{"id":865,"date":"2013-09-11T12:12:14","date_gmt":"2013-09-11T10:12:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/highest-standard.de\/?page_id=865"},"modified":"2013-11-19T13:21:25","modified_gmt":"2013-11-19T12:21:25","slug":"artists-of-standard","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/highest-standard.de\/?page_id=865","title":{"rendered":"Artists of Standard"},"content":{"rendered":"

STANDARD HORROR !<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Standard tackled their horror line very tactical. They entered competition only at the height of the horror craze (along with St. John as one of the last publishers) and brought out (almost ever) exactly one book per month.
\nStarting with a nice and clean time-table: THE UNSEEN #5 in June 1952, OUT OF THE SHADOWS #5 in July, ADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #5 in August, then continuing with THE UNSEEN #6 in September and so on\u2026 Putting a total of 31 horror issues on the newsstands.<\/p>\n

\"CelardoSplash\"<\/a>

Gorgeous splash detail by John Celardo<\/p><\/div>\n

Up front a brutal confession of a most personal nature:
\n<\/strong>A lot of Standard\u2019s horror stories have bored me to death. Maybe the authors misunderstood the function of a horror comic\u2026
\nUsually I\u2019d just fling the thing into the corner, jump up and down in a rage and yell tirades about \u201cno-good trash\u201d and so forth. But the thing with Standard is \u2013 the art is so beautiful.<\/p>\n

It hurts to see these ARTISTS execute tales of meaningless lameness. Repetitions of clich\u00e9s we\u2019ve seen before in books of other companies \u2013 and seen them done better! What a cruel and senseless and tragic waste!<\/strong><\/p>\n

To top this verdict, here\u2019s another shocker: read the two-page text stories in each issue, please! These are often more entertaining than the comic stories \u2013 and would have made interesting scripts. Why didn\u2019t Standard go there?!<\/p>\n

Ach! If my hair wasn\u2019t grey already, it would have turned so reading THE UNSEEN, OUT OF THE SHADOWS and ADVENTURES INTO THE UNKNOWN. So let\u2019s take a deep breath and search for the sunny side of Standard Horror. Every cloud has a silver lining; so look and look hard\u2026<\/p>\n

Spotlight: The Covers<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Judging a book by its cover, Standard will win every time. Their title pages are simply wonderful. They present a new effort with each new issue.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t like those grid-like Atlas covers; ACGs were formulaic; the ones from the Iger Studio were crude; Star\u2019s were just going for weird color combinations; Ace always missed the point, and even the ECs are often not that good.<\/p>\n

What baffles me is the fact that Standard did not employ a cover artist. The busiest (which can be identified) seem to be George Roussos and Jack Katz, but the majority is uncredited for and a mystery to all the known art spotters. It\u2019s hard to tell an artist by just one \u201cpanel\u201d. And they never signed a cover. Hold it, there\u2019s one (!) signed by Roussos.<\/p>\n

The covers NEVER referred to a story inside<\/strong>, by the way. Mere teasers. Which is a phenomenon in itself. At other companies they did (not always, but often enough). Slight correction: One cover actually does refer to a story inside \u2013 the unpublished ADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #15 (learn more under the entry there), what a stroke of irony.<\/p>\n

Back to the beautiful covers: I love that \u201cUnseen\u201d logo, which blends beautifully (like the \u201cDarkness\u201d scroll) into the gloomy and moody motifs. \u201cOut Of The Shadows\u201d looks a bit mechanical though.<\/p>\n

Standard title pages emanate a massive amount of despair. They are truly frightening.
\nYou wouldn\u2019t wanna be in place of those poor folks being shocked out of their wits by a mummy, a vampire, a skeleton, a fiend. These covers transport imminent action and a small story in itself. What\u2019s going to happen next? Nothing good!<\/p>\n

\"DreiCover\"<\/a><\/p>\n

A devil springs at you; you stumble upon an unholy graveyard scene; you watch helpless and terrified as a ghoul is boiling human heads! Strong stuff. So much the worse that the stories inside seldomly live up to the promise.<\/p>\n

