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Post by dem bones on Mar 14, 2008 17:03:49 GMT
August Derleth (ed.) - The Unquiet Grave: 15 More Uncanny Tales Of Terror (Four Square, 1964) He was willing to go to Hell for the kiss of the pale and beautiful vampire who enslaved him - but he held the sword ready to destroy her at the height of his ecstasy.
They came from another world, those nightmare creatures. They gave out sounds that were low and throbbing, and the sight of them drove men mad. They were outside the tent now.
A huge, white, hairy creature dropped onto his neck and clung there. The maniac fell to his knees, clutching at the horror which had him in its deathly grip. Older than time, this glittering incarnation of evil waited like a sentinel to claim its victim from the tomb ...Henry S. Whitehead - The Shadows Carl Jacobi - Carnaby's Fish Donald Wandrei - The Painted Mirror Clark Ashton Smith - The Double Shadow Robert Bloch - One Way To Mars Arthur Machen - Out Of The Picture Everil Worrell - The Canal C. M. Eddy jnr. - Deaf, Dumb And Blind Robert S. Carr - Spider-Bite John Metcalfe - Brenner's Boy Anthony Boucher - Mr. Lupescu Mary E. Counselman - Seventh Sister John Martin Leahy - In Amundsen's Tent Alan Nelson - Man In A Hurry Howard Wandrei - The Last PinThe Unquiet Grave and The Sleeping And The Dead (Four Square, 1964) were originally published as the one volume, thirty story The Sleeping And The Dead (Pellegrini & Cudahay, New York, 1947). Inevitably, Peter Haining was the driving force behind these welcome re-issues. Writing in Horror: Best 100 Books (Xanadu, 1988) he selects the original Sleeping And The Deadas his favourite book and comments: "... before I finally became a full-time writer and anthologist, I had the great satisfaction of arranging the first publication in Great Britain of 'The Sleeping And The Dead' in a paperback edition..."John Martin Leahy - In Amundsen's Tent: ( Weird Tales, Jan. 1928). South Pole, 1912. The three-man expedition led by Sutherland comes off even worse than Captain Scott's. Not only have the rival parties reached the Pole before them, but they've got some very hostile company - beings from another world who drive men insane on sight of them. Sutherland and Travers go missing in the night, leaving Drumgold to record their final moments in his journal. It is later found by yet another expedition - in the same tent as Drumgold's head which has been staked out on a pole! Howard Wandrei - The Last Pin: ( Black Mask, 1940). Local toughs Ernie and Emil Strobel are forever in trouble until the elder Emil is condemned to hard labour for killing a man in a row over a dime-a-dance girl. Emil swears to get even with Judge and Jury, and several of them meet their deaths in a remarkably short space of time. Meanwhile Ernie has begun acting weirder than usual, piercing himself with safety-pins until there's a neat line of them down his leg. One for each dead Juror, in fact ... Robert S. Carr - Spider-Bite: ( Weird Tales, June 1926). In the tomb of Ner-Taul lies Za the scribe, guardian of the treasure of Ahma-Ka. Prof. Ashbrooke and young assistant Phil find the mummified Za in a vault beneath a vault and discover a means to revive him using the juice of the Mona bush and the venom of the huge white tomb-spiders which were incarcerated with him. The natives don't like these albino arachnids at all, and Ashbrooke and Phil are none too keen by the end of the story. Anthony Boucher - Mr. Lupescu: ( Weird Tales, Sept 1945). Little Bobby's 'imaginary friend' Mr. Lupescu turns out to be real enough: the man with the big red nose, red gloves and red eyes is actually Uncle Alan with a monster makeover. Alan's decided to kill Bobby's dad Robert because he wants to get back with his former lover Marjorie, who only married Robert for his money. Unfortunately for Alan, the terrifying Gorgo proves to be no figment either ...
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Post by dem bones on Dec 8, 2008 23:56:02 GMT
Everil Worrell - The Canal: (Weird Tales, Dec 1927). Morton is a man much given to solitary midnight strolls and is delighted when he comes upon a stretch of canal-way outside the sleeping city, even more-so when a strange and beautiful young woman calls to him from across the water. He offers to cross to her side but she is horrified at the suggestion. Instead, she will come to him some nights from now when the water has drained into the loch. The girl (unnamed throughout) explains that she lives here with her father and must keep watch by night as he does by day, for they have suffered persecution and been driven from the city. Morton has already fallen in love with this charming creature and unwisely vows to do her will in all things, learning too late that she is the girl in whose cabin a child's mutilated corpse was discovered, hence her flight. By the time she crosses the canal, Morton is aware that she is a vampire, and neither can disguise their hatred for the other. But he's given his word and must carry her across the bridge where she feasts upon the first unlucky stranger she asks for help while he watches jealously from the shadows. Morton realises he must destroy her, but first he wants to taste the vampire's bloody kiss. "Do you think you would be helping me to tie me to a desk, to shut me behind doors away from freedom, away from the delight of doing my own will, of seeking my own way? Rather this old boat, rather a deserted grave under the stars for my home!" A positive feeling of kinship with this strange being whose face I had hardly seen possessed me. So I myself might have spoken, so I had often felt though I had never dreamed of putting my thoughts so forcibly. My regular and daytime life was a thing little thought of. I really lived only in my nocturnal prowling. The girl was right. All life should be free!"
A half century later, throw in a neat leather jacket and a spiky haircut and that would be mantra of The Lost Boys.
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Post by dem bones on Sept 27, 2018 14:32:19 GMT
Swampi's recent post on the Malice of Inanimate Objects thread inspired a long overdue rematch with this splendid creepy tale. Donald Wandrei - The Painted Mirror: ( Esquire, May 1937). Nicholas Khevis discovers the mirror hidden in the attic above his father's pawn shop, it's glass concealed behind a thick layer of black paint. The boy scrapes it clean with a chisel. The glass reflects a dark cave in a vast desert wilderness, a tiny, terrified figure emerging from its mouth. Over the following days a transfixed Nicholas is drawn into the mirror to replace it's captive who, sneering applies a fresh coat of paint.
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Post by Swampirella on Sept 27, 2018 14:55:45 GMT
The Painted Mirror is available online as a Word doc, which I'm having no luck attaching here. Just google "Donald Wandrei - The Painted Mirror" and it's the third from the top. I'm going to enjoy it right now, thanks Dem!
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Post by dem bones on Sept 27, 2018 15:43:26 GMT
The Painted Mirror is available online as a Word doc, which I'm having no luck attaching here. Just google "Donald Wandrei - The Painted Mirror" and it's the third from the top. I'm going to enjoy it right now, thanks Dem! Ah yes. Apologies to all but regrettably I had to turn off the attachment feature when ph*tob*ck*t pulled their ransom number as we were fast reaching our 200 MB limit.
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Post by Swampirella on Sept 27, 2018 22:52:42 GMT
The Painted Mirror is available online as a Word doc, which I'm having no luck attaching here. Just google "Donald Wandrei - The Painted Mirror" and it's the third from the top. I'm going to enjoy it right now, thanks Dem! Ah yes. Apologies to all but regrettably I had to turn off the attachment feature when ph*tob*ck*t pulled their ransom number as we were fast reaching our 200 MB limit. I knew there was a good reason....
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