FREEDOM SCHOOL RECORDS

"the DISGUSTING ART of DISGUSTING COMICS!"

2011-05-20T18:50:00.012-04:00

This one's for Owen ... possible the only person demented enough to enjoy this (besides myself, natch!)

OK, everybody this one's special ... Some of you out there are familiar with Myron Fass and his EERIE PUBLICATIONS, and the lunatic mayhem they unleashed on an unwitting public of youngsters beginning in the 60's. Those of you who are not can catch up really quick with the landmark book "the Weird Word of EERIE PUBLICATIONS" by: Mike Howlett, required reading for all students of the Freedom School. What we have here is a very rare comic magazine in which Fass targets youth's twisted LCD with art by Ken Lanfgraf and Ed Miller ... They go for gross-outs in such bizarre, last-minute, night-before-it-goes-to-press ways that I can honestly say I've never seen ANYTHING like it. "DISGUSTING COMICS: FATSO FANNY" makes "CRACKED MAGAZINE" look like ... I dunno, John Ficarra-era MAD? You get what I mean ...

I'll let these works speak for themselves, but I'd like to add that NO comic ever made me feel as GROSS ... as DISGUSTING COMICS!

Nothin' says "Kid's Mag" more than stills from MANIAC with terrible gags added on ... !

Barrrrfffff ......

-Mike Hunchback

The WEIRD ART of "PULPS" 1974 French Fantasy Zine

2011-05-20T13:01:00.008-04:00

This one's for Bhob and Drags ...

Attention Virgil Finlay fans! A nice find from a comic shop last year, "PULPS" is a lavishly printed pro-zine that concerns itself with Pulp, Fantasy and SF art. This is the only issue I've seen; the words are generally scarce and the art is all very wonderful and reproduced amazingly.

Click to enlarge all of these, but this remarkable Wally Wood drawing requires extra attention.

There's a very brief Archie Goodwin interview in this issue, and this very, VERY cool candid shot of Goodwin in his office. Archie Goodwin has a long list of credits that benefited comics and fandom, but he's best know to the Freedom School for editing CREEPY and EERIE, as well as writing a large bulk of their content.

Virgil Finlay tends to not disappoint, and the above drawings are superb examples of his best work at the time.

The two pages above are by "Marilac", whom I gather is a French 40's pulp illustrator. Great work, with a tinge of Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" in some of these. I also assume "Marilac" was a fan of American pulps and artist Hannes Bok.

-Mike Hunchback

WEIRD ART QUICKIE - COYE and FINLAY

2011-05-11T10:30:00.006-04:00

At this point I have so much Pulp Art that I haven't yet had the time to post, so doing quick posts of art from single issues of things seems like a good idea - these are great 60's illustrations by Lee Brown Coye and Virgil Finlay from the April 1963 issue of AMAZING STORIES. Enjoy, and click to enlarge please!

Wonderful Coye back cover ...

the WEIRD ART of LEE BROWN COYE Part 7: the NIGHT SIDE

2011-04-26T10:19:00.009-04:00

Finally, another installment of beautiful art by the most important, significant and successful artist in the Freedom School Records universe, Mr. Lee Brown Coye. The work here is from "The Night Side: Masterpieces of the Strange and Terrible", published in 1947 by Rinehart and Company. The book is third in trilogy of non-Arkham House anthologies edited by Derleth and illustrated by Coye, the other two titles being "Who Knocks?" and "Sleep No More", the latter of which has its own post here. Some of the images have appeared on FSR before (they were scans of original art, not owned by me), but all LBC images from "the Night Side" are included here for posterity. Please click to enlarge the drawings!

For HPL's "The Color Out of Space", the original is owned by a contemporary artist named Justin Lieberman.

For "The Night Wire" by H.F. Arnold

For "The Extra Passenger" by Stephen Grendon

For "Joshua" by R. Creighton Buck

For "Mr. Minchin's Midsummer" by Margery Lawrence

For "The Eerie Mr. Murphy" by Howard Wandrei

For "Nightmare" by Marjorie Bowen

For "One Head Well Done" by John D. Swain

For "Seaton's Aunt" by Walter De La Mare

For "Face in the Mirror" by Denys Val Baker

Although I'm sure the story isn't unknown to historians of Weird Fiction (I'm but a lowly fanatic), I always assumed this trilogy of books was either solicited by the book companies or presented to them by Derleth. Reason perhaps being that Arkham House knew their distribution limitations and felt it didn't interfere with their arguably more boutique business model. Look for the Weird Art of Lee Brown Coye Part 8 in the near future ... !

-Mike Hunchback

The ART of SOMETHING WEIRD VIDEO!

2011-04-20T10:54:00.018-04:00

I don’t know that there could be a better label/company out there than SOMETHING WEIRD VIDEO.

For me, the success of SWV comes from their blatant disregard of what everyone else’s idea of what a video label should do or sell. Their design was almost always audacious, and their content in the beginning – sex films without any actual sex – couldn’t have been more out of place in the late 80’s / early 90’s, as XXX Hard Core Pornography dominated the video market for sleaze. After those earliest days, the label took on almost every facet of exploitation cinema, and beyond. SMV introduced my generation not only to the notion that there was in fact an endless old world of bizarre, outré cinema, but also that the appreciation of this world was something totally fun – it wasn’t heavy-handed or intellectual in any way, it was just a purely good time. As the world of vinyl has “Party Albums”, SWV has “Party Tapes” – all you had to do was check your inhibitions at the door, bub!