Spotlight: The Artists \u201cScoreboard\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Because Standard story lengths range from a half up to nine pages, we won\u2019t count the jobs, but the pages executed per artist. So here\u2019s our general count, added together from all three series:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
130<\/td>\nMike Sekowsky<\/td>\n(mostly inked by Mike Peppe)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
112<\/td>\nRocco Mastroserio<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
112<\/td>\nGeorge Roussos<\/td>\n(32 with Mort Meskin)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
108<\/td>\nJack Katz<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
78<\/td>\nAlex Toth<\/td>\n(inked by Mike Peppe)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
52<\/td>\nJohn Celardo<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
42<\/td>\nGene Fawcette<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
42<\/td>\nNick Cardy<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
36<\/td>\nRoss Andru<\/td>\n(partly with Mike Esposito)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
31<\/td>\nArt Saaf<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
30<\/td>\nMike Roy<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
29<\/td>\nRalph Mayo<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
18<\/td>\nJerry Grandenetti<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
16<\/td>\nGeorge Tuska<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
15<\/td>\nReed Crandall<\/td>\n(8 with Mike Peppe)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
14<\/td>\nRuben Moreira<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
10<\/td>\nCharles Sultan<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

That\u2019s 17 artists who contributed to Standard\u2019s line of horror comic books; the main body of work done by the \u201cTop Five\u201d: Sekowsky, Mastroserio, Roussos, Katz and Toth.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In addition there are singular jobs under ten pages by Rafael Astarita, Murphy Anderson, Frank Giacoia, Sam Citron and Pete Morisi. Only two \u201clong\u201d stories (over three pages) show mystery artwork. The rest has been credited quite safely to the above mentioned artists. We\u2019ll have a closer look at the first 12.<\/p>\n

When you think of Standard\u2019s horror books, one name springs to mind, because he was their finest artist: Alex Toth.
\nIt surprised me to learn that four other artists contributed significantly more work. So let\u2019s take it from the top.<\/p>\n

MIKE SEKOWSKY<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The most prolific artist I came across<\/strong> in my studies about pre-code horror. From 1951 on this man is credited (on Grand Comics Database) with approximately 4 stories per month. EACH month for the next years. Highpoint being October 1953 with 9 (!) story credits. This is next to impossible. Someone should probably check this\u2026<\/p>\n

Anyway, Sekowsky comes over from Ace Magazines, where he was a mainstay for mystery at THE BEYOND et al. Comparing his jobs one notices instantly that his work for Standard is much more inspired.
\nSekowsky flourishes alongside his friend Toth \u2013 and is inked by the more than capable Mike Peppe. He is oftentimes on par with Toth; the mutual inker may be a meaningful factor. Sekowsky delivers wonderful horror artwork; I\u2019ve never seen him do better.<\/p>\n

ROCCO MASTROSERIO<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Yet another \u201crefugee\u201d from Ace. He was inking the fledgling Lou Cameron and left when the latter went solo. At Standard Mastroserio was given the chance to display his talent to full extent.
\nThough his characters\u2019 poses and facial expressions sometimes tend to be a bit clumsy, he is an exquisite horror artist handling the color black very effectively and setting up his \u201ccamera\u201d in most useful ways. When Standard closed shop and horror went out of business, Rocco found work at Charlton and drew western comic books for the next years.<\/p>\n

\"SekoMastro\"<\/a>

Standard artists: Mike Sekowsky (left) and Rocco Mastroserio (right)<\/p><\/div>\n

GEORGE ROUSSOS<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A 1940s veteran from the house of DC and connecting with Standard in 1949, Roussos skids into their line-up for horror (maybe because he was with ECs \u201cnew trend\u201d in 1950\/51). I do not consider him to be a good artist, but he fits in astonishingly well. He should crumble to dust \u2013 next to Sekowsky, Toth, Celardo, Cardy or Fawcette. But he doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

His artwork is the crudest and most amateurish to be found in Standard books, yet Roussos is not the nuisance one would suspect him to be. Though his compositions are run of the mill, his faces look pudgy and his use of perspective is boring, there is a \u201cgloom\u201d to his panels which can be called unique.
\nYou will recognize a Roussos story, like you will one by Howard Larsen. They share a level of abstraction; their work is more about the story\u2019s atmosphere, not so much about the players inhabiting the stage.<\/p>\n

JACK KATZ<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The same goes for Jack Katz, a rookie starting out with THE UNSEEN #6. Not a „good“ artist, crude style, masters only two dimensions. But memorable like hell. A very nice addition to Standard\u2019s artist roster. His way of \u201cfilling\u201d panels and \u201carranging\u201d compositions are really unique.<\/p>\n

