Bradbury 31, Day 31: "Skeleton"

Welcome to the final day of a month with Ray Bradbury!

To close my look at adaptation of Bradbury's stories in other mediums than prose, I'm turning to one of his earlier horror stories, "Skeleton" from 1945. It's an odd little tale about a man who is afraid of his own skeleton and fears his very bones are plotting against him. It's kind of wonderful and kind of disgusting. Perhaps the best passage comes from a fat man whom the lead character idolizes:

"'Layer by layer,' said the fat man, 'twenty years, man and boy, I built this.' He held his vast stomach like a globe of the world, teaching his audience its gastronomical geography. 'It was no overnight circus. The tent was not raised before dawn on the wonders installed within. I have cultivated my inner organs as if they were thoroughbred dogs, cats, and other animals. My stomach is a fat pink Persian tom slumbering, rousing at intervals to purr, meow, growl, and cry for chocolate tidbits. I feed it well, it will 'most sit up for me. And, my dear fellow, my intestines are the rarest pure-bred Indian anacondas you ever viewed in the sleekest, coiled, fine and ruddy health. Keep 'em in prime, I do, all my pets. For fear of something? Perhaps.'"

In 1988 The Ray Bradbury Theater presented "Skeleton" as one of their best adaptations with Eugene Levy as the protagonist. Levy truly sells the concept - you believe he would be afraid of his skeleton. And the inexplicable oddness of the story remains faithfully weird with the "jellyfish" done as best as a television budget could permit.

It's a shame EC comics never adapted "Skeleton" - it was very much in their wheelhouse. However, Topps brought it to the comics format in 1994 by John Carnell & Anthony Williams. Again, a very faithful adaptation and the climax depicted just right.

Thank you, dear reader, for indulging me in this personal journey through the stories of Ray Bradbury and their adaptations. Have a very happy Halloween!

Bradbury 31, Day 30: "The Emissary"

"The Emissary" is a Ray Bradbury short story which combines the love he had for learning, knowledge and experiencing life all through his writing with the twisted, weird, supernatural horror he was also known for. First appearing in 1947, it tells of a bed-ridden boy whose dog brings the outside world to him through the scents caught in its fur. The dog even brings a teacher to the boy to expand his comprehension of existence, but the woman dies; then, the dog fetches her once again.

Al Feldstein & Jack Kamen once wrote an unofficial adaptation of this story for EC Comics in 1952 titled "What the Dog Dragged In," back before the authorized versions of Brabdury's stories began appearing in their publications. This version diverges significantly from the text which is kind of a shame as the story already had all the elements for a good EC horror yarn. In 1988 a reasonably faithful version of "The Emissary" appeared on The Ray Bradbury Theater but it kind of fudges the climax - it keeps a consistent tone throughout its retelling and that's kind of a problem when the story as Bradbury told it is wonder and whimsy for the first 75% and horror for the last 25%. Shame.

Tomorrow: I draw Ray Bradbury month to a close!

Bradbury 31, Day 29: "Trapdoor"

Although most of Ray Bradbury's scary stories were written early in his career it wasn't something he ever entirely stepped away from. Take, for instance, the 1985 story "Trapdoor." It's the tale of a woman who suddenly notices a trapdoor in the ceiling of her home and strange noises coming from above. She tries to have the noise dealt with and, obviously, brings about something horrifying.

"Trapdoor" is a very simple horror story and told well. It received a comics adaptation by artist Ross MacDonald for Topps Comics in 1993. MacDonald's thick lines added just enough shadow to the tale, as even brightly-lit rooms carry an underlying menace.

I'll be back with more fire, brimstone and Bradbury tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 28: "The Whole Town's Sleeping"

"The Whole Town's Sleeping" is one of Ray Bradbury's most nightmarish tales. It first appeared in print in 1950 as a short story but was later adapted into his novel Dandelion Wine. However, a few things changed to fit the novel; it's the story of a woman who goes for a walk through a ravine on her way home late at night and she fears a serial killer may be lurking in the shadows. For the novel, Bradbury tacked on a fairly happy ending which is nowhere near as impactful as the original tale.

In 1955, the great radio show Suspense did a masterful job of adapting the story with a very chilling ending. You can hear it for yourself at archive.org here.

