Haunt of Fear #18

(March-April 1953)

Ray Bradbury (Table of Contents: 1)

text article / 1 page (report information)

Script

Al Feldstein

Letters

typeset

Reprints

• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1985 series) #4 (1985)

Indexer Notes

Inside front cover. Photo and biography of Ray Bradbury.

Pipe Down! (Table of Contents: 2)

The Witch's Cauldron! / comic story / 8 pages (report information)

Script

Bill Gaines (co-plot); Al Feldstein (co-plot, script)

Pencils

Graham Ingels (signed as Ghastly)

Inks

Graham Ingels (signed as Ghastly)

Colors

Marie Severin

Letters

Jim Wroten

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Hee, hee! So now you got your grim paws on another insane issue...

Genre

horror-suspense

Characters

The Old Witch (host); Andrew (Lila's husband); a monkey (reincarnation of Andrew); a Policeman; Lila (villain, death); Howard (villain, oil-burner company employee, Lila's boyfriend)

Synopsis

A young woman marries an old man with a penchant for pipe smoking and poetry for his money and quickly grows tired of him, then she meets a young man and they plot to push him down the stairs as though it were accidental. After he dies, she buys a monkey as a pet that was born the same day her husband was killed. Howard wants to get married immediately but Lila says to wait a year....but when Howard starts finding clues to Lila possibly having an affiar, and she denies it, he murders her and is arrested. Meanwhile, the monkey settles back in the easy chair with a pipe and a book of poetry.

Reprints

• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1985 series) #4 (1985)
• in Iskalde Grøss (Semic, 1982 series) #6/1989 (uke 36 1989)
which is reprinted
• in Iskalde Grøss pocket (Hjemmet / Egmont, 1998 series) #6 ([september] 1998)
• in Iskalde Grøss - Klassikerserien (Hjemmet / Egmont, 2006 series) #[nn] ([mai] 2006)
• in The Vault of Horror (Gladstone, 1990 series) #2 (October 1990)
• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1991 series) #2 (November 1991)
• in Haunt of Fear (Gemstone, 1994 series) #18 (February 1997)
• in The Fantagraphics EC Artists' Library (Fantagraphics, 2012 series) #7 - Sucker Bait and Other Stories (February 2014) [Reprinted in black and white.]

Indexer Notes

Script revision by Craig Delich, formerly Albert B. Feldstein.

Letterer credit by Craig Delich.

Bedtime Gory! (Table of Contents: 3)

The Vault of Horror! / comic story / 7 pages (report information)

Script

Bill Gaines (co-plot); Al Feldstein (co-plot, script)

Pencils

George Evans (signed)

Inks

George Evans (signed)

Colors

Marie Severin

Letters

Jim Wroten

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Heh, heh! And now it's your Crypt-Keeper's turn to curdle your blood...

Genre

horror-suspense

Characters

The Vault-Keeper (host); Mr. Cutler; Mr. Forbes (death); Mr. Staley (death); Mrs. Staley; Mr. Burkner; Milton (villain, blackmailer, death); Lorna (villain, Milton's wife)

Synopsis

A woman buys a stretch rack for her husband when he reveals that he killed her wealthy father so as to appear it was an accident, and then married her for her money and not for love. But she gets the better of him in revenge.

Reprints

• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1985 series) #4 (1985)
• in Iskalde Grøss (Semic, 1982 series) #1 uke 46 [1987] (uke 46 1987)
which is reprinted
• in Iskalde Grøss pocket (Semic, 1996 series) #1 ([april] 1996)
• in The Vault of Horror (Gladstone, 1990 series) #2 (October 1990)
• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1991 series) #2 (November 1991)
• in Haunt of Fear (Gemstone, 1994 series) #18 (February 1997)
• in The Fantagraphics EC Artists' Library (Fantagraphics, 2012 series) #30 - A Slight Case of Murder and Other Stories (April 2021) [Reprinted in black and white.]

Indexer Notes

Script revision (from Feldstein) and letterer credits by Craig Delich.

Some of the story is told in flashback.

Decision! (Table of Contents: 4)

text story / 1 page (report information)

Script

Al Feldstein ?

