From Zombos' Closet

Dr. Silkini's Asylum of Horrors

Dr. Silkini's Asylum of Horrors with the Frankenstein Monster really packed them in.

 

The Monster Times Issue 16 October 1972

By issue 16 of The Monster Times it was fairly apparent that this tabloid-sized monster magazine was well executed and keeping pace with the monsterkid-now-popular-culture-junkie that prowled the movie theaters and comic book conventions in the 1970s. Showing more editorial and article prowess than most of its brethren on the magazine racks, the first-person articles--written by the monster or pivotal movie character himself (or herself)--took a little getting used to, but it was different. In this issue Mighty Joe Young demands his rights while Godzilla makes it perfectly clear that he's announcing his candidacy for President of the United States. Keeping things a little more traditional is Jim Wnorski, writing on plant-based menaces in The Roots of Evil, and R. Allen Leider satisfying the country's need for a good old-fashioned horror film in Dr. Phibes Rises Again. On the comics front, Michael Uslan convinces us that Comics are Good Learnin! and there's a report on the 3rd San Diego Comic Convention. Highlights were an electrical failure that darkened the dealer's room, and some prankster dumped shark repellent into the swimming pool, turning it bright yellow. Those crazy fanboys! 

Quasimodo's Monster Magazine Issue 5, November 1975 Part 2

Return to Part 1

In part 2 of Quasimodo's Monster Magazine issue 5, Lee Majors gets his closeup as The Six Million Dollar Man, Peter Lorre's life is revealed by Sharon Phillips in The Lorre Story, and Space 1999 blasts off. The Stepford Wives put in an appearance to. And along with the usual monsterkid mail-order goodies are perfumes, iron-ons, and an imported lock blade stiletto for $2.75 plus 25 cents shipping, and essential to round out your cosplay for West Side Story.

Quasimodo's Monster Magazine Issue 5, November 1975 Part 1

Go to Part 2

Jekyll and Hyde: Through the Years, by Steve Abrams, kicks off this jam-packed issue 5 of Quasimodo's Monster Magazine. Ron Weiss's Heroes of the Horrors gives credit where credit is due as he interviews Calvin Beck, and Judith M. Kass interviews Himan Brown, creator of the CBS Radio Mystery Theater. Television coverage is provided for The Six Million Dollar Man and Space 1999, and Peter Lorre bio is given by Sharon Phillips. And, of course, the Gone Apes! section provides the gag-captioned photos we've come to expect from monster magazines published around this time. All in all, a stellar issue of monster coverage that's informative as well as entertaining.

The Monster Times Issue 37, December 1974

Gammera the Invincible kicks off this issue 37 of The Monster Times, while the Planet of the Apes television series is given due attention, as well as the X-rated Flesh Gordon, that naughty version of our favorite planet-tripping serial hero. I recall seeing this oddity in a somewhat scrubby looking theater. Ah, the 1970s! Oh, and director Brian Clemens is interviewed. On the comics-side, The Spectre Returns, and there's the nifty Con-Calendar giving the rundown on upcoming conventions ("As with most gatherings of fans, the conventions often border on the insane, but the people are friendly and there's always a good chance you'll pick up some rare item for your collection."). In the Lousy Film Department is The Killer Shrews. Articles like Robots in the Cinema and part 2 of The Gothic Tradition in Film by Professor John Tibett make this issue a class act (in spite of the Flesh Gordon blasting all over the Universe coverage, of course).

 

The Monster Times Issue 40, April 1975

The Monster Times was a cheeky blend of movie and comic book coverage for horror, science fiction, and fantasy fans. Its tabloid size, and very pulpy paper, were eye-catching on the newstand and aimed to capture the evolution of the 1970s pop-culture fan into a multi-genre consumer who sought out like-minded devotees of the fantastic and geeky. In this issue 40, Doctor Spector and the Monsters are revealed by Ron Haydock, Fay Ray Remembers with David S. Skipper, Gail Morgan Hickman gets Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Jim Danforth, and The Phantoms of the Opera article brings them out into the open. There's lots more, but I'll let you discover it for yourself.

Cracked's For Monsters Only Issue 8, July 1969

Sporting another stylish cover by John Severin, Cracked's For Monsters Only issue 8 is chock full of great articles and a long, wonderfully ink-washed horror comic appearing after the requisite adverts. The usual photos with gag-captions abound. Richard Bojarski shines in this issue, writing two articles, Fantasy Films of the Forties (with a focus on Lon Chaney Jr) and Dwight Frye, the Mighty Midget of Menace (although I think Bojarski stretched a tad for that catchy title).

All About Star Trek Fan Clubs Issue 6, December 1977

William Shatner is in the spotlight in this issue 6 of All About Star Trek Fan Clubs. In the interview conducted by Don Wigal,  Shatner confesses to not paying "much attention to fan clubs. It was too much trouble for me to go then. Now I realize I made a mistake." Barbara Walker writes about The Well Dressed Trekker in regard to Star Fleet uniforms, and Star Wars and Star Trek: Trekkers Speak Out asks "several editors of Star Trek fanzines to comment on their appreciation of this great [Star Wars] new fantasy film." (As always, click the post title to read the magazine)

Book Review: The Grand Hotel

Zombos Says: Very Good

A supercilious host who manages the front desk, a group of tourists not sure where they are, and an ancient hotel, dimly lit and filled with boundless rooms, found at the end of a "desolate, mist-shrouded street," are the strange characters in Scott Kenemore's portmanteau novel, The Grand Hotel. And let's not ignore the disconcerting young red-haired girl, "perhaps 11 or 12."

