Comic Book of the Week: Plague of the Zombies

by Kimberly Lindbergs | October 28, 2011

Categories | Hammer Horror, Comic Books

This is another Hammer film adaptation comic from The House of Hammer (also known as Hammer’s Halls of Horror). As I mentioned in my previous post, The House of Hammer was a British film and comic magazine published between 1976 and 1978. The following pages are from issue #13 (also called issue #1 Vol. 2), which featured another great cover painted by Brian Lewis depicting a scene from John Gilling’s Plague of the Zombies (1966). The following sample pages are from the comic illustrated by the notable storyboard artist, Trevor Goring and written by Steve Moore. The back cover of the magazine featured a movie poster for Plague of the Zombie, which I’ve also included along with a promo shot featuring a very scary looking Ben Aris in his zombie makeup carrying actress Jacqueline Pearce. Plague of the Zombies is too often overshadowed by all the zombie films that followed in its distinct footsteps, which is a shame. I think it’s one of Hammer’s best films and features some of the studio’s most innovative monster makeup. Don’t watch it alone!

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Comic Book of the Week: Curse of the Werewolf

by Kimberly Lindbergs | October 22, 2011

Categories | Hammer Horror, Comic Books, Oliver Reed, Terence Fisher

The House of Hammer (also known as Hammer’s Halls of Horror) was a British film and comic magazine published between 1976 and 1978. The following pages are from issue #10, which featured a wonderful cover painted by artist Brian Lewis depicting Oliver Reed in Terence Fisher’s Curse of the Werewolf (1961). The following sample pages are from Part I. & II. of the Curse of the Werewolf comic illustrated by one of my favorite comic book artists, the talented John Bolton and written by Steve Moore. The back cover of the magazine featured a Belgian movie poster for Curse of the Werewolf, which I’ve also included along with a promo shot featuring a very handsome Oliver Reed without his monster makeup. I recommend you read these pages accompanied by the light of the full moon!

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Comic Book of the Week: Land of the Giants

by Kimberly Lindbergs | June 16, 2011

Categories | Television, Science Fiction, Comic Books, Irwin Allen

Land of the Giants was a short-lived comic book series published between 1968-1969 by Gold Key Comics. I’m not sure who the artist and writer were because there are no credits in the comic but it was based on the television show of the same name. The series only lasted two seasons and I think it was one of Irwin Allen’s most interesting creations. It’s sort of a strange hybrid between Gulliver’s Travels, Lost in Space, Planet of the Apes and the 1965 film Village of the Giants, which Allen undoubtedly borrowed his title from. I wrote a little bit about the show a few years back when it was released on DVD so if you’d like to know more about Land of the Giants you can find information here.

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Comic Book of the Week: Logan’s Run (1976)

by Kimberly Lindbergs | April 22, 2011

Categories | Television, Science Fiction, Comic Books

Logan’s Run was originally a movie tie-in comic published by Marvel Comics between 1976-1977 and illustrated by the great George Perez. One of the best things about the comic series was the fact that it followed the original script and included scenes that were cut from the film but it also censored a few scenes that Marvel thought were inappropriate for kids. The first five issues of Logan’s Run adapted the film pretty faithfully but by issue #6 Marvel was free to take the material in a creative new directions and they did. The series was extremely popular at the time that it was published but due to a sudden licensing disagreement Marvel was forced to cancel the comic after issue #7 and MGM decided to turn Logan’s Run into a television series.

I actually tried to follow the Logan’s Run comic books series when I was a kid but the only place you could buy comics in my hometown was at the local 7-11 and their spin rack was always half empty. They seemed to get random issues so I’d be stuck reading issue #2 followed by issue #5 and have no idea what I was missing. I loved the series though and Logan’s Run (Michael Anderson; 1976) is still one of my favorite science fiction films. These pages are from Logan’s Run #2 but I’ve also included an ad that ran in this issue for toy tie-ins with The Six Million Dollar Man television series, which was one of the best shows on TV in the ’70s.

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Comic Book of the Week: Angelique (1978)

by Kimberly Lindbergs | March 22, 2011

Categories | Movie Reviews, French Cinema, Comic Books, Michele Mercier

Toshie Kihara’s Angelique series was originally published in 1978 by Princess Comics. Angelique is a Japanese manga (comic book) based on the historical novels by Anne and Serge Golon published between 1957 and 1976. These historic novels focus on the romantic adventures of Angelique de Sancé de Monteloup as she braves misfortune and tragedy in 17th century France. The novels were also turned into a series of films in the ’60s starring the lovely Michele Mercier who appeared in some great Italian horror films including Mario Bava’s Black Sabbath (1963) and Antonio Margheriti’s Web of the Spider (1971).

