I Am Legend (14/54) - Eclipse Comic Adaptation, signed by Richard Matheson and Steve Niles (1991)

In 1989, while flipping through a magazine, I came across this image (which I immediately clipped to save) with an announcement that a comic adaptation of Richard Matheson's I Am Legend was forthcoming from Arcane Comix. I was familiar with the company, as they had done work with others I admired, including Clive Barker. While one approaches any potential adaptation with a certain level of trepidation (particularly a comic adaptation, whose success depends greatly on the quality of the art), I was sold based on this rough sketch of Robert Neville by artist Elman Brown, and couldn't wait to see how it turned out.

But wait I did, as it wouldn't appear until 1991, released through Eclipse Comics. 

When I interviewed adapter Steve Niles many years later, I credited him on his decision to faithfully adapt the book almost as an illustrated novel. Nearly all of Matheson's original text is present.

I had Niles sign my copies when he came through San Jose for a comic show. Knowing of his shared fondness for Matheson's novel, I had previously enlisted him to write an afterword for the Gauntlet Publications collection Richard Matheson's Bloodlines (more on that in the future), which included all of Matheson's vampire fiction and screenplays, edited by Mark Dawidziak. 

And years earlier, I had gotten Matheson to sign the first issue during one of his appearances at Tom Lesser's annual paperback show in Mission Hills, California.

At the time of the book's release, I was struck pretty quickly that Elman Brown's portrait of Neville from the announcement wasn't truly representative of the style used in the comic. I assume it was done as a study for the character. That said, his cross-hatch style worked really well on some aspects of the book, including these pages of Neville taking the dead vampires to the pit.

The adaptation was four issues in all, at an (expensive for the time) $5.95 price point for a perfect-bound book (as opposed to a saddle-stitched, stapled comic). 

Many years ago, I came across a proof copy of the cover to Book 2. I would love to find examples of the other three. 

I also liked the overall design of the back covers of each issue, although the color palate used was somewhat random. The green "Come Out, Neville" doesn't pop on the first issue as it does the latter installments. But all in all, I credit Eclipse for doing the book, which was not inexpensive, nor was it a sure thing, even at a time when independent comics were thriving. 

Oh, and about that original image that had caught my eye? It does appear in the book, incongruous as it is with the rest of the art. To this reader, it serves as a reminder of what might have been. 

Be sure to return next week, for more items from my I Am Legend Archive!

Creature from the Black Lagoon (14/54) - Universal Horror Library Novelization by Carl Dreadstone (1977)

Long before I was aware of the Vargo Statten novelization, I knew about this 1977 paperback, which was part of a series showcasing Universal horror films: The Mummy, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Werewolf of London, Dracula's Daughter and The Wolfman. It always seemed odd to me that they didn't include Frankenstein or Dracula in the line-up. I assume that was because the Shelley and Stoker novels already existed, but considering that the films are so different from the original novels, they easily could have been given the illustrated novelization treatment as well.

Carl Dreadstone was the house name used for the series, with two (including Creature and Werewolf of London) written by Walter Harris, three by horror writer Ramsey Campbell (The Bride of Frankenstein, Dracula's Daughter and The Wolfman), and one (The Mummy) whose authorship is unknown. Campbell also provided introductions to all six titles.

As if the books weren't cool enough by their exterior design, they are all also profusely illustrated with photos from the films. 

I haven't read the book, but one of these days would certainly like to. As I begin to thin the paperback collection, this will be one of those that I hang on to.

The Universal Horror Library line is highly sought-after, and often expensive on the secondary market, particularly the box set of the entire series. I only have half of the books myself, and recently upgraded to this nicer copy of The Creature from the Black Lagoon. 

 Be sure to return next week to check out another Creature item from my collection!

Godzilla (13/54) - Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla Previews Exclusive Lunchbox With Thermos (2022)

As a child of the 70s, I grew up in the final era of metal lunchboxes. I still have fond memories of my King Kong lunchbox that I carted around throughout 1977, and of course by the 1978 school year, I too had upgraded to the black metal Star Wars lunchbox.

While I don't have a utilitarian need for a metal lunchbox, I do have a few in the collection: a Night of the Living Dead tin tote and this Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla II lunchbox and thermos set. I was sold as soon as I saw this one, as I'm a fan of the Noriyoshi Ohrai advance poster art for the 1993 film (which itself is based on the original Shinji Nishikawa concept art for Mechagodzilla), which is even cooler embossed in metal!). 

The thermos is an added bonus. (For the record, Thermos is a trademarked term — which explains why 'lunchboxes' without a Thermos are often marketed as a 'tin tote.'

