Bernard Baily
Perhaps no other artist had as great an impact in both Golden Age superhero and Pre-Code Horror comics than Bernard Baily. Co-creator of both Sandman and Hourman for DC, Baily also drew some of the most terrifically terrifying comic covers ever seen.
He also founded Bernard Baily Studio with Mac Raboy where a number of artists got their start, including Frank Frazetta, Gil Kane, and Carmine Infantino.
A Poke in the Eye
Eye injuries are a favorite of Pre-Code Horror collectors, and none are as horrific as the cover for Mister Mystery #12 published by Aragon Publications in 1953. So visceral is the cover you can almost feel the heat of the poker as it nears the horrified man’s eye.
There are 76 graded copies but none above the grade of 8.0. The latest sale was a 6.0 going for $14,376 in the August 25 ComicConnect auction. The highest price paid was $36,000 for an 8.0 from the collection of Nicolas Cage, one of only five copies in the top grade. Mister Mystery #11 and Mister Mystery #18 are also worth checking out for their gruesome Baily covers.
More Brains!
What’s not to love about the cover for Weird Mysteries #5 published by Gilmor Magazines in 1953? If you’re a fan of exposed brain matter, this one’s for you!
There are 77 graded copies but, again, none above 8.0. The most recent sale occurred in the September 17 Heritage auction when a 4.0 went for $14,000. The highest price paid was $22,800 for a Northford Pedigree 5.5 from the collection of Nicolas Cage in a September 2022 Heritage auction.
The lone 8.0 graded copy sold in a 2015 Heritage auction for $17,925. It’s hard to imagine it going for less than $30,000 now. Weird Mysteries #4 also sports a Baily cover worth your perusal.
Lou Morales
Making his mark for the publisher Charlton, Lou Morales was a popular artist on the title, The Thing. Morales’ work was also frequently seen in a number of Atlas horror titles. Keeping with the eye injury theme, the cover for The Thing #7 just looks absolutely painful; you can almost feel the agony as the demon gouges out that poor man’s eyes.
There are a scant 43 graded copies although there is one in the top grade of 9.2. Only three copies have sold this year with the top sale being a 5.0 going for $1,080 in the March 21 Heritage auction. The top overall sale was an 8.5 that went for $3,600 back in 2019. It’s been 14 years since one of the 9.0 graded copies last sold in 2009 for $2,091.
The lone 9.2 copy has never sold. In fact, no copy above 7.0 has sold since 2020, making it difficult to ascertain true present values for the higher grades. It will be very interesting to see the final price if one goes up for sale in the near future.
The Tongue Bouquet
The cover for Lawbreakers Suspense Stories #11 and its overall theme is disgusting enough that it’s been granted its own sobriquet by Pre-Code Horror collectors: “The Tongue Bouquet,” based on the fistful of tongues Morales arranged as a floral bouquet in the creepy guy’s hand. This marks Morales as one of the creepier artists of his time.
There are 76 graded copies and an 8.0 just sold for the first time in the September 17 Heritage auction for the price of $7,800. The highest price paid was $19,200 for a Bethlehem pedigree 8.5 in the January 2022 Heritage auction. The lone 9.0 has never sold.
Johnny Craig
Among the fine stable of EC artists, none has caught the eye of Pre-Code Horror collectors more than Johnny Craig. Some of the best and most well-known horror covers are from Craig’s pen.
His realistic draftsmanship sets him apart from other horror artists and matches well with his moody and cerebral stories, scripting his own stories being another aspect that sets him apart from his peers.
Just take a look at his most famous Pre-Code Horror cover – Crime SuspenStories #22. It’s not just the horrific subject matter that draws the eye, but the framing of the scene as well. No wonder that it was one of the star witnesses for the prosecution in the 1954 Senate hearings on juvenile delinquency. In fact, EC publisher William Gaines testified that he thought the cover was in good taste.
There are 413 graded copies, a high number and proof of its extreme popularity. The lone 9.8 and 9.6 copies have never sold, but a 9.4 Williams Gaines File Copy sold earlier this year in the March 16 ComicConnect auction for a staggering $90,112. Just imagine the heights it could reach if the 9.8 or 9.6 were offered in an auction.
Almost Too Real
Another of Craig’s masterpieces is the cover for Crime SuspenStories #20. The eye is definitely drawn to this cover yet wants to look away, as it’s almost too real, making it all the more frightening. While not quite at the level of fame of Crime SuspenStories #22, there are still 278 graded copies.
There have been nine sales this year, with the top sale being a 6.5 going for $2,900 in a July 24 eBay auction. The top price paid was for a 9.6 graded William Gaines File Copy that sold for $31,200 in an April 2022 Heritage auction. It is one of only two copies in this top grade.
A Personal Favorite
Being someone who spent a good deal of my commuting time in the New York City subway system for many years – and seen many weird things in the process – I can tell you that a scene like Craig drew for the cover of Vault of Horror #30 would have sent me screaming off the train at the next stop, regardless of where it was.
Just the idea of a stranger’s stump of an arm hanging there in a subway car conjures up the very worst that one human can do to another. And yet, perhaps because of my personal connection to the subject matter, I just can’t look away. That, for me, makes it the most horrifying of the Pre-Code Horror comic covers. There are 114 graded copies; it’s definitely not one of the top Craig covers for collectors.
Prices are more reasonable as well, with a grade as high as 5.5 going for as little as $708 in the March 22 Hake’s auction. The top price paid was $7,800 for one of the two top-graded 9.6 copies in a February 2019 Heritage auction, much lower than it would likely sell for in a present-day auction.
Other Contenders
While I can’t include writeups on each and every one of the great Pre-Code Horror cover artists, I would be remiss if I didn’t point out a few others. Don Heck – of Avengers fame - drew some terrific headshots (pun somewhat intended) for Horrific, the most notable being the cover for Horrific #3. Web of Evil #5 by Jack Cole, This Magazine is Haunted #11 by Sheldon Moldoff, Out of the Shadows #8 by Jack Katz, and so many more are worth checking out.
Do you have a favorite Pre-Code Horror comic cover artist? Let us know below!
