*Horror 1940-1959: L B Cole was one of the most famous of Golden/Atomic Age cover artists. He drew in a variety of genres, and was artistic director at Star, illustrating 95% of the company’s covers; his lurid, feverish style, almost hallucinogenic, graced horror, science-fiction, jungle and romance alike. Star took over the venerable title Blue Bolt in 1949 (previously it had been a classic anthology title starring the titular character, with much work by Simon & Kirby, Everett etc, lasting throughout the war years and beyond). By the time we got to #117, Blue Bolt himself was (almost) long gone and the emphasis of the series had changed to horror, according to the zeitgeist of the time. Indeed, the title was rebranded as Ghostly Weird Stories from #120 onwards. In #117, the original lead story, cover featured, is The Thing In The Pit by the estimable Jay Disbrow. The remainder is reprints from as diverse sources as Fox’s Crimes By Women, Jo-Jo and Rocket Ship X, as well as an interesting reprint from an earlier issue starring Blue Bolt himself. But of course it’s the wonderful L B Cole cover for which these issues are prized, here with an Indian shaman summoning a monster from below to the horror of male and female witnesses, all in a swirl of vibrant and dazzling colours. A really nice copy, with great colour and a totally unmarked cover image. Staples are reasonably tight at spine and centrefold and the page quality is a remarkable off-white, the pages being strong and supple. Corners are reasonably sharp, and edge wear is at a minimum (mainly minor stress marks at the spine). This would grace a Pre-Code Horror collection. High resolution images are available on request. 
PICTURED: BLUE BOLT WEIRD TALES #117 VG/FN £750 SOLD