Tales of Terror: The Ec Companion

The definitive story of EC Comics, the most notorious and well-regarded mass-market publisher in comics history. The EC line (MAD, Tales from the Crypt, Weird Science, etc.) was a high point in terms of craft and presentation. From the humanistic, well-paced writing of editor Harvey Kurtzman to the artwork of lauded masters like Wally Wood and Bernie Krigstein, what truly sets EC apart in comics history is its wider influence on American pop culture. Horror, crime and sci-fi stories “in the EC tradition” are a staple of movies and television almost 50 years after their original heyday, and the original stories themselves were many readers’ first exposure to these now-ubiquitous cultural trends. MAD magazine has been a rite of passage for three generations of American comedians, while Kurtzman’s war comics Two-Fisted Tales and Frontline Combat were not only amongst the very first comic books ever to successfully express human drama but were also perhaps the first popular entertainment in any medium to look at America’s involvement in the Korean War and other conflicts with anything less than a strictly nationalistic and patriotic eye. Every EC title is included in this comprehensive volume that uncovers the amazing history behind the comics, up to the US Senate driving EC out of business for allegedly corrupting America’s youth (EC publisher Bill Gaines’ testimony to a U.S. Senate Subcommittee one of the most capricious political witch hunts this side of Joseph McCarthy is included). Legendary EC creators like Al Feldstein, Johnny Craig, Graham Ingels and others are all represented, including previously unpublished interviews with several. Best of all, every EC cover is reproduced in full color. Co-published with Gemstone Comics, the official licensor of the EC line, and fully authorized by the estate of EC’s Bill Gaines. Hundreds of lavish full-color pages.