Pencils

Marie Severin

Inks

Marie Severin

Letters

typeset

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Through the heavily matted undergrowth he could see the clearing...

Synopsis

A convict escapes from prison and decides to hide from the guards by diving into a swamp. It turns out it was quicksand.

Reprints

• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1985 series) #4 (1985)
• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1991 series) #2 (November 1991)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 5)

The Old Witch's Niche / letters page / 1 page (report information)

Script

Al Feldstein ?

Letters

typeset

Reprints

• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1985 series) #4 (1985)

Pot-Shot! (Table of Contents: 6)

The Old Witch's Grim Fairy Tale! / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Al Feldstein

Pencils

Jack Kamen (signed as Kamen)

Inks

Jack Kamen (signed as Kamen)

Colors

Marie Severin

Letters

Jim Wroten

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Well, here's another nauseating nursery narration, nuts!

Genre

horror-suspense

Characters

The Old Witch (host); the Prince; the King

Synopsis

This grim fairy tale relates the story of a prince who gets the king to pay him a yearly allowance of what he weighs in gold. In order to be as heavy as can be, he swallows lead shot to get his already fat frame close to almost 500 pounds. As he urges the carriage faster and faster to arrive at his new castle, the brakes are thrown suddenly and the shot explodes out of him.

Reprints

• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1985 series) #4 (1985)
• in Iskalde Grøss (Semic, 1982 series) #4/1989 (uke 22 1989)
• in The Vault of Horror (Gladstone, 1990 series) #2 (October 1990)
• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1991 series) #2 (November 1991)
• in Haunt of Fear (Gemstone, 1994 series) #18 (February 1997)
• in The Fantagraphics EC Artists' Library (Fantagraphics, 2012 series) #36 - Kamen's Kalamity and Other Stories (2024) [Reprinted in black and white.]

Indexer Notes

Letterer credit by Craig Delich.

The Black Ferris! (Table of Contents: 7)

The Crypt of Terror / comic story / 7 pages (report information)

Script

Ray Bradbury; Al Feldstein (adaptation)

Pencils

Jack Davis (signed)

Inks

Jack Davis (signed)

Colors

Marie Severin

Letters

Jim Wroten

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Heh, heh! So now it's the Crypt-Keeper's turn to chill you.

Genre

horror-suspense

Characters

The Crypt-Keeper (host); two boys; rich woman; thief (villain)

Synopsis

Two boys witness a ferris wheel at a creepy carnival that can make time go forwards or backwards for the rider depending on which way the wheel spins. A man tries to take advantage of this by riding the wheel backwards 24 times until he is a 10 year boy and then posing as an orphan in order to find and steal a kindly old woman's money who has taken him in. He plans to then ride the wheel forwards 24 times so no one will ever find the culprit. The boys tell the woman, but are not believed, so they wait until the man is on the ferris wheel and sends it into the future....with amazing results.

Reprints

• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1985 series) #4 (1985)
• in Monsieur Sourire (Albin Michel, 1985 series) (1985) [N&B [B&W]]
• in The Vault of Horror (Gladstone, 1990 series) #2 (October 1990)
• in Haunt of Fear (Russ Cochran, 1991 series) #2 (November 1991)
• in Ray Bradbury Comics (Topps, 1993 series) #2 (April 1993)
which is reprinted
• in The Ray Bradbury Chronicles (NBM, 1992 series) #4 (1993)
• in Iskalde Grøss (Semic, 1982 series) #3/1993 (uke 25 1993)
• in The X-Files Comics Digest (Topps, 1995 series) #2 (April 1996)
• in Haunt of Fear (Gemstone, 1994 series) #18 (February 1997)
• in Nemi (Hjemmet / Egmont, 2003 series) #31 ([november] 2005) [2. translation]
• in Home to Stay! The Complete EC Ray Bradbury Stories (Fantagraphics, 2022 series) (January 2023)

Indexer Notes

Letterer credit by Craig Delich.

Based on the Ray Bradbury short story that was first published in the May 1948 issue of "Weird Tales" magazine.