Mystic #25: "The Toy Train!"

Mystic #25
"The Toy Train!"
December, 1953

Script: Unknown
Art: Robert Q. Sale

Teddy has taken a push broom and a blanket to create a pretend train, one
which would take him far away from his old Uncle Jonas.  The boy's
playtime is over when the uncle grabs onto the broom and snaps the handle
in two.  He will not have any toys in his home, and believes that such
things are not for orphans.  Grabbing onto his nephew, Jonas intends to
teach him a lesson.

Bob Hammond had heard the yelling all the way to his own home, and bursts
into the room.  Uncle Jonas knows that Hammond and his wife have no
children, but want to adopt Teddy.  Since the boy was his late sister's
son, Teddy will stay with his uncle.  As Jonas threatens to call the
police, Bob Hammond is forced to leave the house.  Once the neighbor has
left, the little boy is sobbing, and his uncle threatens to break him,
too.  Being a miser with his money, Jonas tells his nephew to go to bed.
Angered by Teddy's sobs, the uncle slaps his tearful face.  Later that
night, Jonas is asleep, while his nephew is sleeping in the garret.  The
outside wind is his only company, and it begins to whisper his name.

A ghostly figure appears in the boy's room, and a cold hand strokes the
slumbering lad with a tender touch.  When Teddy wakes to find himself no
longer alone, his visitor leaves him an electric train to play with.  Not
bothered by the ghostly gift-giver, the lad prepares to play with the
electric train set.  Once assembled, the countryside set presents Teddy
with a place that he longs to visit.  The boy begins to shrink in size,
and is now able to fit inside his train.  As he walks along the train
track, Teddy sees the juicy red apples hanging from a tree, and the red
brick structure of the train house.  Not needing a ticket to ride, the
lad prepares to ride his train.

CLOMP!  CLOMP!  The sound of thunder echoes throughout Teddy's new world,
and he knows that he must return before his Uncle Jonas arrives.  Now
back at his normal size, the lad returns to his bed.  The miser had been
awakened by a noise, and intends to teach his nephew another lesson.
Both are surprised to see the fully assembled train set by the bed.
Teddy tries to tell his Uncle Jonas what's happened, but Jonas shakes the
boy, and is about to bash his nephew's dream with a wooden chair.
Through a tearful haze, Teddy leaps towards his train set.

The lad is reduced in size, now the engineer of his own personal line,
and sees the giant chair threatening to end his trip.  CHOO-CHOO  Jonas
is getting ready to smash the toy train into a million pieces, but it is
the miser who is struck headlong by the locomotive.  After opening his
eyes, Teddy finds himself back in bed, and wondering about the strange
dream he just had.  Bob Hammond has just broken down the door, having
heard a tremendous crash.  When the boy tells him about the dream, and
asks about his uncle, Bob tells Teddy that he'll be living with them from
now on.  As he carries the boy from the old mansion, Hammond shudders
inwardly at the sight of Jonas being smashed up... as if a train had run
over him.

This story was reprinted in Chamber Of Chills #12 (September, 1974).

Uncle Jonas looks like a demented version of Terry-Thomas, complete with
a bald skull-like face, and mustache.

Teddy looks like a young Billy Mumy, and is wearing a polo t-shirt
similar to that of William "Flint" Marko, aka The Sandman.

The miser's speech patterns (including "yuh") would be perfectly at home
in a Western.

This uncle is a far cry from the likes of Ben Parker.

Thanks to toys and comic books, a child's imagination can take them into
other worlds.

The uncle wears some night apparel which would do the Yellow Kid proud.

Unfortunately for Jonas, although he could threaten his nephew, the miser
was not more powerful than a locomotive.

Steve Chung
"The Review Train!"

Mystic #7: "Beware The Bees!"

Mystic #7
"Beware The Bees!"
March, 1952

Script: Unknown
Art: Unknown

Money is used for things we need and love, but for Casper Green, he loves
the feel of it.  The miser did not want to share his cache with those in
need.

