The Witching Hour #18 is an issue of the series The Witching Hour (Volume 1) with a cover date of January, 1972.
Synopsis for "The Worm That Turned to Terror"
A tormented man named Barney is berated and abused by Henrietta, his wife of 13 years. Barney longs to stand up to her but lacks the courage to do so. One night there is a knock at his door, it turns out to be his brother Keith. Keith encourages Barney to go out with him and perform mischievous deeds to get back at people who have wronged him. They enter a local cemetery where Barney vandalizes his mother in laws grave. The next night Barney and his brother break into his work office where he destroys company records as revenge for not receiving a raise. Barney and Keith return to the office the following night to break into the company safe but Barney is apprehended by the police. He is taken into custody and placed in jail while screaming for his brother Keith. A detective asks his wife if his brother can be contacted but Henrietta remarks that Barney is an only child and that Keith was just a figment of his imagination.
Appearing in "The Worm That Turned to Terror"
Narrators:
- The Hecatae (Host)
Characters:
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "The Diggers!"
A WWI veteran deserts his comrades when he is ordered to stand guard in a trench and be blown up by enemy sappers. He tells his superiors that he was ordered back for food and water just before the trench was blown up. Since there are no living witnesses he gets away with it, until his conscience begins to plague him with the sounds of digging underneath him wherever he goes. He returns to the site of his desertion where he still hears the digging sounds and sees the fog-shrouded statue erected to the war heroes who died there, but mistakes it for ghosts and runs into a live minefield. It turns out that the sounds were a work crew excavating a new housing development.
Appearing in "The Diggers!"
- Appearances not yet listed
Synopsis for "When Satan Comes A-Creeping!"
A callous man gives a beautiful witch shelter from the storm and invites her to stay. When he realizes her powers, he takes her familiar hostage to force her to do his bidding. After she locates his family's hidden treasure and agrees to become his bride, he thinks he longer needs the cat so he wrings its neck. The witch informs him that the cat provided her with a beauty illusion and that his new bride is in fact a hideous old crone.
Appearing in "When Satan Comes A-Creeping!"
- Appearances not yet listed
Synopsis for "The Face behind the Mask"
This story is reprinted from Tales of the Unexpected #13.
A man named Jay Hamilton watches an actress on stage named Zoe Ann Kearns and is captivated by her beauty. He secures a date with her and they go out on the town but curiously the pretty actress has her head completely covered in bandages and her face cannot be seen. Hamilton asks the pretty young woman to take off the bandages but she refuses. She is invited to Hamiltons home where she meets his father. They again ask her to remove the bandages and thus time she accommodates them. Once she removes the bandages the two men are stunned to see an old woman underneath them. The woman claims to be 300 years old and explains that her beauty is the result of a elixir given to her by a sorcerer. According to the girl, the elixir only works for short periods of time and then she must drink more to stay young but it only lasts for short periods and she then has to call in the sorcerer to provide her with more. Upon hearing this, the elder Hamilton insists on obtaining this youth serum for his own. It will cost him his fortune but the elder Hamilton agrees to pay the price. They set up a meeting with the sorcerer at a deserted spot but Zoe suddenly takes off her old woman disguise revealing her youthful face underneath. She had been part of a scheme to steal Mr Hamiltons money with the youth serum scheme but she could not follow through with it. The sorcerer is revealed to be her agent Freddie White and he is immediately arrested.
Appearing in "The Face behind the Mask"
- Appearances not yet listed
Synopsis for "I Was a Prisoner of the Supernatural"
This story is reprinted from Tales of the Unexpected #13.
A movie actor named Jasper Murdock is known for the villainous roles he plays on screen. He is instantly recognized in public but not in a good way. He tries to meet women companions but they are not very receptive. One night, Murdoch is involved in a car accident. Mephistopheles appears to him and instructs him to represent him on earth by battling good and he will be rewarded. Murdoch is soon rescued and he returns back to work. A storage set almost falls on him but freezes in midair until he can get out of the way. He is also engulfed in flames from a stage fire but he comes out of it unscathed. One day an actor named Tom joins Murdoch on stage. A platform collapses and Tom falls down a ledge and hangs on for dear life. Murdoch sees what is happening and gathers some ropes to rescue Tom. A flash of light temporarily blinds Murdoch but he quickly regains his eyesight. Word of his act of bravery soon spreads and Murdoch starts to receive more favorable movie roles. He had thwarted Mephistopheles with his goodness and selflessness.
Appearing in "I Was a Prisoner of the Supernatural"
Featured Characters:
- Jasper Murdock (Single appearance)
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- Fans
Locations:
- Set
Items:
- Costumes
Vehicles:
- Car
See Also