(December 1957)
- Volume:
- 1
- Price:
- 0.10 USD
- Pages:
- 36
- Indicia frequency:
- bi-monthly
- Indicia Publisher:
- Chipiden Publishing Corp.
- Editing:
- Stan Lee
- Format:
- Four Color; Standard Golden Age and Silver Age US; Newsprint; Saddle-Stitched; On-Going Series
Issue Notes
Distributed to newstands in August 1957. This issue includes 10 pages of paid advertisements.
This is the first issue of Strange Tales published after a publication hiatus caused by the collapse of Atlas's distributor and the subsequent restructuring known as the "Atlas Implosion". This is the last issue with stories bearing the "One of the Strangest Tales Ever Told!" logo used since 1952 on their first page. This may indicate the use of inventory pre-implosion stories.
Some information on this issue supplied by Tom Lammers and the Atlas/Timely discussion list. Distribution date from Joseph Marek's Marvel Comics Group history website.
The Abyss! (Table of Contents)
cover / 1 page (report information)
Credits
- Pencils:
- Bill Everett
- Inks:
- Bill Everett
- Colors:
- ?
- Letters:
- ?
Content Information
- Genre:
- occult
With Just One Stroke (Table of Contents)
comic story / 4 pages (report information)
Credits
- Script:
- ?
- Pencils:
- John Forte
- Inks:
- John Forte
- Colors:
- ?
- Letters:
- ?
- Job Number:
- M-220
Content Information
- Genre:
- occult
- Characters:
- John Durston
- Synopsis:
- A criminal discovers a magic pen, which makes anything that he writes come true. It runs dry when he is trying to steal jewels, leaving him trapped in a vault to die.
Rude Awakening! (Table of Contents)
comic story / 4 pages (report information)
Credits
- Script:
- ?
- Pencils:
- George Woodbridge
- Inks:
- George Woodbridge
- Colors:
- ?
- Letters:
- ?
- Job Number:
- M-182
Content Information
- Genre:
- horror; occult
- Characters:
- Parks; Davis; Mason
- Synopsis:
- An embezzler dreams he will be caught, and kills the man he dreams responsible. The murder is another dream, as he is jailed pending sentence for embezzlement. He wakes to find himself being sentenced for murder, instead of embezzlement.
The Final Shot! (Table of Contents)
comic story / 4 pages (report information)
Credits
- Script:
- ?
- Pencils:
- Robert Q. Sale
- Inks:
- Robert Q. Sale
- Colors:
- ?
- Letters:
- ?
- Job Number:
- M-151
Content Information
- Genre:
- crime
- Characters:
- Mike Dillon; Frank Rochelle; Dan Gavin; Eric Dixon; Louis Ruppert; Grogan
- Synopsis:
- A convict released from prison attempts to get revenge on those responsible for placing him there. He shoots them with a chemical compound that makes them susceptible to suggestion in order to force them to commit crimes. His plan fails when he misses the detective who arrested him and the man just plays along to find out what his scheme is.
Child's Play! (Table of Contents)
comic story / 4 pages (report information)
Credits
- Script:
- ?
- Pencils:
- Christopher Rule ?; Ed Winiarski
- Inks:
- Christopher Rule
- Colors:
- ?
- Letters:
- ?
- Job Number:
- M-171
Content Information
- Genre:
- science fiction
- Characters:
- Rod Manning; Dr. Lang; Charlie Manning; Alice Manning
- Synopsis:
- A rich man gets forces a scientist to give him a robot as a toy for his son despite his warnings. It tries to burn the house down, and the man apologizes to the scientist for not listening.
Indexer Notes
Inks and some or all pencils attributed to Christopher Rule identified by Dr. Michael Vassallo. According to From the Tomb Magazine #10, Ed Winiarski may have contributed pencils. Art originally incorrectly attributed to "J. Makowski" by Jim Vadaboncoeur, Jr. based on a comparison with a Makowski-pencilled story later found to be inked by Rule.
Crackpot Chemist (Table of Contents)
text story / 2 pages (report information)
Credits
- Script:
- ?
- Pencils:
- ?
- Inks:
- ?
- Colors:
- ?
- Letters:
- typeset
- Job Number:
- H-57
Content Information
- Genre:
- science fiction
- Characters:
- Jasper McReedy; Stella McReedy; Linda McReedy; Tom Logan; Bob Webster
- Synopsis:
- A dedicated chemist invents a formula to give people a healthy weight, and his daughter accidentally tests it on the neighbors.
- Reprinted:
- from Marvel Tales (Marvel, 1949 series) #140 (November 1955) [originally titled "The Dreamer"]
Indexer Notes
Text story with illustration.
The Puppet Man (Table of Contents)
comic story / 3 pages (report information)
Credits
- Script:
- ?
- Pencils:
- Dan Loprino
- Inks:
- Dan Loprino
- Colors:
- ?
- Letters:
- ?
- Job Number:
- M-170
Content Information
- Genre:
- horror
- Characters:
- Mathews
- Synopsis:
- An amnesiac confesses to a murder he doesn't remember, but applause reminds him that he is only an actor lost in his role.
The Abyss! (Table of Contents)
comic story / 4 pages (report information)
Credits
- Script:
- ?
- Pencils:
- Jim Mooney
- Inks:
- Jim Mooney
- Colors:
- ?
- Letters:
- ?
- Job Number:
- M-156
Content Information
- Genre:
- occult
- Characters:
- Leos; Karol; Maria
- Synopsis:
- Political refugees seeking to flee tyranny are assisted by supernatural beings, and realize once they reach freedom that they crossed over Mt. Olympus.
Indexer Notes
The characters in this story could conceivably have been fleeing from Communist Yugoslavia or Bulgaria, but this would mean that their pursuers were able to follow quite far into Greece.
Table of Contents
-
1.
With Just One Stroke
-
2.
Rude Awakening!
-
3.
The Final Shot!
-
4.
Child's Play!
-
5.
Crackpot Chemist
-
6.
The Puppet Man
-
7.
The Abyss!
- Ethan Hoddes
- Thomas G. Lammers
- Bill Borre
- Bob Klein
- Lou Mougin
- Martin O'Hearn
- Tony R. Rose
- Jim Vadeboncoeur
- Henry R. Kujawa
- Thomas G. Lammers
All portions of the Grand Comics Database that are subject to copyright are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. This includes but is not necessarily limited to our database schema and data distribution format.