In 1984 the radio show Bradbury 13 adapted the story as "The Ravine" but used the version found in Dandelion Wine; you can hear it at Youtube here. A television version debuted on The Ray Bradbury Theater in 1992 as "The Lonely One" but I'm not sure the story works well on television; the bulk of the story goes on inside the mind of the protagonist as all her fears are intensified; the objective lens of a camera can't accurately depict what's going through her mind. A comic book version would be great, but there hasn't been one yet.

More macabre Bradbury tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 27: "The Crowd"

"The Crowd" is one of the short stories Ray Bradbury wrote during his early "weird tales" phase, debuting in 1943. It's the story of how the same people always seem to appear in photographs of accidents and one man's growing belief that this is a supernatural phenomenon.

Throughout this month when comparing adaptations from radio to those of the TV show The Ray Bradbury Theater I've come down hard on the side of radio, finding the TV version inferior. Here's where I reverse that trend! In 1950 Ray Bradbury was hot thanks to the mainstream success of The Martian Chronicles. He had sold original stories such as The Screaming Woman and Riabouchinska to Suspense; now Suspense bought up one of his early tales. The problem was that while Suspense sometimes flirted with the supernatural, they seldom delved into full-on horror; seemingly-supernatural events on that program were frequently debunked by the half-hour's end. Thus, their version of "The Crowd" takes a story of the supernatural and makes it just another crime story. It's okay, but if you like the short story I doubt you'll flip for it; I certainly don't. Make up your own mind: here's a link to the episode at archive.org.

But then in 1985 The Ray Bradbury Theater performed a faithful adaptation, which was always that program's particular strength. It sometimes muffed the endings to Bradbury's tales, but this episode featured good performances and didn't shy from the weirdness of Bradbury's tale; it's one of the good ones.

Another Halloween-ready Bradbury tale tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 26: "Zero Hour"

As with yesterday's entry, we have a story in which adults are betrayed by their own brood. Ray Bradbury's "Zero Hour" was printed first in 1947 at the dawn of the Cold War and I can only imagine it must have been a reflection of the anxieties of the time. In this story, Martian invaders gather intelligence and aid in their invasion from Earth children; the children's scheming is believed to be mere playing by their unconcerned parents until the titular Zero Hour arrives.

It's been adapted to radio a few times - on Dimension X in 1950 as a double-feature with "There Will Come Soft Rains" (listen to it at archive.org here), on Escape in 1953 (listen to it at archive.org here) and on Suspense in 1955 (listen to it at archive.org here). They're all very good, but I feel the Dimension X version hits the climax with the most force.

In 1953, Al Feldstein and Jack Kamen adapted the tale for EC Comics and did a pretty great job. In 1992 it was adapted for television's Ray Bradbury Theater, but I can't really recommend this version. The acting is not only inferior compared to the radio versions, it's just not very good, full stop. The terrifying climax is particularly underwhelming, considering the potency of the radio adaptations.

More horror from Bradbury tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 25: "Boys! Raise Giant Mushrooms in Your Cellar!"

Well then; this is Ray Bradbury's story about mushrooms conquering the world. And yet, despite the hokey premise, it first appeared on the rather grounded program Alfred Hitchcock Presents titled "Sepcial Delivery." It's also known as "Come into My Cellar," but "Boys! Raise Giant Mushrooms in Your Cellar!" is just the most fun title. It concerns precisely what the title indicates as boys raise mushrooms and soon the people who consume them are part of an alien plot. The story contains a quote from Macbeth which points to the title of another Bradbury work: "Something Wicked This Way Comes." The Hitchcock adaptation is perfectly creepy.

In 1989 it returned to television under the "Boys!" title via The Ray Bradbury Theater, but I'm not particularly fond of that version - it plays the idea for laughs. I mean, it is a rather laughable idea, but so are many horror stories - played straight, it's effective. Of course, in the era of the Red Scare the concept of children turning on their parents was a more insidious one; by 1989, the Cold War was being served its pink slip.