The success of SOMETHING WEIRD rests on the fact that the small group of folks there simply believed in what they what they were doing. That confidence took their company through the roof in the 1990’s. Name another Video label that started off selling “worthless”, literally discarded “sex” films – that were reproduced for the video market in a totally DIY homemade fashion, computer-designed/printed covers and all – and somehow ended up with national distribution, ensuring that every mall in America carried titles like “FRANKENSTEIN’S CASTLE OF FREAKS” or “THE GORE GORE GIRLS”! ... I can only think of one!

The real joy of these for me is the memory of being 15 and going into Kim’s Video on Bleeker Street in New York City and buying them. I was wide-eyed at the sight of the “Something Weird Section” they had; absolutely EVERYTHING there seemed amazing. Featured here today is the art of 20 wonderful Something Weird Video releases, some are titles that I got in those mid-teen years – the first three were “The Defilers”, “Blood Feast” and “The Awful Doctor Orloff”, Jess Franco’s excellent debut horror picture.

Only very recently have these tapes become unavailable, or “out of print”. It’s a particularly interesting time to make this change, as VHS is now a preferred and collectible format for so many culture aficionados, and of course the realm of Horror and Exploitation houses the majority of Videophiles out there … ARE YOU ONE US??? If not you should consider it … After all, “Teenage Tupelo” ISN’T on DVD! Click to enlarge!!!

Above, you see the classic Dave Friedman (RIP) and R.L Frost Nazi roughie "LOVE CAMP 7", the same team that brought us "THE DEFILERS, featured at the top.

The seven films above are all from the Godfather of Gore, Herschell Gordon Lewis. I can never believe that most folks don't know his stuff. There sure are some weird people in this world.

I have a lot a pals that are anti-porn. There's of course gobs of super-negative XXX Adult fare out there nowadays, and so much of what "Something Weird" released was from the complete other side of the spectrum. SWV made lots of very fun, playful and sexy films available, and it's this area of pornography that I think porn-haters should explore more of. It brings with it a carefree acceptance of sex, and usually treats the act as a fun activity for both sexes (if, of course, the act is featured at all!).

Amongst the scary and dirty flix were some great arty Euro-Horror films, like this Riccardo Freda jem pictured above.

In my top ten of all time since High School thanks to a glowing Psychotronic review, "Teenage Tupelo" is one of the most personal expressions ever committed to 16mm. To say the film is artful is an understatement, try to imagine what a 60's-era Ingmar Bergman movie would be like if Bergman was from Memphis and like ... played guitar in the OBLIVIANS or something! Pray for the re-release!!!

Above is Dave Friedman's personal favorite of his films, the SWV classic "She-Freak"

The above oddity is a later SWV tape, acquired in the glory days of Something Weird setting up at Chiller Theatre Con. There's a early US video release of this as well I believe. Mike Vraney was basically trying to get me to NOT buy this video: "No really, it's terrible! You'll never finish watching it ..." And he knows what he's talking about - I never have!

Ah, another "ADULT" title. This is probably the earliest SWV I own, and much of the early output was similar collections of "stag loops".

Avant gothic horror with a twist of sadism and madness? Yes, please! Top ten Jess Franco, definitely!

Let's close this with a trilogy of trash from one of the filmmakers closest to my heart, Andy Milligan. I'm even at odds with Something Weird themselves here tho - I'm one of those nuts that actually genuinely LIKES Andy Milligan's films! And not because I think they're silly either, I can get behind Andy's very radical, often twisted, tales of incest, murder, sick sex and familial loathing. They're powerful expressions, and at his best Andy could grab snapshots of a very dark and emotional universe. Although not a "director's cut" by any means, the last film pictured here, "SEEDS OF SIN" is an astounding one, and a joyous challenge to the audience in the form of a blood-soaked family reunion. Check it out!

Support SOMETHING WEIRD VIDEO by going to their site AND BUYING THINGS FROM THEM!

http://www.somethingweird.com/

See you at the video store,

-Mike Hunchback

WEIRD ART of the UNDERGROUND Part 3

2009-12-22T17:15:00.008-05:00

COVERS! Well, and some inside covers and a splash page. I've been toting these beauties around for a while and finally scrambled together this post for all of you. The above is without question one of my personal favorite covers - a girl and an octopus IN LOVE, getting caught kanoodling - brilliant! It's actually the back cover of the great anthology book BIZARRE SEX, issue #3. Click all to enlarge!

Irresistible full color cover by Richard Corben.

Killer splash page for WEIRDOM #15 also by Richard Corben ... I wanna go there!

HAHAHA, Christmas ham for everyone! Back cover of WEIRDOM #15, by John Williams.

I love these, the cover to GORY STORIES # 2 1/2 (by John Pound) as well as the inside cover (by Steve Starr, whose work I do not know of besides this).

Cover to BOGEYMAN #3 by Jaxon, the back cover and inside of the back cover by Gregory Irons.

It simply doesn't get more wild than BOGEYMAN. Rory Hayes, who gets as much credit as Mr. Lee Brown Coye here at FSR, edited this masterwork that lasted three issues (the first totally written and illustrated by Hayes - I plan to post it in it's entirety eventually). No one in the Underground Comix scene was as detached or as obsessed with Horror as Hayes was, and in this image, from BOGEYMAN #3's inside cover, you can see what I mean.

SPOILS of the GRYPHON PRESS PAPERBACK EXPO - Part 1

2009-10-13T14:24:00.007-04:00

So here they are, my paperbacked spoils from Gryphon Press' wonderful Paperback Expo.- There's some real gems of literature here - and some real smut! Here at Freedom School Records we don't discern between the two, so often they're the same thing! Plus everything here grabs me graphically. Above you see a decently rare Bart paperback of Lovecraft Tales - I've wanted one for a while, so when I found this in rough shape for cheap I had to have it. The cover is really great - I wish I know who the artist was. Below is the Avon paperback of HPL with another amazing painting .

