House of Secrets (1956 1st Series) comic books 1975-1977

First 25-cent cover price. Cover art by Luis Dominguez. "The Headsman of Hell," script by Marv Wolfman and Len Wein, art by Abe Ocampo; A Frenchman during the time of the Terror obsesses over the identity of the headsman until he becomes scheduled for execution himself; He reaches up to yank off the black hood only to discover that there is nothing underneath. "A Test of Innocence!", script by Mike Pellowski, pencils by Mike Sekowsky, inks by Bill Draut; A man steals emeralds from an Amazon native tribe, but when he attempts to raft down river with the hollowed-out melon he's stashed the emeralds in, it rolls off the raft into the river; He reaches into the river for the melon but when he withdraws his hand it has been stripped of flesh by Piranhas. "Death on Cue!", script by David Michelinie and Russ Carley, art by Ruben Yandoc (as Rubeny); A pool hall bum steals a magic cue from an old man and beats him to death with it; He plays well until he has only one more guy to beat and then he will be champion but the ghost of the dead man shows up before the match; The ghost challenges him to a game, and even though the killer is using the magic cue, he plays terrible like he used to play. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Luis Dominguez. "No Way to Run a Railroad!", script by Michael Fleisher and Russ Carley, art by Leopoldo Duranona; A retired train engineer who has built his own train set by hand invites a hobo to stay with him and help run the trains after the hobo helps him with a technical problem; After a toy maker offers a hundred thousand for the set and is refused, the hobo murders the old man and attempts to hide the body so that he can claim the money. "Freak-Out!", script by George Kashdan, art by Alex Nino; A man who hides his landmine disfigurement under a mask visits a billionaire who stuffs freaks as a hobby; He offers his guest a contract which stipulates his heirs will receive a million dollars when he dies and in exchange the billionaire gets his corpse to add to his collection. "Somebody's Listening," script by John Albano, pencils by Joe Orlando, inks by Bill Draut; A man's child is dying and he tells the doctor that he does not believe in God; He sees someone going into his shed and accosts the man as he believes him to be a thief. Abel's Fables cartoon by John Albano. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Luis Dominguez. "Almost Human," script by Jack Oleck, art by Franc Reyes; A woman explorer of the Amazon is abducted by the Bee people she wishes to study and made their queen. Abel's Fables cartoon page by Sergio Aragonés. "The Lottery," script by Michael Fleisher and Russ Carley, art by Ernie Chan (as Ernie Chua); A stranger from out of town gets on the wrong train to go to a business meeting and is told that he must wait until the following day for another train; He sees workman setting up a fifty thousand dollar lottery booth in the center of town and asks the ticket seller if he can buy a ticket; At first the ticket seller doesn't want to sell him one and tells him that it's a local thing, but he is very persuasive and the ticket seller gives in; The man thinks with the rotten luck he's had today he could use some good luck; When the little girl draws his number he's ecstatic that he won but doesn't quite understand why they ask for his family's address and just won't give him the check; He is knocked over the head and wakes up bound in the cemetery. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Ernie Chua (as Ernie Chan). "Winner Take All," script by Jack Oleck, art by Quico Redondo; A man in a card game murders another player who catches him cheating as he wants to win enough money to buy his own ship; He flees, but the police fire a shot at him; When he revives, a wealthy woman calling herself Sabrina arranges to have a gambling match arranged for him so that he can win the money to buy his own ship. Abel's Fables cartoon page by Sergio Aragonés. "All Dolled Up," script by David Michelinie, art by Ruben Yandoc (as Rubeny); A father buys his little girl a doll that resembles her cruel stepmother; After the father accidentally steps on the doll and the woman's head momentarily feels like it's being crushed, she puts it down to coincidence; When she feels as though she is drowning, and sees the little girl get out of the bathtub with the wet doll, the woman feels uncertain; When the little girl spills hot tea on the doll's face and she suffers a burn, she tells the husband to get rid of it. