''The House of Mystery'' is the name of several horror,

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

, and

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

Comics anthologies A comics anthology collects works in the medium of comics, typically from multiple series, and compiles them into an anthology or magazine. The comics in these anthologies range from comic strips that are too short for standalone publication to co ...

published by

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

. It had a companion series, ''The House of Secrets''. It is also the name of the titular setting of the series.

First series

Genesis

''The House of Mystery'' started out as a horror anthology, featuring tales of the supernatural as well as supernatural-themed mystery stories. Issue #1 was cover dated December-January 1951. With the growing backlash against American horror comics in the mid-1950s, as well as the advent of the

Comics Code Authority The Comics Code Authority (CCA) was formed in 1954 by the Comics Magazine Association of America as an alternative to government regulation. The CCA allowed the comic publishers to self-regulate the content of comic books in the United States. ...

and its restrictions on horror-themed storylines (banning stories dealing with such supernatural fare as vampires and werewolves), the series was quietly revamped into dealing with science fiction-type monsters and other mystery/suspense-type tales that were permitted by the Comics Code.

Superheroes

In the mid-1960s, the series was revamped to include superhero stories. From ''The House of Mystery'' #143 (June 1964) to 155 (December 1966), " J'onn J'onzz, the Manhunter from Mars" headlined the book, as his back-up feature from '' Detective Comics'' was moved to ''The House of Mystery''. This was followed with the introduction of "

Dial H for Hero ''Dial H for Hero'' is a comic book feature published by DC Comics about a magical dial that enables an ordinary person to become a superhero for a short time, such as an hour, by selecting the letters H-E-R-O in order. Each time it is used, the di ...

" in issue #156 (January 1966), which took over as headliner until issue #173 (March–April 1968). The Martian Manhunter was again relegated to back-up status during this time.

Return of horror

With issue #174, EC Comics veteran Joe Orlando was hired by DC to take over as editor of ''The House of Mystery''. As the Comics Code Authority was now being challenged by both DC and Marvel over content restrictions, the series returned to its overt horror themes. The first issue under Orlando would be a reprint issue of old horror/suspense stories, as the new direction would truly begin with #175 (July–August 1968). The issue would introduce a new figure to the series, Cain, the "able care taker" of the House of Mystery who would introduce nearly all stories that would run in the series before its cancellation. Cain would also host the spin-off humor series ''

Plop! ''Plop!'', "The New Magazine of Weird Humor!", was a comic book anthology series published by DC Comics in the mid-1970s. It falls into the horror / humor genre. It lasted 24 issues and the series ran from Sept./Oct. 1973 to Nov./Dec. 1976. Bac ...

'' and later become a recurring character in '' Blue Devil'' and '' The Sandman''. Artist

Bernie Wrightson Bernard Albert Wrightson (October 27, 1948 – March 18, 2017), sometimes credited as Bernie Wrightson, was an American artist, known for co-creating the Swamp Thing, his adaptation of the novel ''Frankenstein'' illustration work, and for his o ...

's first professional comic work was the story "The Man Who Murdered Himself" which appeared in issue #179 (March–April 1969). Under Orlando's stewardship, the series won a good deal of recognition in the comics industry, including the "

Shazam Award The Academy of Comic Book Arts (ACBA) was an American professional organization of the 1970s that was designed to be the comic book industry analog of such groups as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Composed of comic-book profession ...

for Best Individual Short Story (Dramatic)" in 1972 for "The Demon Within" in issue #201 by

John Albano John F. Albano (September 12, 1922 – May 23, 2005) was an American writer who worked in the comic book industry. He was recognized for his work with the Shazam Award for Best Writer (Humor Division) in 1971, and the Shazam Award for Best Indivi ...

and

Jim Aparo James N. Aparo (August 24, 1932 – July 19, 2005) was an American comic book artist, best known for his DC Comics work from the late 1960s through the 1990s, including on the characters Batman, Aquaman, and the Spectre, along with famous stories ...

