The Unexpected (Volume 1) with a cover date of June, 1972. It was published on April 25, 1972.
Synopsis for "An Incident of Violence"
A man in a swamp has his arm ripped off by an alligator and the beast pursues him to his home. While it hides in the pool, the young man who has been courting his daughter tries to wrestle the older man into the pool so he'll be killed and out of the way for an inheritance, but he falls into the pool instead. The old man shoots the alligator but not before the beast has attacked and killed the young man. His daughter begs his forgiveness about falling in love with such a ruthless person.
Appearing in "An Incident of Violence"
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Synopsis for "Don't Let Me Die!"
Two gold hunters run into peril in the frozen tundra of Canada. Jack Hurley and Lloyd Garber have hit a lucky gold strike but Jack suddenly falls through a frozen crack in the ice and struggles to keep from drowning. He calls out for help to his partner Lloyd but he ignores his cries for assistance. Jack slides into the frozen lake to his death screaming that he will somehow get revenge on his partner. Lloyd eventually goes out and begins his life as a wealthy man. He enjoys the many perks of his new lifestyle but he is haunted by the ghost of his former partner jack who continues to warn him that he will get even. Lloyd seeks psychiatric help for his visions and his doctor recommends that he take a trip abroad to change his surroundings. Lloyd Garber boards a luxury yacht and embarks on his trip. His yacht is suddenly hit one night by a stray iceberg. The iceberg crashes through the vessel right into Lloyds cabin. Lloyd is horrified to see that the berg contains the frozen remains of his former partner. Jack Hurley’s body had traveled down the St Lawrence river and into the Atlantic to get his revenge. Lloyd was positively crushed by his UNEXPECTED visitor.
Appearing in "Don't Let Me Die!"
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Synopsis for "Die a Deep Death!"
A poverty stricken miner longs to marry his sweetheart Dolores. Dolores however mocks Manuel on how poor he is and that he will never be able to buy her nice things. Manuel realizes that he will never be able to give Dolores the things she desires working as a miner. One night he decides to break into the mining office to steal 30,000 pesos from the payroll vault. He overpowers a night watchmen and breaks into the safe. He steals the money and places it inside his lunchbox for safe keeping. He hides until the next morning when his co-workers arrive. He goes down the mine to complete his shift while the theft is investigated by police. One of the miners notices that Manuel is acting very suspicious. Everyone has received word of the theft and a miner named Jose notices that Manuel is keeping his lunchbox close by. A sudden dynamite explosion erupts and Manuel is trapped in the mine as it collapses. He finds a phone and is able to communicate with the surface. He is informed that it will take days to dig him out but that he has his lunchbox filled with food for nourishment. Manuel opens the lunchbox and finds it filled with rocks. He surmises that Jose has stolen his money and will return it back to the company so that he can receive a raise and promotion. Jose is also fond of Dolores and he is back on the surface while Manuel sits in darkness hungry and alone.
Appearing in "Die a Deep Death!"
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Synopsis for "Please-- Kill Me Once More"
A hit and run victim by the name of Cronin dies and wakes up in the land of the dead. He meets a number of dead souls that tell him he is there for eternity. Cronin then encounters a soul that was electrocuted for murder. He seems to recognize this individual. It turns out that he is Willie Wilson a criminal that hid millions in cash before he died. Wilson offers to tell Cronin where he hid his money thinking that it will do him no good when Cronin is suddenly whisked off back to the world of the living. He wakes up on an operating table where doctors are fighting to revive him. Cronin begins to breathe on his own and recovers from his accident. He is told that he is very lucky and is soon discharged from the hospital. He then decides to visit doctor named Karnes and he relates his story of visiting the dead and running into Willie Wilson. He asks Karnes to briefly put him back to death so he can revisit Wilson and learn where his money is stashed. Dr Karnes would then revive Cronin after five minutes and they would retrieve the millions in cash. Karnes comments that it would be a risky venture but he agrees to go through with the procedure and temporarily place Cronin to death. Karnes begins the procedure and places Cronin in his deathly state with the intention of reviving him after five minutes. The police suddenly burst in on Karnes and place him under arrest. They see Cronin lying on the operating table and pronounce him dead. Cronin is left stuck in the land of the dead forever. Karnes is arrested for his unlicensed procedure and hauled away as a stopwatch continues to tick past the five minute mark.
Appearing in "Please-- Kill Me Once More"
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Synopsis for "The Curse of the Kung Lo Diamond"
reprinted from House of Secrets Vol 1 52 Three men experience life threatening misfortunes after purchasing pieces of a cursed diamond from a local Jewelry shop. A pilot by the name of Malcom is almost killed in his plane after purchasing a diamond pin from Logan Jewelers. Another man is almost crushed by a billboard sign after purchasing a small diamond ring for his wife from the same Jewelry store. Finally a man named Peal almost falls to his death down an elevator shaft after purchasing a stickpin from Logans Jewelry. The events are investigated by a pair of detectives named Kirkland and James. Kirkland relates the story that a fabulous 25 carat diamond had been stolen weeks earlier from a jeweler named Harvey Weston. The detectives learn that the thief was named Red Martin. It was known as the Jung Lo diamond. It had been purchased centuries ago by a Chinese ruler named Kung Lo. His party was attacked by bandits and the gem was stolen from him. With his dying breath, Kung Lo cursed the diamond so that all who possess it would suffer terrible fates. The pair of detectives visit Logan and learn that he had purchased 5 diamonds from Red Martin. The detectives surmise that Martin had cut up the Kung Lo diamond into small pieces to make it easier to sell. The detectives conclude that they must stop Martin before he spreads anymore of the dangerous cursed stone to others. They quickly locate the criminal but shockingly find that Martin has died from an accidental gas poisoning. They search his apartment and find dozens of diamonds. When they weigh the diamonds they find that they add up to precisely 25 carats. The exact weight of the cursed Kung Lo stone. The detectives are puzzled because if the stone was cut up then some of the grains would have been lost in the process and it would have to weigh less than 25 carats. They quickly figure out that Martin had used other diamonds to throw the authorities off track while he kept the real Kung Lo stone for himself. The detectives quickly head to Logan's Jewelry store. They get him to confess that he was involved in the theft of the diamond. Logan admits that he was behind the thefts and had partnered with Martin to create those life threatening situation that his customers had experienced. Logan makes a desperate attempt to escape the detectives. He runs outside but is suddenly stopped by a downed powerline that was knocked down by the wind. He is immediately arrested.
Appearing in "The Curse of the Kung Lo Diamond"
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Synopsis for "The Exile from Earth"
reprinted from Tales of the Unexpected Vol 1 16 A magician explores an Egyptian tomb to unearth a mysterious ring that will grant him great powers. As long as he does not touch the Earth, the ring will protect him from harm as he conducts robberies throughout the country. He robs a money truck as it crosses a bridge. He steals cash from wealthy investors on top of the Eiffel Tower and he robs a fortune in gold bullion aboard a ship at sea. He is always careful not to touch the Earth as he conducts his robberies. One night he visits an apartment building to steal a fortune in jewelry. He uses a balloon to float back down to escape security guards but he inadvertently lands upon a roof garden that is full of soil from the Earth. His power disappears instantaneously and he is immediately apprehended by authorities.
Appearing in "The Exile from Earth"
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