His faces transport an underlying message of greed and lust \u2013 pointing beyond the cartoony pretense. A story illustrated by Katz (there are only 15 full-length ones!) should not be lacking from a 1950s horror anthology. He left for Atlas at the beginning of 1954.<\/p>\n

\"RousKatzBild\"<\/a>

Standard artists: George Roussos (left) and Jack Katz (right)<\/p><\/div>\n

ALEX TOTH<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"TothBild\"<\/a>

Standard artist: Alex Toth<\/p><\/div>\n

A trend-setter and groundbreaker in graphic design<\/strong>. One of the greats. A meticulous craftsman who always reflected on the things he was drawing. An artists\u2019 artist who influenced many of his colleagues.
\nSeems to me that this is already the case at Standard. Looking at Cardy, Andru, Celardo, Roy and especially Sekowsky there\u2019s a Toth-like \u201chouse style\u201d at work in these horror books.<\/p>\n

Sekowsky, Mastroserio, Roussos, Katz and Toth are the \u201cGang of Five\u201d at Standard.<\/strong><\/p>\n

They are being followed by seven more artists who can be considered as \u201cregulars\u201d, coming up here:<\/p>\n

GENE FAWCETTE<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"FawcBild\"<\/a>

Standard artist: Gene Fawcette<\/p><\/div>\n

Starts illustrating filler pages for the famous WINGS COMICS at Fiction House in the early 1940s, gets a shot at long stories with Quality\u2019s NATIONAL COMICS in the mid-1940s and is to be found at Standard around 1947. Doing jungle adventures in quite a different style.<\/p>\n

He can escape the jungle and turns up at Avon in 1950.
\nFawcette is allowed some science fiction covers and stories, but also bikini babes in WHITE PRINCESS OF THE JUNGLE. After a short stint with Avon\u2019s horror book WITCHCRAFT (two stories, one of them drowned by Alascia inks) he knocks again on Standard\u2019s doors \u2013 only to be drawing fillers again!<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a shame that Fawcette only did 9 stories two or three pages long<\/strong>. His fine-lined and mostly light style is very peculiar and refreshing to look at.<\/p>\n

He could have been what Louis Zansky was for Ace\u2019s horror mags \u2013 an artist with a highly recognizable and distinct expression. They didn\u2019t let him be.
\nFawcette survived three more years in the comic book business drawing funny features like CUTIE PIE and SUPERMOUSE. This is almost tragic.<\/p>\n

ROSS ANDRU<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The lament goes on. A crying shame that this fine artist did not contribute MORE to Standard\u2019s horror books. (The same goes for the next two men coming up, just telling you in advance). Andru is one of the best beginners the business has ever seen.
\nStarting in 1951 (one of his first jobs is a romance story) Andru mainly works for Standard in 1952\/53. Delivering fantastic work for their JOE YANK series. 6 horror stories bear his mark.<\/p>\n

JOHN CELARDO<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I took an instant liking to Celardo. He is to me the more elegant version of Mastroserio. As a 1940s veteran for Quality and Fiction House, Celardo enters the doors of the Standard offices around 1949. Doing the casual mystery story for ACG, he becomes Standard\u2019s allround artist for western, war, romance, science fiction and eventually horror as well.<\/p>\n

Celardo seems to have been a staffer. His panels look smooth and inventive, secure in every detail. A joy to look at. He only illustrated 6 long stories for Standard\u2019s horror line. I am very much inclined to check out other titles \u2013 just for his artwork.<\/p>\n

\"AndrCelaBild\"<\/a>

Standard artists: Ross Andru (left) and John Celardo (right)<\/p><\/div>\n

NICK CARDY<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Another 1940s veteran coming over from Fiction House and Quality. Aligning himself to the house of DC, Cardy only stays for an interlude at Standard.
\nLike Fawcette he only does 9 longer stories and is missed when he leaves in the beginning of 1954.<\/p>\n

His horror illustrations are so compact and inventive (dismal too) that he can be easily mistaken for Toth. Luckily, better art spotters than me have drawn the lines and sorted things out.<\/p>\n