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Luis Dominguez. "The Island of Crawling Flesh!", script by Michael Fleisher, art by Arthur Suydam; A scientist and his wife become victims of a tropical disease when they withhold knowledge of a possible cure from the natives in the interest of recording the disease's progress. "The Girl in the Red Dress!", script by Steve Skeates, art by Gerry Talaoc; A murderer has a recurring dream of a girl in a red dress telling him that she is going to avenge the death of his victim; As he walks into the street he is so stunned at seeing the girl from his dream on a billboard warning pedestrians to be careful crossing the street that he doesn't get out of the way of the truck that plows right into him. "Point of No Return," script by Jack Oleck, art by Alex Niño; A bully wants to marry a girl whom he believes has money but her father and brother won't hear of it; The bully contacts a witch about getting help but she tells him that he has to do something very evil, so he stabs the father and leaves him in the swamp for the alligators; The witch tells him that was an acceptable evil deed so she gives him a voodoo doll made up like the brother that he can torment until he's ready to stab it through the heart. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Ernie Chan. The Spy Hostess snack cakes ad with Superman. "The Contortionist!", script by Michael Fleisher and Russell Carley (art continuity), art by Leopoldo Duranona; A man murders an Indian guru for his supply of berry juice which allows him to stretch his body into fantastic shapes because he wants to liven up his stage act; Before the guru died, he warned him that too much use of the juice would affect his body to the point that it would not resume its normal shape. "Killer Instinct," script by Jack Oleck, art by Ruben Yandoc (as Rubeny); Satan offers a boxer who lacks a killer instinct what he's missing without a catch; The boxer agrees and becomes more successful in the ring; Eventually he kills an opponent and his wife tells him that she's leaving him; He becomes enraged and strangles her; The devil reappears and offers the man an out in exchange for his soul. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Ernie Chan. "The Night of the Leopard Goddess," script by Michael Fleisher and Russ Carley, art by Ruben Yandoc; A hunter steals a ruby from a cult of the Leopard Goddess in India and in revenge a representative of the cult tracks him down and offers an even larger diamond in exchange for the ruby; The hunter agrees, and the diamond is shoved into his skull, killing him, just as he stole the ruby from the forehead of the Leopard Goddess statute. "Portraits of Death," script by Jack Oleck, pencils by Ernie Chan (as Ernie Chua), inks by Bill Draut; A painter begins to paint pictures that foretell the future which frightens his model because she knows that she and his art dealer have been swindling him; The art dealer plots to kill the painter, and after it's done, the two of them return to the dead man's studio where the girl sees a painting that the man created before he was killed and she is depicted as having a knife protruding from her chest; She snatches a knife from the table with the intention of destroying the painting so it can't come true, but the art dealer attempts to warn her that it is an experimental painting being done on metal. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Ernie Chan. "The Inheritance of Blood," script by David V. Reed (as Coram Nobis), art by Nestor Redondo; A boy who goes to spend some vacation time with his cousins learns that they belong to a coven of werewolves. Cain & Abel cartoon page by Sergio Aragonés. "The Last Out," script by Steve Skeates, art by Buddy Gernale; A vampire arrives in a small town to prey upon what he considers stupid inhabitants, but he ends up getting tricked by their mention of a "bat cave"; When the villagers swarm him as a group and he attempts to flee, he discovers that the cave contains no bats to hide amongst but only two baseball bats left by one of the villagers as a pun. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Bernie Wrightson. Minerva Menace! Hostess snack cakes ad featuring Shazam! "The Vegetable Garden!", script by Michael Fleisher, art by Leopoldo Duranona; When Aunt Harriet discovers that Bill has circulated rumors to drive away the neighborhood children, killed her parrot and wrecked her vegetable garden, all in an effort to put her away in an old folk's home and seize control of her money she is quite distraught; She murders him with a pair of garden shears, dismembers his body and buries its pieces outside in a newly redone vegetable garden, with signs that indicate where each piece has been buried. Abel's Fables cartoon page by John Albano. "Big Fish in a Small Pond," script by Mike Pellowski (story idea) and Steve Skeates (script), art by E. R. Cruz; A man wants to buy a pet shop from an old couple who don't want to sell; The man's assistant dabbles in mysticism so he sends demons to possess the pets thinking that he'll get a raise for helping out; His employer is unaware of this so he breaks into the pet shop intending to start a fire. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Add to cart Very Good $4.80

