Welcome to the twenty-third installment in
TheMasks of Famous MonstersSeries.
Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine was an absolute treasure trove of early mask history. By combing through the 191 issues published between 1958-1983, it's possible to gain a good understanding of the decades of evolution and history of Don Post Studios and Topstone monster masks. The eventual goal of this series is to catalog and archive each monster mask appearance in the pages Famous Monsters.Like the previous two editions of the Monster Masks of Famous Monsters, new mask material was hard to come by and infrequent at best. Several issues contained no ads, articles, or even photos relating to monster masks. However, during the time span of 1973-74, when monster masks did make appearances, it was usually worth the wait.
The first significant monster mask appearance came in April 1973 (issue #100) with a reprint of the cover from
issue #1. And while this was not anything new it was a lot more than previous issues offered up for head hunters...
The April issue also contained a few snap shots, including this photo of masked ghouls from the 1943 Universal Picture "Flesh & Fantasy"...
This photo of a young Cortlandt Hull along with a Don Post Studios Calendar Drac could also be found in issue 100...
Issue 100 also ran the same condensed Don Post Studios mask ad that would still sporadically appear in random issues...
Issue 101 would offer readers a cool Shock Monster t-Shirt. This ad would make random appearances in FM over the next several years...
Issue # 102, released in October of 1973, would contain one of the most iconic monster mask ads that ever ran in the pages of Famous Monsters. The Verne Langdon "Zombie" ad was a glorious full-page color ad that showcases everything I love about vintage monster mask ads. Dare I say, other than the full-color calendar mask ad, this is as good as it gets. The ad would run until issue #104 in January 1974...
If one looks hard enough into the January 1974 issue (#104), a few monster masks can be found hiding in photos from the Ackermansion. One curios odd-ball can be seen here with this Don Post Phantom sporting a Frankenstein Monster headpiece. It's quite the monster mash-up...
Below is another picture, this one of Uncle Forry and this Metaluna Mutant. It's hard to tell from the black and white photo, but this particular mask looks like it could be the very same copy that appeared in the
famous Monster Calendar...
Another monster mask sneaks it's way into a photo, this time in issue #105...
A few new mini ads appear for the first time in issue 107. The first is a rather misleading ad that offers a bargain Frankenstein for a mere $3.49, but pictures the deluxe Frank mask. The ad would be updated in the January 1975 issue with the actual bargain Frank photo...
Directly below the Bargain Frank ad, this ad for a Frankenstein Head Piece could be found. The ad features a photo of Don Post Sr...
The July 1974 issue of Famous Monsters (#108) would contain several mask ad debuts. This was the type of issue that must have made mask collectors young and old howl at the moon...
Page 76 would contain a full-page of classic monster mask goodness that featured not only masks, but also photos of the Don Post Studios calendar monster hands & feet!
This was also the ad that would make several appearances in Famous Monsters, and consequently confuse mask collectors for many decades to come. The inclusion of the "Zombie" mask in the line-up with Don Post masks would lead many collectors (including myself) to assume that the mask was a DPS creation, when in fact it was created by Verne Langdon several years after he had left DPS....
This four panel quarter page Topstone mask ad would also make it's first appearance in Famous Monsters in July 1974...
A few pages later, the Don Post 800 line "Vinyl Movie Monster Masks" ad would make it's Famous Monsters debut too. Although the Ellis Burman sculpted masks had been offered as early as
issue #46 back in September 1967, this ad would mark the first appearances of the Don Post Skull masks for FM readers. In addition, it would be the ad that coined the terms "Thin" and "Thick" for the two Frankenstein masks that appear here...
A page later, a Universal Walk-around could be found complete with a beautiful Frankie mask...
Issue 108 would wind down nicely with a color photo of this Phantom mask as seen in Cortlandt Hull's Witch's Dungeon...
The August 1974 issue would also feature a handful photos with monster masks...
These photos appeared in an article on the ABC Horror Hall of Fame TV Special. There are a handful of masks on set including a DPS 800 line Uncle Creepy, Hunchback and Wolfman. These photos offer a nice clear view of the set...
That concludes our look at the Masks of Famous Monsters circa 1973-74. Next time, we'll crossover into the mid 70's as we feature 1975-76. See you next time Creeps!
