*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. Shocking Mystery Cases (1952) lasted 11 issues from #50 to #60, and whilst ostensibly a crime title, all the content has strong horror overtones. Issue #53 (from the Bute Collection) contains Fox reprints from the 1940s, a couple with horse-racing themes. However, as with all the comics in this Miasma feature, it is the L B Cole cover for which this is highly prized, here a garish combination of grinning skeleton jockeys, hooded ghouls and demonic horses. A decent copy, lower staple coming loose at front cover, both staples a little rusty with minimal migration. Unmarked strong cover image with black background; nice off-white pages. 
PICTURED: SHOCKING MYSTERY CASES #53 GD/VG £225 SOLD