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Author:
Title: CRIME SUSPENSTORIES No. 9
Place Published:
Publisher:EC [Indicia: L.L. Publishing Co., Inc.]
Date Published: February-March, 1952
Description:

VG/Fine (5.0). Mild spine roll, slight cover miscut with a bit of extra white showing at spine, reading creases to spine area, 1/4" tear at bottom spine, bottom spine bumped, two small nicks to top edge of front cover. Cream to off-white pages. Plots and scripts: Bill Gaines, Al Feldstein. Cover: Johnny Craig. Art: Johnny Craig, Jack Davis, Jack Kamen, Graham Ingels. Artist's biography: Johnny Craig. GPAnalysis: A 5.0 sold for $350 in 3/22.

Johnny Craig's "Understudy to a Corpse," in which a gold-digger inadvertently offs an actor impersonating her intended target, shows the writer/artist's rapid development as a master of psychological terror.

"Dangerous dolls, deranged deviants, dashing detectives, and darkened doorways were all drawn with the same clean, precise lines. Murder, mayhem, mania, and sweat – lots of sweat! Johnny Craig, the master of comics noir, rendered it all with excruciating exactness." – Thommy Burns, "Slow and Steady Wins," The Woman Who Loved Life and Other Stories Illustrated by Johnny Craig. Fantagraphics: 2019, p. vii.

Enjoying the Sale? Order a fully-illustrated softcover catalogue for 30 bucks. Only about 100 copies were printed and they're going fast. To reserve a copy, contact PBA's Director of Comics: ivan@pbagalleries.com.

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