Out of the Quicksand: Cave of the Druids! Plus, an early Halloween treat:

As Halloween approaches, it’s important to remember that the celebration has its origins in ancient Celtic rituals practiced by Druids and other pagan groups. Surprisingly, there have been few horror stories over the years dealing with Druids.

This magnificently illustrated Reed Crandall/Archie Goodwin yarn from Eerie #6 should satisfy though. It’s more sword and sorcery than horror, but there’s still much to enjoy. What’s most surprising about it is that the murderous Druid villains are depicted somewhat sympathetically, enough so that even the hero understands them! Too bad Warren never considered giving this guy a series all his own when Eerie started running stories with continuing characters in the 70’s. He’d have been a bigger hit than The Rook or Dax. A compassionate, one-eyed former gladiator battling witches in ancient Britain? I’d read the hell out of that.

All © Warren.

Let’s also have a look at some vintage (and not so vintage) ads and photographs. Even more so than books, comics and movies, few things get me in the mood for Halloween like advertisements or pictures of costumes and decorations. I’m doing this just in case I don’t have time to make my big Halloween post, so enjoy!