Fortunately, another great adaptation was on its way; Topps comics enlisted the one and only Dave Gibbons to draw an adaptation (as "Come into My Cellar") in 1992. Gibbons' legendary mastery of pages with plenty of panels was used to good effect in this version, as seen above with the tightened focus perfectly representing the sense of agitation and indescribable fear. It's one of the best of the Topps comics.

More spooky Bradbury tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 24: "The Small Assassin"

There are only eight more days until Halloween and I'll be featuring a Ray Bradbury story which is season-appropriate up 'til then! How about "The Small Assassin," a story best summed up as "killer baby." Bradbury published it in 1946 and it's perhaps the most primordial example of Bradbury's recurring "children are terrible" theme. You can't go much further back than infancy! Now, some people will tell you a child only a few months old couldn't possibly plot murder against it's own parents. Well, I kinda like the story's explanation:

"What is more at peace, more dreamfully content, at ease, at rest, fed, comforted, unbothered, than an unborn child? Nothing. It floats in a sleepy, timeless wonder of nourishment and silence. Then, suddenly, it is asked to give up its berth, is forced to vacate, rushed out into a noisy, uncaring, selfish world where it is asked to shift for itself, to hunt, to feed from the hunting, to seek after a vanishing love that once was its unquestionable right, to meet confusion instead of inner silence and conservative slumber! And the child resents it! Resents the cold air, the huge spaces, the sudden departure from familiar things. And in the tiny filament of brain the only thing the child knows is selfishness and hatred because the spell has been ruddely shattered. Who is responsible for this disenchantment, this rude breaking of the spell? The mother. So here the new child has someone to hate with all its unreasoning mind. The mother has cast it out, rejected it. And the father is no better, kill him, too! He's responsible in his way!"

This was a popular tale to imitate; I've certainly found a few imitators in Atlas Comics of the 1950s such as John Romita's "It!" in Strange Tales #4. EC Comics used their relationship with Bradbury to print an authorized version by Al Feldstein & George Evans and did it expertly, in my opinion.

The first place I heard of "The Small Assassin" was actually the television adaptation on The Ray Bradbury Theater. It was dramatized pretty well, and while I've complained that this series frequently spoiled the conclusions of horror stories, this time they did it just right. "A scalpel."

Another ghoulish Ray Bradbury tale tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 23: "The Jar"

"The Jar" is from the "weird" era of Ray Bradbury's writing career, appearing in short story form in 1944. It's not entirely a horror story, though the climax certainly points the way. The tale concerns a man who buys a jar from a carnival. No two people can agree on what's inside the jar and he becomes a leading member of the community as folks gather and speculate. The Alfred Hitchcock Hour adapted "The Jar" in 1964 and although the hour-long format didn't usually suit the show, "The Jar" is one of those tales which absolutely works.

In 1992 The Ray Bradbury Theater took a jab at the jar. Although the half-hour format seems better for a short story, especially one as simple as "The Jar," but this episode is a bit of a misfire. It futzes the climax just a tad by making the contents of the jar too obvious. If you're interested in seeing the tale adapted, stick with the Hitch.

Another Bradbury tale tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 22: "Frost and Fire"

"Frost and Fire" is a 1946 short story by Ray Bradbury which is set on a planet where time seems to pass rapidly. The humans who live there have evolved to telepathically transmit memory to their young as their lifespans run out within eight days. One newborn man tries to find a way to save his people from this fate.

This is a high-concept sci-fi tale which is not exactly what Bradbury's best-known for - a little more Heinlein or De Camp than his usual fare. In 1985 it was adapted by Klaus Janson into a graphic novel as part of DC Comics' short-lived line of science fiction graphic novels edited by Julius Schwartz, who had worked in the sci-fi publishing biz back in the 40s and previously been Bradbury's agent. Although the book has a handsome cover by Sienkiewicz and Janson - best-known as an inker rather than a penciler - does a good enough job at rendering the world, the ending is a tremendous let-down as it swerves away from the happy ending of Bradbury's story into something ambiguous and unsatisfying.

A better Bradbury adaptation tomorrow, promise!