Cover art by Bill Draut. "Buried Treasure," script by Jack Oleck, art by Franc Reyes; An old man wants to divide his wealth among his three remaining heirs, but they are greedy so he tells them to go away for a month and then return; After the month passes, the three return and he tells them that he has hidden his fortune on the premise as a treasure hunt and the one who finds it will possess all; One of the men is willing to kill for it, and so he murders his two brothers and threatens the life of the old man if he does not divulge the treasure's location. Abel's Fables cartoon page by John Albano. "Last Voyage of the Lady Luck," script by Maxene Fabe, art by Ramona Fradon; A boy goes to live with his uncle who has purchased an old ship with the intent of making insurance money when it sinks; The boy meets a strange old man at the dock who gives him a toy somewhat like a rocking horse in the shape of a ship which can be steered and tells him it's magic. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Ernie Chan. "The Harder They Fall," script by Carl Wessler, art by Ernie Chan (as Ernie Chua); A bum dreams that he is a ruthless businessman on the way to a senate seat when he is betrayed by the beautiful girl he is in love with; He is relived that his recurring falling dreams are no longer possible with the realization that at Skid Row, he's got nowhere further to fall. Minerva Menace! Hostess snack cakes ad featuring Shazam! "The Magic Elixir," script by George Kashdan, art by Ricardo Villamonte; A group of vampires con a con man who sells snake oil that they've got something better; They lead the man to a corpse and pour some of their elixir into him; He gets up and the con man offers to cut the vampires in on the profit. "Final Exam" one-page Abel's Fables story, script and art by John Albano; An old man disintegrates when the doctor tests his reflexes by tapping his knee. "Suit of Lights," script by Steve Clement (plot) and Robert Kanigher, art by Ruben Yandoc. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Bill Draut. "Where Dreams Are Born," script by Jack Oleck, art by Frank Redondo; A boy who can enter dreams based on what he reads immediately before he falls asleep and return with the material wealth that he finds in these places is tormented by his greedy foster parents who demand that he take them with him into his dreams so that they can fill up suitcases full of loot; The woman wants to beat the kid into acquiescing but the man tries to cozy up to him for a week first; The boy knows that they are evil doers so he denies being able to enter dreams. "Night Watchman," script by George Kashdan, art by Leopoldo Duranona; A vampire takes a job as a night watchman with the condition that no one enter the premises at night; When his boss becomes too curious for his own good, he becomes just another victim and the vampire resigns himself to looking for another job. "Snake Bite!", script by Steve Clement, art by Romy Gamboa; An escaped convict runs into a tribe of tiny Indians and dies when a rattlesnake bites him while harassing the Indians. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Cover art by Bernie Wrightson. "The Devil's Daughter," script by Jack Oleck, pencils by Steve Ditko, inks by Mike Royer; When a stepfather hears his daughter talking to the circus ape Bobo and the beast replies, he becomes convinced that she's a witch; The man attempts to kill the girl but the ape breaks his neck; The authorities have some suspicions about the girl, but she convinces them her stepfather was mad by showing them a book about ventriloquism she said she had been reading; The sheriff tells her that they are going to have to put down the ape now that it's killed and she pleads for a chance to say goodbye. Abel's Fables cartoon page by Sergio Aragones. "A Real Crazy Kid," script by Steve Skeates, art by Nestor Redondo; A ladies man meets a girl on the street who acts crazy and is intrigued by the potential challenge of getting her to fall in love with him; When he first sees her she is peeling two bananas without paying for them; He approaches her and she pushes the bananas into her ears telling him that she can't hear him because she's gone bananas. "Instant Rebirth!", script by George Kashdan, art by Bill Draut; An archaeologist gets more than he bargains for when he ingests the substance that will transform him into the natives' ancient god; He wanted the god's power but he gets the god's loathsome appearance as well. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

