Reading Room VENUS COMICS "Strange Rocket!"

Here's another never-reprinted tale...

 ...from the back of Atlas' Venus Comics featuring the art of a 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 extraterriestrials, but they promised they'd bring him back.

It's OK, we gave him permission..."

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

Reading Room VENUS COMICS "Plot!"

This week we're looking at the Atlas Comics title Venus...

...but not at the title character's tales!

As you might have guessed, we're re-presenting the never-reprinted back-up stories!

This one, from Venus #11 (1950), is illustrated by Russ Heath.

The writer is unknown.

Marvel reprinted Venus #1-9 in a Marvel Masterworks edition in 2011, but hasn't touched the later issues which had a horror/sci-fi bent, rather than the romantic comedy of the earlier issues.

(#9 was beginning the transformation of the title)

And no further Venus reprints are planned, so we'll be running some more back-up tales by some surprising talents for the rest of the week.

Reading Room FORBIDDEN WORLDS "Madman--or Psychic?'

Our final (we swear) Abraham Lincoln-themed story...

...is this never-reprinted piece from ACG's Forbidden Worlds #90 (1960), probably written by editor Richard Hughes and definitely illustrated by George Klein.
OK, I got a bit carried away with this theme, but I didn't even touch the stories where superheroes (Kal-El tried it twice, both as Superman and Superboy) try to go back in time to avert the assassination...

Reading Room UNKNOWN WORLDS "Man Who Could Fortell Death!"

There are so many comic tales relating to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln...

...that our blog is overflowing with them!

This never-reprinted tale from ACG's Unknown Worlds #17 (1962) by writer "Zev Zimmer" (actually editor Richard Hughes, who wrote almost all of ACG's output) and artist Tom Hickey was one of several Lincoln-themed stories ACG published in their anthologies.

STAR WARS: Then and Now

When this trailer hit theatres in 1976, there was a lot of excitement...

Yesterday the trailer for the new film "dropped"...
..generating a similar level of excitement.
Here's a special treat from 1977...a condensed audio version of the first film, narrated by Roscoe Lee Browne...

...originally presented in the now all-but forgotten format called an "lp record album"!
Before YouTube, downloads, streaming video, even cds and (gasp) videotape, this and print versions like novelizations and comic book adaptations were the only way to re-experience the film outside the movie theatre.
Enjoy.