Bradbury 31, Day 21: "Usher II"

Here's one last look at The Martian Chronicles and the tale "Usher II." It's been frequently omitted from later editions of the work and probably should be left out (you won't find it in adaptations such as the Dennis Calero graphic novel or the TV movie). First called "Carnival of Madness" in 1950

In 1990, The Ray Bradbury Theater adapted the story to television with Patrick MacNee in the lead. This version is as darkly humourous as the original work. Tapping into ideas he also featured in his novel Fahrenheit 451 and short story "The Exiles," this tells of a future where civilization has banned books. One book-loving man (who has retreated to Mars to justify its inclusion in the novel) constructs an elaborate death trap for the agents enforcing the ban and appropriately draws from literature in order to gruesomely kill them all - but, most deliciously, do it in a way so they'll watch their friends die and not even realize it's happening.

Finally, in 1993 Topps comics had writer James Van Hise and artist Ron Wilber adapt the tale into comic book form. Like most of the Topps works, it's very faithful, although the horror side of the story is a little lost due to Wilber's nice clean art; man, I'd love to see someone like Bill Sienkiewicz take a crack at this one!

More from Ray Bradbury tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 20: "The Earthmen"

One more time, let's look at a Ray Bradbury short story which appeared in The Martian Chronicles. 1948's "The Earthmen" is frequently omitted from adaptations of the novel, wasn't adapted by EC Comics or Dimension X and isn't in the TV movie version of the book.

Now, it does appear in Dennis Calero's graphic novel adaptation, but it's also been adapted in an unusual place - Escape, a radio show which wasn't really a sci-fi show, occasionally dabbled there. In 1951 they adapted "The Earthmen" and you can hear their version at Youtube here. In this tale, an expedition to Mars is somewhat hampered because as Martians can assume any form, they aren't convinced the humans are real - leading to tragedy.

In 1992 The Ray Bradbury Theater adapted the story to television and did it well. I enjoy this tale because it begins from an absurd premise - the first men on Mars are beset by Martian bureaucracy - but it leads to such a horrific and melancholic conclusion. It may not be among the best-known of The Martian Chronicles tales, but it's definitely a favourite of mine.

I'll be back with more Ray Bradbury tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 19: "There Will Come Soft Rains"

Yet again, I'm looking back on a Ray Bradbury short story which is best-known for comprising part of The Martian Chronicles. "There Will Come Soft Rains" debuted on its own in 1950 just ahead of the book itself. It is a very well-regarded Bradbury tale; I have one friend who a great fan of science fiction throughout the 20th century and while he's not much of a Bradbury fan, he believes this story is among sci-fi's finest.

In 1950 the radio show Dimension X adapted the story as a double feature alongside Bradbury's "Zero Hour" - a rather different tale of Mars. The computer voice in this version has a staccato rhythm which really sticks in the memory ("Today is October 6, 2026..."). You can listen to the show at archive.org here.

Al Feldstein and Wally Wood adapted it to EC comics in 1953 and did a fine job. Comic book versions also include the 1992 Topps version by Lebbeus Woods (which was published side-by-side with a reprint of the Feldstein/Wood version) and as part of Dennis Calero's The Martian Chronicles graphic novel. It is also one of the rare Bradbury tales to be animated; the animated version was made in 1984 by a Soviet animation studio and it is, if anything, more grim than Bradbury's text. In all, "There Will Come Soft Rains" is a fine representation of nuclear anxiety, the fear of the cataclysmic effects nuclear war would have on civilian populations. "Not one would mind, neither bird nor tree, if mankind perished utterly; and spring herself as she woke at dawn would scarcely know that we were gone - that we were gone - that we were gone - that we were gone..."

Another Ray Bradbury tale tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 18: "And the Moon Be Still As Bright"

Once again, I'm looking a story which was contained within The Martian Chronicles. "And the Moon Be Still As Bright" was likewise a 1948 short story and has been adapted in other version of The Martian Chronicles such as the TV movie and the Dennis Calero graphic novel.

This, too, was adapted for radio's Dimension X in 1950 (you can listen to it at archive.org here). It's a somber tale of an expedition to Mars in which it is found the Martians were all wiped out by chicken pox (H. G. Wells might have warned them!). One member of the expedition is outraged by this as he can foresee how human culture will supplant all which remains of Mars; he vows to become a Martian himself and wage a one-man war against humanity.