Click any image to enlarge!

My good friend Miriam has been telling me about this book forever, I was so glad to finally find one. The following etchings (right?) are found within - sorry for the blurs in some of these, it was the best I could do without hurting the book. Film fans take note - "HAXAN" director Benjamin Christensen directed a silent version of this A.A. Merritt terror classic!

Here's an issue of Avon Fantasy Reader that I didn't have. Mr. Bhob Stewart over at Potrzebie.blogspot.com hipped me to this title a while back - thanks Bhob! I'm sure the young males who bought this in the 50's all said the same thing when they saw this cover - "Wowww! Another Nelson Bond story!"

Here it is, my first printing of "I Am Legend" by Richard Matheson! In REALLY bad shape. It's my favorite novel of course, and if you HAVEN'T read it, sign offline NOW, leave your house, go to a bookstore, buy one, and don't use the internet again until you've read it. I couldn't be more serious.

Charles Addams is my kind of philosopher.

These incredibly funny strips by MADman genius Al Jaffee are available in a hardcover now.

So ... below, we have a particularly adult section. I have a nice smattering of adult paperbacks from the 60's and 70's and the graphics are often out of this world ...

Above is Ron Haydock's first book. Check out his amazing Rockabilly album on Norton Records!

J.X. Williams is apparently a publisher assigned pen-name. There are some amazing, trippy short films (allegedly from the 60's) directed by someone calling him/herself J.X. Williams as well ... the mysteries never end!

Weird Art by MATT FOX, EMSH, DICK SHELTON, TONY MORTELLO and VIRGIL FINLAY

2009-10-05T17:42:00.001-04:00

Art by the inimitable Matt Fox

Wow! Yesterday was the 21st Annual NYC Collectible Paperback and Pulp Fiction Expo, held by the wonderful folks over at Gryphon Books. The dealers and crowd of this show are top notch; everyone I met was so nice, and fascinating to talk to. It was an absolute blast and of course I picked up a huge stack of graphically stupefying oddities that I can't wait to scan and share with all of you. I got some wild Lovecraft paperbacks, a copy of "Seven Footprints to Satan" (finally), a bunch of vintage adult paperbacks (with REALLY great covers) and even some original ECs, including a Canadian "Haunt of Fear" which is MY FIRST ORIGINAL EC horror comic! (I have a nice smattering of original EC SF titles, but no horror) ... I also picked up the INCREDIBLE Emshmiller book from Non-Stop Press and got to meet what we consider a SAINT over here at Freedom School Records, author Luis Ortiz, who penned "Arts Unknown" which lovingly tells the story of our hero Lee Brown Coye, as well as reproduces an amazing array of Coye artwork. "Arts Unknown" is currently available from Non-Stop Press - ORDER ONE TODAY - you will not be disappointed.

So while I work on that I wanted to upload just a few random tidbits that probably wouldn't ever end up in their own post. I also felt like posting because so many of my favorite blogs (Potrzebie, The Horrors of it All, Atomic Caravan, Funny Cute, JohnKStuff) are always so hard at work posting crazy-cool stuff. Click to enlarge, and enjoy!

Great late period (1950's) Virgil Finlay. I love the detail in his full color paintings!

Superb 50's EMSH!

Art by Dick Shelton, whom I'd like to know more about.

Cover by Tony Mortellaro, a great example of the morbid treasures that abound within. Definitely a must for THOIA fans! This series, published by NEC in the 90's, was a rigorously researched collection of painfully obscure horror comics from the hey-day of pre-code insanity. The editor George Suarez's obsession for the topic turns each issue into not only a showcase of killer pre-code comic art, but a detailed an thorough guide to every level of these comics' production and history.

the ART of SQUA TRONT - Part 1

2009-09-21T14:23:00.018-04:00

Jerry Weist's original "SQUA TRONT" is the the ultimate EC Fanzine, and is probably one of the most legendary fanzines to ever be published. Part of its success was rooted in that it pooled efforts country-wide from very talented fans that had spent the ten-plus years after the EC comics' demise getting deeper into the comics world, and deeper into the world of EC itself. The other part of SQUA TRONT's success can be attributed to Weist himself, whose fanatical passion is evident throughout the issues he edited (and even after he left). The lay out was tight, meticulously designed; and the days of the mimeograph were almost distant in the past.

The cover for the first issue was drawn by the talented young Roger Hill, who's name, like Weist's, still comes up frequently when people talk about EC Fandom and Fanzines (both, as well as most connected to SQUA TRONT, have gone on to create and contribute work in the field of comics and beyond). It's Hill's take on Wally Wood's style, natch.

Another great illustration from Roger Hill.

Excellent depictions of the GhouLunatics by Rick Showalter, with neat psychedelic lettering.

Wonderful EC SF border by Roger Hill.

Al Williamson is one of my favorites. He looks particularly cool in this photo.

From Al Williamson's sketchbook.

All three illustrations by Roger Hill for a Graham Ingles article.

Superb Al Williamson cover to SQUA TRONT #2.

I LOVE this back cover illustration for SQUA TRONT #2 by Reed Crandall.

By George Metzger.

Fascinating tale of two young fans visiting some EC celebrities! Great photos ...

By Lance de Lipski.

This painting of the Vault Keeper by Johnny Craig hung in Gaines' office. It was also used as the cover for SQUA TRONT #5

Wow! Another painting by Johnny Craig; used as the back cover of SQUA TRONT #5.

