Astonishing #47

History

Astonishing (Vol. 1) ran from 1951 to 1957 under Atlas Comics, the 1950s imprint that was the direct predecessor of Marvel Comics, with Stan Lee serving as editor across the line. Issue #47 was released on newsstands on November 18, 1955, carrying a March 1956 cover date. It appeared squarely in the post-CCA period — the Comics Code Authority had gone into effect in 1954, and Atlas titles like Astonishing were recalibrating their horror and science fiction content accordingly. Bill Everett, who had been a cornerstone of the Timely-Atlas story since co-creating Namor in 1939, was active on Atlas horror anthology covers and interiors at this moment; Lambiek's Comiclopedia records that Everett left the comics field entirely in 1955 for commercial art, making this issue a product of the very end of his pre-departure run. Krigstein's appearance here falls in the narrow transitional window documented by Fantagraphics' Atlas Creator Collection: after EC's collapse in 1956, Krigstein returned to Atlas for a final body of work before leaving comics for good.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Published by Atlas Comics (the 1950s precursor to Marvel) with a cover date of March 1956 and an on-sale date of November 18, 1955.
• The cover and lead story, 'Spaceship in My Barn,' are both by Bill Everett — the creator of Namor the Sub-Mariner and later co-creator of Daredevil — making this a notable showcase of his Atlas-era science fiction work.
• The issue contains five short anthology stories across 36 pages: 'Spaceship in My Barn' (Everett), 'The Man Who Looked for Death!' (Joe Orlando), 'The Fat Man!' (Larry Woromay), 'Eve of Halloween!' (Ed Winiarski), and 'The Hypnotist!' (Bernie Krigstein).
• Bernie Krigstein's story 'The Hypnotist!' — depicting a boxer who becomes a champion only under hypnosis — is part of his final body of work in comics, produced after EC Comics' shutdown in 1956, a period Fantagraphics describes as '29 short-form experiments demonstrating the infinite possibilities inherent in the art of graphic narrative.'
• Joe Orlando, who drew 'The Man Who Looked for Death!', was a veteran of EC Comics who went on to become vice president of DC Comics and associate publisher of Mad magazine.
• The series was edited by Stan Lee throughout its run, consistent with Lee's oversight of essentially the entire Atlas anthology line during this period.
• No notable superhero debuts or villain first appearances have been identified in this issue; it is an all-anthology, non-continuing-character issue typical of the Atlas mid-1950s output.
• No reprints of the specific stories in this issue have been corroborated across multiple sources; the issue does not appear in any identified Marvel Masterworks or other reprint collection.

Full credits