Astonishing #20

From Atlas Comics' banner of "Terror Tales in the Night," this December 1952 issue of Astonishing delivers exactly the eerie atmosphere its title promises. Sol Brodsky's cover sets the scene with a man and woman fleeing in terror through a moonlit cemetery, graves yawning open around them as disembodied hands claw up from the earth — while a teaser strip along the left edge previews additional chills with glimpses of a green monster, a sinister doll, and a masked figure. With Stan Lee writing and Gene Colan on art, "Mystery at Midnight" and its companion tales look to make good on the bold claim of "The Most Astonishing Tales Ever Told.