The Heisei era Mechagodzilla is rounder and less angular than the original Showa and later Millennium era Mechagodzillas. In fact, the Millennium era Mechagodzilla looks a lot more like the Shinji Nishikawa concept art that I love so much. Growing up, Mechagodzilla was never one of my favorite kaiju, but through the years he has grown on me. 

The side panels feature Rodan and chunky Mechagodzilla from the film.

Be sure to check back week for another item from my Godzilla collection!

I Am Legend (13/54) - Je Suis Une Légende, Denoel (1955)

By now you all should know that I Am Legend debuted as a paperback original from Gold Medal in the US in 1954, and that the first hardcover sprang out of Italy in 1957. But which country/publisher was the first to jump on the I Am Legend bandwagon?

If you guessed France, you're correct. And the publisher, Denoel, has remained the publisher of the novel in French editions for the past 70 years. We have 16 different French editions in the archive, and are aware of at least three more. 

I Am Legend was the 10th book in Denoel's Présence du Futur (Presence of the Future) line.

This first French edition was published as an oversized paperback with a glassline wrapper. This long-sought-after copy is in amazing condition, with the wrapper intact and in wonderful shape. (We have similar edition of The Shrinking Man — L'homme qui rétrécit from Denoel; it shares a similar trade dress, with a different color swatch, and that example was an advance review copy originating from Matheson's personal library.)

I do love the fact that due to local regulatory requirements, foreign editions often have valuable bibliographic information, including printing dates and in some cases, print runs. The printing of this first edition was completed on October 18, 1955. This second edition of Matheson's novel published worldwide was the only edition published that year. We'll talk about where the next version was published in a future installment.

Be sure to check back next week for another item from the I Am Legend Archive!

Creature from the Black Lagoon (13/54) - 14" Boxed Mego Doll (2021)

In the 70's, Mego was the home to a great many 8" dolls, notably superheroes and other licensed characters. And while Mego did dip into the world of monsters, rather than pay Universal a license fee, they opted to create their own versions of Frankenstein, Dracula, werewolf and mummy. 

Decades later, Mego re-entered the market and this time, they did license the classic Universal monsters, including our very own Creature from the Black Lagoon. And in addition to the 8" variety (in color and black and white variations), they released this 14" mega-Mego rendition of the character.

As was standard for Mego (and similar to Remco's Creature — which still reigns supreme for articulated dolls in the 8-9" scale), they used standard bodies and dressed them in cloth costumes. So rather than a sculpted body, the Mego Creature has a cloth 'bodysuit,' with sculpted hands, head and feet. Additionally, and unique to the Mego version, is a sculpted upper torso.

While not the highest-end, or most screen-accurate rendition of the Creature (his eyes appear to me to suggest that he's hypnotized), he is the largest (non-plush) articulated Creature doll, and was quite affordable upon release, available for under $30.

Be sure to return next week for more Creature items from my collection!

Godzilla (12/54) - Super 7 Toho Ultimates Destoroyah (2024)

 

My fondness for the Heisei era of Godzilla films should be pretty evident by now, and while I credit Godzilla vs Biollante for re-igniting my love of all things Godzilla, the final film of the era, Godzilla vs Destoroyah will always hold a special place in my heart. The moment I saw the images of a burning Godzilla, I was transfixed. And Destoroyah was another beautifully designed foe (in all his forms). 

While I appreciated Destoroyah onscreen, I always felt the figural offerings left me wanting. I think the creature (in its final form) was too big to do justice with a standard-sized vinyl figure. So when Super7 announced Destoroyah as one of their Ultimates releases, I didn't have high expectations. But that changed as soon as I saw photos of their articulated, 9" tall, 14" wide figure.

Finally, an affordable (and articulated) Destoroyah that truly does the kaiju justice. While I have found the Super7 Ultimates line to be a bit hit-or-miss, this one (and at least one other that will be showcased in our final installment of this series) had to be part of my collection. 

The Super7 figure comes with two different heads, but the open-mouthed version provides the best representation of Destoroyah, in my opinion.

Come back next week for more from my Godzilla collection, as our '54' celebration continues! 

I Am Legend (12/54) - Я Легенда Ukrainian Edition (2024)

One of the newest additions to the archive to be featured in this celebration is this handsome 2024 hardcover edition from the Ukraine, of all places. This is the second Ukrainian edition in the archive, from a run of 5000 copies.

The cover design is credited to Ivan Dubrovsky; the clutching hands reminiscent of a number of posters for George A. Romero's zombie films which would not exist if not for Matheson's novel. The book also features nicely illustrated endpapers (artist uncredited).  

Another nice design touch (which is appreciated by those of us who take the time to add such embellishments) is a wooden stake adjacent to the page numbers as well as chapter headings. 

A lone clutching hand also adorns the book's spine. 

Be sure to check back next week for yet another item from the I Am Legend archive!