House of Mystery #242

A moonlit rooftop becomes a scene of dread on Luis Dominguez's cover, where a pale, wild-eyed figure looms over the edge of a darkened building while two terrified young people cower below, clutching each other in fear. DC's long-running anthology of the uncanny promises "All-New Chills" with this June 1976 issue, headlined by a story the cover dares you to experience — "The Balloon Vendor!" — suggesting a carnival of fear lurking beneath an innocent premise. With Michael Fleisher and Russell Carley scripting and Frank Robbins bringing the interior pages to life, House of Mystery #242 delivers exactly the kind of spine-tingling atmosphere that made this series a staple of 1970s horror comics.