ART SAAF<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The next one from the Fiction House connection. Also changes to Standard in 1949 working on all the adventure titles. Illustrates surprisingly little for their horror books. Saaf\u2019s style is clean and crisp and more suited for the romance comics like INTIMATE LOVE, POPULAR ROMANCE, THRILLING ROMANCES and (who would have believed it?) NEW ROMANCES.<\/p>\n

Have a look at his \u201cDeath Drum\u201d (posted on our \u201cStories\u201d section) \u2013 which in fact has the feeling of a love story gone terribly wrong.
\nSaaf seems to disappear from the face of the earth in 1954, but emerges again 15 years later at DC \u2013 doing romance books again. How cruel can fate be?!<\/p>\n

\"CardySaafBild\"<\/a>

Standard artists: Nick Cardy (left) and Art Saaf (right)<\/p><\/div>\n

MIKE ROY<\/strong><\/h2>\n

An old acquaintance who worked shortly for Charlie Biro\u2019s crime comic books. Did odd jobs for Avon, Hillman and Eastern Color before landing those precious few horror stories for Standard.
\nMoved instantly on to the Sterling company and contributed to their two pre-code horror books (THE TORMENTED). Later on Roy was seen at St. John, DC and Pines \u2013 a true illustrating nomad. His style is in no way special, I deem him to look like a crossover between Sekowsky and Grandenetti.<\/p>\n

Spotlight: Story Titles and Settings<\/strong><\/h2>\n

What are the topics of Standard horror?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Where Atlas for example did endless variations about the vampire, werewolf and zombie tune, Standard refrained from supernatural personnel. They did hardly ever rely on vampires, werewolves and zombies. There is some witchcraft going on though. Haunted killers and evildoers are the most recurrent theme.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"RoyBild\"<\/a>

Standard artist: Mike Roy<\/p><\/div>\n

Concerning the story titles \u2013 \u201cDeath\u201d is the most used word<\/strong>: Dr. Death, Death Drum, Till Death Do Us Part, Death Warmed Over, Two Deaths To Die, Interlude For Death, Death Wish, Death Tolls The Bell, Death Reaches Out, Stronger Than Death, Hands Of Death, Death Follows Orders, Bride Of Death, Death\u2019s Bridal Gown and Frozen Death.<\/p>\n

Runners-up are combinations with \u201cHorror\u201d, \u201cPhantom\u201d, \u201cEvil\u201d, \u201cDevil\u201d and \u201cSatan\u201d.<\/p>\n

Looking at the story contents, I get the impression that the Standard writers rummaged through the \u201chorror canon\u201d<\/strong> and ticked off plot for plot.
\nDo a story about mermaids, musicians, dancers, circus people, painters, the bayous, monster insects, tigers, the afterworld, a genie, World War II, adventurers, treasure hunters, amputated hands, cannibals, ancient curses, gamblers, pacts with the devil, executioners\u2026 and so on.<\/p>\n

I may be unfair, though. Comic books were an assembly-line operation in the 1950s; most of the companies worked as fast and as cheap as they could \u2013 not caring for originality. Exceptions to the rule are surely EC and Harvey.<\/p>\n

But still. There is no editorial attitude in Standard horror<\/strong>. They never addressed their readers; they never installed a letter\u2019s page. They packed anything in these books. It\u2019s arbitrary. I think that\u2019s shameful, considering the artwork that went with it.<\/p>\n

And here\u2019s a \u201cbiggie\u201d I almost overlooked: Standard\u2019s horror tales are not hosted!<\/strong><\/p>\n

I realize that just now after having read ALL of them and feeling uneasy about them. This may be THE crucial point which tips the scales. Horror writing without host won\u2019t get off the ground unless it\u2019s really masterful or offers fast-paced insanity right from the beginning.
\nI can count on my two hands those few Standard stories which accomplished one or the other.<\/p>\n

The horror yarns from Ace Magazines weren\u2019t hosted either (okay, except THE HAND OF FATE), but they transport a whole other look-and-feel. Because they cared about their characters! That cannot be said about the Standard horror line. Very sadly.<\/p>\n

This is my mantra: artwork will charm you, but writing will impress you.<\/strong><\/p>\n

A Standard Oddity: Start With Number 5, Please.<\/strong><\/h2>\n

This must have driven collectors in the 60s and 70s insane: Trying to find THE UNSEEN #1, or ADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #2 or OUT OF THE SHADOWS #3. This proved to be mission impossible. Because those issues do not exist!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Oddly enough, Standard chose to label a new comic book with starting number 5. This goes for almost all of their books (exceptions are mentioned in the upcoming appendix).<\/p>\n

