CRYPTOLOGY NO. 5 NOW SHIPPING

The latest issue of TwoMorrows' CRYPTOLOGY is now available. Edited by Peter "It Came From the Tomb" Normanton, issue #5 is another spectacular, full-color tome packed to the coffin lid with retro creep culture.

Here's the 411 from editor Normanton:

“If you thought you heard the rattle of bones, you were right! This time ’round, I, the Cryptologist, have dug up a few skeletons in the closet of my creepy little magazine. We have the Ghost Rider, from comic books through until his incarnation on the cinema screen! There are skulls aplenty on the covers dating back to the pulps, Martin Goodman’s Atlas Digests, and horror comics from the pre-Code era! We unearth Hy Fleishman’s hideous skeleton covers from the 1950s, along with a few of the stories he drew. “Toys from the Crypt” examines Walt Disney’s skeletons, vintage Pirates of the Caribbean models of the 1970s, plus Last Gasp’s Skull Comics and the films of William Castle. If that’s not enough, our Killer B department has exhumed a few skull and bones classics: House on Haunted Hill, The Four Skulls of Jonathan Drake and The Skull! And don’t forget our Hammertime section. So roll the bones for a magazine made especially for you retro horror fans, by Leese, Voger, the Kronenbergs, and editor Peter Normanton!”

But wait -- that's not all! There's more good news: Earlier this year I was fortunate to land a spot on the writing staff of CRYPTOLOGY. My first article, "Hoist High the Skull and Crossbones! The Pirates of the Caribbean, From Theme Park Ride to Model Kits" appears in this issue's "Toys From the Crypt" department. I've got another one in the pipeline for a later issue and two more articles for the future. Needless to say, I'm very excited to be a part of this excellent publication from TwoMorrows and Peter Normanton. I'll keep you posted on any new developments.

To see a 22-page preview go HERE.

To order go HERE.

NO MORE TWOMORROW(S)?

Regular visitors to this site will have earlier seen a banner under the WOM blog title asking to help keep TwoMorrrows Publishing alive by making a purchase directly from them. Since then, I received an order from them with a letter explaining their predicament. Like other independent companies, they have been ripped off by the inept and greedy bastards at Diamond Distributors. Recent news has reported that they are looking for a buyer to bail them out, but if and when that happens, TwoMorrows and dozens of others have been left on a precarious financial lurch, to the point where a few have already announced they are out of business because of this train wreck.

If you've purchased anything from TwoMorrows before, be it from a newsstand, comic book shop or via mail order, you know that these folks publish some of the best, highest-quality books and magazines on the topic of comics and popular culture that are being produced today. For that reason, I consider them damn near a National Treasure.

With that, on behalf of TwoMorrows, I'm asking that you take a look at the letter and scanned flyers below, and if you're anywhere near interested (and how can you not be?), visit their site and make a purchase, now matter how large or small, print or digital. For instance, if you missed buying a print copy of THE CHARLTON COMPANION -- which is now commanding high prices for used copies from various sellers -- you can get an immediate download of the digital PDF for only $14.99.

And don't forget to try out CRYPTOLOGY, their newest magazine that covers all things monster, including movies, comics, toys and collectibles, all with a retro-spin. Admittedly, I have a bit of an ulterior motive for this particular request, as I am on the writing staff of the magazine, and I'd sure hate to see it disappear!

Thanks for your support, and as Stan Lee was famous for saying: Nuff Said!

Browse the TwoMorrows site HERE.

COMING . . . A NEW MONSTER MAG!

Who says print monster magazines are a thing of the past? The folks at TwoMorrows Publishing are unleashing a new magazine, CRYPTOLOGY with the first issue due this October. According to their website, three more are planned through the beginning of 2025. The editor is horror comics' Crown Prince, Peter Normanton, who dazzled us some years ago with his indie-published FROM THE TOMB.