Really cool, early "Ghastly" Graham Ingles.

No one can ever accuse the EC gang of not having a sense of humor! The photos were taken by young Paul Kast in 1951 while Al Feldstein was applying make-up and costume to Johnny Craig for some EC mail order glossies of the GhouLunatics!

Great bio piece by Roger Hill.

Killer post 50's Crypt-Keeper by Jack Davis of course. This and the back cover of SQUA TRONT #8 were gifts from Davis to Gaines. They can be seen hanging in his office in certain photos!

Awesome example of what many of the early EC Fanzines looked like. Art by Bill Spicer, who also contributed to Bhob Stewart's "EC Fan Bulletin" the very first comics Fanzine (and certainly the first devoted to EC).

This one makes me laugh out loud!

Just a couple of photos from a 1972 convention. The transcriptions of these discussions are some of the juiciest reading an EC fan will find. Photos of the EC gang from the 70's really get me. This above photo features Gaines, Feldstein, Davis, Wood and Marie Severin.

This is art that got Feldstein hired; Peggy's wild physique certainly would have sold some comics. Peggy was an Archie-style knock-off.

Breathtaking, early (still a teen!) art by Al Williamson. It's easy to see why he was working professionally at such an early age.

Another beautiful Al Williamson illustration.

Seek out SQUA TRONT. It's a masterful example of how information was culled and distributed by those involved with Fandom years before the internet.

the Weird Art of LEE BROWN COYE Part 6

2009-09-14T18:46:00.017-04:00

Robert Bloch's classic "Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper"

I haven't even come close to posting all of the LBC art that I'd like to, and getting the excellent fiction collection "Dying of Fright" edited by Les Daniels made this post inevitable. "Dying of Fright" is a top notch collection in the style of the Derleth edited collections like "Sleep No More" (see earlier FSR post) and "Night Side". Amazingly enough, Daniels had the notion to also employ Lee Brown Coye for the illustrations and another classic tome of the macabre was born.

Anthony Boucher's "They Bite"

The drawings are all circa 1975, a period of Coye's work that fascinates me deeply. Earlier unpublished art hinted that Coye was experimenting in style, some of which was far too morbid and dark to reveal to anyone interested in his commercial art. LBC was however an artist in the true sense of the word, and his gift was slanted toward the morbid. His full ability in this field was not tapped until the 70's, hence the unreal quality of this collection. Nearing the end of his life, Coye had lived through the sixties and into the seventies. Taboo had a different meaning and what was previously perceived as disgusting or too disturbing became more acceptable for horrific imagery. He was also allowed freedom to create art that he wanted, without boundaries, by people who were also impassioned by the darker elements. People like Les Daniels, Stuart David Schiff, Arkham House, and Carcosa Books. It's that combination that really let Coye's imagination run wild, and with art like this (especially the first image here) I feel Coye was making his masterpieces. These pieces have a fiercely original sense of composition, lyrical in their arrangement, with dizzying and cryptic implications. I hope you all like them as much as I do!

Edgar Allan Poe's "Masque of the Read Death"

An excellent interpretation, I can't recall from memory any other LBC art for Poe tales.

Washington Irving's "The Adventure of the German Student"

A superb tale of the macabre from the American literary legend, rumored to have romanced none other than Mary Shelley. It seems that all counts point to Shelley having an infatuation with Irving, but Irving not acting on it out of respect for a friend who was enamored by her, or possibly because of feeling he still had for his deceased wife. A highly recommended short story, the descriptions of the dark beauty within it are bewitching without compare -

"When the lights were brought, Wolfgang had a better opportunity of contemplating the stranger, he was more than ever intoxicated by her beauty. Her face was pale, but of a dazzling fairness, set off by a profusion of raven hair that hung clustering about it. Her eyes were large and brilliant with a singular expression approaching almost to wildness. As far as her black dress permitted her shape to be seen, it was of perfect symmetry. Her whole appearance was highly striking, though she was dressed in the simplest style." ... Yowza!

Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Ethan Brand"

J. Sheridan Le Fanu's "Squire Toby's Will"

F. Marion Crawford's "the Upper Berth"

M.R. James' "Lost Hearts"

Arthur Machen's "History of the Young Man With Spectacles"

Robert W. Chambers' "the Yellow Sign"

H.G. Wells' "the Red Room"

Ambrose Bierce's "Oil of Dog"

Algernon Blackwood's "the Willows"

William Hope Hodgson's "the Voice in the Night"

W.F. Harvey's "August Heat"

Lord Dunsany's "the Exiles Club"

Another stunningly composed work of complete terror on par with the first piece in this post.

This is Coye's highest quality level of art, for these images evoke the insanity of perceiving other worlds, dimensions haunted by things we can't understand. The tone that these works evoke is equal to the tone evoked in the best of Lovecraft's and Poe's writings. Horror where the audience not only believes that the author is a victim of the subject of his work, but also where the audience actually fears that they too could fall victim; and such insanity would become their reality.

H.P. Lovecraft's "Call of Cthulhu"

Having drawn many illustrations for Lovecraft tales, LBC chose an interesting interpretation for this classic. Those familiar with "the Call of Cthulhu" (which is easily one of the finest horror stories ever written and a masterpiece of Weird Fiction) will recognize that Coye has drawn the bas-relief featured in the story!

Frank Belknap Long's "A Visitor from Egypt"

A close personal friend of Lovecraft's, Long has a respected reputation of his own among Weird Fiction fans. It is of note however that the reclusive Lovecraft actually spent a lot of time with Long in person, whereas many of his other friends only ever knew Lovecraft through letters.