Why would they do something crazy like that? Why did the competition never complain about that? Or even imitate this erratic behavior?<\/p>\n

Comics historian George Suarez suggested in his excellent horror studies (\u201cTales Too Terrible To Tell\u201d, not sure if it\u2019s still available, but have a look HERE<\/a>) that this may have been an elaborate ruse to make newsagents believe that this comic book was no hopeless newcomer to the rack, but on the contrary a middleweight champion with already four successful issues under its belt.<\/p>\n

Appendix: STANDARD Chronology 1952-55<\/strong><\/h2>\n

To give you an overview of the company\u2019s output, here\u2019s a listing of all their comic books from January 1952 to September 1954.
\n Right column: horror books\u00a0 –\u00a0 Left column: every other comic book published in these years<\/em><\/p>\n

As we see, Standard is relaunching its line-up in the first half of 1952<\/strong>. Dropping old titles and losing some funny animal books, they go for the romance market, try out some war books and install their three horror titles, of course.
\nThey plan it quite strategically; there\u2019ll be at least one horror book every month (and mostly exactly one!). And they cling on to their horror line, when all the other experiments have failed or petered out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
<\/td>\nJanuary 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
THRILLING ROMANCES #17
\nNEW ROMANCES #9
\nWILLIE THE PENGUIN #5 (not first)
\nBUSTER BUNNY #12
\nDIZZY DUCK #38
\nGOOFY COMICS #47<\/td>\n		<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nFebruary 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
BEST ROMANCE #5 (first)
\nINTIMATE LOVE #16
\nPOPULAR ROMANCE #17
\nKING COMICS #159 (last)
\nJIGGS AND MAGGIE #21 (last)
\nBILL WEST #10 (last)
\nSUPERMOUSE #17
\nHAPPY RABBIT #47
\nCOO COO COMICS #61 (first)
\nKATHY #10<\/td>\n		<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nMarch 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
THRILLING ROMANCES #18
\nTODAY\u2019S ROMANCE #5 (first)
\nNEW ROMANCES #10
\nREAL LIFE COMICS #57
\nJOE YANK #5 (first)
\nGOOFY COMICS #48 (last)
\nWILLIE THE PENGUIN #6 (last)
\nBUSTER BUNNY #13
\nDIZZY DUCK #39 (last)
\nSNIFFY THE PUP #14<\/td>\n		<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nApril 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
INTIMATE LOVE #17
\nPOPULAR ROMANCE #18
\nSUPERMOUSE #18
\nCOO COO COMICS #62 (last)
\nHAPPY RABBIT #48 (last)<\/td>\n		<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nMay 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
BEST ROMANCE #6
\nTHRILLING ROMANCES #19
\nTODAY\u2019S ROMANCE #6
\nNEW ROMANCES #11
\nJOE YANK #6
\nKATHY #11<\/td>\n		<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nJune 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
BATTLEFRONT #5 (one-shot)
\nREAL LIFE COMICS #58
\nPOPULAR ROMANCE #19
\nMY REAL LOVE #5 (one-shot)
\nOZARK IKE #24
\nSUPERMOUSE #19
\nSNIFFY THE PUP #15<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #5 (first)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nJuly 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
INTIMATE LOVE #18
\nTHRILLING ROMANCES #20
\nTODAY\u2019S ROMANCE #7
\nNEW ROMANCES #12
\nTHIS IS WAR #5 (first)<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #5 (first)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nAugust 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
BEST ROMANCE #7 (last)
\nPOPULAR ROMANCE #20
\nJOE YANK #7
\nSUPERMOUSE #20
\nKATHY #12
\nROGER DODGER #5 (one-shot)<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #5 (first)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSeptember 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
FANTASTIC WORLDS #5 (first)
\nEXCITING WAR #5 (first)
\nTHRILLING ROMANCES #21
\nTODAY\u2019S ROMANCE #8 (last)
\nNEW ROMANCES #13
\nCRIME FILES #5 (first)
\nREAL LIFE COMICS #59 (last)
\nOZARK IKE #25 (last)
\nSNIFFY THE PUP #16<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nOctober 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LOST WORLDS #5 (first)
\nINTIMATE LOVE #19
\nPOPULAR ROMANCE #21
\nTHIS IS WAR #6
\nJOE YANK #8
\nSUPERMOUSE #21<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #6
\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nNovember 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
THRILLING ROMANCES #22
\nFANTASTIC WORLDS #6
\nCRIME FILES #6 (last)
\nGANG WORLD #5 (first)
\nJET FIGHTERS #5 (first)
\nKATHY #13<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nDecember 1952<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LOST WORLDS #6 (last)
\nINTIMATE LOVE #20
\nNEW ROMANCES #14
\nEXCITING WAR #6
\nTHIS IS WAR #7
\nJOE YANK #9
\nDATE WITH DANGER #5 (first)
\nJETTA OF THE 21st CENTURY #5 (first)
\nSUPERMOUSE #22
\nSANTA\u2019S CHRISTMAS COMICS (one-shot)<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nJanuary 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
FANTASTIC WORLDS #7 (last)
\nPOPULAR ROMANCE #22
\nTHRILLING ROMANCES #23
\nGANG WORLD #6 (last)
\nJET FIGHTERS #6
\nWHO IS NEXT? #5 (one-shot)
