Strange Tales
| Strange Tales | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| Schedule | Bimonthly, June 1951 – June 1952; monthly, July 1952 – Oct. 1953; bimonthly, Nov. 1953 – Feb. 1954; monthly, March 1954 – Aug. 1954; bimonthly Oct. 1954 – April 1955; monthly, June 1955 – June 1957; bimonthly Dec. 1957 – Oct. 1960; monthly, Nov. 1960 – May 1968 |
| Publication date |
(vol. 1) June 1951 – May 1968 (vol. 1 revival) Sept. 1973 – Nov. 1976 (vol. 2) April 1987 – Oct. 1988 |
| Number of issues |
(vol. 1) 168 (vol. 1 revival) 20 (#169–188) (vol. 2) 19 |
Strange Tales is a Marvel Comics anthology series title that appeared and was revived in different forms on multiple occasions throughout the company's history. The title introduced the features "Doctor Strange" and "Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.", and was a showcase for the science fiction/suspense stories of artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, and for the groundbreaking work of writer-artist Jim Steranko. Two previous, unrelated magazines also bore that title.
The Marvel Comics series ran 168 issues, cover-dated June 1951 to May 1968. It began as a horror anthology from the company's 1950s precursor, Atlas Comics. Initially modeled after the gory morality tales of the popular and groundbreaking EC line of comics,Strange Tales became less outré with the 1954 imposition of the Comics Code, which prohibited graphic horror, as well as vampires, zombies and other classical monsters.
The comic changed again with the return of industry stalwart Jack Kirby, the artist who had co-created Captain America for the company then worked elsewhere for 17 years. Starting with #68 (April 1959), Strange Tales was revamped to reflect the then-current trend of science fiction drive-in movie monsters. Virtually every issue would open with a Kirby monster story (generally inked by Christopher Rule initially, then later Dick Ayers), followed by one or two twist-ending thrillers or sci-fi tales drawn by Don Heck, Paul Reinman, or Joe Sinnott, all capped by an often-surreal, sometimes self-reflexive Stan Lee-Steve Ditko short.
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