296 HORROR COMICS
However, prior to their creation of the Marvel superhero universe, beginning with
Fantastic Four issue #1 (1961), Stan Lee and Jack Kirby created a run of Monster
comics in the late 1950s and early 1960s under the company name of Atlas, the fore-
runner of Marvel. Th ey copied the structure of the EC comics that came before them,
and titles like Tales of Suspense and Strange Tales would contain monsters that were
either straight horror or horror/ science-fi ction hybrids. Lee and Kirby would create
outlandishly designed behemoth’s with names like Fin Fang Foom. Th ese proved
popular but were phased out when superheroes became popular. However, their infl u-
ence could still be seen through characters like the Th ing from the Fantastic Four and
the Hulk.
Warren Publishing was founded by James Warren in 1957. Th e company pub-
lished magazines, but some of these also include horror comic stories. Warren’s initial
success came with the publication of Famous Monsters of Filmland and Monster World ,
magazines that were edited by Forrest J. Ackerman. Th e latter magazine began pub-
lishing comic stories, which led to the publication of such stories in their magazines
Creepy and Eerie ; being magazines, they were not subject to the restrictions of the
Comics Code. Th e horror line was joined by Vampirella in 1969. Th e adult subject
matter and magazine format were infl uential in the development of more mature comic
magazines like Epic Illustrated (published by Marvel) and Heavy Metal (an American
version of the French magazine Metal Hurlant ). Artists employed by Warren included
veterans such as Alex Toth , Wally Wood , and Gene Colan , in addition to newcomers
like Dave Cockrum and Berni Wrightson. Writers included Archie Goodwin, Doug
Moench, Don McGregor and Steve Skeates.
DC would produce signifi cant horror titles in the 1970s. Th e House of Secrets was an
anthology title that originally ran for 80 issues between 1956 and 1966, mixing one-
off stories with some ongoing features. A more signifi cant run of the title was a revival
which began in 1969, and ended in 1978. Th e series was now hosted by Abel, who
would off er an introduction to, and provide links between, each story in the anthology,
often making conversation with an unseen companion called Goldie. It was comple-
mented by another title, Th e House of Mystery , hosted by Abel’s brother Cain from
issue #175 in May–June 1968, with the title ending in 1983. Th e content of both series
was very much in the style of the EC comics of the 1950s, and the two titles dominated
the horror comic fi eld in the 1970s. Th eir infl uence would be felt some years later, as
Cain and Abel became recurring characters in Neil Gaiman’s Sandman series, where
he delved more deeply into their relationship and established locations for both houses
within the Dreaming itself.
House of Secrets #92 (1971) saw the debut of the Swamp Th ing , created by Len
Wein and Bernie Wrightson, in an eight-page tale in which Alec Olsen is killed and his
body cast into a swamp, where he mutates into a swamp creature who enacts revenge
upon Alec’s killer. Th e character proved popular enough to warrant an ongoing series
(1972), which modernized the setting and characters. Th e Swamp Th ing was now
Alec Holland who, with his wife Linda, is working on a bio-restorative formula.