Henry Kuttner's "the Graveyard Rats"

An absolute Weird Tales classic. Kuttner was only a teen when he wrote "the Graveyard Rats" and I'm not sure I could name a terror tale more intense - seriously. Such physical horror is injected into the reader that I doubt any of you could read this one without shaking, or even becoming dizzy! Coye's cluster of sinister rodents is perfect, and even further ensures the reader's hypnotic fright. Kuttner married fellow Weird Tales author C.L. Moore, whom I love. Her story "Shambleau" is a sensual masterwork of Science Fiction, and comes with highest recommendation.

John Collier's "Rope Enough"

Ray Bradbury's "Homecoming"

One of the most known and respected American authors of all time, Ray Bradbury got his start with Weird Tales. Arkham House even published his first book! Bradbury to this day champions passionate, free thinking art, especially in the realms of Fantasy, Science Fiction and Horror. He's a hero to us over here at Freedom School Records; he has based his entire life and career on fierce individuality and on not letting the judgment of others (especially authority) affect one's actions and art.

Carter Dickson's "the House in Goblin Wood"

Another masterful house exterior by LBC, whose sense of the cold, dilapidated landscapes and abandoned homes of upstate New York is unmatched. Even with an arguably less sensational subject Coye achieves the impression of visions that are somehow tainted with a view from another world hidden beneath our own.

Fritz Leiber's "the Man Who Never Grew Young"

Richard Matheson's "Born of Man and Woman"

Another favorite author of the Freedom School Records gang, most notably for his novel "I Am Legend"; a study of unbelievably real humanity in a world of total horror. As if that weren't enough, Matheson also wrote incredible episodes of the Twilight Zone and Star Trek (TOS) and was one of the most frequent screenwriters of the incredible Corman / Poe AIP pictures; some of which are "the Pit and the Pendulum", "The Raven", "Tales of Terror", as well as many more. All of these are worth seeking out, frequent stars include none other than Vincent Price and Peter Lorre. Also, Matheson's script for "The Incredible Shrinking Man" (from his book) is among his finest works. Like all the best Matheson writing, the film concentrates on naked human emotion in a fantastic situation, and with a theme as campy as a shrinking man fighting to survive in an average American home it was almost as if Matheson was challenging his own ability to enthrall the viewer beyond the normal feelings attributed to horror and science fiction. He succeeds beyond highest expectation, and most of all in the unreal, tear-inducing ending. The final monologue is a classic piece of writing in it's own right.

Joseph Payne Brennan's "Levitation"

I'd just like to note the credibility of editor Les Daniels. If you're interested in the Weird and are looking for your Strange Gateway to Other Dimensions, seek out a copy of "Dying of Fright". Printed in 1976 by Charles Scribner's Sons, New York the book seems to have been carried by many libraries at the time and used copies don't sell for the high prices many of the Arkham House and related titles usually go for.

To quote my friends over at Fancy Mag - "READ or ROT!"

Weird Art by Mort Leav and Maurice Del Bourgo

2009-09-08T17:19:00.013-04:00

These are for Karswell! On his genius blog THE HORRORS OF IT ALL you'll find endless entries of wonderfully bloody and macabre pre-code masterpieces. There's a few by Matt Fox!

These are from a great issue of WANTED from 1948 that I wanted to share with you all. Nice fleamarket find. I'm also not positive that Maurice Del Bourgo in fact did draw the 2nd comic here, so please correct me if I'm wrong.

BY THEIR COVERS!

2009-09-08T12:26:00.015-04:00

Bury me in books.

Here's a hodgepodge of beautiful book covers; selected solely for their visual merit. There's certainly no real pattern here, the years and genres jump all over the place; SF, Adult, Horror - it doesn't matter as long as it looks great. Some of the covers are by famous artists (note the Virgil Finlay art), and some are by complete unknowns. I've wanted to post some of these for quite a while, click to enlarge.

One of the most startlingly sexual films of its time, BABY DOLL out-sizzles any modern drek aimed at your libido. My favorite of Tennessee Williams' brilliant works. And kids - yes, that's where Sonic Yoof got the image for the 'Bull in the Heather' video.

Beaumont, whom you know as the third writer for the original 'Twilight Zone" (along with Richard Matheson and Rod Serling, natch), did several books of varied types.

the Incredible Weird Tale of Rosaleen Norton- Part 1

2009-09-01T10:24:00.012-04:00

Untitled, circa 1965

Sometimes I get excited about the fact that I don't know everything. It'll occur to me that my life is filled with impacting discoveries, and before each one of those discoveries I had no previous attachment to whatever it was that impacted me so. And therefore I'm always in that position, constantly finding out about things that move me, things to be obsessed with, and things to be fascinated by.

The latest big one is the amazing Rosaleen Norton. An Australian artist born in 1917, she became enchanted by the Occult and the Weird at a young age and embraced these qualities with her own fierce individuality. It was this steadfast embrace of following one's heart that the conservative atmosphere of Australia in the 1940's would not allow for, and Norton's story is unfortunately laced with tragedy.

"Moon", circa 1955

In her teen years she discovered 'WEIRD TALES' and became inspired enough by its Weird Fiction to create a few macabre tales of her own. Norton didn't stay writing for long however, drawing and painting quickly became her artistic voice. I assume she appreciated the art of Virgil Finlay, and clearly a myriad of religious and occult imagery. However, her work isn't too readily comparable to anything. In the 40's her work hung on coffee shop walls of the town she lived in, King's Cross. It was a bohemian getaway from the staunch and uptight surroundings of Australia at the time, and was said to be not unlike New York City's Greenwich Village.