Add to cart VG+ 4.5 $3.99

Add to cart VG+ 4.5 $3.99

Add to cart Very Good $3.60

Add to cart CGC 9.6 $76.45 or Best Offer View scans Paper: Off white to white Label #4322795012 Consignment. 3% buyer's premium charged at checkout.

Last 25-cent cover price. Cover art by Ernie Chan. "Reprise: The Patchwork Man," script by Gerry Conway, art by Nestor Redondo; Gregori Arcane survived a fall and found himself hiding in a department store; He startled two employees opening up and security fired a shot that grazed his head, knocking him out; The security men turned him over to the police who were visited by a Dr. Chomes who demanded that they release his "patient" into his custody. Dr. Chomes conducted some painful experiments upon the Patchwork Man and the pain caused him to break his restraints and brush past Dr. Chomes and his assistant; Outside, a good Samaritan cab driver picked him up and drove him away from his tormenters; Dr. Chomes took down the license plate number and told his assistant they would acquire the man's address in the morning. The Cup Cake Caper Hostess Cup Cakes ad featuring Shazam! 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.25.

First 30-cent cover price. Cover art by Leopoldo Duranona. "You Can't Beat the Devil!", script by Bill Finger, art by E. R. Cruz; A man sells his soul to a demon named Caligula when the demon tells him as Roman Emperor he was so evil that Satan made him a demon to recruit other damned souls; The man thinks he can have fun for a year getting back at people and then when he's judged by Satan, he'll be made a demon like Caligula and can go on tormenting people; After the year, Caligula shows up again and claims his soul; The man expects his wife to testify that he was cruel since he beat her every day, but she lies and tells Satan's court that he was kind and loving. Abel's Fables cartoon, script by Don Edwing, art by Dave Manak. "Exit Laughing," script by Jack Oleck, pencils by Ernie Chan (as Ernie Chua), inks by Bill Draut; A man who was the victim of a practical joke in his college days shows up at the reunion twenty years later and the practical joker howls with laughter that he has been scared for twenty years because of when he dressed up as a ghost to frighten the man; The victim withdraws a knife and stabs the practical joker to death much to the shock of his companion. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.30.

Add to cart Very Good $3.60

Add to cart Good $2.50

Cover art by Ernie Chan (as Ernie Chau). "Who Goes There?", script by Jack Oleck, art by Ernesto Patricio; A woman has a recurring dream where she flees from a specter and falls off a balcony, then wakes up; Her husband is concerned with his wife's distraught behavior so he takes her on a vacation; While on the road, she identifies the house where the dream occurs and are told by the real estate agent that it is for rent. "Food for Thought!", script by George Kashdan, art by Leopoldo Duranona; A man takes a serum which makes him invulnerable and then shoots the scientist who provided it; He goes to Africa to rob the native tribes, but they toss him into quicksand where the bugs devour him forever as he cannot die. Twinkies and Kelp Hostess snack cakes ad featuring Aquaman. "Playmate," script by Jack Oleck, art by Bill Draut; A crippled boy has a playmate come to visit him but his parents can't see the little girl he speaks of so they assume she is just an imaginary playmate; She wants him to come outside but he refuses so she tricks him by skipping rope in the path of an oncoming car. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.30.

Add to cart Very Good $3.60

Cover pencils by Jack Sparling, inks by Vince Colletta. The Muse Hostess snack cakes ad featuring Batman. "Witch Blood," script by Jack Oleck, pencils by Ernie Chan (as Ernie Chua), inks by Bill Draut; A baron burns a woman as a witch because he wishes to annex her land. He gives her orphan boy to a vassal of his; When the man discovers that his adopted son can shape-shift he realizes that his mother really was a witch; The boy learns that the baron had burned his mother so he changes into a hawk and claws the baron's eyes. "The Experiment," art by Vicente Alcazar; This is a story with no text that looks like it is telling the story of Frankenstein, except that the last panel features Pinocchio. Abel's Fables cartoon, script by Don Edwing, art by Dave Manak. "The Evil Side," script by Steve Skeates, art by Ruben Yandoc (as Rubeny); A boy sorcerer resents his uncle for attempting to discourage him from following his evil inclinations and when the man's brother visits and mentions the powerful items kept in the attic, the boy waits until his uncle has gone to sleep before exploring the attic; He finds a magic carpet and a spell book that he uses to summon a demon so that his uncle will be killed and he'll be free of his smothering influence. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.30.

Cover pencils by Ernie Chan (as Ernie Chua), inks by Vince Colletta. "The Man with Death on His Shoulders," script by Cary Bates, pencils by Mike Vosburg, inks by Vince Colletta; The ghost of a body builder gives a weak man power so that he can humiliate the boyfriends of the girls that previously rejected him; One day he accidentally kills a man walking with a beautiful girl and takes her to a cave while he figures out what to do with the body; The cave begins to collapse and he uses his strength to hold it up while the girl wanders out to the road. "The Vampire of Broadway," script by Robert Kanigher, art by Abe Ocampo; A sign painter working on an advertisement for a Broadway show about a vampire brings his creation to life when he falls in love with the girl; The painting kills him and two police officers before the second police officer, who suspects the painting to be the culprit, fires silver bullets into it and ends its menace. "Justice for All Includes Children" #9 public service announcement featuring Superman. "Bide Your Time," script by Steve Skeates, pencils by Ernie Chan (as Ernie Chua), inks by Vince Colletta; A man becomes the victim of a beautiful woman who claims to be a medium for an old man, but she is actually his lover and his spirit has been transferred into the body of an old man through a crystal ball. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.30.

