Journey into Mystery #68 (May 1961, Marvel/Atlas) — G/VG 3.0
“Behold the Face of Spragg! Conqueror of the Human Race!” — Kirby, Ditko, and Pre-Hero Marvel Madness
A classic pre-superhero Journey into Mystery issue with early Marvel Universe DNA all over it. Jack Kirby unveils Spragg, an exiled stone monster hungry for world domination, and Steve Ditko contributes an eerie ghost tale — all wrapped in Stan Goldberg colors and silver-age sci-fi grandeur. This is the kind of Atlas-era pulp that directly fed the Marvel Age just a year later.
📚 Contents
Cover: Jack Kirby & Dick Ayers — Spragg faces forward, towering and tyrannical.
“Spragg — Conqueror of the Human Race!” (13 pages)
Plot: Stan Lee? — Script: Larry Lieber? — Art: Jack Kirby & Dick Ayers
A subterranean monster enslaves a Transylvanian village and threatens the Earth. A scientist hatches an interstellar solution.
“The Utopia” (text story, 2 pages)
Art: Joe Maneely — A humbling fantasy vignette about lies, loss, and a heavenly diner.
“Where Walks the Ghost” (5 pages)
Art: Steve Ditko — A convict hides from the law in a haunted house — until the house turns out to be hiding something worse.
“The Man from Mars!” (5 pages)
Plot: Stan Lee? — Script: Larry Lieber? — Art: Don Heck
A crooked carnival owner gets poetic justice when his phony Martian exhibit turns out to be the real thing.
📝 Maj. Picto’s Grading Notes
G/VG (3.0) — Solid structure with visible spine wear, edge stressing, and light soiling. Small staple tear, mild interior toning. Still tight and readable with strong color on Spragg’s Kirby cover.
Journey into Mystery #68 (May 1961, Marvel/Atlas) — G/VG 3.0
“Behold the Face of Spragg! Conqueror of the Human Race!” — Kirby, Ditko, and Pre-Hero Marvel Madness
A classic pre-superhero Journey into Mystery issue with early Marvel Universe DNA all over it. Jack Kirby unveils Spragg, an exiled stone monster hungry for world domination, and Steve Ditko contributes an eerie ghost tale — all wrapped in Stan Goldberg colors and silver-age sci-fi grandeur. This is the kind of Atlas-era pulp that directly fed the Marvel Age just a year later.
📚 Contents
Cover: Jack Kirby & Dick Ayers — Spragg faces forward, towering and tyrannical.
“Spragg — Conqueror of the Human Race!” (13 pages)
Plot: Stan Lee? — Script: Larry Lieber? — Art: Jack Kirby & Dick Ayers
A subterranean monster enslaves a Transylvanian village and threatens the Earth. A scientist hatches an interstellar solution.
“The Utopia” (text story, 2 pages)
Art: Joe Maneely — A humbling fantasy vignette about lies, loss, and a heavenly diner.
“Where Walks the Ghost” (5 pages)
Art: Steve Ditko — A convict hides from the law in a haunted house — until the house turns out to be hiding something worse.
“The Man from Mars!” (5 pages)
Plot: Stan Lee? — Script: Larry Lieber? — Art: Don Heck
A crooked carnival owner gets poetic justice when his phony Martian exhibit turns out to be the real thing.
📝 Maj. Picto’s Grading Notes
G/VG (3.0) — Solid structure with visible spine wear, edge stressing, and light soiling. Small staple tear, mild interior toning. Still tight and readable with strong color on Spragg’s Kirby cover.
