Impossible, you say?

This British comics Annual from 1968 has some of the worst off-model drawings of Frankenstein Jr. in it. What could have been a very cool line up of stories featuring the likes of (personal favorites) Space Ghost and The Impossibles, it is instead a collection of garishly recolored reprints accompanied by some rather tragic 'artwork' from the Atlas Publishing staff. I can hardly believe this is an official Hanna-Barbera product! Guess it speaks volumes about how important Joe and William felt the British market was. Here's a look at a page from the original 'Frankie Jnr' text story fromm the back of the book, entitled "A Spook In His Wheel" (click to enlarge). I try to look away, but I can't!

Back from the Abyss

Where are all the cool monsters? Where the hell have I been, anyway? Well, fiends, I've been in L.A. on top secret cartoon business. The Cryptids project is now in full-blown development with the lovely and talented Cartoon Network, and I'll let you know how that's going soon. Now back to our scheduled programme...

The last post had me reminiscing about this 1976 book Make-Up Monsters that I begged my mother to order for me through Scholastic when I was a kid. This is my original copy, and it's pretty dog-eared! I tried out nearly all of Marcia Lynn Cox's cool techniques for All Hallows and otherwise... including SKULL FACE, SCAR FACE, COUNT DRACULA, DRIPPING FACE, and my favorite, the WEREWOLF. The last one was so itchy it drove me crazy, but I still wore it twice!

Franny K. Stein

My kids' school had it's annual BBQ last week, and look what I found at the book sale. Jim Benton is probably best known for his annoyingly ubiquitous 'Happy Bunny' merchandise, but this newer childrens' book series is definately more down our darkened Monsterama alley! Franny K. Stein is a schoolage Mad Scientist, with bats for friends. She makes zombie servants out of luncheon meats and she is fabulous. I just picked up the first volume from 2003, Lunch Walks Among Us, and my kids and I loved it. So I have to go and buy the other four books now. You know.... for my kids. Ahem--! Ohhhh! And there's a vinyl figure, and a flashlight keychain, and a glow-in-the-dark T-shirt, and...

Monster Factory!

Introducing the amazing Kevin. He is one of many huggable weirdos to come out of the smoke and mirrors of the Monster Factory. Take a tour of the factory floor for drawings, plushes, and also... funny movies. Oh, yeah, Rhya and her co-workers also have a blog. Grrr!

Old Haunts

Do I ever love this new blog of Keith's! Old Haunts is described as, "Old photographs of Halloweens long past. Faded, out-of-focus snapshots. Far away memories of the chilly Autumns of our childhoods. Turn of the Century, to the '60s & '70s." Ahhh...

Kreepsville U.S.A.

Monsterama's good pal Von Kreep is stitching together a gruesome cartoon show, with spooktacular design work by Darryl Young. Check the blog regularly to see if anything twitches. Mwa Ha Ha Haaaa!

Tell You A Secret

Kirk Demarais is a weirdo after my own black heart. His Secret Fun Spot is full of all kinds of monster stuff and retro goodies, and the new Secret Fun Spot Blog is a must-see thriller! Go now or get lost!

The Color Of (J.) Evil

I just got ahold of this rare Mr. and Mrs. J. Evil Scientist color guide from their 1962 Snooper and Blabber appearance, and thought I'd share it with you loyal creepsters.

More More Monsters

It appears that the previously blogged Mr. Rozum has gotten his charmingly creepy children Daphne and Dashiell into the family act. Monsters and More is another great gallery of kid monster drawings... some fiendishly familiar faces such as Hedorrah the Smog Monster (my favorite Kaiju, too, Dash) and the Creature from the Black Lagoon alongside some nasty new nightcrawlers.

R.I.P. Alex Toth

One of my biggest heroes passed away this weekend. Alex Toth was a giant in both comic books and animation, a genuinely unique talent with a gorgeous drawing style. Toth's smooth, inky minimalism looks so effortless, but, as I discovered myself aping Toth's Superfriends designs in Evan Dorkins Worlds Funnest project, and his Scooby Doo monsters for a video game project, it ain't as easy as it looks, folks. How obvious is it that I like his monster designs? Since my inlaws all speak Hungarian, I'd like my final words will be in Toth's native tongue... Nem nehéz kitalálni, honnan kaptam az én inspirációm… köszönöm szépen, Alexbácsi.