Toshie Kihara is one of my favorite manga artists and Angelique is one of her most popular creations. Kihara took great liberties with Golon’s original novels but her work is exceptional. Her page layouts, bold lines and dramatic framing really bring Golon’s action packed drama to life. I actually prefer early Japanese manga to American comics because the work of my favorite mangakas (comic artists) is so stylized and cinematic. Manga appeals to me for a variety of reasons including the mature nature of the storylines, which were often light years ahead of their American counterparts. Angelique features lots of murder and mayhem as well as witchcraft and romance between straight and gay characters. This talented artist and writer doesn’t shy away from anything and I appreciate her fearless creativity.

Unfortunately none of Toshie Kihara’s manga have been published in English. English speaking readers have had to rely on fan translations of her work, which aren’t easy to come by and the quality can be questionable. Kihara recently celebrated her 63 birthday and many of her manga stories are considered classics but her work is relatively unknown outside of Japan. I thought I’d share some pages from Angelique because if you’ve read the original novels or seen the films you can enjoy Kihara’s manga without a translation. Just remember that unlike American comics, you have to read the pages from right to left. Following the manga pages is a poster and clip from the first Angelique (1964) film featuring Michele Mercier.

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Comic Book of the Week: Space Family Robinson - Lost in Space (1969)

by Kimberly Lindbergs | March 4, 2011

Categories | Television, Comic Books, Irwin Allen

Today I bring you Space Family Robinson: Lost In Space #33 published by Gold Key in 1969. It features art by Dan Spiegle and a story by Gaylord Du Bois.

Space Family Robinson debuted in 1962 and told the story of the Robinson family, which consisted of a couple of scientists (father Craig and mother June) and their two teenage children (Tam and Tim). The family lived on a large space craft called Space Station One that was “lost in space” after an enormous cosmic storm. In subsequent issues the Robinson family try to find their way back to earth and have many adventures in space along the way. Sound familiar? I bet it does! In 1965 Irwin Allen created the popular television show Lost In Space, which ran on CBS between (1965-68). It seemed to borrow many of its ideas from the Gold Key comic series but Irwin Allen claimed that he never saw the comic. Gold Key Comic publisher Western Publishing Company wasn’t buying it and they threatened legal action but a settlement was struck between CBS, Irwin Allen and the Western Publishing Company. Undisclosed amounts of money were given to the publisher and they were also allowed to add “Lost In Space” to the title of their comic so in 1966 Space Family Robinson became Space Family Robinson: Lost in Space. Both parties benefited from the name change. Gold Key got to advertise their comic book series as a tie-in with the popular television show and Lost In Space got free publicity by having the name of the show on the cover of a comic book but few people remember Gold Key’s comic today.

Lost in Space is one of my favorite television shows and I used to watch reruns of it religiously when I was a kid. It ran on KBHK-TV 44 in the San Francisco Bay Area during the ’70s and I rarely missed an episode. The comic is a fun read if you happen to be a fan of the show and I really like Dan Spiegle’s art. Below are some pages from the comic book including an advertisement for another one of my favorite TV shows, The Banana Splits (1968-70) as well as a few clips from both shows.

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Comic Book of the Week: Bobby Sherman (1972)

by Kimberly Lindbergs | February 11, 2011

Categories | Television, Comic Books

Bobby Sherman #2 (1972)

Over the years I managed to amass a large collection of comic books. I’m currently whittling down my collection and I plan to sell a lot of them soon but I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorites published before 1980 that might hold some interest for film and TV fans or pop culture addicts. This week I’ll be sharing pages from Bobby Sherman #2.

Bobby Sherman was a singer, songwriter, occasional actor and popular teen idol during the ’60s and early ’70s. During his popularity Sherman regularly appeared on Shindig! and the TV show Here Come The Brides (based on the musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers). He also made guest appearances on The Monkees and The Partridge Family. In 1971 he was asked to star in his own television series called Getting Together, which was about a song-writing team supposedly based the real-life songwriters Boyce and Hart. It was shown opposite of the hugely successful television show All in the Family and canceled after just 14 episodes. During that time Charlton Comics published a Bobby Sherman comic book that was based on his TV show. Here’s a few sample pages from it along with a video clip of Sherman performing one of his hit song . . .

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Die, Monster, Die! (1965)

by Kimberly Lindbergs | November 22, 2009

Categories | Movie Reviews, Horror, American Cinema, Blogathons, Comic Books, Roger Corman

Frankenstenia is celebrating the life and career of one of my favorite actors with The Boris Karloff Blogathon taking place Nov. 23-29th. I didn’t sign-up to participate because I couldn’t commit to anything. My current blogging schedule is sporadic and a bit crazy because at the moment most of my attention is focused on trying to buy my first home. But I did mange to find some time to write a little something about one of my favorite ’60s era Karloff films, Die, Monster, Die!