Untitled , circa 1943

Norton practiced self-hypnosis, and drew under its influence, creating images existing in other dimensions that she claimed to gain sight of. She also experimented with drugs, using them as well to tap into other worlds; and using them in her own specialized practices of Black Magic. Dubbed "the Witch of King's Cross", a name Norton at first jovially embraced, she became a celebrity of sorts. She was open about denouncing Christianity and about being a Witch. At first it increased the public's knowledge of her (not her work), but after a while it did wonders to tarnish her reputation as an artist; and worse yet put her on the Australian government's radar as a threat to decency.

It may seem incredible, but Rosaleen Norton went to court time and time again regarding her artwork. She was fined, she had paintings and drawings confiscated, police showed up at her exhibitions and took paintings off the wall claiming obscenity - perhaps worst of all, she had paintings ordered to be destroyed by the Australian government. Her exhibitions were precious few, the art world simply wouldn't take her seriously (save for a handful). This rejection pained her, she felt that her work was valid and should be seen, so she didn't stop working. Even though it became a major impossibility to her art shown in a gallery, the coffee house walls still displayed her work. Much of her life in the 1950's and 60's was lived in poverty, and she and her young poet lover were even arrested for squatting when she had no other place to live. These are only glimpses of her whole story.

Although it's a quite naked thought, the life of Rosaleen Norton is a perfect metaphor for how one can follow her heart to the bitter end and see no reward for it in her lifetime. It isn't easy being ahead of your time. The battle to listen to your heart no matter what people will say or do to you is a constant one, a battle most people give up fighting from a very early age now. Rosaleen didn't. It was a thankless job that she suffered for, but she never gave up.

"Rosie with Snake", circa 1960

About the quality of these images: They are all taken from "The Occult Visions of Rosaleen Norton" which is a catalog for a posthumous exhibition of her work. Keith Richmond (an Australian who champions Norton's work, and has done much to preserve her legacy) wrote the excellent text outlining her life, however the images in the book suffer from low resolution digital photography and are mostly too blurry/pixelated to really enjoy! The three best pieces, which are also three of my favorites, are here to enjoy as well as some great photos of Ms. Norton, who is incredible to look at. I kind of have a crush on her. The wonderful Creation Books is releasing a comprehensive Norton book at the end of this year, and will without a doubt be the most thorough and accessible tome on her yet. I have some other pieces coming that will go up soon, when Part 2 of "the Incredible Weird Tale of Rosaleen Norton" is ready.

the Weird Art of LEE BROWN COYE Part 5

2009-04-28T17:17:00.005-04:00

Another astounding collection of macabre images by our favorite here at FSR, Mr. Lee Brown Coye; all culled from one single glorious issue of Weird Tales. These illustrations are for stories by E. Everett Evans, Harold Lawlor, and the incredible Allison Harding - whom, try as I might, I cannot locate any information on. I tacked on a Arkham House advert at the end.

3D DANSE MACABRE

2009-04-27T17:55:00.006-04:00

A real surprise for 1988, this comic appears to be a horror off-shoot of an all 3D book featuring the work of Freedom School Records faves Lee Brown Coye and Matt Fox! Check out that incredible Matt Fox cover ... wow!

I've tried to make the images more viewable; the 3D thing was making it tough. The last image is the last (and best) page of a Matt Fox horror comic.

Click for super-sizing, and enjoy!

the Weird Art of Boris Dolgov, Humistone, Bok, and M.N. Beale

2009-04-22T17:10:00.005-04:00

Boris Dolgov was a contemporary of Lee Brown Coye, Virgil Finlay, and Hannes Bok; all artists for Weird Tales. Like Bok, it seems like Dolgov was not at all shy about drawing sexy girls. I particularly enjoy the heading for the Bradbury short story by M.N. Beale and hope to do an entire post on Mr. Beale in the future.

As always, click the images for large scans. Enjoy!

the Weird Art of LEE BROWN COYE Part 4

2009-04-20T14:31:00.009-04:00

Another jaw-dropping smattering of the beautiful and weird from the master; Lee Brown Coye. All images from this post are from the July 1947 issue of WEIRD TALES (pictured above). Also in this issue are some choice pieces from M.N. Beale, which will be posted this week.

Click the pictures for awesomely large scans!

Meet "the Lonleys" ... !

2008-12-02T15:18:00.007-05:00

I call them the "Lonleys", and I'm sure you can see why. They radiate sinister and cruel human emotion, evoking sympathy only to belittle. Just like REAL people! The uncredited art is beautiful and maintains an impressive sort of grossness. I hope you like them too. Please pass along ANY information you may have as well. Click 'em for big scans. Also sorry about the spotty scanning, I'm learning photoshop on my own and these prints are too large to scan all at once.

The final image is my favorite, and notice the lyrics were used by the Vivian Girls in their tune "Such A Joke"!

the Weird Art of Lee Brown Coye - Part 3

2008-12-01T16:21:00.013-05:00

A few of my friends have asked me to post more Lee Brown Coye art. At first I feared for not having enough top shelf material, but digging through my paper goods at home has proven to be quite fruitful; and I have two full posts of Mr. Coye's art that I have yet to deliver: his best art for Whispers and his astounding cover art for Arkham House. Below is the Lee Brown Coye art for the entire "Sleep No More" book, edited by Arkham House's own Mr. August Derleth (he did a few like this for other publishers, sometimes with Coye art as well). Coye did art specifically for each story and the results are superb. Each story is listed with author after its respective illustration. Enjoy!

