Number 1215: Reese's piece of the Web

I believe these two stories were some of the first work by Ralph Reese I ever saw, when they appeared in Web of Horror in 1970. The magazine was published by Cracked “mazagine” publisher Bob Sproul.

Reese had worked with Wally Wood, and had picked up on the use of toning sheets including Grafix (formerly Craftint), a chemically treated drawing paper. The artist applied a chemical with a brush and the tones appeared. It was widely used for black line reproduction, and even some four-color work at times, but is no longer being manufactured. In the Yeti story Reese used an ink wash. Reese's use of such techniques complements his dramatic illustrations. Web of Horror featured some seasoned pros like Syd Shores and Norman Nodel, as well as a new breed of dynamic younger artists like Bernie Wrightson, Mike Kaluta and Ralph Reese. I wish it would have continued past three issues.

A few years later these stories, among others by Reese, were colored and published in a two-issue mini-series, Reese's Pieces, by Eclipse Comics.

These stories were written by longtime author and comic book scripter Otto Binder. They're from issues #2 and #3:

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Number 746


Mr. Nodel and Mr. Norman


Don Norman, who did these well-illustrated strips for Web of Horror #1, in 1969, was actually artist Norman Nodel. Nodel, who had an elegant pen line, had a long career in comics beginning in the Golden Age. He was at the height of his illustrative abilities with Classics Illustrated #167, Faust.

Here are a couple of pages of Faust, from the original art I found on the internet.


According to the short Lambiek bio, he also did work under the Don Norman name in Creepy and Eerie, as well as at Charlton under his Nodel name. Norman Nodel was yet another pseudonym. He was born Nochem Yeshaya. The last ten years of his life were spent illustrating books and magazines for Jewish children. As the Lambiek bio also says, he worked up until the last day of his life, which was in February, 2000, at age 78.

Web Of Horror was a short-lived Creepy imitation from Major Magazines, which also published Cracked. During Web's three issues there was early work by young artists like Bernie Wrightson, Ralph Reese, and Mike Kaluta, among others, as well as by comic book veterans like Syd Shores and Nodel.

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Number 546


The Shores of Horror


Web of Horror #1 came out in 1969, published by Cracked magazine's publisher, Bob Sproul. This issue used some (then) new artists, Berni Wrightson, Ralph Reese, Wayne Howard. It also used Don Norman, a name I believe is a pseudonym for Norman Nodel of Classics Illustrated fame, and the old Timely/Atlas/Marvel stalwart, Syd Shores. "Blood Thirst" would fit right into an Atlas horror comic, and showed that Shores lost nothing in the decade-and-a-half since the horror comics were erased by the Comics Code.

I especially like the dynamic panels of the crypt on page 3 and the vampire swooping in on page 4. Syd Shores learned his craft during the 1940s, batting out pages with Al Avison, carrying on Captain America from Simon and Kirby. His action figures jumped right off the page, as they do in this story.

Web of Horror lasted two more issues before expiring. Shores lasted four more years, dying in 1973. We fans lost both times.

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