Poe 1967, Pt. 8

(Continued from Poe 1967, Pt. 7)

ALBUM CLASSICOS DE TERROR  4
"O RETRATO OVALADO"
     (IN COLOR  w/ English Translation) 

Editora Continental / Outubro / Taika were 3 names used by the same small publisher in Brazil.  The work of artists Jayme Cortez & Miguel Penteado, they produced some wonderful comics, many of them in the horror genre, each doing many gorgeous, stunning cover paintings!

I have discovered, between my own researches and the IMMENSE help of artist and fellow fan Toni Rodrigues, that Continental / Outubro / Taika during their run produced at least 25 POE adaptations-- more than Skywald or Warren !!  It's my intention to compile, clean up, TRANSLATE and COLOR every one of these for my POE blog project!!

Taika's ALBUM CLASSICOS DE TERROR was a series that picked up some  
6 years after Continental & Outubro's CLASSICOS DE TERROR ended.  Every issue I've found has had at least 1 or more POE story in it.  The 4th
issue contained 2-- as well as adaptations of the movie "The Fly", H.G. Wells' "The God Of Dynamos", and Ambrose Bierce's "The Damned Thing".

12th in line...

     "THE OVAL PORTRAIT"

This was the 1st time this story had been done in comics, but not the last.  It had earlier been the loose inspiration for a Mexican feature film, and before that, it was incorporated into the 1928 silent film of "THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER", as the explanation for how Roderick's sister Madeleine died.

The artist here is Osvaldo Talo.  His style is a bit simpler than many of the Brazillian cartoonists whose work I've discovered of late, but he seems to have done more Poe adaptations than any of the others!  He's become a real favorite of mine.  His style really lends itself to COLOR.

This is his 2nd of 5 POE adaptations.

I have no idea why Dracula is on the cover of this book...

ALBUM CLASSICOS DE TERROR  4
cover by JUAREZ ODILON   (Editora Taika  /  Brazil  /  1967)

"O RETRATO OVALADO"
     ("THE OVAL PORTRAIT")  /  Version 1
Adaptation by Francisco De Assis  /  Art by OSVALDO TALO  /  Page 37

Page 38

Page 39

Page 40

Page 41

Page 42

Page 43

Page 44

Page 45

Page 46

Page 47

Page 48

Page 49

This was changed quite a bit in the adaptation.  Rather than a wounded man seeking refuge in the castle, here we have a wealthy gentleman with his servant, travelling on holiday, seeking out an interesting diversion.  Oddly enough, the opening sequence, with the horse-drawn carriage driving through the night, reminded me of the 1964 Italian horror film "CASTLE OF BLOOD", which alleged to be inspired by a POE story, but instead featured Poe as a minor character giving a dramatic reading of his story, "Berenice", while travelling in England.

Both "Sir Raymond" and his manservant "Wilson" remind of of actors I've seen.  Although I can't quite place the former, "Wilson" reminds me of English character actor Reginald Beckwith, who I've seen in "A SHOT IN THE DARK", and "THE SAINT" episode "The High Fence".  (I finally tracked down the actor when I saw him in "CARRY ON ADMIRAL" on 7-10-2016).

But what really caught my attention, was the gentleman in the bar near the end of the story (another character who does not appear anywhere in Poe's original) is a DEAD ringer for actor Umberto Raho, who played the owner of the castle, "Lord Blackwood", in CASTLE OF BLOOD"!

This makes it difficult for me to shake the feeling that artist Osvaldo Talo may have seen the film and been inspired by it when he worked on this story.

Osvaldo Talo.

Osvaldo Talo 2015.

Copyright (C) Osvaldo Talo  &  Editora Taika.
English Translation & New Color Copyright (C) 2016 Henry R. Kujawa

Scans of ALBUM CLASSICOS DE TERROR #4
     from the Banca Dos Gibis Brazucas blog.

Restorations by Henry R. Kujawa

For more:
Read about Edgar Allan Poe at The Poe Museum site.
Read about Edgar Allan Poe at the Biography site.

Read about Editora Continental / Outubro / Taika at Guia Dos Quadrinhos.
See more covers from Editora Outubro at the Nostalgia Do Terror site.
See more covers from Editora Taika at the Nostalgia Do Terror site.
Read about Osvaldo Talo at the Guia Dos Quadrinhos site..
Visit Osvaldo Talo's Facebook page!

Read about The Oval Portrait at Interesting Literature.
Read about The Oval Portrait at JSTOR.

Read the complete story the Poe Stories site.
See the OVAL PORTRAIT Gallery of Illustrations.

Read the Osvaldo Talo OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!
Read the Marti Ripoll OVAL PORTRAIT illustrated story!
Read the J.B. Miguel OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!
Read the Giovanni Cianti OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!
Read the Richard Corben OVAL PORTAIT adaptation!
 
Read the Elmano Silva OVAL PORTRAIT illustrated story!
     (Coming soon:)
Read the Horacio Lalia OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!
Read the Pascal Somon OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!
Read the Leong Wan Kok OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!
Read the Natalie Sandell OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!

Read the Alineromero9 OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!
Read the Craig Wilson OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!
Read the Edu Molina OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!

     Misc:
Read the Osvaldo Talo MS. FOUND IN A BOTTLE adaptation!
Read the Osvaldo Talo OVAL PORTRAIT adaptation!
Read the Osvaldo Talo AMONTILLADO adaptation!
Read the Osvaldo Talo HOUSE OF USHER adaptation!
Read the Osvaldo Talo WILLIAM WILSON adaptation!

See the CHRONOLOGICAL list of Edgar Allan Poe stories!
See the ALPHABETICAL list of Edgar Allan Poe stories!

(Continued in Poe 1967, Pt. 8A)