Kurtzman, Harvey - Vault of Horror, issue 12, Island of Death, title splash (Jun/Jul 1950)
Artist: Harvey Kurtzman (All)
22 Comments - 3,395 Views - 9 Likes
Artwork Details
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DescriptionAn early Harvey Kurtzman title splash from EC Comic’s bi-monthly horror comic anthology series, Vault of Horror (‘VOH’).Along with Tales from the Crypt and The Haunt of Fear, VOH formed a popular horror comic anthology trifecta for EC in the 1950’s. EC publisher Bill Gaines and his editor, Al Feldstein, had been experimenting with horror stories in EC’s crime comics, War Against Crime (‘WAC’) and Crime Patrol, before replacing them with the horror titles (VOH replaced WAC with issue #12). VOH’s first issue was its April/May 1950 issue (29 total issues would be published), although it hit newsstands as issue #12 given the continuation off of WAC issue numbering (due to an attempt to save money on second-class postage permits by Gaines & Feldstein). This title splash comes from the second issue (numbered issue #13 and hitting newsstands in June/July 1950) and kicks off the ‘Island of Death’ story which tells the tale of two pilots who, after their plane crashes onto an island in the Pacific, come into contact with a strange, castle-dwelling count who likes to hunt humans…in this case, them. Like many EC stories, ‘Island of Death’ was influenced by other horror stories Bill Gaines had read – in this case, Richard Connell’s ‘The Most Dangerous Game’, first published as a short story in Collier’s in 1924 and eventually made into a feature film in 1932. It’s been an influence for numerous other stories, films and TV episodes over the years. The original Collier’s story tells of a big game hunter from New York City who falls off a yacht in the Caribbean. After swimming to what he thinks is an abandoned island, he is hunted by a Russian aristocrat. Sound familiar? Anyway, EC + Kurtzman + title splash = winning combination in my book. Delighted to add this to my gallery – and big thanks to DC for making it happen! Social/Sharing |
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Comments on this Artwork
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Roger K. 
Member Since 2005
Forum Moderator
1 - Posted on 12/27/2019
Spectacular page! Kurtzman! What an artist!
John Espinoza
Member Since 2014
1 - Posted on 12/27/2019
Love that skeleton! Thanks for the contextual write-up!
Chris C
Member Since 2004
1 - Posted on 12/27/2019
Kurtzman, so influential and so rich in context. Love this.
Ron S
Member Since 2007
1 - Posted on 12/27/2019
Rare to find, and wonderful to behold. Well done, sir. Well done.
Rob Pistella
Member Since 2005
Forum Moderator
1 - Posted on 12/27/2019
Superb museum quality piece from the great EC Comics and Kurtzman in particular is certainly a giant at not only EC but the entire comics field. A Home Run pick up Chris!!!
Steven biali001
Member Since 2005
1 - Posted on 12/27/2019
A great addition to a fantastic collection!!
Aaron N.
Member Since 2009
1 - Posted on 12/28/2019
Such an interesting page design. That exquisite little plane in top right! The way the skeleton emerges gradually from the foliage. Nice, nice, nice.
James Halperin
Member Since 2007
1 - Posted on 12/28/2019
Absolutely fantastic, a classic Kurtzman horror splash.
Chris Puckelwartz
Member Since 2006
1 - Posted on 12/28/2019
Great EC splash by one of the legends! Congrats!!
Sean Conlon
Member Since 2004
1 - Posted on 12/29/2019
A beauty, from one of the few Kurtzman EC stories that have been broken up. Back in 1999 or 2000 the whole story sold on ebay for about $1,500. I missed out on it due to a wonky internet connection.
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