Now this is the kind of page I like to see when I open a book!

From August Derleth's forward.

M.R. James' "Count Magnus"

Henry S. Whitehead's "Cassius"

Algernon Blackwood's "The Occupant of the Room"

Clark Ashton Smith's "the Return of the Sorcerer"

Thomas Burke's "Johnson Looked Back"

Howard Wandrei's "the Hand of the O'Mecca"

H.R. Wakefield's "He Cometh and He Passeth By"

John Collier's "Thus I Refute Beelzy"

Robert Bloch's "the Mannikin"

Wilfred Blanch Talman's "Two Black Bottles"
M.P. Shiel's "the House of Sounds"

Carl Jacobi's "the Cane"

Hazel Heald's "the Horror in the Burying Ground"

Maurice Level's "the Kennel"

Both from Robert W. Chambers' "the Yellow Sign"

Robert E. Howard's "the Black Stone"

Alfred Noyes' "Midnight Express"

Stephen Grendon's "A Gentleman from Prague"

Frank Belknap Long's " the Black Druid"

Both from H.P. Lovecraft's "Rats in the Walls"

"Weird Gold", or "Antique Sideshow"

2008-11-18T10:05:00.008-05:00

My friend Miriam has a philosophy (in the form of a question) - "How can anyone really think that everything's been done, seen and heard?" And it's true - the internet will never catch up, try as it might. The antithesis of her philosophy exists of course because there's people out there who'd rather be in control and keep a status quo even in the underground. The very moment one gives into this insidious closed-mindedness he or she dis-invites the possibility to discover all the the incredible shit that IS out there in the world. It's never-ending, and that's a damn fact - but you have to look for it!

Click on all of these (as well as everything on my blog here) to see a super huge (nearly perverse!) version of the scan.

I love this sheet music illustration, wonderfully representing a tone that Richard Sala seems to have no problem tapping into.

A Monster-clad Halloween give-away bag. I missed out on the "2 Monsters 1 Super Toy Plus Candy" though.

These are spectacular iron-ons and hang in Craig's and my apartment right under the original Mike Diana cover art for "Pray for Scars". They were in new condition because the guy I bought them off of had store stock! Talk about a score.

I've seen a whole mess of different sets of those eyes, which were give-aways with Butter-Nut Bread. The three eyed madman at the bottom there is one of a set of collectible circular cards from 1960's Japan. I'm fairly ignorant of that world so I don't have any other info, but if anyone does it would be quite welcome.

All too rare is the meeting of the Gothic and the Psychedelic; but there's decent tinges in the Corman/Poe/Price masterpieces. Lancer published these book "adaptations" in the 60's and really gave them a gloriously cheesy and bright psych feel. I need the other titles!

This slightly sinister wizard is the other side of the Witch mask that started us off. Wonderful art on both of them, I have a feeling it could've been a known comic artist doing some commercial work but no hunch who. Mr. Bhob Stewart, any leads?

FUNNY ANIMALS!

2008-11-03T14:58:00.006-05:00

Serial killers? Yeah, they're pretty neat. Zombies?? They're OK. Psychotic Ghouls??? Eh ... Gimmie some Funny Animals any day of the week!

Funny Animals have been with us a long, long time. They've existed in a myriad of different formats, from children's comic books to cartoons to fables to underground and alternative comics. As humans, we seem to be perpetually enthralled by these talking, laughing, teasing beasts; many of which would capture us in a booby trap at the drop of a hat. For whatever reason, they're refreshing to me. A good Carl Barks strip can really put your mind at ease, you know? The same goes for these wholesome nuggets of American history you see below. Honestly, the covers are bright and stunning examples of the Funny Animals phenomenon as it was in American comic books of the early 1950's; however the strips within are very standard, and hence mostly didn't get scanned.

Look at this Nutty Squirrel! How cool is he!?!

MAD #73 Sept. '62

2008-10-28T16:55:00.004-04:00

I promise I won't go on a tangent here ... but the back cover of MAD #73 has always blown my mind. Click on that for a big scan of the image and check it out!

The Weird Art of Milton Luros

2008-10-28T15:58:00.011-04:00

I picked up this SF pulp not too long ago for the excellent cover illustration. It's by Milton Luros, whom I'd never heard of. Further investigation reveals that Luros became a huge figure in the porn industry starting in the 60's and is even comes up in the book "The Other Hollywood". I'll have to look at that index when I get home! Sorry about the awful condition of the book, by the way ...

A Few Monster Cards

2008-10-27T17:02:00.005-04:00

There's plenty of card reviews and checklists online, and this is by no means competition for them. I've always been fascinated by the 1960's Topps card scene (the stable of artists used is astonishing) but I really only own a few. I got some this weekend at Chiller (www.chillertheatre.com) that I thought I'd share. The two pictured above are from the "Ugly Stickers" card series, a series that was clearly unabashed BEM worship. Hard to top that when the artist is Basil Wolverton. He started the series but only completed art for a few cards, leaving after a disagreement over the rights to the images. None other than Wally Wood assisted in this series as well as the ultimate card genius of all time, Norman Saunders (who actually completed some of the characters Wolverton had started. Check out http://www.normansaunders.com/Ugly%2C01.html for the full scoop. It's an incredible site, run by Norman Saunders' son I believe.

The above cards are from the one that started it all, the "You'll Die Laughing" series. All of which were illustrated by the genius Jack Davis. Check out http://www.monsterwax.com/monstermuseum.html and kiss your evening goodbye, there's some really wonderful art on those pages.

