second page here, the other (rather old) students in the hallway look pretty grim for graduation day. Guess not everyone is guaranteed a research job off in Maine! And Adriene...va va voom!

8thRay said...

I like the idea of a blind specter... reminds me of M.R. James' "Oh whistle, and I'll come to you, my lad". And who can forget those "Blind Dead" movies of the 70s.

BTW am I the only one who fervently wishes that the "Adventurers Club" was a real place, where we could join up? These kind of clubs provide the backdrop to a lot of my favorite victorian and pulp horror stories. To sit in front of the roaring fire, sipping fine brandies... ah, the tales we'd hear...

Mr. Karswell said...

I too love the old set-up of the antiquarian type gents gathered around a flickering fire, sipping spirits and trading shadowy yarns. No one wrote a better ghost story than M.R. James, who I'm sure most of you already know is quite a hero of mine. And in the spirit of Ghost Stories for Xmas I think I just came up with a splendid theme for this holiday season!

blackwalnut2001 said...

HEY, waitaminit! A BLIND GHOST? Why I oughta...

Everyone knows that once you're DEAD, you can SEE, right? I mean...

He was only pretending to be blind in order to cop one last feel of Adriene.

And why not? Those headlights are a wonder to behold.

And that Beatrice has some headlights of her own, but only after she's dead (2nd panel page 5). Maybe the smotherin' the ghost gave her caused them to swell a mite. A little bonus for those of us who like headlights on bad girls who go around wearing shawls and stuff.

Anonymous said...

FUN STORY, I'M REALLY LOVING THIS STANDARD STUFF ALOT. HEY HOW ABOUT A WEEK OF HEADLIGHT STORIES?

THE HORROR MAZE WAS HARD!!

AndyDecker said...

Ah, the club and a tale. I love this beginning.

A good tale, rather complex. Fun was also the contrast between our granite jawed hero and the trophy wife and the ugly rest of the cast. It is like a parody.

Oh, nice headlights, btw :-)

silvano said...

Good story and KICK ASS artwork !
By the way ,is this the same Jack Katz who created the FIRST KINGDOM series ?
Thanks for sharing !

Prof. Grewbeard said...

how creepy! i'm sure the Groping Ghost knew he had the wrong person when he started groping Anne, but he seemed to take his time. it's okay though, seeing as how they were married, right? this comic WAS wholesome...

Anonymous said...

Really liked the art on this one. I thought the story was clever too, even though the title DOES imply somenthing dirty.

Anonymous said...

Katz is a favorite of mine too and this was a really good example of his Golden Age work. Thanks.

Smilodonna said...

Excellent story. That last panel is curiously creepy to me - the dashing, calm hero surrounded by bulging-eyed men, all of whom look rather like George in his throws of madness.

Smilodonna said...

blackwalnut2001 said: "And that Beatrice has some headlights of her own, but only after she's dead (2nd panel page 5). Maybe the smotherin' the ghost gave her caused them to swell a mite."

Ghost-impact airbags, perhaps?
(and sorry about double posting, again)

Emby Quinn said...

Great, great story. I have to admit I suspected sweet Adrienne when the ghost nabbed her. I didn't realize the ghost was actually blind until it snagged Victor because, well, I've never heard of a blind ghost before.

The "ghost-impact airbags" comment made me snork my morning coffee. Thanks much, Smiley. XD

Mr. Karswell said...

>is this the same Jack Katz who created the FIRST KINGDOM series ?

He is indeed one and the same. Here's an entry at Lambiek on Katz with a little more info:

http://lambiek.net/artists/k/katz-jack.htm

>sorry about double posting

No need to apologize Smiley (good one Emby), double posting is never frowned upon, in fact it's highly encouraged. Someone should start a blog called "Ghost-Impact Airbags" haha... actually that sounds like a GBV song title.

Unknown said...

A little bonus for those of us who like headlights on bad girls who go around wearing shawls and stuff.

That was the best part. A+