House of Secrets (1956 1st Series) comic books

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.

Add to cart CGC 9.6 $399.00 View scans Paper: White Label #4464122013 Consignment. 3% buyer's premium charged at checkout.

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.

Add to cart CGC 8.5 $110.00 or Best Offer View scan Paper: Off white to white Label #3987907013 Consignment. 3% buyer's premium charged at checkout.

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 CGC 8.0 $59.00 View scan Paper: White Label #4451598011 Consignment. 3% buyer's premium charged at checkout.

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 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 Fine $5.40

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.

Add to cart CGC 8.5 $64.75 or Best Offer View scan Paper: White Label #1262783012 Consignment. 3% buyer's premium charged at checkout.

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 $4.40

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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

Add to cart Very Good $4.40

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.

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.

Add to cart Very Good $4.40

Add to cart CGC 9.4 $76.75 or Best Offer View scan Paper: Off white to white Label #1251954001 Consignment. 3% buyer's premium charged at checkout.

Cover art by Jim Starlin. Batman and Sable Lady Hostess snack cakes ad. "A God by Any Other Name," script by Gerry Conway, art by Gerry Talaoc; At the House of Secrets, The Phantom Stranger tells Abel how exorcists Father John Christian and Rabbi Samuel Shulman used to exorcise possessed machines; Dr. 13 arrives, and blames such stories on mass hysteria; But when machines all over the world run amok due to a demonic computer, it is up to The Stranger to stop it. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.35.

Add to cart Very Good $4.40

Cover art by Jim Aparo. Introductory page with Abel, script by Paul Levitz, art by Gerry Talaoc. "The Resurrection Business!", script by Bob Toomey, pencils by Val Mayerik, inks by Augie Scotto; A man who revives the dead for money is strangled by the ungrateful dead. "Don't Look Now!", script by Jack Oleck, art by Alex Niño; A man leads an expedition that ends in disaster to a Greek island rumored to be the home of shape-shifting blood suckers called Cypors; They locate the Cypor cave but all except three all killed retreating from the cave; Explosives are used accidentally to seal the cave and the man who lead the expedition is bitter after returning home with no proof that Cypors exist; He begins to suspect that his wife really died in the cave and that a Cypor took her place so he follows her one evening and sees her feed off a pedestrian; He calls the other man who came back from the expedition and they shoot her. DC Publishorial by Jenette Kahn. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.35.