The House of Mystery is ahorror,fantasy, andmysterycomics anthology published byDC Comics. It had a companion series,TheHouse of Secrets.
The House of Mystery began as a horror anthology, featuring tales of the supernatural as well as supernatural-themed mystery stories. Issue #1 was cover dated December 1950-January 1951.[1] With the growing backlash against American horror comics in the mid-1950s, as well as the advent of theComics Code Authority and its restrictions on horror-themed storylines (banning stories dealing with such supernatural fare as vampires and werewolves), the series was quietly revamped into dealing with science fiction-type monsters and other mystery/suspense-type tales that were permitted by the Comics Code.[2]
In the mid-1960s, the series was revamped to include superhero stories. FromThe House of Mystery #143 (June 1964) to 155 (December 1966), "J'onn J'onzz, the Manhunter from Mars" headlined the book, as his back-up feature fromDetective Comics was moved toThe House of Mystery. This was followed with the introduction of "Dial H for Hero" in issue #156 (January 1966),[3] which took over as headliner until issue #173 (March–April 1968). The Martian Manhunter was again relegated to back-up status during this time.
With issue #174,EC Comics veteranJoe Orlando was hired by DC to take over as editor ofThe House of Mystery.[4] As the Comics Code Authority was now being challenged by bothDC andMarvel over content restrictions, the series returned to its overt horror themes. The first issue under Orlando would be a reprint issue of old horror/suspense stories, as the new direction would truly begin with #175 (July–August 1968). The issue would introduce a new figure to the series,Cain, the "able care taker" of the House of Mystery who would introduce nearly all the stories before the series's cancellation.[5] Cain would also host the spin-off humor seriesPlop! and later become a recurring character inBlue Devil andThe Sandman.
ArtistBernie Wrightson's first professional comic work was the story "The Man Who Murdered Himself" which appeared in issue #179 (March–April 1969).[6]
Under Orlando's stewardship, the series won a good deal of recognition in the comics industry, including the "Shazam Award for Best Individual Short Story (Dramatic)" in 1972 for "The Demon Within" in issue #201 byJohn Albano andJim Aparo, and the "Shazam Award for Best Humor Story" in 1972 for "The Poster Plague" bySteve Skeates andSergio Aragonés.Limited Collectors' Edition #C-23 (Winter 1973) featured reprints ofHouse of Mystery stories.[7]House of Mystery #224 (April–May 1974) to 229 (Feb.–March 1975) were in the100 Page Super Spectacular format.[8]
The series was in theDollar Comics format for issues #251 (March–April 1977) to 259 (July–August 1978).[9]House of Mystery featured stories by writersT. Casey Brennan (issues #260, 267, 268 and 274) andScott Edelman (issues #257, 258, 260, 264, 266, 270, 272, 273). Orlando's tenure as editor ended with issue #257 (March–April 1978).[4]Karen Berger became editor of the series with issue #292 (May 1981),[10] her first for DC Comics.[11] Under Berger, the series experimented with long-form storylines in the popularI…Vampire serial created by writerJ. M. DeMatteis.[12] "I... Vampire" revolved around the heroicvampire, Andrew Bennett, who sought to defeat his nemesis and former lover Mary Seward, the Queen of Blood. This serial began in issue #290 (March 1981) and would last until issue #319 (August 1983), two issues before the title ended with issue #321 (October 1983).[13]
Since 2006, DC Comics has reprinted stories from the original run: three black and whiteShowcase Presents volumes have been published, reprinting the series from #174 - 194, #195 - 211 and #212 - 226, respectively. Aone-shot reprint in color,Welcome Back to the House of Mystery, featured 10 of the most highly regarded stories as selected byAlisa Kwitney in a Cain wraparound byNeil Gaiman andSergio Aragonés under theVertigo Comics imprint. The first issue from 1951 was reissued as aMillennium Edition bearing the Vertigo imprint.[14]
In 1986–1987, DC comics published a new series,Elvira's House of Mystery. It lasted 11 issues, plus a specialChristmas issue. The series was a quasi-follow-up of the original series, with famed horror movie hostessElvira, Mistress of the Dark tasked by the House with finding Cain, though she spent much of her time making fun of him and introducing horror stories similar to the original series. One issue of this series, issue #3, was released without Comics Code Approval and contained significant implied nudity. Editorial comments in later issues stated that the experiment in releasing an unapproved issue was not considered successful.
DC'sVertigo imprint began a new ongoing series in May 2008, written byLilah Sturges andBill Willingham. It features at least one different story each issue, told by people trapped in a "purgatory-like house".[15][16] The series ended in October 2011 with issue #42. Twoannuals were also published.
The House of Mystery is north ofLouisville, Kentucky, where it was built and abandoned by Colonel Braitwaithe before theAmerican Civil War,[17] and inthe Dreaming. Little is known about the House of Mystery in general. Its exterior and interior change periodically, meaning that one never enters the same room twice. The House of Mystery lies in the same graveyard as the House of Secrets, its companion. Cain lives in the House of Mystery, whereas Abel resides in the House of Secrets.
Cain is not the only person to have lived within the House; in addition toboarders, includingMister Mxyzptlk,Elvira, Mistress of the Dark took shelter within the house. Her brief stay in the House of Mystery is notable for two reasons: first, the House of Mystery is established as being the same house throughout its publication history. Three distinct personalities of the house are shown: the original horror House of Mystery, a dark humor "House of Weirdness"-style which harkened back to Cain's stint inPlop!, and the current version of the House of Mystery in Kentucky. The second reason is the timing of Elvira's stay. She took up residence during theCrisis on Infinite Earths. Elvira, tasked by the House of Mystery to find Cain, took over his role of host for a brief period, while Cain was relegated to being the butt of her jokes during occasional cameos.
The House of Mystery possesses sentience, along with mystic powers. It has possessed someone before and merged with the House of Secrets briefly. It was destroyed inThe House of Mystery #321 before being restored duringCrisis on Infinite Earths.
Batman entered the house inThe Brave and the Bold #93, tripped on a floorboard, and would have been shot had his pursuer's gun not jammed. He never actually met Cain, who instead narrates a story about him occurring in Scotland, which climaxes in a castle he describes as "a house of mystery" rather than "the House of Mystery".[18]Superman teamed with Cain against Mxyzptlk, who was attempting to take over the House, inDC Comics Presents #53.[19]
The House of Mystery appears mainly in various Vertigo titles, especially those tied intoNeil Gaiman'sSandman; it has appeared briefly inResurrection Man. Something called the House of Mystery appeared in52 #18, where it seems to have been used for some time as a base for a team of detectives called the Croatoan Society, which counts bothDetective Chimp andRalph Dibny among its members. It is unclear if the Croatoan's House of Mystery is meant to be the same as the original House of Mystery, a post-Infinite Crisis version of the original House of Mystery, or simply a different location with the same name. Cain's name appeared on this house's mailbox, implying a connection to the original House.
InThe New 52's rebooted DC continuity (launched in 2011), the House reappeared in the pages ofJustice League Dark, being used as a base for the team. The House is shown to currently belong toJohn Constantine, who claims to have won the key to the House in a poker game againstDoctor Occult andFather Time. Constantine takes his time to adjust to the House of Mystery due to the changing rooms and feels that the House has to play tricks on those who enter it.[20]
Two novels were written byJack Oleck and illustrated byBernie Wrightson, both published byWarner Books:
When the Comics Code Authority was formed in 1954...House of Mystery was therefore forced to gradually re-focus itself as a suspense and science-fiction title.
