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was successful enough to continue publishing under its original numbering, starting with #15 (February 1954). The final issue of this first
Charlton run was #21 (November 1954). For a time at least, Charlton attempted to maintain the moody atmosphere of its predecessor, even retaining the services of
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Access to the Beyond took numerous forms. Ghostly express trains made midnight runs to the other side, carrying the spirits of the recently departed. Phantom cruise liners ferried moldering passengers through the Sea of the Dead. Unwary travellers often found themselves making a one-way trip on the
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Human folly played a key role in many stories; characters were constantly led into disaster by their own greed, stupidity or outright corruption. Numerous plots revolved around violent criminals meeting grisly but entirely deserving fates, while others featured hapless bystanders trapped in bizarre
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with two supernatural titles, signing a contract stipulating that he would be paid a commission if the books were successful. Several months later, when EC's horror comics hit the newsstands, Gaines apparently reneged on the deal, threatening to blacklist
Moldoff if he took legal action. Moldoff
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to provide explanations and plot details. Unlike EC's so-called "GhouLunatics" however, Dr. Death frequently orchestrated events in the narrative, acting as the hand of Fate and even driving the characters towards their ultimate destruction. To this end, he was capable of taking on human form to
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The Beyond seemed to be the abode of all of humanity's worst fears; vampires, ghosts and demons existed alongside dragons, witches and harpies. All seemed generally hostile towards mankind; some periodically crossed over to prey on selected victims or to seek vengeance on former tormentors. The
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The Beyond was a mysterious plane of existence which occasionally encroached on the physical world. A shadowy limbo vaguely akin to the
Afterlife, it served as the source of the many supernatural menaces which threatened the "Realm of the Living". In a number of cases, it was a grey, lifeless
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came under fire during the anti-comics backlash of the early fifties (although generally speaking, its content was not quite as visceral as its rivals). Ironically, this was not the reason for the title's cancellation; Fawcett dropped its entire comics line in 1953, largely as a result of an
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was notable for employing "The Beyond" as a unifying element to many of its storylines. While the idea was not used consistently, it became a recurring plot device in all of
Fawcett's horror titles, sometimes playing an essential role in the narrative.
455:(possibly designed by Ditko, by now the title's lead artist). The comic continued bi-monthly another two years despite the financial problems besetting the comics industry at the time. The final issue of the second Charlton run was #16 (May 1958).
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featured mainly non-continuing stories narrated by a suitably malevolent host, the cadaverous Doctor Death. Resembling a decaying corpse dressed as a
Victorian undertaker, Doctor Death played much the same role as The Crypt Keeper in
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was
Fawcett's first successful attempt to enter the lucrative horror market with a comic devoted specifically to supernatural fiction. The book represented a break from Fawcett's more familiar product, which ranged from superheroes
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storylines dealt with the standard horror themes of the period: vengeance from beyond the grave, macabre retribution and 'dark' justice, all of which were presented with an appropriate level of irony.
540:
Sennitt, p. 36. Sennitt considers EC's narrative structure to be "formulaic" in comparison to
Fawcett's approach. He did, however, rank EC amongst the highest quality publications of the period.
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Road to
Nowhere. Sometimes, mechanised transport was completely unnecessary - swamps, caves and haunted houses all seemed to lie within the outer boundaries of The Beyond.
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traffic appeared to flow in both directions; mortals could inadvertently find themselves trapped in the Beyond before the end of their natural lives.
616:#17), a self-parodic tale in which Bill Gaines and Al Feldstein are lured into the sewers and blackmailed into publishing the GhouLunatics' stories.
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which emphasized murder, violence, and horrific crimes. Many authorities believe that the tradition was passed down to the 50s horror genre via the
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Doctor Death as the series' narrator. While not quite up to
Fawcett's standards artistically, Charlton's run was distinguished by some of
367:#1, Doctor Death was the series' host until its cancellation in 1953. He returned for a number of issues when the magazine was acquired by
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As noted by Watt-Evans, Fawcett's horror comics were "loosely modeled after the E.C. format but not directly imitating E.C.'s approach".
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indicia identifies
Fawcett as the publisher, the magazine never carried the company's logo on its covers. Speaking in an interview with
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was the horror comic genre itself, which according to Watt-Evans, represented around one-sixth of the comics market at its 1954 peak.
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interact with his intended victims, feeding them bad advice or (somewhat maliciously) betraying their trust at crucial moments.
