Secrets of Sinister House | |
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Publication information | |
Publisher | DC Comics |
Schedule | Bimonthly |
Format | Ongoing series |
Genre | |
Publication date | July 1972 – July 1974 |
No. of issues | 18 |
Main character(s) | Eve |
Editor(s) | E. Nelson Bridwell, Joe Orlando |
Secrets of Sinister House was a horror-suspense anthology comic book series published by DC Comics from 1972-1974, a companion to Forbidden Tales of Dark Mansion . Both series were originally inspired by the successful ABC soap opera Dark Shadows , which ran from 1966 to 1971. [1]
After four issues as The Sinister House of Secret Love, [2] which featured Gothic romance/horror stories written by Michael Fleisher and others, the title changed to Secrets of Sinister House, and the original format and romance angle were abandoned the following issue.
In the same vein as House of Mystery and House of Secrets (as well as its successor, Secrets of Haunted House ), Secrets of Sinister House was "hosted" by Eve (the character debuted in issue #6) and included guest appearances by Eve's cousins Cain and Abel. In issue #16, Eve was removed as host — as editor Joe Orlando departed from the title, replaced by Jack C. Harris — to focus on the concept of the "sinister houses". The following month, she began nudging Destiny out of Weird Mystery Tales .
Secrets of Sinister House was canceled after publishing fourteen issues in two years (together, Sinister House of Secret Love and Secrets of Sinister House published eighteen issues).
Edited by Joe Orlando and E. Nelson Bridwell, contributors to the title included Alfredo Alcala (issues #6, 13, 14), Robert Kanigher (#6, 9, 11), Sam Glanzman (#7), Michael William Kaluta (covers for issues #6, 7), Maxene Fabe (#8 & 11), Ruben Yandoc (#8 & 11), Jack Oleck (#9, 12, 13), Neal Adams (#10), Mike Sekowsky (#14), and Alex Niño (#8, 11-13).
Charlton Comics was an American comic-book publishing company that existed from 1945 to 1986, having begun under a different name: T. W. O. Charles Company, in 1940. It was based in Derby, Connecticut. The comic-book line was a division of Charlton Publications, which published magazines, puzzle books, and briefly, books. It had its own distribution company.
Cain and Abel are a pair of fictional characters in the DC Comics universe based on the biblical Cain and Abel. They are key figures in DC's "Mystery" line of the late 1960s and 1970s, which became the mature-readers imprint Vertigo in 1993.
Plop!, "The New Magazine of Weird Humor!", was a comic book anthology series published by DC Comics in the mid-1970s. It falls into the horror / humor genre. It lasted 24 issues and the series ran from Sept./Oct. 1973 to Nov./Dec. 1976.
The House of Mystery is the name of several horror, fantasy, and mystery comics anthologies published by DC Comics. It had a companion series, The House of Secrets. It is also the name of the titular setting of the series.
Alexander Toth was an American cartoonist active from the 1940s through the 1980s. Toth's work began in the American comic book industry, but he is also known for his animation designs for Hanna-Barbera throughout the 1960s and 1970s. His work included Super Friends, Fantastic Four, Space Ghost, Sealab 2020, The Herculoids and Birdman. Toth's work has been resurrected in the late-night, adult-themed spin-offs on Cartoon Network’s late night sister channel Adult Swim: Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Sealab 2021 and Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law.
Michael William Kaluta, sometimes credited as Mike Kaluta or Michael Wm. Kaluta, is an American comics artist and writer best known for his acclaimed 1970s adaptation of the pulp magazine hero The Shadow with writer Dennis O'Neil. He is the godfather of comedian and gamemaster Brennan Lee Mulligan.
Joseph Orlando was an Italian-American illustrator, writer, editor and cartoonist during a lengthy career spanning six decades. He was the associate publisher of Mad and the vice president of DC Comics, where he edited numerous titles and ran DC's Special Projects department.
Edward Nelson Bridwell was a writer for Mad magazine and various comic books published by DC Comics. One of the writers for the Batman comic strip and Super Friends, he also wrote The Inferior Five, among other comics. He has been called "DC's self-appointed continuity cop."
Weird Mystery Tales was a mystery horror comics anthology published by DC Comics from July–August 1972 to November 1975.
Ghosts is a horror comics anthology series published by DC Comics for 112 issues from September–October 1971 to May 1982. Its tagline was "True Tales of the Weird and Supernatural", changed to "New Tales of the Weird and Supernatural", as of #75, and dropped after #104.
John Edmond Sparling, was a Canadian comics artist.
Alex Niño is a Filipino comics artist best known for his work for the American publishers DC Comics, Marvel Comics, and Warren Publishing, and in Heavy Metal magazine.
Secrets of Haunted House was a horror-suspense comics anthology series published by American company DC Comics from 1975 to 1978 and 1979 to 1982.
Forbidden Tales of Dark Mansion was a horror-suspense-romance anthology comic book series published by DC Comics from 1971 to 1974, a companion to Secrets of Sinister House. Both series were originally inspired by the successful ABC soap opera, Dark Shadows, which ran from 1966 to 1971.
Horror comics are comic books, graphic novels, black-and-white comics magazines, and manga focusing on horror fiction. In the US market, horror comic books reached a peak in the late 1940s through the mid-1950s, when concern over content and the imposition of the self-censorship Comics Code Authority contributed to the demise of many titles and the toning down of others. Black-and-white horror-comics magazines, which did not fall under the Code, flourished from the mid-1960s through the early 1980s from a variety of publishers. Mainstream American color comic books experienced a horror resurgence in the 1970s, following a loosening of the Code. While the genre has had greater and lesser periods of popularity, it occupies a firm niche in comics as of the 2010s.
Gerry Talaoc is a Filipino comics artist best known for his 1970s work for DC Comics' war and horror anthology titles.
Haunted Love was a horror-romance anthology comic book series published by American company Charlton Comics from 1973 to 1975. It was part of the Gothic Romance comic book mini-trend of the era, which included the short-lived DC Comics series The Dark Mansion Of Forbidden Love and The Sinister House of Secret Love, and Atlas/Seaboard Comics' one-shot magazine Gothic Romances. Haunted Love was also part of Charlton's wave of early 1970s horror-themed titles, including Ghostly Haunts, Haunted, Midnight Tales, and Scary Tales.
Tales of Ghost Castle was a horror-suspense anthology comic book series published by DC Comics in 1975. Tales of Ghost Castle was "hosted" by Lucien, who later became an important supporting character in Neil Gaiman's The Sandman. Much of the artwork in the series was by Filipino artists, many of whom had been recruited by Joe Orlando and Carmine Infantino in their 1971 recruiting trip to the Philippines.
Jack Oleck was an American novelist and comic book writer particularly known for his work in the horror genre.
Bill Draut was an American comic book artist best known for his work at Harvey Comics and DC Comics from the 1940s to the 1970s.