\nLUCKY DUCK #5 (first)<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #8
\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nFebruary 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
INTIMATE LOVE #21
\nEXCITING WAR #7
\nJOE YANK #10
\nDATE WITH DANGER #6 (last)
\nJETTA OF THE 21st CENTURY #6
\nKATHY #14
\nSUPERMOUSE #23<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #8<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nMarch 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NEW ROMANCES #15
\nTHIS IS WAR #8
\nJET FIGHTERS #7 (last)
\nBUSTER BUNNY #14<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #9<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nApril 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
POPULAR ROMANCE #23
\nJOE YANK #11
\nJETTA OF THE 21st CENTURY #7 (last)
\nSUPERMOUSE #24
\nLUCKY DUCK #6<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #8
\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #9<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nMay 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
INTIMATE LOVE #22
\nEXCITING WAR #8
\nTHIS IS WAR #9 (last)
\nKATHY #15
\nPETER PIG #5 (first)<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #10<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nJune 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NEW ROMANCES #16
\nSUPERMOUSE #25
\nSNIFFY THE PUP #17<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #10<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nJuly 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
POPULAR ROMANCE #24
\nLUCKY DUCK #7
\nBUSTER BUNNY #15<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #9<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nAugust 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NEW ROMANCES #17
\nINTIMATE LOVE #23
\nKATHY #16
\nJOE YANK #12
\nSUPERMOUSE #26
\nPETER PIG #6 (last)
\nDENNIS THE MENACE #1 (first)<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #11<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSeptember 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SNIFFY THE PUP #18 (last)
\nLUCKY DUCK #8 (last)
\nRICKY #5 (one-shot)<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #11<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nOctober 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
POPULAR ROMANCE #25
\nINTIMATE LOVE #24
\nNEW ROMANCES #18
\nJOE YANK #13
\nSUPERMOUSE #27
\nBUSTER BUNNY #16 (last)<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #10<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nNovember 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
EXCITING WAR #9 (last)
\nDENNIS THE MENACE #2<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #12<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nDecember 1953<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
POPULAR ROMANCE #26
\nINTIMATE LOVE #25
\nNEW ROMANCES #19
\nSUPERMOUSE #28<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #12<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nJanuary 1954<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
THRILLING ROMANCES #24
\nJOE YANK #14<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #11<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nFebruary 1954<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
INTIMATE LOVE #26
\nPOPULAR ROMANCE #27
\nDENNIS THE MENACE #3
\nSUPERMOUSE #29<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #13<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nMarch 1954<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NEW ROMANCES #20<\/td>\n<\/td>\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #12
\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #13<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nApril 1954<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
THRILLING ROMANCES #25
\nINTIMATE LOVE #27
\nPOPULAR ROMANCE #28
\nJOE YANK #15
\nSUPERMOUSE #30<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #14<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nMay 1954<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NEW ROMANCES #21 (last)
\nDENNIS THE MENACE #4<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #13<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nJune 1954<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
THRILLING ROMANCES #26 (last)
\nSUPERMOUSE #31<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS #14
\n(last)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nJuly 1954<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
POPULAR ROMANCE #29 (last)
\nJOE YANK #16 (last)
\nDENNIS THE MENACE #5<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nTHE UNSEEN #15 (last)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nAugust 1954<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
INTIMATE LOVE #28 (last)
\nSUPERMOUSE #32<\/td>\n		<\/td>\nOUT OF THE SHADOWS #14 (last)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSeptember 1954<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LITTLE ANGEL #5 (first)
\nDENNIS THE MENACE #6<\/td>\n		<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