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in 1954, the content was toned down considerably, dealing with magic, mystery and suspense rather than with outright horror.
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Comics historian Stephen Sennitt describes the Fawcett line as "genuinely eerie" in contrast to EC's more visceral approach.
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between 1951 and 1953. Running 14 issues, it was the first of Fawcett's supernatural line; a string of titles which included
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553:#10 features a severed head on the end of a fishing line, precisely the kind of imagery that anti-comics crusader
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The magazine was rebooted two years later, restarting with #12 in 1957. Doctor Death was replaced by
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stated that Fawcett had been very reluctant to carry any horror titles, and only agreed to publish
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EC's ghoulish hosts occasionally also appeared in stories, such as "Horror Beneath the Streets" (
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that part of Charlton's acquisition included unused artwork from a number of Fawcett titles.
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arguing that horror comics were an outgrowth of the popular 'true crime' genre of the 1940s.
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Thomas, Roy. "A Moon... A Bat... A Hawk: A Candid Conversation with Sheldon Moldoff."
595:- to Fawcett Publications for the sum of $ 100.00 - "and all the work I wanted." From
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of the previous decades. The first was the Crime-Horror imagery of magazines like
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climaxes. Drawing on the considerable creative resources of the Fawcett stable,
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and edited by Will Leiberson and Al Jetter, the book was loosely modeled after
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inhabited by rotting corpses; in others, a place of perpetual torment akin to
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and its companions followed at least two literary traditions derived from the
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It is possible that Charlton simply printed several unpublished issues of
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in 1954, a deal which included the four horror titles. Evidently,
238:'s New Trend, particularly their highly successful horror titles.
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375:, Doctor Death took on a progressively less skeletal appearance.
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Les Daniels was one of the first to discuss the relationship in
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Watt-Evans, Lawrence. "The Other Guys:Pre-code Horror Comics."
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Vol. 3, no. 4. Reprinted online by Two Morrows Publishing.
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Dr. Death resembled Mr. Crime, the cartoon mascot from
268:. A typically gruesome cover featuring a walking corpse
399:(although it was never specifically defined as such).
38:#5, published by Fawcett Comics (June 1952). Cover by
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Ghastly Terror: The Horrible Story of Horror Comics.
305:featured numerous stories combining the two areas.
180:is a horror comic that was originally published by
230:) to movie adaptations and teen humor. Created by
655:Seal of Approval: The History of the Comics Code.
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415:Along with many other titles of a similar vein,
1519:Comics magazines published in the United States
491:after the genre was too popular to ignore. See
308:Of course, by far the most potent influence on
648:Comix: A History of the Comic Book in America.
568:Comix: A History of the Comic Book in America,
549:There were exceptions of course; the cover of
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629:under their own logo. Don Markstein notes in
279:Aside from the evident cinematic influences,
245:was notable for its black humor and frequent
221:Debuting with a cover date of October 1951,
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371:in 1954. As rendered by Charlton stalwart
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509:American Comic Book Chronicles: The 1950s
691:of Golden Age Fawcett Comics, including
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431:Fawcett sold most of its properties to
105:Vol. 1: Oct. 1951 – Dec. 1953 (Fawcett)
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657:University Press of Mississippi, 1998.
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511:. TwoMorrows Publishing. p. 47.
586:, Moldoff claims to have approached
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241:Like its better-known competitors,
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331:Once more following EC's example,
205:After Fawcett ceased publication,
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1365:The Many Ghosts of Doctor Graves
420:industry-wide sales slump and a
363:First appearing on the cover of
327:s cadaverous host, Doctor Death.
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264:#4 (April 1952). Cover art by
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273:or terrifying circumstances.
209:was sold to and published by
664:Manchester, Headpress, 1999.
591:eventually sold the title -
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109:Vol. 2: July 1957 – May 1958
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497:, vol. 3, #4 (Spring 2000).
107:Feb. – Nov. 1954 (Charlton)
10:
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601:, vol. 3, #4 (Spring 2000)
295:Flynn's Detective Fiction,
120:Vol. 1 : 14 (Fawcett)
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930:If This Be My Destiny...!
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507:Schelly, William (2013).