, and the "Shazam Award for Best Humor Story" in 1972 for "The Poster Plague" by

Steve Skeates Steve Skeates (; born 1943) is an American comic book creator known for his work on such titles as ''Aquaman'', '' Hawk and Dove'', ''T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents'', and ''Plop!'' He has also written under the pseudonyms Chester P. Hazel and Warren Savin ...

and

Sergio Aragonés Sergio Aragonés Domenech ( , ; born September 6, 1937) is a Spanish/Mexican cartoonist and writer best known for his contributions to '' Mad'' magazine and creating the comic book '' Groo the Wanderer''. Among his peers and fans, Aragonés is ...

. ''

Limited Collectors' Edition ''Limited Collectors' Edition'' is an American comic book series published by DC Comics from 1972 to 1978. It usually featured reprints of previously published stories but a few issues contained new material. The series was published in an overs ...

'' #C-23 (Winter 1973) featured reprints of ''House of Mystery'' stories. ''House of Mystery'' #224 (April–May 1974) to 229 (Feb.–March 1975) were in the 100 Page Super Spectacular format. The series was in the

Dollar Comics Dollar Comics was a line of DC Comics comic book publications issued from 1977 to 1983 and revived in 2019. The 1977-1983 line included the titles ''The Superman Family'', ''House of Mystery'', ''G.I. Combat'', ''World's Finest Comics'', '' Batman F ...

format for issues #251 (March–April 1977) to 259 (July–August 1978). ''House of Mystery'' featured stories by writers

T. Casey Brennan Terrance Casey Brennan is an American comic book writer. During the 1970s, he wrote for Warren Publishing's black-and-white horror-comics anthologies ''Creepy'' and ''Eerie'', and ''Vampirella''. He also wrote for DC Comics' ''House of Mys ...

(issues #260, 267, 268 and 274) and

Scott Edelman Scott Edelman (; born 1955) is an American science fiction, fantasy, and horror writer and editor. Career In the 1970s, he worked in American comic books, in particular writing horror comics for both Marvel Comics and DC Comics. For Marvel he ...

(issues #257, 258, 260, 264, 266, 270, 272, 273). Orlando's tenure as editor ended with issue #257 (March–April 1978).

Karen Berger Karen Berger (; born February 26, 1958) is an People of the United States, American comic book editor. She is best known for her role in helping create DC Comics' Vertigo Comics, Vertigo imprint in 1993 and serving as the line (comics), line's E ...

became editor of the series with issue #292 (May 1981), her first for DC Comics. Under Berger, the series experimented with long-form storylines in the popular '' I...Vampire'' serial created by writer

J. M. DeMatteis John Marc DeMatteis (; born December 15, 1953) is an American writer of comic books, television and novels. Biography Early career J. M. DeMatteis's earliest aspirations were to be a rock musician and comic book artist. He began playing in ban ...

. "I... Vampire" revolved around the heroic

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deat ...

, Andrew Bennett, who sought to defeat his nemesis and former lover Mary Seward, the Queen of Blood. This serial began in issue #290 (March 1981) and would last until issue #319 (August 1983), two issues before the title ended with issue #321 (October 1983). Since 2006, DC Comics has reprinted stories from the original run: three black and white ''

Showcase Presents ''Showcase Presents'' was a line of black-and-white paperback books published by DC Comics (from 2005 - 2016) at an average rate of two per month. Much like Marvel Comics' ''Essential Marvel'' volumes, each book usually included over 500 pages of r ...

'' volumes have been published, reprinting the series from #174–194, #195–211 and #212–226, respectively. A one-shot reprint in color, ''Welcome Back to the House of Mystery'', featured 10 of the most highly regarded stories as selected by

Alisa Kwitney Alisa Kwitney (born 1964) is a writer of comedic romance novels and graphic novels. Biography Kwitney grew up in New York City, on Manhattan's Upper West Side,Neil Gaiman and

under the

Vertigo Comics Vertigo Comics, also known as DC Vertigo or simply Vertigo, was an imprint of American comic book publisher DC Comics started by editor Karen Berger in 1993. Vertigo's purpose was to publish comics with adult content, such as nudity, drug us ...

imprint. The first issue from 1951 was reissued as a '' Millennium Edition'' bearing the Vertigo imprint.

