"Invasion" Before and After the Comics Code!

What happens when a scary pre-Comics Code story is reprinted with Code changes?

Edited version

We'll present the toned-down reprint first, then the original, scarier story, along with annotations...

Original version

 Note in the original version, both the wife and singer on tv show a lot more cleavage!

PAGE 2

Edited version

Original version

Again, more cleavage in the original version...

PAGE 3

Edited version

Original version

Oddly enough, the wife's cleavage is unchanged, but the look of terror in the last panel is toned down!

PAGE 4

Edited version

Original version

Panel four in the original version is much more gruesome than the edited version.
Note the dialogue balloon is unchanged, even though there's no actual weapons fire in the edited version!

PAGE 5

Edited version

 This last page is radically-different! Prepare yourself!

Original version

Wow!

The Comics Code-edited pages were from Race for the Moon #1 (1958)

The original story was from Witches' Tales #21 (1953)

As you can see, the Comics Code Authority insisted on some major redos, including most of the last page!

Whenever possible, we'll present examples of similar "reworking" of stories' pre and post-Comics Code versions!

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PHANTOM LADY "Stinging Whip"

At long last, from the issue Dr Wertham vilified in Seduction of the Innocent...

...that fine filly, Phantom Lady, spends a day at the races in this tale from Phantom Lady #17!

Though the GCD lists Jack Kamen as the artist, I suspect he did pencils only, as there's a lot of Matt Baker influence in this art, especially the rendering.

Here's Adam Hughes' take on the cover for this issue, Phantom Lady #17
from the HTF trade paperback Phantom Lady: Crime Never Pays!

Join us next week as we present another tale your grandparents didn't want your parents to see!

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featuring goodies emblazoned with cover art that Fredric Wertham railed against in Seduction of the Innocent.

CREEPSHOW "Something to Tide You Over"

It's not often Stephen King writes a comic book!

But when he does...

...you'd want someone the caliber of Berni Wrightson to illustrate it!

This little terror-tale was adapted from the 1982 anthology film CreepShow (scripted by Stephen King and directed by George Romero) for a graphic novel also written by King and illustrated by Berni Wrightson.

The movie version of this particular tale starred Leslie Nielsen, Ted Danson & Gaylen Ross.

The flick is an homage to horror comics in general and EC Comics in particular, and features many lighting and optical effects mimicking comic book graphics (a common practice now, but ground-breaking in '82).

While the graphic novel adapts all the stories in the movie, it leaves out the framing sequences involving a little boy (played by King's son, Joe Hill), a copy of a CreepShow comic book, and the kid's disapproving father.
You can read the entire graphic novel, as well as see a 90-minute documentary about the making of CreepShow, HERE!

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THE BLOCK

Perhaps the koolest (and least-preachy) anti-drug comic ever...

Produced in 1971 by Byron Preiss and Jim Steranko as an anti-drug mini-comic and distributed to public schools, this tale was reprinted in Steranko's magazine ComixScene in 1973.

It's a great example of effective cinematic storytelling that's remained unreprinted for almost 40 years.

As Steranko himself explained HERE, in this article about the passing of Byron Preiss...

One of our earliest projects involved an anti-drug comicbook that he conceived for near-illiterate grade school students (he was teaching at a Philadelphia elementary facility at the time).

On a zero budget, we produced THE BLOCK, the tale of two inner-city brothers who choose to walk different paths, which was distributed citywide and met with exceptional success with both educators and students (some classes colored the panels, others read it aloud, and one even transformed the story into a rock opera).

Preiss promoted it from New York City to Atlanta, achieving solid student acceptance and continual praise from all who saw and used it, right up to the majors at Sesame Street.

The comic premiered in the summer of 1970, a year before the much-heralded Spider-Man and Green Lantern-Green Arrow drug mags.

Sadly, on 4/29/18, Steranko's agent, J David Spurlock, instead of working out a way for us to present the story and link our faithful readers to buying a printed copy of it, chose to threaten us with a lawsuit unless we removed the tale, thereby depriving aficionados of reading this seminal work by one of the undisputed masters of the field!

(Though no version of The Block is currently in print, copies of ComixScene #4 are usually available via vendors like eBay and Amazon).

So, if you've come here looking for that lost classic, I suggest you continue Googling.
Further update. On 5/1/18, J. David Spurlock posted a link in the comments section listing a sale on the publisher's site for ComixScene #4, validating my point that the last time the story was actually published was in 1973, 45 years ago.
Today, 5/2/18, Spurlock complained the link wasn't posted.
Spurlock offered no compensation plan for linking to the site (the way Amazon, for example, does).
But we would consider giving him the freebie link if he didn't whine about our low-rez scans presenting the story, which would serve as free advertising for the publication!
As it stands...
Though no version of The Block is currently in print (as Spurlock has proven), copies of ComixScene #4 (1973) are usually available via reputable vendors like eBay, Heritage Auctions, Hakes, and Amazon.
I suggest those who want a copy of ComixScene #4 check them, or their local comic shop, out!
It'll be well worth your time and effort!

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What if...Archie and his pals had been African-American?
They might have been Fast Willie Jackson and HIS pals!
Digitally-remastered from a classic vintage comic book cover (for a VERY HTF series) from the era of Blaxploitation flicks!

BEYOND "It Happened on Valentine's Eve"

Valentine's Day was a couple of days ago, so let's tell a terror-tale about...

...as shown in The Beyond #4, originally published in 1951!

We don't know who wrote this story, but the penciler is believed to be Sheldon Moldoff with inking probably by Jay Disbrow.

Join us next week as we present another tale your grandparents didn't want your parents to see!

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3-D: ADVENTURES IN 3-D "Hidden Depths"

Get out the red/blue 3-D glasses (red on the left, blue on the right)...

...cause it's 3-D Week at all the RetroBlogs™!

This tale, written and illustrated by Howard Nostrand (doing an uncanny Jack Davis) for Adventures in 3-D #1 (1953), was especially-designed for use as a 3-D story (unlike some comic tales that were adapted from 2-D to 3-D during the 1950s 3-D craze).

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