Reading Room: GREEN PLANET "Empty Earth"

Ever Feel Like Staying in Bed and Pulling the Covers Over Your Head?

Here's a tale about an entire planet tha felt that way, from the one-shot Green Planet, published by Charlton Comics in 1962.

This backup tale, unrelated to the title story, was written by Joe Gill, penciled by Dick Giordano, and inked by Vince Coletta.

Green Planet was a very odd comic...

1) The title story was actually an adaptation of a then-current sci-fi novel by J Hunter Holly, but, oddly, there's no mention of that fact anywhere in the comic!

2) There's no numbering on the comic (it's indicia lists it as a quarterly book) and no copyright notice listing either Charlton or novel author Holly!

We presented the main feature a couple of years ago, HERE and HERE!

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Reading Room: UFO FLYING SAUCERS "Read the Real Story of the UFOs and Flying Saucers!"

As we mentioned in an earlier post, Dell and Gold Key published anthology comics about UFOs..

Here's the intro story from Gold Key's UFO Flying Saucers #1 (1968)

Written by long-time sci-fi/fantasy comics scripter Leo Dorfman and illustrated by Golden and Silver Age artist Joe Certa (best known as the co-creator of another alien series; J'onn J'onnz, Manhunter from Mars), the story set the rather straightforward tone for the book, which would run for 13 issues from 1968 to 1977 before changing its' title to UFO & Outer Space and continuing for another 12 issues combining reprints and new material until cancellation in 1980.

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Reading Room VENUS COMICS "Strange Rocket!"

Here's a tale combining sci-fi with the "present day" West...

 ...from the back of Atlas' Venus Comics featuring the art of a future major Silver Age Marvel artist!

The parents weren't questioned as to where their son went after he failed to show up for school...ever again?

"Well, officer, Toby went into space with a bunch of extraterrestrials, but they promised they'd bring him back.

It's OK!
We gave him permission..."

The writer of this somewhat silly story from Atlas' Venus #12 (1951) is unknown, but the artist is Gene Colan, best known to Marvel fans as one of the definitive artists on Silver and Bronze Age titles like Daredevil, Iron Man, and Dracula!

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Secrets in the Shadows

Art & Life of Gene Colan
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Reading Room MONSTER OF FRANKENSTEIN COMICS "Doorway to the Future!"

Is this a "lost" Kirby Klassic from the 1950s?

Read this never-reprinted tale from Prize Comics' Monster of Frankenstein #33 (1954) and judge for yourself...

When Prize Comics' Monster of Frankenstein title was revived during the horror comic boom of the early 1950s, besides a wonderfully-gruesome version of Dick Briefer's Monster, it featured a number of two to four page "fillers".

Most of these tales appear to be, at the very least, laid-out by Jack Kirby.

This story is a prime example.

The figure poses, faces, machinery, even the futuristic buildings all but scream "KIRBY"!

The Grand Comics Database lists the story's artist as Marvin Stein with a "?", but considering the volume of work Simon & Kirby did for Prize before leaving to form their own company, Mainline, and the fact Stein worked primarily for their studio, it's not unlikely this was an "inventory" story meant for insertion wherever editorial material page count came up short.

Sadly, the writer of the story is, as in so many cases, unknown, but it might also be Kirby...

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Reading Room MONSTER OF FRANKENSTEIN COMICS "Into the 4th Dimension"

Is this a lost "Kirby Klassic" from the 1950s?

Read this never-reprinted tale from Prize's Monster of Frankenstein #31 (1954) and judge for yourself...

When Prize Comics' Monster of Frankenstein title was revived during the horror comic boom of the early 1950s, besides a wonderfully-gruesome version of Dick Briefer's Monster, it featured a number of two to four page "fillers".

Most of these tales appear to be, at the very least, laid-out by the legendary Jack (King) Kirby.

This story is a prime example.