Die, Monster, Die! was produced by Samuel Z. Arkoff for AIP (American International Picture) and directed by horror film veteran Daniel Haller. Haller started his career as an art director and production designer and he worked with AIP for many years before he began directing films for the company. Haller’s early work with Roger Corman is especially noteworthy since he helped give Corman’s Edgar Allen Poe adaptations a distinct look and feel. During the ’60s Daniel Haller collaborated with Roger Corman on some of his best films including Pit and the Pendulum (1961), Premature Burial (1962), The Raven (1963), The Haunted Palace (1963) and The Tomb of Ligeia (1964) before directing his first film; the Karloff feature Die, Monster, Die! in 1965.

In the film Boris Karloff plays a crazy old curmudgeon named Nahum Witley who is keeping a dark secret from his family in an attempt to better their fortune and bring honor to the family name. The plot of Die, Monster, Die! is based on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story The Colour Out of Space which was originally published in 1927. Haller’s film plays fast and loose with Lovecraft’s original tale but it’s an entertaining mess of a movie that benefit’s greatly from Karloff’s demanding presence and low key performance. Die, Monster, Die! is notable because it gave the 78 year-old Karloff one of his last opportunities to play a monster in a horror film. Although Karloff’s transformation from stately Nahum Witley to a radioactive zombie in Die, Monster, Die! is all too brief and a far, far cry from his amazing and better known performance as Frankenstein’s monster in the classic Universal horror films, Karloff did seem to have some fun with his role. Die, Monster, Die! isn’t one of Karloff’s best movies but it does hold some appeal if you happen to to be a Karloff fan and appreciate gothic horror films as well as creative adaptations of Lovecraft’s stories as much as I do.

I happen to own the 1966 Dell comic book adaptation of Die, Monster, Die! and I thought it would be fun to share some pages of it with my readers as well as other comic book fans. I’m afraid that I don’t know who the original artist is and an extensive online search didn’t provide me with any clues* but I like the artwork and figured other Karloff fans might appreciate it too. I’ve posted a small sample of the comic book below but if you want to see more (and larger) pages from the Die, Monster, Die! comic book you’re going to have to visit Curt Purcell’s always fabulous Groovy Age of Horror blog.

Make sure you spend some time checking out The Groovy Age of Horror archives where you’ll find lots of examples of groovy art to entertaining and delight even the most discriminating readers. And for more Karloff related posts visit Frankenstenia where Pierre Fournier is collecting links to posts about the actor for The Boris Karloff Blogathon.

* Update: The Karloff Blogathon host Pierre Fournier thinks the name of the uncredited artist behind the Die, Monster, Die! comic might be John Tartaglione. More information is welcome!

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Modern Mondays: A History of Violence (2005)

by Kimberly Lindbergs | July 28, 2009

Categories | Movie Reviews, Drama, Modern Mondays, Comic Books, Viggo Mortensen, David Cronenberg

It seems like everywhere I turn someone is talking or writing about the recent Comic Book Convention that is held in San Diego every year. It used to be an event only attended by comic book fans and various industry insiders, but it has exploded into some kind of massive media event attended by anyone and everyone. When did comic books become so acceptable? I suppose it was the onslaught of popular comic book films in recent years that has made the general public and every working film critic take notice. As someone who worked in a comic book shop throughout most of the 1990s for minimum wage, I find this sudden interest in the events at Comic-Con extremely amusing. It’s also great for the business, which has struggled to gain legitimacy for years. Comic books are now making a lot of people a lot of money. And money makes critics and cultural pundits take notice.

One of my favorite comic-to-film adaptations in the last 10 years is David Cronenberg’s 2005 film A History of Violence, which was based on a little known comic collection or “graphic novel” published by DC Comics under their Paradox Press banner. The comic book was written by John Wagner and illustrated by one of my favorite working comic book artists, Vince Locke (Deadworld, American Freak: A Tale of the Un-Men, etc). Although Cronenberg’s film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay, few people seem aware of the fact that this critically acclaimed film was based on a comic book.

Since I’m still running on limited free time I decided to share a few choice quotes from one of my favorite reviews of A History of Violence that was written by one of my favorite authors, the late great J. G. Ballard. Ballard is a brilliant writer and he worked with David Cronenberg on the film adaptation of his own novel Crash (1996). In Ballard’s excellent review of the film he sums up exactly why A History of Violence is such a great film and one of my favorite movies of the last decade. What follows are a few choice excerpts from Ballard’s review.

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