More Weird Art from Lee Brown Coye

2008-10-21T16:48:00.008-04:00

In fact, it looks like I'm going to have to post a whole third entry on the genius Mr. Coye. At least. This first batch is more from the essential fanzine Whispers, who did a special issue on Coye that I'll scan in it's near entirety for LBC Ch. III.

The scans below are from Weird Tales (Nov. 1949, the issue pictured in the Matt Fox post). He kept on doing Weirdisms all throughout the years, you can A/B his 70's ones against his 40's ones yourself now!

The Weird Art of Matt Fox

2008-10-20T17:02:00.008-04:00

   "There was a guy named Matt Fox who did the covers on Weird Tales in the late 40's, and I got obsessed with him, and I started drawing like that ..."

Simon Deitch
The Comics Journal interview, 2008

   I picked up a Weird Tales for a few bucks at a horror convention once because of the cover. I was quite taken by the art, an emaciated demon extending his hand downward to a stiff corpse; all set in a old rotting graveyard during the last moments of daylight. The drawing was credited to Matt Fox. For years afterward I wanted to know all about him, but any internet search would usually (at best) provide me with this limited information - he was a primary cover artist for Weird Tales, he did some horror and sci-fi comics in the 50's (shares a few books with Dave Berg actually) and that he worked for Marvel. I couldn't understand why he didn't have some huge following, for Fox succeeds at one of the most important aspects of horror art, that of managing to be scary and original without being corny. And his stuff is WEIRD too; gloriously weird.

   Bhob Stewart posted a mind-melting (for me) entry on his blog (potrzebie, linked to the right) not long ago on the very mysterious subject of the one and only Matt Fox. Please check it out, as it stands now it's the lengthiest bio on Fox that I've ever seen.

The above picture is from the back of a Whispers fanzine. Here's a couple excellent pulp covers he did at his peak, followed by an excellent precode horror comic cover he did where he swipes himself:

I added this image later when I finally got my hands on a copy of an issue of Castle of Frankenstein that had this incredible Matt Fox ad in it. Fox designed the ad and the posters themselves, please check out the brilliant Bhob Stewart's post on his aforementioned blog for the full scoop.

MODERN SEX, Vol. 1, No.1 1964

2008-10-20T15:59:00.003-04:00

Rather incredible little magazine from '64 with all sorts of "information" in it. Like this nugget of wisdom from 'RAPE, R.S.V.P.': "What part DOES a woman play in rape? Is she in fact the instigator? Does she unconsciously place herself in a position where she is really "asking for it?" Is, in fact forcible rape possible?" Yeecch! Great cover illustration tho.

L'ECRAN FANTASTIQUE

2008-10-17T17:12:00.004-04:00

Really nice Vampire Special issue from Cinema Fantastique. The cover is the best graphic and the interior is mostly information/reviews. I'll get around to translating this, I hope. There seems to be a few films that I don't know about, like the the one this image is from, "Vij":

THE ROCKET'S BLAST SPECIAL #7 1967

2008-10-13T17:22:00.005-04:00

Excellent full color art on this one. The contents are a nice, personal from memory (it seems) account of the EC story.

You can read the whole thing!

The Weird Art of Lee Brown Coye

2008-10-06T11:16:00.022-04:00

Being raised in upstate New York was mostly riddled with disadvantages. LaFayette is a small town that had little more to offer than MAD Magazine at the IGA grocery store and the huge pile of rocks behind the firehouse (which my siblings and I used to play in/on for hours on end). But there was also the woods. Of course the woods carry the widely appreciated outdoors/nature/etc. aspect, but that's not the part of the woods that I connected with as a youth exploring them. As many times as I wandered deep into the woods behind our house I really never could seem to find out where they ended. Part of the charm to me was that you could get lost in them, just walking for hours and waiting for something that would trigger familiarity in your senses, hopefully before nightfall. Still clear in my mind is an image of an old abandoned house that wasn't too far from the back lot of the IGA. With its wood all raw and grey from decades of rain and weather, the house actually was more of a cold, twisted, rotting shape sitting in a sea of overgrown weeds in the middle of nowhere. This is what I think is great about living in upstate New York - I've been all around the country and as many places that I've seen that are similar to it in some ways, this eerie tone remains exclusive to the North East. There's something about the air. It's cold and unforgiving, and sometimes exists in a way that seems like it's actually trying to wear things down; maybe even by driving them mad.

Lee Brown Coye's art exists as this tone. Nearly all of his work communicates the harsh and haunted way of life of small town, Upstate New York to its clearest extent. Coye lived in Tully, New York; which is next to LaFayette (Tully was our main rival when I was in little league, actually) and both towns are quite similar. Pretty, but depressing slices of life far away from the action and horror of the city, where children still dig in the dirt for something to do. If you've never been, just check out what Mr. Lee Brown Coye can express so masterfully with a pen, a woodcut, a brush or even a camera and you'll get the idea.

These are from the Lee Brown Coye issue of the fantastic zine Whispers, a publication which he contributed to frequently in the 70's.

'Weirdisms' was a reoccurring Coye invention that found a welcome home in the pages of "Weird Tales". Coye also illustrated many of the Lovecraft stories for the mag (and those of Lovecraft's contemporaries as well). Coye did this cover to "Fantastic Stories ..."; notice he included himself on the bottom right.

This is some of the incredible work Coye did for Arkham and other publishers of Weird fiction.

These are photographs Coye did of his friend Freedie in the 50's.

This is a woodcut of Freedie. Doesn't she look beautiful!?

More Coye coming when I can scan it, and I'm planning a chapter on just the Arkham House book covers.