Halloween Countdown: October 3 – a little bit typhus, a little bit bubonic

In 1954, faced with the unstoppable tag-team of child psychologist Frederick Wertham and Tennessee senator C. Estes "Yes, I know what my middle name rhymes with" Kefauver, the comic book industry established the Comics Code Authority. Intended to preempt any possible outside action against the industry, the CCA acted as an inside, though (arguably) independent arbiter of "acceptable" comics content.

Under the CCA's new rules, the burgeoning crime and horror genres were especially singled out for their graphic and lurid content, which effectively killed the the former genre and reduced the latter to a pale shell of what it had evolved into in the hands of EC Comics' stable of creators. Even after the restrictions on horror-themed comics were eased in the early 1970's, the stories appearing in anthology "suspense" titles remained stuck in a derivative rut, heavily relying on subpar twist endings copped from the Twilight Zone.

In the mid-1970's, ABC president Fred "Yes, I greenlit Supertrain" Silverman okayed the creation of a variety show starring the squeaky-clean popstar siblings, Donny and Marie Osmond. The Sid and Marty Krofft-produced effort (though the Osmonds would seize control of the venture the following year) debuted in the January of 1976, and set new high water marks in trippy excess, hosed-on glitter, and excruciatingly bland covers of current hits and classic pop standards.

From these two seemingly unconnected events comes the focus of today's Halloween offering, "The Curse of Ozzie and Mary" from issue #194 of DC's The Unexpected (cover date December 1979).

Donnie and Ma... I mean "Ozzie and Mary" are America's sweethearts, thrilling millions of viewers each week with their playful comedic banter and syrupy pop confections...

Is that the extended mix of "I'm My Own Grandpa"?
...but there's a much different story happening behind the scenes, as the overheated narration explains at great length...
The "Mormon Noir" genre never really caught on..
The feud between the siblings reaches a new level when Ozzie contracts the services of an EVIL special effects artist in order to score some onscreen payback against Mary...
"I came to you because the foley artist's asking price was too high, and the key grip's methods lack...subtlety..."
Cut to the next day of taping, and Ozzie is thrilled with anticipation, though, again, not as much as the tale's narrator seems to be. (The dude ought to switch to decaf.)

What, no Ruth Buzzi?
Under the glare of the klieg lights, a startling transformation begins...

"CUT! CUT! CUT! The musical tribute to the bubonic plague was planned for next week's show!"
But don't hire the strippers for the victory celebration just yet, Ozzie, because...
"Dammit, I knew there was a reason the craft services food started to seem appetizing to me!"
And if that wasn't enough ersatz irony for you...

That's one advantage to hiring EVIL special effects people. They really believe in the concept of "value added".
So, what is the moral of the story here? If you're a member of a dueling duo of wholesome sibling popstars, do not contract the services of a mysterious makeup artist as a means of punishing your rival, lest you be turned into a rat-human hybrid?

Message received and understood, then.

Rasputina - Rats (from Cabin Fever, 2002) - Rasputina is something of a small scale phenomenon among the local goth-and-related-subculture crowd around these parts, but honestly, they're not really my kind of thing (and the same applies for nearly all "gothic" music recorded after 1988 or so). Maura has attended a couple of their shows and thinks the band is "all right," though she's closer to the target audience than I'll ever be.

Xmal Deutschland - Boomerang (from Fetisch, 1983) - Now this is more like it -- skitteringly bleak Teutonic postpunk with female vocals.