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1401:This Magazine Is Haunted
1387:Strange Suspense Stories
1263:Secrets of Haunted House
693:This Magazine is Haunted
593:This Magazine is Haunted
417:This Magazine is Haunted
352:Lev Gleason Publications
310:This Magazine is Haunted
243:This Magazine is Haunted
223:This Magazine is Haunted
207:This Magazine is Haunted
195:Strange Suspense Stories
177:This Magazine is Haunted
23:This Magazine Is Haunted
1549:Defunct American comics
1269:Shade, the Changing Man
650:Mad Peck Studios, 1971.
47:Publication information
1524:Charlton Comics titles
1316:Blue Beetle (Ted Kord)
1279:Starman (Prince Gavyn)
761:The Amazing Spider-Man
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301:of the later forties;
269:
1554:Comics by Steve Ditko
1499:Fawcett Comics titles
579:In an interview with
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339:Tales From the Crypt
186:Beware! Terror Tales
1534:1958 comics endings
1509:1953 comics endings
1033:Midtown High School
653:Nyberg, Amy Kiste.
213:from 1954 to 1958.
1504:1951 comics debuts
1215:Beware the Creeper
747:Amazing Adventures
676:The Scream Factory
660:Sennitt, Stephen.
357:Crime Does Not Pay
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270:
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1376:Punch and Jewelee
1203:1st Issue Special
1163:Tales to Astonish
1156:Tales of Suspense
1088:Sanctum Sanctorum
966:Kraven the Hunter
904:Frederick Foswell
613:The Haunt of Fear
588:William M. Gaines
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129:Main character(s)
16:Horror comic book
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1458:Secret City Saga
1246:House of Secrets
1108:Sorcerer Supreme
1008:Mary Jane Watson
1002:Marvel Spotlight
936:J. Jonah Jameson
894:Farley Stillwell
812:Captain Universe
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951:Jason Macendale
889:Eye of Agamotto
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342:, breaking the
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232:Sheldon Moldoff
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156:Sheldon Moldoff
146:Sheldon Moldoff
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827:Crime Master
822:Clea Strange
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122:7 (Charlton)
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1411:Independent
1150:Sunset Bain
1013:Master Khan
847:Dragon Lord
792:Betty Brant
787:Baron Mordo
772:Anna Watson
767:Ancient One
730:Steve Ditko
581:Alter Ego's
446:Comics Code
442:Steve Ditko
373:Steve Ditko
344:fourth wall
160:Steve Ditko
1493:Categories
1447:The Mocker
1394:The Thing!
1371:Nightshade
1123:Spider-Man
1053:Monsteroso
1048:Molten Man
919:Gwen Stacy
669:Alter Ego,
641:References
631:Toonopedia
584:Roy Thomas
477:Roy Thomas
379:The Beyond
290:Black Mask
142:Created by
1238:Hank Hall
1194:DC Comics
1174:Uncle Ben
1145:Strongman
1113:Speedball
1068:Nightmare
1063:Ned Leeds
986:Liz Allan
961:Kaecilius
867:Fancy Dan
862:Enforcers
817:Chameleon
598:Alter Ego
494:Alter Ego
481:Haunted's
473:Haunted's
471:Although
459:Footnotes
426:DC Comics
393:Purgatory
166:Editor(s)
152:Artist(s)
124:Vol 2.: 5
117:of issues
71:Bimonthly
53:Publisher
1169:Tinkerer
1098:Scorpion
1058:Mysterio
884:Eternity
842:Dormammu
802:Bluebird
777:Aunt May
483:creator
325:Haunted'
247:O. Henry
68:Schedule
1477:witzend
1442:Killjoy
1346:Haunted
1274:Stalker
1257:Proteus
1252:Odd Man
1221:Creeper
1179:Vulture
1093:Sandman
872:Montana
857:Electro
807:Burglar
627:Haunted
551:Haunted
489:Haunted
437:Haunted
384:Haunted
365:Haunted
333:Haunted
303:Haunted
281:Haunted
262:Haunted
251:Haunted
182:Fawcett
36:Haunted
1464:Static
1418:Creepy
1359:Madmen
1227:Ghosts
1078:Oscorp
1018:Melter
991:Looter
981:Lizard
971:Leader
946:Jackal
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217:Format
198:, and
93:Horror
76:Format
1470:Warp!
1452:Mr. A
1436:Eerie
1430:Djinn
1353:Konga
1339:Gorgo
424:with
86:Genre
1184:Wong
513:ISBN
397:Hell
852:Eel
293:or
115:No.
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