In 1990, The Ray Bradbury Theater made a fine adaptation for television. What comes through in all of these versions is the sadness at watching a culture diminish and die, left as little more than a memory as a stronger culture takes its place. And yet, Earth's own presence on Mars within The Martian Chronicles proves fleeting. Something to think about before we grow too pleased at the civilization we ourselves have built.

There will be another Ray Bradbury story tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 17: "Mars Is Heaven!"

Ah, here we go. "Mars Is Heaven!" is one my personal favourite Ray Bradbury stories. Although it was first printed as a short story in 1948, it's best known for appearing as a chapter of The Martian Chronicles and has also been adapted there, both in the TV movie and the Dennis Calero comic book version.

1950 was a hot year for Bradbury; The Martian Chronicles became renowned, granting him prestige he'd previously lacked. Radio loved Bradbury and they adapted "Mars Is Heaven!" twice that year on different network programs: Escape (listen to it at archive.org here) and Dimension X (at archive.org here). The two versions are rather different, with Escape being very faithful. Both tell the story of a human expedition to Mars which discovers a homey U.S. town (from Illinois because it's Bradbury) transplanted to Mars and all the beloved dead ones of the crew residing there. In the climax, the ship's captain realizes the "loved ones" are actually Martians in human form.

Although I normally like adaptations to be as close to the original text as possible, the Dimension X adaptation adds something which I rather like; a new character is added to the crew - a physician who had survived the Dachau concentration camp. A lonely and traumatized man who can no longer recall his family, he finds no one on Mars waiting for him amongst the "dead" - and thus he comes to the realization of what the people truly are.

In other adaptations, such as the 1953 EC comic by Al Feldstein & Wally Wood, the captain comes to the conclusion of the Martians' identity on his own, which renders it something of a solliloquy. The revelation of the Martians' identity is followed by a macabre scene in which the Martians bury the dead humans, which EC and the Escape version kept.

However, the 1989 Ray Bradbury Theater version ends at the moment of the captain realizing what the Martians are. That program had a distinct problem with depicting action - so many episodes would climax at the very moment of the twist, rather than playing any of it out (namely, the death of the captain).

Show up tomorrow for another look at Ray Bradbury!

Bradbury 31, Day 16: "The Pedestrian"

Ray Bradbury wrote what he knew. Perhaps not so much where dinosaurs, time travel and Mars were concerned, but he wrote from personal experience (hence the many Irish stories inspired by his time in Ireland) and personal observation. Not being a driver, he relied on his own two feet to get him around much of the time. This led to the incident which inspired his 1951 short story "The Pedestrian." A policeman once stopped Bradbury to question him, as though his walking around made him suspicious. Although nothing came of it, Bradbury was outraged by that slight on his standing as a good citizen.

I can relate; like Bradbury, I don't drive. On two occasions, I have been stopped by the police while out walking and asked to justify where I had come from and where I was going. Like Bradbury, nothing came of it. In "The Pedestrian," however, Bradbury imagines a future dystopia not unlike Fahrenheit 451 where people are confined at night by curfew; one man who breaks curfew is arrested for that crime. The 1989 Ray Bradbury Theater adaptation expanded it somewhat with David Ogden Stiers as the pedestrian, but in this case he invites another person to join him as he walks, to broaden his friend's horizon by showing him the world outside. Bradbury looked at a world where people longed to be indoors, watching their televisions and being told what to think; he much preferred to be outside, to be thinking and feeling about the world around us.

Another Bradbury tale tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 15: "The Lake"

"The Lake" comes from the early part of Bradbury's career, the time in which he became a teller of weird tales (often for Weird Tales), the time of shocking climaxes and malevolent forces of horror. However, even in that period he was telling personal, poignant tales of loss; such a tale is 1944's "The Lake," the story of a little girl's death and its haunting after effect.

In 1953 Al Feldstein & Joe Orlando adapted it perfectly for EC Comics. The imagery of that adaptation is burned into my recollections of this story, particularly the image of the lifeguard carrying the girl's body and of the man building a sandcastle.

In 1989, The Ray Bradbury Theater produced its own adaptation and did a fine job with the morose material. On the occasion of Ray Bradbury's death when I wondered how to put into words my sense of loss - losing an author whose work meant so much to me - I was instantly drawn back to "The Lake," a story of those who have gone and what they have left behind for us.

