Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery Archives Volume 1 [Hardcover]

Various (Author, Artist)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 19, 2009

A circus performer terrorized by mysterious powers from beyond. A jade idol of a monkey that carries a curse on a South Pacific island drives a man to the brink of madness. An art gallery haunted by paintings that come to life at night. A dictator who sees enemies around every corner, but who can't see the threat right before his eyes. For nearly twenty years, the comic-book series Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery wove stories of intrigue, suspense, and macabre drama. Hosted by renowned actor Boris Karloff, the comic featured contributions from some of comics history's most well-known creators: Alex Toth, Joe Orlando (EC Comics artist and editor), Mike Sekowsky (Justice League of America artist), Frank Thorne, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, Arnold Drake, Len Wein (co-creator of Swamp Thing and Wolverine), Al Williamson, Jerry Robinson (creator of the Joker), Dan Spiegle, and many others.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starting in 1962, for the king's ransom of two bits, your average red-blooded American kid could pick up a copy of Boris Karloff Thriller and be instantly transported to a world of haunted houses, doomed desert islands and criminal enterprises where the joke was always on the cleverest. Iconic actor Karloff slapped his name on these comics (crudely drawn versions of the dapper actor provided intros and moral conclusions for these creepy stories), making for a classic mid-century drugstore spinner-rack pulp thriller. Drawn with effectively crude but zippy panache by an impressive roster of journeymen like Leo Dorfman and Sparky Moore, the stories inside were strictly in the sub–Twilight Zone category, all mysterious coincidences and bumps in the night. A good number of the stories collected here (like the one where a newlywed couple is haunted by prankish ghosts) have a sharp moral to them, while many simply try to get under the reader's (presumed youthful) skin with cursed tombs and crashing thunderstorms. This sturdy edition brings together the first four issues and includes an introduction by the series namesake's daughter, Sara Karloff. The series ran into the 1980s, so one imagines there will be other volumes to come. (June)
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Dark Horse; First Edition edition (May 19, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1595822194
• ISBN-13: 978-1595822192
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 6.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #917,678 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary, November 5, 2009

By 

Tim Lasiuta "Comic Fan 42" (Red Deer, Alberta) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery Archives Volume 1 (Hardcover)

Dark Horse has breathed life into yet another Gold Key classic series. Boris Karloff, Tales of Mystery was a mainstay of the line from 1962 until the day it folded.

Reading through the four books presented in total, I remembered why I enjoyed them so much. It's not that the art was always great, nor that the stories were so extraordinary either. I was young, and they were frightening. Now, they are still surprising, yet the art takes me to time when I wondered who these folks were who made them. I like the art of Heck, Sekowsky, Gill, Evans, Speigle, Giolitti, Certa and Moore. No matter what kind of paper they are printed on, you can tell. Having written a book on Tom Gill, I appreciate this opporunity to see his work the way he would have liked to see it, in glossy color.

Do I have a favorite story? It is hard to pinpoint any one book that does stand out.

The forward by Sara Karloff is welcome. Learning a little more about Mr Boris Karloff is a treat. The cover for this book rocks!

Well done folks.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally! Some well deserved recognition., March 10, 2010

By 

John Graziano (fl) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery Archives Volume 1 (Hardcover)

Time had a funny way of creating a rosy memory of certain people, places and things of childhood. I can honestly say that this is one instance in which the memory was spot on. While other kids thrilled to reading the exploits of Marvel and DC comic superheroes, I was mesmerized by the Whitman/ Gold Key comics. The titles of Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery, Twilight Zone, Ripley's Believe it or Not! and the countless other TV and movie tie-ins. The art was great, stories were fascinating and the lush, paintings that adorned the covers really sucked you in as a kid. This deluxe, hardbound edition 1 of BK Tales of Mystery is nothing short of stupendous. The first 4 issues are here in full color with front and back covers reproduced as well. No more hunting down "reader copies" of old , musty comics or paying through the nose for high grade issues that you would have to keep in a bag. This volume was an obvious labor of love by the folks at Dark Horse. Learn about the artists and writers( mostly uncredited originally). You'll be amazed at some of the talent that worked on these( Frank Miller!). If you loved these comics as a kid, this is a great opportunity to visit with an "old friend" that has certainly aged well. Enjoy!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classics in the EC Vein, June 10, 2010

By 

Tim Janson (Michigan) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery Archives Volume 1 (Hardcover)

Once again Dark Horse has come to the rescue of a comic series that may have been lost to obscurity. This time its Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery. In the 1960s, the aging horror icon lent his name for this anthology series from Gold Key Comics. This second volume presents issues #5 - 10 in their entirety, originally published in 1963 - 1965. In much the way that the Cryptkeeper or Uncle Creepy introduced the stories in "Tales from the Crypt" and "Creepy" magazine, Karloff introduces readers to the stories within.

Like classic EC Comics, the stories generally featured ironic twists at the end or had a moral message to relate. In "Possessed" a group of friends who have a `black magic club' foolishly play with a Quija board and end up trapped by evil spirits. In "A Cage for Hassan" a greedy and paranoid Arab merchant has the tables turned on him at the end leaving him trapped in a prison of his own mind's making. In "The Terrible Dark Glasses" a man murders a wealthy Optician in order to marry his wife and steal his fortune. But the dead Doctor's mysterious eyeglasses reveal imagery, which is too terrifying for the murderer to bear.

Each issue of the comic also included a one-page text story and a Key of Knowledge feature, which featured various topics such as archaeology, or understanding weather. The main difference between theses stories and those of EC Comics or Warren magazines lies in the art. The quality of art in Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery was simply not on a par as those other magazines. Occasionally there would be art by people like Joe Orlando, Frank Thorne, or Wally Wood, but more often than not, the art was by capable but mediocre journeymen artists and thus these stories lack that extra appeal. Still, the stories are a fun read and its great to see these in print after nearly fifty years.