''Elvira's House of Mystery''

In 1986–1987, DC comics published a new series, ''Elvira's House of Mystery''. It lasted 11 issues, plus a special

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

issue. The series was a quasi-follow-up of the original series, with famed horror movie hostess Elvira, Mistress of the Dark tasked by the House with finding Cain, though she spent much of her time making fun of him and introducing horror stories similar to the original series. One issue of this series, issue #3, was released without Comics Code Approval and contained significant implied nudity, but subsequent editorial comments in later issues stated that the experiment in releasing an unapproved issue was not considered successful.

2008 series

DC's

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition where a person has the sensation of movement or of surrounding objects moving when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. This may be associated with nausea, vomiting, sweating, or difficulties w ...

imprint began a new ongoing series in May 2008, written by

Lilah Sturges Lilah Sturges (; born Matthew Sturges, October 1970) is an American writer of comics and fantasy novels. She is best known for co-writing with Bill Willingham the Eisner-award-nominated ''Jack of Fables'', and other comics published by Vertigo Com ...

and

Bill Willingham William Willingham (born 1956) is an American writer and artist of comics, known for his work on the series '' Elementals'' and '' Fables''. Career William Willingham was born in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. During his father's military career the f ...

. It features at least one different story each issue, told by people trapped in a "purgatory-like house". The series ended in October 2011 with issue #42. Two ''

Annual Annual may refer to: *Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year ** Yearbook ** Literary annual *Annual plant *Annual report *Annual giving *Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco *Annuals (band), ...

''s were also published.

The House

The House of Mystery exists as a location in the

DC Universe The DC Universe (DCU) is the fictional shared universe where most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. Superheroes such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Robin, Martian Manhunter, The Flash, Green Lant ...

simultaneously just north of Louisville, Kentucky, where it was built and almost immediately abandoned by one Col. Braitwaithe before the American Civil War, and in

the Dreaming The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Gillen, quickly adopted by his co ...

. Very little is known about the House of Mystery in general. The architecture is indeterminate and changes periodically. The same holds true for the inside of the House: the rooms constantly shift and one never enters the same room twice. The House of Mystery lies in the same graveyard as the House of Secrets, its companion. Cain lives in the House of Mystery, whereas Abel resides in the House of Secrets. Cain is not the only person to have resided within the House; in addition to

boarder A boarder may be a person who: *snowboards *skateboards *bodyboards * surfs *stays at a boarding house *attends a boarding school *takes part in a boarding attack The Boarder may also refer to: * ''The Boarder'' (1953 film), a 1953 Soviet drama ...

s, including

Mister Mxyzptlk Mister Mxyzptlk (, ), sometimes called Mxy, is a character who appears in DC Comics' '' Superman'' comic books. He is usually presented as a trickster in the classical mythological sense. Mxyzptlk possesses reality-warping powers with which he en ...

, Elvira, Mistress of the Dark took shelter within the House. Her brief stay in the House of Mystery is notable for two reasons: first, the House of Mystery is established as being the same House throughout its publication history. Three distinct personalities of the House are shown: the original horror House of Mystery, a dark humor "House of Weirdness"-style which harkened back to Cain's stint in ''

'', and the current version of the House of Mystery in Kentucky. The second reason is the timing of Elvira's stay. She took up residence during the ''

Crisis on Infinite Earths "Crisis on Infinite Earths" is a 1985 American comic book crossover storyline published by DC Comics. The series, written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Pérez, was first serialized as a 12-issue limited series from April 1985 to Mar ...

''. Elvira, tasked by the House of Mystery to find Cain, took over his role of host for a brief period, while Cain was relegated to being the butt of her jokes during occasional cameos. The House of Mystery possesses sentience, along with mystic powers. It has possessed someone before and merged with the House of Secrets briefly. This ties into the constantly shifting appearance of the House of Mystery. It was torn down in the metafictional ''The House of Mystery'' #321, but its existence was restored during the Crisis. Batman entered the house in ''

The Brave and the Bold ''The Brave and the Bold'' is a comic book series published by DC Comics as an ongoing series from 1955 to 1983. It was followed by two mini-series in 1991 and 1999, and was revived as an ongoing title in 2007. The focus of the series has varied ...

