The Man Who Never Smiled is a scary horror comic about a criminal who decides to rob an old hermit. It was drawn by Basil Wolverton and appeared in Weird Chillers #1 (1954).
The old man was a hermit and he only came to town 3 or 4 times a month. The townsfolk said he never smiled and they called him “Gloomy Gabe”. They said he was half-crazy and lived in a cave in the mountains. According to the rumors, he was very wealthy and kept his money hidden in that deep, dark cave.
I was a career criminal and I had just escaped from prison. I was on the run from the cops and I needed some quick money to make my getaway. When I heard the rumors about the old man and his pile of cash, I decided he would be easy pickings.
That night, I drove out to the mountains and started climbing up the rocky incline.
It wasn’t hard to find the old man’s cave. I switched on my flashlight and went inside. The ground was littered with the bones of animals.
All of a sudden, there was a rustling noise behind me and when I turned around, the old man was standing there, staring at me.
I pointed the gun at him. “I’m here for your money,” I growled. “Show me where you keep it hidden or I’ll kill you.”
“Money?” the old man said. “I have no money. You’ve been listening to idle gossip. What possible use could I have for money?”
“Give me that money,” I threatened, “or so help me, I’ll put a bullet right between your eyes.”
The old man didn’t move a muscle. He didn’t even look scared. He just grinned at me. Then, he grinned a little more.
That’s when I realized why he never smiled. He didn’t want anyone to see what was behind those lips.
“It’s been years since I’ve tasted anything but the blood of animals,” he hissed. “But nobody is going to miss you…”
With that, he pounced on me and sank his fangs into my neck. I fell to the ground and as he sucked the blood from my veins, all I could do was scream.
Seriously.. a vampire? Why not a pile of human bones and being a cannible? Oh yeah and having human flesh stuck in his teeth that he can never get out (remember to floss and use toothpicks kids!)
well he deserved it plus he was the first person to see the old hag smile :)
nice
Oh well…dude was in the wrong…kinda asked for it since he went looking for trouble. Ha shouldn’t have believed that gossip either haha
Cool.
Many people look scary while smiling.
Good for the theif. Why didnt he shoot?
Hey buddy then if you are dead then how could you write this story? Ghost? Always welcome! Anyways nice creepy comic. The old man in the pic is scary!