Zombie by Bill Everett Debuts in Menace #5, up for Auction

Posted in: Comics, Heritage Sponsored, Vintage Paper | Tagged: atlas, invoice everett, pre-code horror, zombie

Zombie by Bill Everett debuted in Menace #5 from Marvel/Atlas in 1953, and would return to enter the Marvel Universe 20 years later.

Zombies had been a staple a part of the Pre-Code Horror period, and naturally, there had been comedian books that featured the dwelling lifeless lengthy earlier than that. The Master of Corpses in More Fun Comics #31 by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster is one early Golden Age instance from 1938. Tarpé Mills Purple Zombie (Heroic Comics #1-12, 1940-1941) and Joe Simon‘s Zombie Master (Daring Mystery Comics #1, 1940) are some notable early Golden Age entries, and there are quite a few others. But whereas zombies appeared in comedian books a handful of occasions per yr all through a lot of the early Golden Age, in the course of the peak of the Pre-Code Horror period, they might be seen in comics on the newsstands a number of occasions month-to-month.

DC Comics’ Solomon Grundy is probably probably the most well-known comedian e-book zombie of the Golden Age, although he isn’t the one undead comedian e-book character to return to comics in later occasions. Bill Everett‘s Zombie from Menace #5 entered the Marvel Universe 20 years after its 1953 launch. A virtually-forgotten character who debuted on the peak of Marvel’s Pre-Code Horror period, there is a copy of the comedian containing his first look in Menace #5 (Atlas, 1953) Condition: GD/VG up for public sale in the 2023 July 13 – 14 Pre-Code Horror & Crime Comics Showcase Auction #40227 at Heritage Auctions.

Bill Everett's Zombie in Menace #5 (Atlas, 1953). — Menace #5 (Atlas, 1953) that includes Bill Everett’s Zombie.

Marvel was the comedian e-book business’s most prolific horror writer in 1953 when Menace #5 hit the newsstands. Of course, this modified when the Comics Code was applied the subsequent yr. Notably, the Code explicitly prevented zombies from showing in comedian books at the moment, together with different horror staples like vampires and werewolves. However, when Code tips had been relaxed on this level in 1971, Marvel seemed to re-enter the horror area, and Marvel resurrected Everett’s Zombie to star in its Tales of the Zombie journal in 1973. An editorial in the debut difficulty defined how this happened:

Editor Roy Thomas turned up a number of [Bill Everett Pre-Code Horror stories] whereas he was wanting for classic tales to reprint for the primary difficulty of our sister-mag DRACULA LIVES!, again when that title and MONSTERS UNLEASHED. had been the one two giant-sized comics on the Marvel schedule.

And the easiest Everett story— in reality, Roy’s private nomination for one of many best-drawn sagas of that much-maligned decade whereby he lower his proverbial eyeteeth — was a factor referred to as merely “Zombie.” He put it apart on high of a stack of reprint materials by Russ Heath, Gene Colan. Tony diPreta. and different giants in the sphere, and went on to different considerations.

Then, abruptly, neo-publisher Stan Lee got here up with a few new names he needed to see performed as journal titles, in order that Marvel would enter the black-and-white area with an entire line of 75-centers. One was VAMPIRE TALES. which debuts subsequent month, identical time, identical newsstand— and the opposite was TALES OF THE ZOMBIE!

Roy was thunderstruck— an uncommon prevalence for the Rascally One. TALES OF THE ZOMBIE. Great title, that. But— tales of what zombie? More than seven years of hectic expertise in comics had satisfied Roy that Marvel’s magazines often did greatest with robust title characters somewhat than with anthology-type books per se. But, easy methods to come up with simply the proper zombie, drawn in simply the proper type by simply the proper artist? He racked his brains for, oh. 5 minutes or so. Then. one thing clicked— and be remembered. Bill Everett’s Zombie! Why not take this beautifully-conceived, painstakingly-rendered Walking Deadman, and make him the distinctive hero of his personal journal, similar to that?

Zombie is an obscure starting for a personality who made his means into the Marvel Universe 20 years later, and there is a copy of the comedian containing his first look in Menace #5 (Atlas, 1953) Condition: GD/VG up for public sale in the 2023 July 13 – 14 Pre-Code Horror & Crime Comics Showcase Auction #40227 at Heritage Auctions.