While other people rested, Casper Green worked, and added to his money
pile.  He would take whatever sort of work... as long as it brought him
more money.  Casper would make even more green by making loans with
interest, then taking the payments on time.  In the case of Mrs. Hare, he
took away her car for being one payment behind on the loan.  Casper is
unwilling to wait a week for the payment, and demands to collect her
collateral.  Mrs. Hares admits that Mr. Green does the transactions in a
legal manner, but there are some laws which loom larger than those of
man.  In order to sell her greeting cards door-to-door, Mrs. hare needs
her car, but Casper Green is only interested in the money.  Now in
possession of a car, Mr. Green decides to head out into the country, and
search for a summer job.  A newspaper ad for an assistant for a scientist
with his experiments catches his eye.  Casper drives for Clearwater Rd,
Ellendale to meet with Walter Blane.  It turns out that Blane is a bee
keeper and is doing some interesting work with them.  When asked if he
likes bees, Mr. Green wipes the sweat from his forehead, and thinks about
the hundred dollars a week.

Casper Green soon finds himself surrounded by thousands of bees.  The
sounds of their droning and the threat of their deadly stings are a
constant reminder for him, as is the hundred dollars a week pay.  Green
wonders what the scientist could be doing inside the shack, while he
performs the task of tending to the bees.  It is on another day that
Casper Green stumbles in the hive-yard, frightening the bees, and
suffering their attack.  Seeing that his little friends have been upset
by his new assistant, Walter Blane feels that Casper may not be cut out
for this sort of work, and has to let him go.  As Mr. Green insists that
he be allowed to stay, the scientist relents, and tells the assistant not
to bother the bees again.  Staring at Blane, Casper asks if the scientist
has a method of keeping from getting stung.  He had been using a
experimental serum which hasn't been perfected yet, but is unsure how it
would affect someone other than himself.

Not wanting to lose out on his weekly paycheck, Mr. Green steals some of
the serum that night, and drinks a few drops.  He then enters the
hive-yard without any covering, and sees that the bees are treating him
as one of their own.  Casper Green will be able to make his fortune
without fear of being stung.  The following morning finds a woman's voice
calling out to him from outside his window.  Mrs. Hare has tracked him
down and is standing next to her car.  She is about to give Casper a
piece of her mind, when he steps onto the porch, and she starts to
scream.  The greeting card salesperson will not be needing a car if she
can keep running as fast as she is right now.  Mr. Green decides to wash
up before entering the hive-yard, and sees himself in the mirror.  In
order to become a friend to the bees, Casper Green had to become one of
them, and in so doing, he has indeed come out ahead.

This story was reprinted in Chamber Of Chills #12 (September, 1974).

There aren't any creator credits to the story, nor are there any in the
Grand Comics Database.

The art reminds me of Jack Cole, particularly in the facial features and
expressions of Casper Green.

Casper wasn't a friendly host, but preferred the color of money.

Walter Blane resembles Dr. Sivana in appearance.

Paul Newman and Robert Redford starred in "The Sting."

Among the Silver Age foes of the Justice League was the Queen Bee.

Mrs. Hare lives up to her name and is no tortoise when it comes to
getting away from Mr. Green.

Casper Green is now bee-side himself and must learn how to properly
bee-have when working in the hive-yard.

Steve Chung
"Review The Bees!"

Mystic #6: "Skull-Face"

Mystic #6

"Skull-Face"
January, 1952

Story: Stan Lee
Art: Tony DiPreta

It was only fifteen years ago that movie theaters across the nation saw
the release of the greatest horror movie ever made... "Skull-Face."
Lines were standing room only, with many patrons waiting at least a half
hour to see the film.  In this new year, Hollywood producers have found
difficulty in attracting their audience.  Gimmicks such as free dishes,
bingo, vaudeville acts, amateur nights, double features have failed.  One
person at a meeting has an idea.  Since "Skull-Face" was a thirty million
dollar moneymaker, it is decided that this particular film be re released
for a new generation of moviegoers.

With a large publicity campaign, "Skull-Face" will mean big business for
the movies.  Full page newspaper ads, television commercials, skywriting
airplanes, and men carrying sandwich signs bring news of the upcoming
release to the public's attention.  One idea man in Hollywood has his own
notion of how to bring "Skull-Face" to the public eye.  Since audiences
know the character from the movie, Tom Fenton wants to find a real
"Skull-Face." 

