Haunt of Fear #19 – Key Highlights
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Publisher: EC Comics
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Publication Date: May–June 1953
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Editor: Albert B. Feldstein
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Cover Artist: Graham Ingels
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Genre: Horror
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Pages: 36
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Original Cover Price: $0.10
🔥 Key Significance
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Features four horror stories hosted by EC's signature horror hosts: The Old Witch, The Vault-Keeper, and The Crypt-Keeper.
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Graham Ingels provides the cover artwork and illustrates the lead story, “Sucker Bait.”
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The issue also includes a one-page text story, “Incendiary!,” and a letters page.
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All four comic stories were later reprinted in the 1997 Gemstone edition of Haunt of Fear #19.
📖 Story Highlights
- “Sucker Bait!” – 8 pages
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The Witch's Cauldron! story, hosted by The Old Witch.
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Script by Albert B. Feldstein; art by Graham Ingels.
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After a chemist's father is killed by a vampire, he devises a plan to sacrifice himself to help others track down the creature. His plan takes an unexpected turn when his brother is revealed to be the vampire.
- “Lover, Come Hack to Me!” – 7 pages
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The Vault of Horror! story, hosted by The Vault-Keeper.
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Script by Albert B. Feldstein; art by George Evans.
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A recurring family curse produces a madwoman in every generation, destined to murder her newlywed husband with an ax in the same house.
- “Double-Header!” – 6 pages
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The Old Witch's Grim Fairy Tale! story, hosted by The Old Witch.
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Script by Albert B. Feldstein; art by Jack Kamen.
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A king's marriage ends in tragedy after three jealous court ladies expose his queen's affair. The king takes revenge on the women responsible for destroying his happiness.
- “Foul Play!” – 7 pages
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The Crypt of Terror story, hosted by The Crypt-Keeper.
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Script by Albert B. Feldstein; art by Jack Davis.
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A gruesome baseball revenge story in which psychotic players dismember an opponent and use his body parts in a twisted game.
📌 Additional Details
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Text Story: “Incendiary!” – 1 page, written and illustrated by Albert B. Feldstein and Marie Severin, respectively.
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Letters Page: “The Old Witch's Niche” – 1 page.
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Cover Characters: The Old Witch, The Vault-Keeper, and The Crypt-Keeper appear in inset illustrations.
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Coloring: Marie Severin is credited with coloring all four comic stories.
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Reprint History: The issue's cover and stories were reprinted in the Gemstone edition of Haunt of Fear #19 in May 1997.
A strong example of EC's horror anthology format, bringing together the macabre storytelling of Feldstein with artwork by Ingels, Evans, Kamen, and Davis.
