During the horror comics boom of the early 1950′s, the demand for the macbre was high, and an incredible volume of pages featuring spooky material were churned out- in more ways than one. Aesthetic standards varied greatly. On the high end, that era spawned the EC Comics horror line; considered by many to be among the highest-quality comic books ever produced. At the other end of the spectrum were the poverty-row publishers, employing artists with far less skill and experience. Not always the worst matchup, though- grotesquely hideous artwork on a horror story is far more effective than on a romance comic! All of that aside, many of the artistic giants throughout comic book history have done exemplary work in the horror genre, even if we are more accustomed to associating their names with other types of comic books, and Crypt of Horror Volume 19 highlights a selection of great artists that fit that description. Jack Kirby was the unquestioned “king” of illustrating rollicking action on the comic book page, but did you know he could also craft a moody and mysterious missive as well? Then check out this issue’s “Saucer Man”, inked by Al Williamson. Awed my Steve Ditko’s work on the classic Spider-Man ? You ain’t seen nothin’ till you’ve sampled some of the weird chillers he drew for Charlton and other companies a decade before, like “What Happened?”, right here in this volume. Alex Toth- storyteller supreme and master of the tasteful use of chiarascuro? Prepare to be scared out of your WITS by his “Murder Mansion”! Bob Powell, Joe Sinnott, and a host of others are here; great artists all, perhaps better known for their efforts delineating superheroes, adventure, humor or glamor- but never better than when weltering in grisly horror!! Like Dick Ayers on “I Crawl Through Graves”, Bill Everett on “Don’t Bury Me Deep”, George Altman illustrating “You’re Going To Die Yesterday”, Bernard Bailey’s “Lost, One World!”, Sol Brodsky on “The Man Who Moved”; Bernie Krigstein’s “The Man Who Couldn’t Be Reached”, Sid Greene’s “Too Late”, Joe Maneely illustrating “The Iron Door”, Werner Roth on “The Rival”, plus Manny Stallman, Fred Kida, Fran Smith, John Forte, Dave Berg, Myron Fass, BobFujitani, Gene Colan, and half-a-dozen others!! 29 full vintage horror stories reprinted in all!! 140 pages in black and white with color covers, standard comic book size, saddle-stitched. Check out Crypt of Horror Volume 19, and see the greatest artists in comic book history in an all-new (and scary) light!!
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