Homer The Happy Ghost

What do you get when you cross the talents of Marvel Comics maestro Stan Lee (co-creator of Spiderman, the Hulk, the X-men, Fantastic Four, etc.), Archie Comics legend Dan DeCarlo (creator of Josie and the Pussycats, Sabrina, etc.), and the runaway success of Casper the Friendly Ghost? Why, you get the best Casper imitation of them all, of course... Homer! Yeah, it was a blatant rip-off, but it's not like Casper was all that original to begin with. Instead of 'Friendly', Homer was 'Happy'. Instead of a tough, streetwise pal with a bowler hat named 'Spooky', Homer had 'Dugan', the Dead-End Ghost. Instead of a witch pal named 'Wendy', Homer had 'Zelda' (who would later show up in almost identical form in DeCarlo's Sabrina the Teen-aged Witch). The only relatively new addition was Melvin the Mixed-Up Ghost... a complete idiot with consistantly annoying behaviour. I really like Melvin a lot. Homer The Happy Ghost debuted in 1955 and lasted 22 issues, plus two issues of an offshoot series, The Adventures of Homer Ghost... a very good run for a monster kid book, actually. 'Stan and Dan', as they billed themselves on these stories, were already really strong talents, and the stories have a lot more pluck than the decidedly insipid Harvey originals. This Robot cover from 'Adventures of...' number 2 (1957) is one of my favourite covers ever! Inside, Homer and the gang battle Doctor Doom and his sinister robot assistant, Monstro. See for yourself... (click to enlarge) For another story in which Homer battles a robot, check this out.

Doubly Diabolic

Speaking of monster cards, it's been awhile since I first brought your attention to the macabre Diabolic Monsters blog by 'R', and I think you ought to check in. Especially if you like unlicensed pics of Darth Vader with blood pouring from his mouth (#41. "Robot Galactico").

Monsters Unlimited

Here's a really great scanned collection of all 50 Monsters From Outer Limits bubble gum cards. Do not adjust your set.

Transylvanian Tourist Trap

Anthony de Mariaffi, my Transylvania born Father-In-Law, is always a little irked by the indeservedly ghoulish reputation of his homeland... though he certainly enjoys terrifying kids with his Lugosi-ish accent come Hallowe'en. This great 'ad' from Bats is exactly the kind of thing he finds offensive. Of course, some of the childhood stories he tells are weirder than anything I've ever read in a comic book... not that he would ever admit that Transylvania's reputation might be based on more than a little fact! When I was last over there, I wasn't the least bit dissapointed by the wild countryside or vast hillside castles.

Future Fiends

This site has a bunch of 'Monster Pals' (like Jeremy's, at left) created by Chicago gradeschoolers as some kind of pen pal project. As 'Kathy' says: "To make my monster you must draw an egg for the head. In the head near the bottom you must draw a curved line going down. Next, you put two tongues in it so it can look like a mouth. Then, at the top draw an eyeball, just one. After that, you draw one string of hair." It looks as though this is a growing phenomenon... kids everywhere are getting into the 'Monster Exchange' program. This 'Licorice Pirate' was created by Mohammed from New Jersey. Cute? A little creepy? Yes!

Wilder Things

Where The Wild Things Are had already earned our beloved author Maurice Sendak an all-time top slot on Monsterama's 'best ever' list, but now the man is doing a Universal Horror Pop-Up Book! My brain is going to explode at how cool this is! Mommy? is loosely based on the play It's Alive, also by Maurice Sendak. After so long in the works, Mommy! is wending it's way towards an autumn 2006 release from Scholastic Books. In time for Hallowe'en, I'm sure!

Cute Zombie Attack

Declan Skwarczek is the spawn of Eat Your Lunch. Declan is also the creator and star of the must-see short, Zombie 2: Darkness Of Dead. Mind blowingly cute undead film in the grand tradition of Monster Kid home movies. His dad tells me he's a big Tutenstein fan, too... awww...

The Phantom Army

Japanese Suitmation shows produced some of the creepiest looking monster costumes ever. Maybe it was all that nuclear bombing seeping into the collective pop culture, but WOW... look at these freaky yokai-ish Phantom Army mutants from the 1973/74 series Inazuman! Yikers! F.Y.I., Inazuman went through a moth-like transformation... first entering a pupal stage called "Sanagiman" by weaving a coccoon around himself. Sanagiman has limited powers and must wait until the power gauge on his belt powers up to full. At that point, he poses and yells the command, "Choriki Shorai!" (Super Powers Summoned), the pupa explodes, and reveals the mighty Inazuman underneath. Yessir... even the good guys were kinda gross!

Two Headed Monster Fight

Mister Kitty's got a great thing going with his Stupid Comics site. 'Head' on over to see Electro batttle a two headed monster and some filthy rich zombies.

Good Ol' Jake

If you're ever out near Marsh's free museum in Long Beach, Washington, be sure to drop in and say hello to my pal Jake the Alligator Man. He may be dead, but he's still likes a little company. Who is Jake, you might ask? Well, no less an authority than The Weekly World News said, "Scientists call bizarre creature the Missing Link." But Sideshow World has the full scoop... "A lot of folks claim Jake was a valet in a New Orleans whorehouse. Others say that Jake was a sideshow freak who smoked cigars and could nod yes or no to simple questions when asked. There have even been people that stopped by to visit Jake that say they've seen him alive in a Texas carnival. Out of all the curiosities found in Marsh's Free Museum Jake the Alligator Man is the most amazing."