THE JOKER (1919) – With the Joker sequel reportedly stinking up theaters around the country I figured why not look at the 1919 pulp magazine hero who used that nom de guerre?
Why not, indeed! Here’s another neglected Pulp Hero in the tradition of Balladeer’s Blog’s looks at the Moon Man, Silver John, the Nyctalope, G-8 & His Battle Aces and Northwest Smith. This time it’s the Joker, but not THAT one. Before the comic book villain and even before Conrad Veidt’s turn as Gwynplaine in The Man Who Laughs (1926), came the 1919 Pulp Magazine figure called the Joker.
NOTE: Sometimes people mistakenly think Pulp Magazines were the same as comic books, only earlier. However, the Pulps were TEXT STORIES, not sequential art like comic books. The Pulps did have colorful, striking covers like later comic books would have and sometimes a few illustrations in the stories, but the Pulps were a much higher level of storytelling.
The 1919 Joker was created by Hugh Kahler, who the year before had created the White Rook, another hero/ villain of the Pulps. In some ways the Joker was a rehash of Kahler’s own White Rook crossed with Guy Boothby’s Simon Carne/ Klimo crime figure from 1897. Continue reading
The previous installments of Fool Killer lore have seen the neglected 1800s folk figure in a variety of roles: 
In honor of the Halloween season this post will look at the Fool Killer as a 1980s slasher. 
THE FOOL KILLER – As we all know, Anthony Perkins starred in the eerie 1965 movie The Fool Killer as an amnesiac Civil War veteran who came to believe he was really the legendary title figure. A 1980s slasher version of the Fool Killer could feature a deranged killer who has similarly come to regard himself as the “real” one.
LIBERTY VS ACES: GAME FOUR – The NEW YORK LIBERTY were on the road against the WNBA’s two-time defending national champions – the LAS VEGAS ACES. 
EZRA PEDEN – This was Allan Cunningham’s tale about the deeds of Scottish Presbyterian Minister Ezra Peden and his encounters with the forces of the supernatural in Scotland from the late 1600s to around 1706. It makes for nice Halloween Season reading and practically makes you feel the chilliness of Scotland in late October as Cunningham depicts the brave, if humorless, Ezra adventuring in the moonlight. 
From 
DOWN GOES NUMBER TWO – In the NAIA the CONCORDIA (NE) BULLDOGS visited the number 2 team in the nation – the NORTHWESTERN (IA) COLLEGE RED RAIDERS. A 7-0 1st Quarter lead for the Red Raiders turned into a 7-7 tie by Halftime. From there the Bulldogs outscored Northwestern College 22-10 to win this Upset 29-17. 
KNOCKING OFF NUMBER FOUR – Over in NCAA Division Two the UNIVERSITY OF SIOUX FALLS COUGARS took it on the road against the 4th ranked MINNESOTA STATE MAVERICKS. At the Half the Cougars led 23-9, but the Mavericks cut that to a 30-23 edge in the 3rd Quarter. USF finalized the Upset in the 4th 40-36. 
ACES VS LIBERTY: GAME THREE – This series moved back to Sin City as the two-time defending national champions, the LAS VEGAS ACES welcomed the NEW YORK LIBERTY. 
SWAMP THING Vol 1 #3 (March 1973) 
Alec’s body was dumped in the swamp, where the bio-restorative chemicals his body had been soaked in interacted with his own anatomy, the mud and the plant life in the swamp, letting him rise from the dead as a murk-monster. The Swamp Thing retained Alec Holland’s intelligence but could not speak for the first several issues. 
Halloween Month at Balladeer’s Blog continues with this look at Mexican horror figures who haven’t had a truly striking movie in decades. Well, outside of La Llorona, who still gets featured every few years. 
DOCTOR M
The image of the returned Dr. M in his hideous new body playing a mournful tune on a violin to prove his identity to a friend is a scene worthy of the greatest Gothic horror films. Even better would have been a scene of him later playing the same tune over his own grave. 
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