Tomorrow: Somewhat less morose Bradbury!

Bradbury 31, Day 14: "The Toynbee Convector"

Ray Bradbury is most renowned for the stories he wrote from the 1940s to the 1960s. Beyond that point there are many tales which fans (such as I) admire, but not a great deal of wider cultural awareness. Perhaps the best-known later-period Bradbury tale is the 1988 short story "The Toynbee Convector." It's a wonderful tale about deception and optimism: a time traveler helped change the world with tales of the world he saw in the future, but as the time of his visit to the future arrives in the present he confesses - there is no time machine.

In 1990, The Ray Bradbury Theater produced a nice television adaptation of the story, although the limited budget they worked with prevented them from demonstrating the vistas Bradbury implied (or those seen on the cover of the paperback collection of the same name).

In 1992, Topps Comics produced a comic book version with artist Chuck Roblin. Comic books, of course, have no particular budget restrictions; like the prose Bradbury himself worked within, they are limited only by the faculties and imaginations of their creators.

Tomorrow: More Bradbury!

Bradbury 31, Day 13: "Marionettes, Inc."

"Marionettes, Inc." has boasted a number of adaptation since its debut in 1949. The concept of the series - a company which manufactures lifelike robots - was one Bradbury revisited in a few other tales, most notably "Punishment Without Crime." In this introductory tale, a man who has tired of his wife buys a robot double so he won't have to make time for her any longer. The problem is, the doubles have ambitions of their own.

In 1951, Dimension X adapted the story to radio. Although subsequent adaptations would be very close to Bradbury's text, this version is rather different as it continues past the point of the short story's climax and gets into the "master plan" of Marionettes, Inc. It's an interesting expansion but makes it a little more typical of 50s sci-fi than what Bradbury originally wrote; Bradbury imagined machines who felt as humans do; the radio version imagines machines as conquerors. You can listen to the version for yourself here.

In 1958 Alfred Hitchcock Presents brought the story to televion as "Design for Loving." It was an unusual choice for that program as Hitchcock preferred stories of mystery and crime, not sci-fi. And yet, for all his credentials Bradbury had significant trouble selling his sci-fi stories to The Twilight Zone (even though his philosophies and Rod Serling's seem very similar to me) so kudos to Hitch's staff for knowing a good story when they heard it, regardless of genre.

In 1985 another television version appeared via The Ray Bradbury Theater. It's a pretty good adaptation, with Leslie Nielsen as the head of Marionettes, Inc. The Ray Bradbury Theater did a great job of casting fine Canadian actors, even amongst those who'd spent most of their careers down south.

Lastly, there's a comic book adaptation from 1992 courtesy of Topps, who brought in Wally Wood's one-time assistant Ralph Reese to pencil it. Reese was an inspired choice, considering how many Bradbury tales Wood drew in the 1950s and he certainly brought a Woodish charm to the adaptation.

Another visit from Bradbury tomorrow!

Bradbury 31, Day 12: "And So Died Riabouchinska"

There are many great tales about ventriloquist's dummies, usually involving the ventriloquist grappling with his own identity. There's the great horror film Dead of Night and William Goldman's novel Magic (also made into a film). A rather unusual one is Ray Bradbury's short story "And So Died Riabouchinska," about a murder investigation which involves a famous ventriloquist.

Bradbury's story was the first sale he ever made to the radio program Suspense, which is where the story was first released in 1947 (the print version would arrive in 1953). What with the tradition Edgar Bergen had started with ventriloquism on the radio, it's appropriate for "Riabouchinska" to debut there. You can listen to the episode yourself at archive.org here. In 1956, the story was adapted during the first season of Alfred Hitchcock Presents with the great Claude Rains as ventriloquist John Fabian.

In 1988, TV's Ray Bradbury Theater created another adaptation with a disconcertingly uncanny ventriloquist's dummy. As the series was produced in Canada in those years, they changed the setting to Canada rather than try to disguise the filming locations. It's all right, but in my opinion doesn't hold up to the Suspense and Hitchcock versions.

Another Bradbury tale tomorrow!