Tales to Astonish Vol 1 30

Alternate Covers: Vintage Tales to Astonish Vol 1 #30 April, 1962 Editor-in-Chief Stan Lee Cover Artist Jack Kirby Sol Brodsky Stan Goldberg Artie Simek "The Return of the Gorilla-Man" Writer Stan Lee Larry Lieber Penciler Jack Kirby Inker Dick Ayers Colourist Stan Goldberg Letterer Ray Holloway Editor Stan Lee "The Old Shop" Letterer Typeset "The Thing from the Hidden Swamp" Writer Stan Lee Larry Lieber Penciler Jack Kirby Inker Dick Ayers Colourist Stan Goldberg Letterer John Duffy "What Was the Staggering Secret of the 13th Floor" Writer Stan Lee Larry Lieber Penciler Don Heck Inker Don Heck Colourist Stan Goldberg Letterer John Duffy "Quogg!" Writer Stan Lee Penciler Steve Ditko Inker Steve Ditko Colourist Stan Goldberg Letterer Artie Simek Previous Issue Next Issue Tales to Astonish #29 Tales to Astonish #31

Appearing in "The Return of the Gorilla-Man"

Featured Characters:

• Gorilla-Man (Frank Radzik)

Supporting Characters:

• Professor Stuyvesant

Races and Species:

• Humans
  
  

Synopsis for "The Return of the Gorilla-Man"

Despite the end of the story in Tales to Astonish #28 seemingly indicating Gorilla-Man's mind regressing to that of a beast, in this issue Gorilla-Man's mental facility seems to be completely unimpaired. While locked in a cage at the zoo, a young boy throws a box of crayons at him and he uses the crayon to write a message promising a reward if the cage attendant will free him. The shocked zoo official opens the cage, and the wily gorilla quickly brushes him aside. He reasons that his old equipment will have been dismantled and thus he will need the help of another scientist to transfer back into a human body. When he reaches the estate, he burns his hands on the electric fence and can no longer write or speak, yet he manages to convey the impression to the scientist that he is intelligent. They put him through several tests before placing him into the back of a van and he hopes that he's being taken to a laboratory where his mind can be transferred, but what they want to use him for instead is to take the place of a human volunteer that would otherwise have to be sacrificed on a space capsule launch.

Appearing in "The Old Shop"

Featured Characters:

• Logarithm

Other Characters:

• Mrs. Gerrity
• Tom Gerrity
• Officer O'Malley
• Mechanicans (Aliens)

Races and Species:

• Humans
• Unrevealed alien races
  
  

Synopsis for "The Old Shop"

A man ventures out to a mist-hidden island that has curative properties in order to marry a couple there.

Appearing in "The Thing from the Hidden Swamp"

Featured Characters:

• The Thing from the Hidden Swamp

Supporting Characters:

• Mary Brown

Races and Species:

• Humans
• Unrevealed alien race

Locations:

• Earth-616
  • Swamp
    
    

Synopsis for "The Thing from the Hidden Swamp"

A plain-looking girl meets a stranded alien traveler as she explores a bog in order to get away from people she feels ignore her. The alien explains that he needs someone to work the controls of the spaceship while he goes outside and attempts to free it, and she does as he directs. He succeeds in his efforts and tells her that he will reward her for her help and departs. She is puzzled since he gave her nothing, but when she returns to the cruise ship docked at port she is surprised to find people noticing her. She locates a mirror and is delighted to find that the monstrous alien has provided her with a make-over.

Appearing in "What Was the Staggering Secret of the 13th Floor"

Featured Characters:

• Willy Sloane

Supporting Characters:

• Mr. Jordan

Races and Species:

• Humans
  
  

Synopsis for "What Was the Staggering Secret of the 13th Floor"

An oddly cheerful elevator operator is held at gunpoint with a passer-by by a spy planning to blow up the hotel. The elevator lets the spy off at the 13th floor, and while the passer-by is terrified, the elevator operator simply fades away, explaining that the bomb will never go off, since there is no 13th floor.

Appearing in "Quogg!"

Featured Characters:

• Unnamed criminal

Supporting Characters:

• Tribal Chief

Antagonists:

• Quogg (First appearance)

Races and Species:

• Humans
• Demons
  
  

Synopsis for "Quogg!"

A criminal avoids the African authorities after robbing the outpost and heads deeper into the jungle where he encounters a tribal chieftain who warns him away from entering an enclosure due to the presence of Quogg. The man pretends to listen to the chief, all the while thinking it'll be the perfect hiding place. When he scales the wall, he sees that there is even a small hut available in the clearing. He constructs a barrier ringing the hut in order to keep out wild beasts, and plots to terrorize and extort the natives as their demon Quogg. A rustling sound startles him out of his revere, and when he turns around, he realizes too late that he has enclosed himself in with the monstrous shaggy creature named Quogg that he mistook for a hut.

Notes

• "The Return of the Gorilla-Man" reprinted in Fear #5
• "The Thing from the Hidden Swamp" reprinted in Journey Into Mystery #18 & Monsters on the Prowl #13
• "The 13th Floor" reprinted in Creatures on the Loose #14 & Crypt of Shadows #18
• "Quogg!" reprinted in Vault of Evil #20 & Where Monsters Dwell #12

See Also

• Write your own review of this comic!
• Discuss Tales to Astonish Vol 1 30 on the forums
• Images from Tales to Astonish Vol 1 30

Footnotes

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