Last 30-cent cover price. Cover art by Luis Dominguez. "The Shark-Man Cometh!", script by Michael Fleisher and Russell Carley (as Russ Carley), art by E. R. Cruz; After a carnival barker's stunt man is "accidentally" killed for demanding more money for battling sharks, a wereshark shows up to take his place; The carnival barker's wife is turned on by him, so she goes out for a night swim with him; This enrages the carnival barker, so he hits her and takes a spear gun out to the pool. "The Operation Was Successful... But –", script by Robert Kanigher, art by Fred Carrillo; A jealous surgeon stabs an older physician and his attractive nurse to death and disposes of the bodies; He gets in a car accident and when he revives he finds himself a patient in surgery; He's shocked to discover that the medics are the two people he killed. Abel's Fables cartoon, script by Don Edwing, art by Dave Manak. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.30.

First 35-cent cover price. Cover price by Gray Morrow. "Snow Ghost," script by Bill Reilly (Murray Boltinoff), art by Bill Draut; A man kills his partner for gold and the dead man's ghost manipulates him into returning to the ghost's grandchildren where he expires just outside the cabin and is buried beneath the snow; The following day the kids find some personal effects of their grandfather outside as well as the gold. "Snake's Alive!", script by Michael J. Pellowski (idea) and E. Nelson Bridwell, art by Buddy Gernale; A man and a woman arrive on an island chain where the natives plan to sacrifice her to the snake god; The man is impatient to leave, but since the natives are pampering the woman before they sacrifice her, she doesn't want to go; The man picks up her body to show the terrible accident to the yacht crew and then they will leave, but the natives are enraged and they pursue the man. #7 Curt Swan DC Profiles bio by Mike Gold. Statement of ownership: Total No. Copies Printed Nearest To Filling Date (October 1, 1976): 301,574. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.35.

Add to cart Very Good $3.60

Cover price by Gray Morrow. Introductory page with Abel, script by Paul Levitz, art by Romeo Tanghal. "A Gift of Evil," script by Jack Oleck, pencils by Ernie Chan (as Ernie Chua), inks by Bill Draut; A man whose village is being destroyed by plague seeks a bargain with Satan and is answered by space aliens who give him their eggs in the form of gold cubes; The man hires agents to distribute the eggs throughout the world in order to buy medicine and supplies in an effort to relieve the suffering of his village. Abel's Fables one-page story, script by Don Edwing, art by Dave Manak. "The See-Through Thief!", script by David Michelinie and Russ Carley, art by Alex Nino; A boy vandalizes a witch's garden and she places a curse upon him that makes him invisible at random times for the rest of his life; He has difficulties proving to employers that he is reliable and so finally gets a job as a night watchman, where if he fades out, no one notices; He starts thinking that maybe he can use the curse to steal the payroll from the safe, so he waits until the curse kicks in and then blows the safe; It looks like he's going to be able to just walk out with the money but he starts to fade in and the police have been alerted. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.35.

Cover price by Gray Morrow. Introductory page with Abel, script by Paul Levitz, art by Michael Golden. "Roman Holiday," script by George Kashdan, art by Ernie Chan; A man answers an ad to go on a Roman holiday and ends up being thrown to the lions. #19 Julius Schwartz DC Profiles bio. "Sorcerer's Apprentice," script by Jack Oleck, pencils by Steve Ditko, inks by Ernie Chan; The sorcerer's apprentice is ambitious and wants to wed the princess; The princess rebuffs him as it is not possible for the princess to marry a commoner; The apprentice gets the king to allow him along on his campaign and actually proves decisive in gaining the victory; When the apprentice again asks the king to marry his daughter, he is once more rebuffed, so he slays the king and usurps the throne; When he returns from the campaign he has his master tossed in the dungeon until he can arrange the marriage ceremony. Letter from comics writer and editor Kevin J. Dooley. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.35.

Add to cart Very Good $3.60

Add to cart GD 2.0 $2.50

Cover price by Michael Wm. Kaluta. Introductory page with Abel, script by Paul Levitz, art by Michael Golden. "The Rain Dance," script by Paul Levitz (plot) and J. Cheever Loophole, art by Bill Draut; Settlers kidnap an Indian medicine man and force him to do a rain dance at gunpoint; The sky rains blood which clots into the form of a vampire bat; The bat kills most of the settlers until they try to set fire to it by burning the crops. "The Evil One," script by Jack Oleck, art by Ricardo Villamonte; A boy's uncle kills his father and hides the body; The boy suspects him but the police tell him that they can't arrest the uncle without a body; The years go by and the boy becomes angry and bitter living with his abusive uncle until he spots an old woman that the kids used to believe was a witch; He asks her if she can summon Satan but she gives him a book of spells and tells him to try it himself if he wants to because she doesn't believe in magic; He does attempt to summon Satan and it works; He offers Satan his soul in exchange for getting revenge on his uncle. #23 Bob Layton DC Profiles bio. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.35.