The Grand Comics Database lists the story's illustrator as Marvin Stein, who worked primarily for the Simon & Kirby studio, so this most likely was an S&K "inventory" story laid-out by Kirby and meant for insertion wherever editorial page count came up short.

Sadly, the writer of the story is, as in so many cases, unknown...

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Reading Room MYSTICAL TALES "Lair of the Thunder Lizard!"

Bernie Krigstein was one of the most under-appreciated artists of the 1950s...

...and this kool tale he illustrated just begged to be unearthed for the first time in almost 70 years!

Scripted by Carl Wessler and rendered by Bernie Krigstein, this never-reprinted piece from Atlas' Mystical Tales #8 (1957) is a low-key character study enhanced by Krigstein's naturalistic art.

Bernie was already phasing out of comics and into mainstream commercial art (including book and magazine illustration).

This tale was one of his last stories before leaving the comics field altogether.

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Messages in a Bottle

Comic Book Stories by B Krigstein
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Reading Room: MYSTICAL TALES "Nomad of Outer Space!"

It's mind-blowing how much Atlas (pre-Marvel) stuff hasn't been reprinted...

...such as this story from Atlas' Mystical Tales #1 (1956)!

While hunting thru files for un-reprinted Jack Kirby tales for a previous Kirby Reading Room mini-marathon, I came across a lot of never-reprinted material!

This Bob Powell-rendered story is just the tip of the iceberg!

Sadly, we don't know the writer of this tale...

BTW, despite the title, Mystical Tales was an almost-totally "hard sci-fi" anthology!

Only a handful of stories from the anthology's 8-issue run have been reprinted, all in the 1970s, which makes even the reprints at least 40 years old!

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Atlas Era Tales of Suspense

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Reading Room OUT OF THIS WORLD "Perfect Forecaster"

The Last Few Years of Extreme Weather Made Me Wonder Why We Don't Yet Have...

...and this rarely-seen tale from Charlton's Out of this World #10 (1958) provides an amusing solution!

Could Dorothy be...a mutant?

Writer Joe Gill and artist Steve Ditko aren't telling...

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Creativity of Ditko
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Reading Room MEN'S ADVENTURES "Secret of the Flying Saucer"

In the Early 1940s-Early 50s, Pop Culture Went Flying Saucer Mad...

...and comics publishers (just like b-movie studios) eagerly took advantage of the insanity!

The writer of this never-reprinted tale from Atlas' anthology Men's Adventures #5 (1950) is unknown and the art is apparently an art jam including Bill LaCava and Vern Henkel.

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Reading Room KANDI THE CAVE KID "Dinosaur"

Creationists believe the Earth is only 6,000 years old...

...so to them, this could be considered a chapter in a history book!

This never-reprinted story from Dell's Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies Comics #15 (1943) was the final appearance of the Walt Kelly-created character.

Besides both print adaptations of theatrical cartoons and new tales of existing Warner Brothers characters like Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, Dell introduced a number of new characters to fill out the pages of the comic anthology, including Kandi and Pat, Patsy & Pete.

Kandi was one of the shorter-lived ones, with only a half-dozen short tales from #3 to #15.

Reading Room 3-D COLOR CLASSICS: TIME MACHINE (Conclusion)

We Have Already Seen...

Victorian-era inventor John travels to the future and discovers that, after reaching a pinnacle of scientific development, mankind has deteriorated to two groups of primitives!

Above-ground dwellers are peaceful, but those who lurk below are savage!

The underground humans steal John's time-travel vehicle...and then, one of his new-found friends, a woman named Weena.

Seeking both, the chronic argonaut goes below the surface, where he discovers the hostile cave dwellers, known as "Morlocks", are hyper-sensitive to light.

Finding his machine and the woman, John heads for the surface with her, planning to return for his vehicle...

Note: John says to the Morlocks; "Perhaps one of my distant ancestors will meet you!"

If they're in the future, wouldn't it be one of his descendents?

If you want to see how much this never-reprinted 1995 adaptation varies from the original book, click HERE to read the original novel!

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