Red-haired girls are always of particular interest in movies and novels (unless you're watching The Ring or some other Japanese Horror movie, of course, then it would be dark-haired girls instead). Anne of Green Gables had red hair, and so did Victoria in The Twilight Saga. Even Pippi Longstocking had red hair, with an attitude to match.

Kenemore's red-haired girl doesn't have a pet monkey or a horse like Pippi (I guess he didn't want to go after the young adult market), but she does have other things in common with Ms. Longstocking. Take her attitude for instance. It's as bright as her hair and attracts Vic's attention (but don't call him that, he hates that nickname). Vic is our reluctant front desk manager, oddly reluctant but still insistent tour guide, and the somewhat pompous narrator. He isn't loquacious, really. He leaves most of the talking to his charges, the hotel's regulars, who have been there perhaps too long--but are still welcomed. He also loves to use words that will have you scrambling for the dictionary. Pompous narrators like to do that.

Vic's tour begins with Mr. Pence, a very short visit to be sure since Mr. Pence is a corpse lying in bed, behind one room's stylish brass doorknob and keyhole. He still writes his little notes to Vic and pays his bills. Or so Vic insists as he leads the way to their next stop, the sunroom, where Mr. Orin spends much of his time. We listen, along with the small group of tourists, to Mr. Orin's encounter with a rather large fish in Northern Alaska, then we are hustled to the grand ballroom where Ms. Kvasov dances with her tuxedoed mannequins. She also has a tale to tell as does Detective Click, who they find, where he always is, on the large western balcony of the hotel. Each person encountered is a chapter to be told, and a lesson, perhaps, to explore. But only Vic and the red-haired girl are deathly interested in the right conclusions to be drawn. When Vic threatens to end their tour immediately should the girl not be able to provide him with satisfactory answers to his questions, the game is on, yet the mystery remains until the last visit is made.

Each visit becomes a short story in itself, of encounters with demons and other odd bumps in the night, allowing Kenemore room for variety in his deeper machinations (or a cool way to use some short stories he had collecting dust). His use of words like cruor, japery, kerfuffle, and acronychal, help set the time and place and demeanor of our host. Or confuse it, just like his guests become increasingly confused about Vic's ulterior purpose in bringing them on a tour of his grand hotel. But even the tourists aren't sure how they found the place to begin with. Neither is the red-haired girl.

The game Clue quickly comes to mind. There is indeed a mystery to be solved, but Kenemore, providing a hint in his author's note, states he was inspired by The Five and Twenty Tales of the Genie. I'm willing to bet, however, that he actually was lent a copy of Sivadasa's work by Miss Scarlet, in the library, on a dark and stormy night.

Comic Book Review: Wolf Moon Issue 1 Of Wolf and Man

Zombos Says: Very Good

A carefully structured balance between Cullen Bunn's narrative and Jeremy Haun's art keeps this first issue of Wolf Moon moving quickly, yet packed with enough groundwork explanation to set the storyline's future progression.

Dillon, a scarred man both literally and figuratively, is haunted by the werewolf and its victims, and is consumed by his need to kill the monster. He tracks the killing sprees, looking for his chance to finally end its terror.

Unlike traditional werewolf lore's bitten-and-be-cursed dilemma, Bunn hints at a different method of transmission, something that may be more random in its selection process for each person who hosts the transformation into the werewolf, and then is left with vivid memories of what has happened.

Making the monster especially dangerous is its joy for killing (and disemboweling, dismembering, and demolishing) every human being within reach; a graphic propensity that Haun has no trouble depicting. A notable panel shows the gooey impact as a fleeing victim's face is suddenly mashed up against a car window by the monster's large, hairy arm.

Why does Dillon hesitate, causing him to miss his one opportunity to finally nail the monster? Who is Mason, the other hunter, who, along with Dillon, wants to stop the werewolf from killing again? And what is causing these transformations into this killing machine at every full moon? And what the hell is going on with that cover? Let's hope the next issues answer these questions to our satisfaction as well as this first issue sets them up.

 

 

Cracked's For Monsters Only Issue 9, September 1971

With the dropping of "Cracked's" in the title, and more movie articles than cartoons, this issue may still have the gag-captioned photos, but it does have more bite for serious horror fans. House of Dark Shadows, Taste the Blood of Dracula, a monster comic, and Richard Bojarski's John Carradine, The Master Villain, make this a fun read. Trog gets extensive coverage, too. 

Reel Fantasy Issue 1, January 1978

If you thought Quasimodo's Monster Magazine was cheaply printed, you haven't read Reel Fantasy. There was only this first issue, but if you look beyond the pulp paper, sloppy print quality, lazy layout, and poor photo reproduction, the articles showed determination and an attention to the movies and television shows shaping our dreams and nightmares in 1978. The extensive coverage on Star Wars was informative and fascinating to read, along with the 1977 television roundup, and articles on Laser Blast, Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger, and Damnation Alley. There's also an interview with Jane Seymour, before she opened her hearts to become the Kay Jewelers spokesperson. And the piece de resistance is the back cover advert by Howard Rogofsky. Long in the tooth comic book collectors know that name for sure.