 À la EC Comics, et al, The Cryptologist will guide us through each issue, and according to the provided information, it will be a mix of articles about retro monster movies and comics, which sounds quite alright to me.

If any of you are lucky enough to know about this outfit and the quality -- no. the highest quality publications about comics and pop culture, you know this will be as good as it gets.

Other recommended titles from TwoMorrows: ALTER EGO, BACK ISSUE, COMIC BOOK ARTIST, and JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR.

CRYPTOLOGY pre-order information is HERE.

Now, excuse me while I go do a happy dance.

“Greetings, creep culturists! For my debut issue, I, the Cryptologist (with the help of From The Tomb editor Peter Normanton), have exhumed the worst Horror Comics excesses of the 1950s, Killer “B” movies to die for, and the creepiest, kookiest toys that crossed your boney little fingers as a child! But wait... do you dare enter the House of Usher, or choose sides in the skirmish between the Addams Family and The Munsters?! Can you stand to gaze at Warren magazine frontispieces by this issue’s cover artist Bernie Wrightson, or spend some Hammer Time with that studio’s most frightening films? And if Atlas pre-code covers or terrifying science-fiction are more than you can take, stay away! All this, and more, is lurching toward you in TwoMorrows Publishing’s latest, and most decrepit, magazine—just for retro horror fans, and featuring my henchmen Will Murray, Mark Voger, Barry Forshaw, Tim Leese, Pete von Sholly, and Steve and Michael Kronenberg!”

"Heh-heh-heh, it’s me again—the Cryptologist—and my ghastly little band have cooked up a few more grisly morsels to terrorize you with! Amongst them is Roger Hill’s conversation with diabolical Don Heck, along with a complete 1950s story by that fabled horror comics artist! For something even more gruesome, Steven Kronenberg slices up his favorite severed hand films! Barry Forshaw brings back the otherworldly horrors of Hammer’s Quatermass, while Tim Leese spends more Hammer Time on that studio’s output. Then, Richard Hand resurrects spooky old radio shows, while editor Peter Normanton prepares a viewing of horror-inspired covers from the Shadow’s own 1940s comic book! We’ll cover another Killer “B” movie classic, along with more pre-Code comic books, and Pete Von Sholly gives his twisted take on cartoon horror. So peer into the dark side with TwoMorrows Publishing’s latest terror—scribed just for retro horror fans!"

“I, the Cryptologist, am back with editor Peter Normanton and my horrible little troop of ne’er do wells, to inflict the dread of Mars Attacks upon you—the banned cards, model kits, and despicable comics, along with a few words from the film’s deranged storyboard artist Pete von Sholly! The chilling poster art of Reynold Brown gets brought up from my vault by Steve Kronenberg, along with a host of terrifying puppets from film, and more pre-Code comic books Dr. Wertham would prefer you forget! Plus, Tim Leese spends more Hammer Time on that studio’s films, we run from another Killer “B” movie (1959’s The Manster), and Justin Marriot flips through obscure ’70s fear-filled paperbacks. It’s more retro-horror to satiate your sinister side!”

“I, the Cryptologist, throw open my putrid sanctuary, as acclaimed illustrator Alex Ross regales us with the gory lowdown on his Universal Monsters paintings. Tim Leese and Hammer Time then take us face-to-face with that studio’s classic film “Brides of Dracula.” Mark Voger puts the horrors of 3-D movies of the 1950s into focus, and editor Peter Normanton literally brings that era’s 3-D comic books to life with a mini-history, and complete 3-D story reprint! From there, we embark on a journey to discover the early origins of blood-curdling slasher movies, as a prelude to the macabre pre-Code artwork of Atlas’s Bill Everett and ACG’s 3-D maestro Harry Lazarus. Another Killer “B” movie awaits (courtesy of Steve Kronenberg), as does cartoon creepiness by Pete Von Sholly. It’s a crypt full of the macabre, prepared especially for retro horror fans!””