"I won't book another concert for you, Devere. Neither will any agent! Audiences run from your concerts. You play music that drives them nearly mad! People can't listen to you and stay sane."
Ahhh, yes, the years before auto-tune. Step back again this week if you will into that dark place where a chance encounter with a musician or composer might lead to madness at the least, or being an accursed soul for all eternity on the outside.
In our first little yarn, as illustrated by the Atlas/Marvel companies favorite artist (in the 1950s, anyway) Joe Maneely, we will learn a wickedly popular new dance that was all the rage back in 1954 when it appeared originally. Then we will roll back to 1952 and the Fawcett Comics company to hear the soothing strains sure to issue from "Satan's Stradivari", as expertly drawn by the stalwart Golden Age artist Sheldon Moldoff, better-known for his many fine contributions to the Batman comics family, while ghosting for many years under Bob Kane's signature. A special mention should go to the unknown colorist of this story, who did a fantastic job, it is a treat to look at!
And so, for your listening and dancing pleasure, put on your dancing shoes, adjust your earplugs and join me after the jump for some mighty cheerful (and cultural) goings-on!
Well now, she was a nasty piece of work, eh? Fine dancer, though. Let us go on and meet another character who may just get what HE wants as well. Fiddle players take note - when you see this model for sale at a too-reasonable price at your local pawn shop - stay away from it - get outta there!
The lovely cover of that issue is also by Shelly Moldoff. This story has so many freaky panels that I'm just going to hang a little gallery of them here as we go out ----
Todays stories come from the following books: The Mad Mamba / Adventures into Weird Worlds #25, January 1954; and Satan's Stradivari / Worlds of Fear #7, November 1952.
As always, a tip of the research hat to the Grand Comics Database and the Digital Comic Museum for their tireless efforts to preserve and study these ancient texts and pictograms. I should also mention those fine blogs Four-Color Shadows and The Horrors of It All from either of which I may have lifted the 'Mamba' tale. Cheers to you all!
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