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Product Description
Product Description
For the first time in over fifty years, author Jim Trombetta uncovers a rare visual treasury of some of the most important and neglected stories in American literature-the pre-Code horror comics of the 1950s. Censored out of existence by Congress in an infamous televised US Senate subcommittee hearing investigating juvenile delinquency, these rare comic book images are culled from the author's personal collection. Many of these stories have rarely been seen since they were first issued-now revealed once again in all of their eye-popping inventive outrageousness. The 1950s horror comic was designed to jump out at you-all but literally-from a magazine rack swarming with competitors. The Horror! The Horror! includes over 200 covers and complete stories as they were originally seen, scanned from mint copies in the author's extensive collection. Coupled with commentary and informative text that provides readers with detailed history and complete context for these stories and their creators, Jim Trombetta spins a tale of expressiveness and censorship as scary as the horror stories themselves. David Hajdu's The Ten-Cent Plague (which received rave reviews on NPR, USA Today, The New Yorker, and the New York Times) focuses on the history of these horror comic books, but lacks the visual component. Jim Trombetta, a skilled writer and historian, delves into this subversive genre, looking beyond the familiar E.C. Comics like Tales from the Crypt by MAD publisher William M. Gaines, and highlights the bulk of what was being published at this crucial time in American comic-book history.
About the Author
Jim Trombetta is a writer and comics collector. He has written for Crawdaddy and The Los Angeles Times, as well as for television, including Miami Vice, The Flash, and Star Trek. He teaches courses in screenwriting and Shakespeare at UCLA.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The compiler has really done a good job here.Firstly, it is beautifully printed, coloured and bound,with pages faithfully reprinted from the off white and slightly ragged originals, so the reader very much has the feel of holding an early 1950's original -- it is a very 'tactile' book !
Now, to the content, and these stories are just completely off the beaten track and extraordinary -- the stuff is totally insane.
As I have said in my Amazon review of "The Mammoth Book of Horror Stories",the compelling thing in these stories also, is that these skint and desperate artists --Ukrainians, Sicilians, Georgians, Armenians,Ashkenazim, Romanians, Irish and Lithuanians -- apparently arrived in NY, Chicago etc in the '30's to '50's, and just poured out the most insane folk tales from their own cultures onto the pages, with all the overtones of ethnic clashes and prejudice and phobias etc from their own beleaguered cultures still very much alive... it makes for very strange reading ! Some of the really fearful, paranoiac,claustrophobic views of Nazis and Aryans, for example, are likely reactions that were all too real to the authors/artists of their time, and some of the hateful views of bureaucracy and the 'nobility' were also probably all to real to the authors.
As such, these stories provide a very weird take on 'folk history' to the reader.
These stories are a real revelation -- in my view, the stories here are,surprisingly, far superior to most of the EC/DC product.
Now, to the content, and these stories are just completely off the beaten track and extraordinary -- the stuff is totally insane.
As I have said in my Amazon review of "The Mammoth Book of Horror Stories",the compelling thing in these stories also, is that these skint and desperate artists --Ukrainians, Sicilians, Georgians, Armenians,Ashkenazim, Romanians, Irish and Lithuanians -- apparently arrived in NY, Chicago etc in the '30's to '50's, and just poured out the most insane folk tales from their own cultures onto the pages, with all the overtones of ethnic clashes and prejudice and phobias etc from their own beleaguered cultures still very much alive... it makes for very strange reading ! Some of the really fearful, paranoiac,claustrophobic views of Nazis and Aryans, for example, are likely reactions that were all too real to the authors/artists of their time, and some of the hateful views of bureaucracy and the 'nobility' were also probably all to real to the authors.
As such, these stories provide a very weird take on 'folk history' to the reader.
These stories are a real revelation -- in my view, the stories here are,surprisingly, far superior to most of the EC/DC product.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a fantastic book for anyone who's interested in the horror comics of the 1950s which caused outrage of conservative sensibilities of the time. It's a chunky volume with loads of old strips scanned from the original comics in all their full colour glory. Reproduction is excellent. As a special bonus there's even a DVD enclosed in the back of the book which has the 1950s 'Confidential File' anti-comics tv propaganda in full. Recommended!
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I cant recommend this book highly enough to horror comic fans. Packed with complete stories and comic covers without relying on the EC titles which have had their own history books several times. Also has the DVD disc as a bonus.Well done the publishers.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Excellent reprints of rare pre-code Horror for amazing price!
This is a very nice book for the price. There are some great and rare pre-code strips (id guess around 20 or so, roughly 1/3rd of the book), and loads of lurid horror and crime... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Bogart
Horribly Good
This is stunningly good value, and if you are remotely interested in the bygone age of comic horror,you will not be disappointed. Read more
Published 2 months ago by G. Neil
shaking..
This is super, lovely book, would order again from you, thank you so much, i have trouble writteing 20 words on one item, it is either good or not..change it amazon!!
Published 8 months ago by Bee
Fantastic Book!
I bought this as a gift for my husband's birthday. He said that it is a Fantastic book. It was great price and was delivered quickly.
Published 11 months ago by Leanne Williams
Fantastic Buy!!
I just got this through yesterday, so have only been able to skim through and I have to say well worth it! Read more
Published 16 months ago by Anon
BEST.BOOK.EVER!
This is such an amazing, chunky book. The pictures are beautifully remastered on authentic feeling pages. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Alexandra.F
Scary
But not neccessarily for the reasons you might think.
The author very carefully, and over a series of short chapters, places the horror comics within the context of the... Read more
The author very carefully, and over a series of short chapters, places the horror comics within the context of the... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Ian Williams
A morbid masterpiece!
I thought I knew the history of horror inside out, but this book proved me wrong. I assumed 50s horror comics began and finished with EC's legendary titles, but as this book ably... Read more
Published 17 months ago by Prelati
Fiendishly good!
This really is a marvellous book - a treasure trove of blood-delivering ghouls, child vampires and jockeys driven insane. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Amo Ginko
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