The Witching Hour #20 is an issue of the series The Witching Hour (Volume 1) with a cover date of May, 1972. It was published on February 20, 1972.
Synopsis for "Death Is a Demon In Disguise"
A local mortician preys on grieving family members making them believe that he can summon their loved ones back from the dead. He accomplishes his task by making lifelike mask reproductions of corpses from his mortuary and then extorting loved ones by making them believe that they are actually talking to their dearly departed from the land of the dead. On one particular afternoon a man collapses dead in front of Beldan's mortuary. His body is immediately claimed by Beldan and his accomplice for the purposes of extorting his family. A mask is made of the deceased man but to Beldan's surprise the corpse then comes to life. The man explains that he placed himself in suspended animation to learn how Beldan brings his corpses back from the dead. He then threatens to call the police with his findings but he is quickly killed by Beldan to keep him silent. Moments later the police arrive at the mortuary to investigate the dead body that collapsed on the sidewalk. Beldon then dons the freshly made deathmask that he has just created and pretends that he is the man that collapsed moments before in front of the mortuary. He tells the police that Belden is not in but for some reason the police do not believe him. Belding then runs away from the police into the street where he is suddenly struck by a coach. He lies mortally wounded on the street. A police officer holds up a mirror to his face to check his low breathing and Belding suddenly sees that the mask he had donned had suddenly taken on the features of his own face.
Appearing in "Death Is a Demon In Disguise"
Narrators:
- The Hecatae (Host)
Characters:
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "Never Ride With a Stranger!"
A driver who has already picked up a hitcher picks up a lady who says she is looking for gas. A storm comes up so they stop at an old house. The woman seems apprehensive but the two men reassure her. At midnight, the men check on her in her room, but she claims to have been startled by a figure with the appearance of the Devil. The two men suspect one another and eventually a fight breaks out. The woman laughs and transforms herself into Satan, claiming their souls.
Appearing in "Never Ride With a Stranger!"
- Appearances not yet listed
Synopsis for "Once Upon a Midnight Dreary"
A woman with a dog rents a summer home from a man the officials are unaware has murdered and buried his wife on the premises. When the man notices the dog get wise to his wife's grave, he resolves to shoot the dog and murder its owner as well. She falls down the basement stairs and breaks her leg so the man is in no hurry to kill her after he's shot the dog, and he goes outside to dig her grave. She uses the time to unravel the threads of her sweater to string them across the stairs. When the man returns she distracts him from noticing as she backs away and he tries to aim his gun at her. He falls down the stairs and breaks his neck.
Appearing in "Once Upon a Midnight Dreary"
- Appearances not yet listed
Synopsis for "Beware the 13th Guest"
This story is reprinted from House of Secrets #59.
A man named Jason Bradford visits his doctor and finds that he has six months to live. He wanders into a bookstore where he finds a book about the Legends of the Pharaohs Feast. The story describes the tale of an ancient dying pharaoh who invites 12 nobles to a farewell feast. The pharaoh then hears of a magician named Zaljaz who has the ability to grant the gift of immortality to anyone. The magician is summoned before the pharaoh. He informs the pharaoh that Nuri, the cat of eternity will leap to his shoulder and grant immortality if he can simply juggle three silver balls. The weak pharaoh attempts to juggle the balls but they fly off everywhere when thrown in the air. The pharaoh dies succumbing to his illness. Bradford continues reading and learns that Zaljaz appeared throughout history as the 13th guest to challenge others to juggle the balls but they all met with failure. Bradford decides to throw a party and invites 12 of his closest friends. He hopes to outwit the magician if he can make him appear. The night of the party arrives and the 12 guests show up for Bradford's feast. The ancient magician suddenly appears with Nuri the cat on his shoulder. Bradford then asks to take the challenge and to everyone's surprise he is easily able to juggle the silver balls. Bradford had cleverly implanted magnets into his walls to make the balls more controllable. Zaljaz knows that he has been tricked somehow but he has no choice but to let the cat Nuri jump to Bradford's side. The disgruntled magician then uses his magical power to send Bradford and his guests to ancient Pompeii on the night that the volcano erupted. Bradford realizes that his friends will be killed so he has not choice but to surrender the black cat of immortality back to Zaljaz. The magician then sends everyone back to the safety of the present and Bradford realizes that he will still die in six months. Upon visiting his doctor, Bradford learns that his disease is completely gone. The doctor surmises that a scratch on his shoulder has introduced antibodies into his bloodstream destroying the deadly germs in his body. Bradford realizes that the scratch came from Zuri the black cat and he refers to it as the Scratch of Immortality.
Appearing in "Beware the 13th Guest"
Featured Characters:
- Jason Bradford (Single appearance)
Supporting Characters:
- Ed (Single appearance)
- Paula (Single appearance)
- Dexter (Single appearance)
Animals:
- Nuri, the cat of eternity (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
- A Pharoah (Flashback only)
- Zaljaz, a magician (Flashback and main story) (Single appearance)
Locations:
- 20th Century
- Ancient Egypt
- 1st Century, Pompeii
Items:
- Three silver balls
Synopsis for "The Diamond Hands of the Sun God!"
This story is reprinted from House of Secrets #8.
An unscrupulous archeologist by the name of Skleers steals a statue Mitra whose hands are made of diamond. He is warned that he will be punished by his own hands for stealing the holy relic. The man escapes into the jungle but suddenly finds that he has lost control of his hands. He drops the statue and loses it in a river. He then attempts to drive out of the jungle, but his hands steer his vehicle in the wrong direction. He manages to reach a town called Puuna where he takes refuge. He attempts to check into a hotel but he finds that he has lost his wallet. Skleers then breaks into a curio shop and steals six thousand dollars from the owner. In his haste to escape he accidentally steps in some wet cement and leaves a trail back to his hotel room. The authorities show up at his door and Skleers makes a full confession about stealing the money. The two policemen are astonished, they had simply wanted Skleers to pay for the cement that he messed up. They were unaware of the robbery and the missing money. They place Skleers in handcuffs and lead him away. They stop at the lobby of the hotel where the clerk indicates that he knew there was something unusual about Skleers. He had signed the guest register as “Mitra-the Sun God”. Skleer begins to insist that it wasn't him but rather his hands that gave him away.
Appearing in "The Diamond Hands of the Sun God!"
Featured Characters:
- Skleers (Single appearance)
Supporting Characters:
- Mir Osman (Single appearance)
Locations:
- India
- Temple of Mitra
- Puuna, a city
Items:
- Statue of Mitra
Vehicles:
- Jeep
See Also
Links and References
