A GLIMPSE OF THE PIT

Besides all the werewolves, vampires and ghouls, the devil himself is probably the most recurring villain during the pre-Code horror comics era.

Doris Duncan becomes a nasty bit of work after she is lured by money to commit murder. A quick trip through Hell with the Devil as her guide has her changing her ways after she is sent back to the land of the living for another chance. Usually, these stories don't turn out so well!

The story, "A Glimpse of the Pit" appeared in Comic Media's HORRIFIC #9 (January 1954) and was illustrated by Pete Morisi.

HAVING A FRIEND FOR DINNER

Ol' Billy Boy gets a little more than he bargained fer when he gives a lift to a beautiful young girl in the backwoods of the Smoky Mountains. Ya' see, a beautiful young girl alone and a remote country road do not add up to a good end to whoever falls for the age-old trick.

Introduced by "The Teller of Tales", "The Deadliest Witch", drawn by Rudy Palais appeard in Comic Media's HORRIFIC #12 (July 1954).

AN EXTRA SHOT IN THE HEAD

Any fan of pre-Code horror comics will be familiar with the infamous cover shown above by Don Heck for HORRIFIC (Comic Media, January 1953). What you may not know is that Heck recycled the "horrific" image from a cover he did just a few months before for the first issue of Comic Media's WAR FURY (September 1952).

Heck added an extra touch of horror for this war comic with the G.I. giving the North Korean soldier a shot of burning petrochemical by way of his flame-thrower.

Some images are just too good to be used only once!

LOOK, MA -- NO HANDS!

One of the themes explored in TwoMorrows' latest issue of the new CRYPTOLOGY is that of disembodied hands. The idea of a severed limb has forever frightened people, especially if it comes back to life!

Peter Normanton discusses dismembered limbs in his pre-code horror comics excesses article. Like a number of other tropes, this device was used numerous times and in the most outlandish ways. One of the stories he mentions is "Devil Claws" from HORRIFIC #3 (Comic Media, January 1953). Likely out of the Iger Shop, the writer and artist are unknown, so I'll let the story speak -- or scream -- for itself. Ugh!

A HECK OF AN ARTIST

Don Heck (January 2, 1929 – February 23, 1995) may be better known for his work with Marvel, such as being the long-time illustrator for the original Avengers and co-creating characters including Iron Man and Black Widow, but he was also a first class story and cover artist for a long list of Pre-Code horror comics, specifically for Comic Media.

He originally went to work for Harvey Comics in 1949 and one of his assignments was to modify Milton Caniff's newspaper strips TERRY AND THE PIRATES and STEVE CANYON into comic book form. He was a big fan of Caniff and incorporated some of his style into his own work. When friend and fellow-artist left Harvey to go freelance, Heck went with him and found assignments at Quality, Hillman and Toby.

In 1952, Allen Hardy, a staffer at Harvey, left to form his own comic book company, Comic Media. Knowing Heck's work, he called him up and offered him a job. Heck accepted and his two earliest works for Hardy were a story for WAR COMICS #1 (September 1952) and the cover and story, "Hitler's Head" for WEIRD TERROR #1, also in September (see below).

Heck hit his stride with the Comic Media horror comics line and produced some of the most memorable (and controversial) covers and art of the Pre-Code period, including his infamous bullet-hole to the head cover for HORRIFIC #3.

Here are a few more examples of his startling cover art for Comic Media:

Horrific #4.

Horrific #6.

Horrific #12.

Horrific #14.

Weird Terror #3.

Weird Terror #4.

Weird Terror #5.

Weird Terror #6.

Weird Terror #8.

Weird Terror #12.

This is Heck's original art for the cover of WEIRD TERROR #12. It is rendered in ink over graphite on 14" x 21" Bristol board. It was auctioned from EC expert Roger Hill's collection and the text paste-ups may be from Mr. Hill himself since restoration of comic logos and cover texts were an area of his expertise. This affords an excellent opportunity to observe Don Heck's exquisitely fine line work.

Source: Heritage Auctions.