'' #93, tripped on a floorboard, and would have been shot had his pursuer's gun not jammed. He never actually met Cain, who instead narrates a story about him occurring in Scotland, which climaxes in a castle he describes as "a house of mystery" rather than "the House of Mystery".

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

teamed with Cain against Mister Mxyzptlk, who was attempting to take over the House, in ''

DC Comics Presents ''DC Comics Presents'' is a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1978 to 1986 which ran for 97 issues and four ''Annual''s. It featured team-ups between Superman and a wide variety of other characters in the DC Universe. A recurring bac ...

'' #53. The House of Mystery appears mainly in various Vertigo titles, especially those tied into Neil Gaiman's ''Sandman''; it has appeared briefly in '' Resurrection Man''. Something called the House of Mystery appeared in '' 52'' #18, where it seems to have been used for some time as a base for a team of detectives called the Croatoan Society, which counts both

Detective Chimp Detective Chimp is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. A common chimpanzee who wears a deerstalker hat (à la Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional sleuth Sherlock Holmes), Detective Chimp has superhuman-leve ...

and

Ralph Dibny Elongated Man (Randolph "Ralph" Dibny) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He first appeared in '' The Flash'' #112 (February 25, 1960). The character made his live-action debut in the fourth season of T ...

among its members. It is unclear if the Croatoan's House of Mystery is meant to be the same as the original House of Mystery, a post-''

Infinite Crisis "Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, ...

'' version of the original House of Mystery, or simply a different location with the same name. Cain's name appeared on this house's mailbox, implying some sort of connection to the original House. In ''

The New 52 The New 52 is the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire line of ongoing monthly superhero comic books. Following the conclusion of the " Flashpoint" crossover storyline, DC canceled all its existing titles and debuted 52 new serie ...

'' rebooted DC's continuity (launched in 2011), the House reappeared in the pages of ''

Justice League Dark The Justice League Dark, or JLD, is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team would make their debut appearance in ''Justice League Dark'' #1 (September 2011). The Justice League Dark team features some ...

'', being used as a base for the team. The House is shown to currently belong to

John Constantine John Constantine () is a fictional character who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Constantine first appeared in ''Swamp Thing'' #37 (June 1985), and was created by Alan Moore, Stephen R. Bissette, Rick Veitch, and John Tot ...

, who claims to have won the key to the House in a poker game against

Doctor Occult Doctor Occult (sometimes dubbed the Ghost Detective, one time referred to as Doctor Mystic) is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster (known commonly as the creator ...

and

Father Time Father Time is a personification of time. In recent centuries he is usually depicted as an elderly bearded man, sometimes with wings, dressed in a robe and carrying a scythe and an hourglass or other timekeeping device. As an image, "Father Ti ...

. John Constantine takes his time to adjust to the House of Mystery due to the changing rooms and feels that the House has to play tricks on people and the superheroes that enter it.

Collected editions

* ''

Martian Manhunter The Martian Manhunter (J'onn J'onzz) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Joseph Samachson and designed by artist Joe Certa, the character first appeared in the story "The Manhunter from Mars" ...

Volume 2'' collects the Martian Manhunter stories from ''The House of Mystery'' #143–173, 592 pages, May 2009, * ''Showcase Presents

Volume 1'' collects the Dial H for Hero stories from ''The House of Mystery'' #156–173, 288 pages, April 2010, * ''Showcase Presents The House of Mystery'' ** ''Volume 1'' collects ''The House of Mystery'' #174–194, 552 pages, February 2006, ** ''Volume 2'' collects ''The House of Mystery'' #195–211, 552 pages, March 2007, ** ''Volume 3'' collects ''The House of Mystery'' #212–226, 552 pages, January 2009, * ''The Steve Ditko Omnibus Volume 1'' includes stories from ''The House of Mystery'' #236, 247, 254, 258, and 276, 480 pages, September 2011, * ''DC Through the 80s: The End of Eras'' includes stories from ''The House of Mystery'' #286, 290, 294-295, 300, 308, and 321; 520 pages, December 2020, * '' I...Vampire'' collects the "I...Vampire" stories from ''The House of Mystery'' #290–291, 293, 295, 297, 299, 302, and 304–319, 320 pages, April 2012,

