Bitter End & Other Stories

Reed Crandall was an undisputed master of fine line detail and expertly nuanced pen-and-ink texture. He was a perfect fit for EC Comics, and he brilliantly illuminated sharp scripts featuring schemes, tricks, betrayal, and retribution in the company’s crime, horror, and science fiction titles.

This volume features 22 Crandall favorites from the pages of Tales From the Crypt, Vault of Horror, Haunt of Fear, Crime SuspenStories, Shock SuspenStories, Weird Science-Fantasy, Extra, and Impact, including: “Dog Food,” one of EC’s best revenge stories, featuring a sadistic prison camp warden who abuses his dogs to keep them mean ― to terrorize his prisoners. And no, it’s not the twist ending you might expect ― which is why it was voted by fans as one of the top three EC horror stories. “The Shadow Knows” in which a man who murders his wife is pursued by her shadow everywhere he turns. “The Bitter End” in which a wealthy businessman tries to force his only son into becoming the hard-driving executive he needs to take over the family business. “Close Shave,” a science fiction parable about love overcoming racial prejudice and division. “Swamped,” voted by fans as one of the top three best illustrated EC horror stories of all time, is the grisly tale of a demented ghoul living in the Okefenokee Swamp. Plus: eight crime and horror stories by fellow EC artist George Roussos and an introduction by Jon Gothold.

Albert B. Feldstein (1928–2014; Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame, 2003) was a triple-threat writer, artist, and editor, renowned for his work on such titles as Weird Science, Tales From the Crypt, and MAD magazine. He received the Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011.

Reed Crandall (1917–1982) is best known for his art for EC―and later Warren's―horror, crime, war, and adventure comics; he also contributed to Flash Gordon in the 1960s. Some of his more family-friendly work was featured in the Classics Illustrated and Treasure Chest series; he drew the Buster Brown comics for Buster Brown shoe stores for many years. He attended the Cleveland School of Art in Ohio, graduating in 1939, and served briefly in the Air Force during WWII―which served him well as one of the primary artists for the aviator-team comic Blackhawk. Crandall was inducted into the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Will Eisner Hall of Fame in 2009.

George Roussos (1915 –2000), though known primarily as an inker, had the chance to showcase his full art skills and versatility at EC. His greatest fame came as arguably Jack Kirby’s best inker, working under the pseudonym George Bell, on Marvel’s Fantastic Four, Avengers, Sgt. Fury, and Hulk. Later Marvel’s primary colorist, his interests ranged from automobiles to astronomy to architecture to philosophy to photography.

Jon Gothold resides in California and writes regularly about comics and comics creators. He is an admin for the EC Fan-Addict Club on Facebook. He has contributed to several Fantagraphics collections and to the recent History of EC Comics by Grant Geissman.

Reed Crandall (1917–1982) is best known for his art for EC―and later Warren's―horror, crime, war, and adventure comics; he also contributed to Flash Gordon in the 1960s. Some of his more family-friendly work was featured in the Classics Illustrated and Treasure Chest series; he drew the Buster Brown comics for Buster Brown shoe stores for many years. He attended the Cleveland School of Art in Ohio, graduating in 1939, and served briefly in the Air Force during WWII―which served him well as one of the primary artists for the aviator-team comic Blackhawk. Crandall was inducted into the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Will Eisner Hall of Fame in 2009.. George Roussos (1915 –2000), though known primarily as an inker, had the chance to showcase his full art skills and versatility at EC. His greatest fame came as arguably Jack Kirby’s best inker, working under the pseudonym George Bell, on Marvel’s Fantastic Four, Avengers, Sgt. Fury, and Hulk. Later Marvel’s primary colorist, his interests ranged from automobiles to astronomy to architecture to philosophy to photography.