Home to Stay!: The Complete Ray Bradbury EC Stories

Fantagraphics

Ray Bradbury

May 02, 2023 Web Exclusive By Paul Bullock

In 1952 EC publisher Bill Gaines received a hilarious letter from Ray Bradbury gently requesting $50 in payment for the rights to his two stories “The Rocket Man” and “Kaleidoscope.” Turns out EC had been taking Bradbury’s work, making a few small changes, then using it in some of their comics. What they didn’t know was Bradbury was an avid comic reader and quickly caught on to their scheme. This could’ve ended in a costly lawsuit for EC. But, instead, Bradbury graciously wrote it off as “probably overlooked in the general confusion of office-work” and a fruitful collaboration was born.

EC went on to officially adapt 25 of Bradbury’s classic stories like “A Sound of Thunder,” “The Million Year Picnic,” and “There Will Come Soft Rains,” all of which are reproduced in Home to Stay! This book smartly organizes the comics to match the story order of the Bradbury short fiction collections in which they originally appeared. The comics feature writing by Al Feldstein (Mad) and art from some of EC’s top illustrators like Frank Frazetta, Jack Kamen, and Wally Wood. It also includes 10 additional related stories and a ton of essays, introductions, commentary, and rememberances, including Bradbury’s own speech from the first San Diego Comic-Con (then called the Golden State Comic-Con) where he talks about his famous letter.

Home to Stay! is another essential large-format release from Fantagraphics, who’ve been absolutely killing it with their recent 1950s deluxe hardcovers. No one else is publishing anything approaching their quality. If you’re a Bradbury fan, you absolutely have to buy this book. (www.fantagraphics.com/products/home-to-stay-the-complete-ray-bradbury-ec-stories)

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