Tales to Astonish #17 [British]

(March 1961)

Vandoom, the Man Who Made a Creature!, Chapter 1 (Table of Contents: 1)

comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Stan Lee ? (plot); Larry Lieber ? (script)

Pencils

Jack Kirby (signed as KIRBY)

Inks

Dick Ayers (signed as Ayers)

Colors

Stan Goldberg

Letters

Artie Simek

Job Number

V-55

First Line of Dialogue or Text

You, Frankenstein, were the most famous monster to walk the earth...

Genre

horror-suspense; science fiction

Characters

Ludwig Vandoom; Vandoom's Creature

Synopsis

Vandoom, the owner of a Transylvanian wax museum, sets out to build a new monster in order to bring customers back to the museum. A lightning bolt brings the creature to life, but despite the fearful attacks of the villagers, it is not hostile and does not strike back. An invasion force of Martians lands and Vandoom convinces his creation to attack them. The wax figure defeats them, but the effort drains the life force out of it.

Reprints

• in Spellbound (L. Miller & Son, 1960 ? series) #44 (1964)
• in Where Creatures Roam (Marvel, 1970 series) #4 (January 1971) [part 1]
• in Acção e Mistério - Edição Especial (Palirex, 1977 ? series) #3 - Os Monstros ([1977]) [black & white]
• in Monster Masterworks (Marvel, 1989 series) (1989)
• in Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Tales to Astonish (Marvel, 2006 series) #2 ([March] 2008)
• in Monsters Unleashed Prelude (Marvel, 2017 series) (2017)
• in Monsters: The Marvel Monsterbus by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber & Jack Kirby (Marvel, 2017 series) #1 (2017)

Indexer Notes

Although vampires were not allowed in Comics Code approved books a wax figure of Dracula (along with other traditional monsters recognizable from the Universal horror films, including the Frankenstein Monster, Wolfman and the Mummy) slips through in this this story.

Chapter 2: The Mark of Vandoom (Table of Contents: 2)

comic story / 7 pages (report information)

Script

Stan Lee ? (plot); Larry Lieber ? (script)

Pencils

Jack Kirby (signed as KIRBY)

Inks

Dick Ayers (signed as Ayers)

Colors

Stan Goldberg

Letters

Ray Holloway ?

Job Number

V-55

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Through a one-in-a-billion accident when the mysterious lightning hit my...

Genre

horror-suspense; science fiction

Characters

Ludwig Vandoom; Vandoom's Creature

Reprints

• in Where Creatures Roam (Marvel, 1970 series) #4 (January 1971) [part 2]
• in Acção e Mistério - Edição Especial (Palirex, 1977 ? series) #3 - Os Monstros ([1977]) [black & white]
• in Monster Masterworks (Marvel, 1989 series) (1989) [part 2]
• in Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Tales to Astonish (Marvel, 2006 series) #2 ([March] 2008)
• in Monsters Unleashed Prelude (Marvel, 2017 series) (2017)
• in Monsters: The Marvel Monsterbus by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber & Jack Kirby (Marvel, 2017 series) #1 (2017)

The Spirit (Table of Contents: 3)

text story / 2 pages (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

?

Inks

?

Colors

?

Letters

typeset

Job Number

J-169

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Bobby Davis was despondent.

Genre

fantasy-supernatural

Characters

Bobby Davis; Tom Davis; Alice Davis;

Synopsis

A young boy cleans out the attic of the old house his family moved into and meets a ghost from the Revolutionary War era.

Reprints

• from Astonishing (Marvel, 1951 series) #49 (May 1956)
• in Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Tales to Astonish (Marvel, 2006 series) #2 ([March] 2008)

Indexer Notes

Text story with illustration.

Beware! Of the Ghastly Glass! (Table of Contents: 4)

comic story / 5 pages (report information)

Script

Stan Lee ?

Pencils

Steve Ditko (signed as Steve Ditko)

Inks

Steve Ditko (signed as Steve Ditko)

Colors

Stan Goldberg

Letters

Artie Simek

Job Number

V-54

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Twilight! Two shadowy figures prowl the streets, searching, seeking...

Genre

horror-suspense

Characters

Bruno

Synopsis

A man kills to gain possession of a magic crystal that grants him four wishes, but even his carefully worded wishes backfire, stranding him on the Moon.

Reprints

• in Amazing Stories of Suspense (Alan Class, 1963 series) #17 (1964 ?)
• in Where Creatures Roam (Marvel, 1970 series) #4 (January 1971)
which is reprinted
• in X-mændene (Williams, 1973 series) #2/1973 (1973)
• in Amazing Stories of Suspense (Alan Class, 1963 series) #142 ([circa 1974 - 1975])
• in X-Mannen Classics (Classics/Williams, 1971 series) #26 (1974)
• in Amazing Stories of Suspense (Alan Class, 1963 series) #175 ([circa 1979 - 1980])
• in Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Tales to Astonish (Marvel, 2006 series) #2 ([March] 2008)
• in Marvel Masters of Suspense: Stan Lee & Steve Ditko Omnibus (Marvel, 2019 series) #1 (2019)

Indexer Notes

Narrated in the third person. Although the story is unsigned Nick Caputo suspects that Stan Lee may be the author, as examined in his blog:

http://nick-caputo.blogspot.com/2011/11/who-authored-ditko.html

I Dared to Enter the Haunted Room! (Table of Contents: 5)

comic story / 5 pages (report information)

Script

Stan Lee ? (plot); Larry Lieber ? (script)

Pencils

Don Heck

Inks

Don Heck

Colors

Stan Goldberg

Letters

Ray Holloway ?

Job Number

V-37

First Line of Dialogue or Text

It's just nonsense...

Genre

horror-suspense

Characters

Mr. Smith

Synopsis

A scientist builds an ultimate bomb and plans to use it to hold the world hostage. He hides it in a room believed haunted, but when he goes to give his ultimatum to the UN he realizes that he is now a ghost.

Reprints

• in Astounding Stories (Alan Class, 1966 series) #53
• in Sinister Tales (Alan Class, 1964 series) #11
• in Tower of Shadows (Marvel, 1969 series) #9 (January 1971)
which is reprinted
• in X-mændene (Williams, 1973 series) #2/1974 (1974)
• in Sinister Tales (Alan Class, 1964 series) #165 ([circa 1978 - 1979]), #199 ([circa 1984 - 1985])
• in Astounding Stories (Alan Class, 1966 series) #191 ([circa 1988 - 1989])
• in Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Tales to Astonish (Marvel, 2006 series) #2 ([March] 2008)