At a curio shop, the publicity man and his assistant want to buy a
skeleton, but the proprietor hasn't got one for sale.  When the assistant
points towards a nearby skeleton, the shop owner tells them that this
once had been a man who was burned at the stake for being a demon.  He is
reluctant to part with such a dangerous object, but when Fenton hands him
a thousand dollars, the deal is made.  After dressing the skeleton to
resemble "Skull-Face," Tom and his assistant carry the skeleton back to
the studio laboratory.  Just the sight of it makes the aide nervous.
After telling the assistant to contact Professor Thornton, Fenton calls
up the newspapers.  Time passes, with a gathering of reporters about to
witness the creation of a real-life "Skull-Face" in the studio lab.  The
professor is having fifty million volts of electricity running through
the skeleton for twenty-four hours a day... until "Skull-Face" comes to
life.  When one of the reporters wonders if the readers will buy such a
thing, another tells his colleague that they'll swallow anything.

The wave of publicity continues, with radio reports about the
biochemist's attempts to bring "Skull-Face" to life.  While the campaign
heads into high gear, the skeleton sat in the studio lab with fifty
million volts running through it.  Two months pass, with Tom Fenton's
plan deemed a complete success, and a bonus check for the publicity man.
When Thornton asks what they should do with the skeleton, Fenton suggests
that the scientist hang it on his wall as a Halloween decoration.  When
the professor returns to the studio laboratory, he is in for a big
surprise.  The following day, the body of the world famous biochemist is
found on the lab floor.  When asked who could have had a motive for the
killing, Tom Fenton suggests that "Skull-Face" was the culprit, but the
idea man is rebuffed for his crass attempt at publicity.

The murder of Professor Thornton remains a baffling mystery in the
Hollywood Gazette.  When he meets with the city editor, Fenton's theory
about the identity of the killer is rejected.  After others have turned
him away, Tom gives up, and decides to get out of the business.
Unfortunately for the publicity man, there is one more task to be
completed.  "Skull-Face" has come for him, blaming Fenton for being
revived in such a gruesome state.  As the frantic idea man tries to call
the police, the card-playing officers at the precinct figure that
Fenton's up to his old tricks again.  With Tom screaming in his final
moments, the neighbors figure that the publicity man must be working on a
new record for the horror movie.  The listening audience has swallowed
Fenton's publicity stunts, but the one time he had gotten ahold of the
real thing, they had turned away... except for "Skull-Face."  If the time
comes for you to see "Skull-Face"... make certain that it's the movie
before you agree to such a thing.

This story was reprinted in Tomb Of Darkness #20 (May, 1976).

As drawn by Tony DiPreta, Tom Fenton resembles none other than Bill
Gaines.

I know that television programs and movies use consultants, but would a
world famous biochemist really work on such a project at a studio
laboratory?

The use of print ads, television commercials, skywriting airplanes, and
skull-masked guys carrying sandwich signs seem light-years ahead in
imagination when compared to the numerous movie previews we suffer
through at the local theater.

Does anyone on the list have any fond memories of going to drive-ins and
matinees during the 1950's and like to share some of them?

I'm interested because I think that folks tended to have more fun at the
movies than they do nowadays.

Stan Lee hit it on the head with this particular tale.  There's just
something inherently interesting about a walking skeleton wearing an
orange suit that makes you clamoring for more.

Skull-Face later reappeared in What If The Avengers Had Fought Evil
During the 1950's? (#9, first series).

The concept and script were by Don Glut and Roy Thomas.  Alan Kupperberg
provided breakdowns, while Bill Black did the finished art, and inks.
Carl Gafford was the colorist, while Tom Orzechowski was the letterer.

The walking skeleton was one of the villains used by the Yellow Claw
against the 1950's Avengers.

According to the Grand Comics Database, Tony DiPreta drew for Quality,
Hillman, Lev Gleason, as well as for Marvel. 

There's one more story to review from Tomb Of Darkness #20.

Since I've posted the cover of T.O.D. #20 to the photo section, you can
see how the skeleton clad in tatters is trying to get a kiss from a
bell-bottomed beauty.

What is the significance of Mara and the kiss of death?

I'll promise to have the review for you tomorrow.

Same SAR-Time.

Same SAR-Channel.

Steve Chung
"Skull-Review"