This is some seriously crazy publication schedule!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Almost every month books get launched or cancelled. Some are launched and immediately cancelled at the same time (the unlucky one-shots BATTLEFRONT, MY REAL LOVE, ROGER DODGER, WHO IS NEXT?<\/strong> and RICKY). Other series won\u2019t live long enough to see even a third issue (BILL WEST, the second installment of COO COO COMICS, CRIME FILES, DATE WITH DANGER, GANG WORLD, LOST WORLDS or the unwanted funny animal PETER PIG).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Interesting psycho-crime one-shot from Standard<\/p><\/div>\n

The ambitious science fiction series FANTASTIC WORLDS only comes out three times. As do the war title JET FIGHTERS, the humor feature JETTA OF THE 21st<\/sup> CENTURY and the romance book BEST ROMANCE. Which is a shame. One should be grateful that Standard put up with the horror books as long as they did. 31 issues of UNSEEN, DARKNESS and SHADOWS. Can\u2019t say they didn\u2019t try.<\/p>\n

In the summer of 1954 things get really bleak. 8 long running titles get axed and nothing new is going up. Standard is leaving the business.<\/p>\n

Some of the above entries are speculative (because no actual month is given in the Grand Comics Database). We deducted the dates by the (mostly known) publication frequency.<\/p>\n

WILLIE THE PENGUIN is a rare exception (to the start-with-number-five-rule). Launched in mid-1951, it ran from numbers 1 to 6 (and did NOT start with a #5).<\/p>\n

The one-shot BATTLEFRONT was published in June 1952 and clashed with BATTLEFRONT from Atlas (which came out simultaneously) and was immediately cancelled. In July Standard launched a new combat title called THIS IS WAR.<\/p>\n

The last comics launched are DENNIS THE MENACE (also starting with a #1!), a sure-fire license product, and the short-lived LITTLE ANGEL (two issues) which is interestingly enough a female DENNIS clone! Also published were: THE KATZENJAMMER KIDS #21 (sometime in 1953) \u2013 possibly also issues #18-20 (in 1952\/53).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Note: FICTION HOUSE & STANDARD HORROR is a spin-off of the German website FIFTIES HORROR<\/a> (presenting pre-code horror in general to an unsuspecting public). FICTION HOUSE & STANDARD HORROR specializes in the products of two specific companies and is therefore drafted in the English language. The sister website ACE HORROR<\/a> is already online.<\/address>\n

<\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

Acknowledgements:<\/h3>\n

All the folks at the Digital Comic Museum (DCM<\/a>) and the Grand Comics Database (GCD<\/a>), who have been incredibly supportive \u2013 as always. Special mention goes to Mike Benton and George Suarez, who have been breaking ground for pre-code horror research in the 90s.
\nAnd of course a big hand (drumroll) for (you guessed it) Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr., the man with all the wisdom and generosity.
\nJim loaned me dozens of comic books, which I scanned and uploaded to the Digital Comic Museum. All horror magazines from Fiction House and Standard are online.<\/p>\n

If you like to read on, click on the \u201cSeries Section\u201d<\/em>
\n (THE UNSEEN, OUT OF THE SHADOWS, ADVENTURES INTO DARKNESS or GHOST\/MONSTER) for our issue by issue review for all books.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

STANDARD HORROR ! Standard tackled their horror line very tactical. They entered competition only at the height of the horror craze (along with St. John as one of the last publishers) and brought out (almost ever) exactly one book per month. Starting with a nice and clean time-table: THE UNSEEN #5 in June 1952, OUT […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":2,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-artists.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/highest-standard.de\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/865"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/highest-standard.de\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/highest-standard.de\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/highest-standard.de\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/highest-standard.de\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=865"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/highest-standard.de\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/865\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":874,"href":"https:\/\/highest-standard.de\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/865\/revisions\/874"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/highest-standard.de\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=865"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}