Novels

Two novels were written by

Jack Oleck Jack Oleck (March 1, 1914 – March 10, 1981)Social Security Death Index, SS# 115-01-6988. was an American novelist and comic book writer particularly known for his work in the horror genre. The brother-in-law of comics pioneer Joe Simon, Oleck' ...

and illustrated by

, both published by

Warner Books Grand Central Publishing is a book publishing imprint of Hachette Book Group, originally established in 1970 as Warner Books when Warner Communications acquired the Paperback Library. When Time Warner sold their book publishing business to Hachet ...

: * ''Tales From The House of Mystery'' #1 () * ''Tales From The House of Mystery'' #2 ()

In other media

* The House of Mystery appears in the

DC Animated Movie Universe DC, D.C., D/C, Dc, or dc may refer to: Places * Washington, D.C. (District of Columbia), the capital and the federal territory of the United States * Bogotá, Distrito Capital, the capital city of Colombia * Dubai City, as distinct from th ...

franchise. ** In ''

'', the magic of the House created itself a body in the form of Black Orchid. ** The House next appears in the sequel '' Justice League Dark: Apokolips War'', where it was revealed that, shortly before the war, it had thrown

out. Black Orchid later collides the House with one of Darkseid's planet killers, destroying it before being killed by a

Parademon Apokolips is a fictional planet that appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The planet is ruled by Darkseid, established in Jack Kirby's Fourth World series, and is integral to many stories in the DC Universe. Apokolips is co ...

. ** The House appears in ''Constantine: The House of Mystery'', which takes place after the events of '' Justice League Dark: Apokolips War''.

Spectre Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to: Religion and spirituality * Vision (spirituality) * Apparitional experience * Ghost Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...

traps John Constantine in the House as punishment for his actions in ''Justice League Dark: Apokolips War''. * The House of Mystery appears in ''

Justice League Action ''Justice League Action'' is an American superhero animated television series based on the DC Comics superhero team Justice League. The series is produced by Jim Krieg, Butch Lukic, and Alan Burnett. The show debuted on Cartoon Network UK on Nov ...

''. It first appears in the episode "Abate and Switch", where the Justice League take refuge in it to hide from

Black Adam Black Adam, real name Teth/Theo-Adam, is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by Otto Binder and C. C. Beck, and first appeared in the debut issue of Fawcett Comics' ''The Marvel Family'' comi ...

and the Brothers Djinn. in the episode "Trick or Threat",

Klarion the Witch Boy Klarion the Witch Boy is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, having first appeared in '' The Demon'' #7 (March 1973) and was created by Jack Kirby. The character is typically portrayed as a powerful but mischie ...

transforms Batman,

Zatanna Zatanna Zatara () is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Gardner Fox and Murphy Anderson, and first appeared in ''Hawkman (comic book), Hawkman'' #4 (November 1964). Zatanna is a st ...

, John Constantine, and

Doctor Fate Doctor Fate (also known as Fate) is the name of multiple superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The original version of the character was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Howard Sherman, debuting in ''More F ...

into children and lures them into the House in an attempt to steal the Helmet of Fate. * The House of Mystery and House of Secrets, as well as Cain and Abel, appear in the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

series '' The Sandman''.

References

External links

* * *
''House of Mystery''
at Cover Browser
''House of Mystery''''House of Mystery'' (vol. 2)
an
House of Mystery''
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics

(fan page) {{DEFAULTSORT:House Of Mystery 1951 comics debuts 1983 comics endings 1986 comics debuts 1987 comics endings 2008 comics debuts 2011 comics endings Comics by Arnold Drake Comics by Carl Wessler Comics by George Kashdan Comics by Gerry Conway Comics by J. M. DeMatteis Comics by Paul Kupperberg Comics magazines published in the United States DC Comics locations Defunct American comics Defunct magazines published in the United States Fantasy comics Fictional houses Horror comics Magazines disestablished in 1983 Magazines disestablished in 1987 Magazines disestablished in 2011 Magazines established in 1951 Magazines established in 1986 Magazines established in 2008 Mystery comics