31 Nights of Horror Hosts | Night 5 | Cain

This month we take a look at some of the classic Horror Comics Hosts and Hostesses from DC Comics, Charlton Comics, and other companies. 

The House of Mystery comic book had a decades-long run before its host was introduced.  Cain, the "able caretaker" made his debut in issue #175, cover dated August 1968.  The preceding issue marked a return to the horror theme of the book. 

Issue #175 also introduced Cain's pet gargoyle, part of that issue's second feature, "The House of Gargoyles."  Cain also had a cat named Oskar.

In addition to introducing the stories, Cain lent his name to humor pages like "Cain's Game Room" and "true" horror stories in "Cain's True Case Files."

Of Cain, Peter Sanderson writes, "It has been suggested that Cain suffers from severe mood swings.  In the past he has often appeared to be a jovial, strange, but ultimately harmless person with an eccentric taste for macabre humor and horror stories.  But Cain is genuinely sadistic, and endlessly plays a murderous 'game' with his hapless brother in which they re-enact the 'First Story," the killing of the biblical Abel by his brother, the original Cain" (Who's Who in the DC Universe).

In issue House of Mystery #252, writer Paul Kupperberg revealed the House of Mystery was situated near the Kentucky state line, somewhere north of Louisville.   As a resident of the Louisville Metro area for 11 years and the Northern Kentucky region for three, I never happened upon the house.  You can read the relevant parts of issue #252 here:  https://kupps.malibulist.com/2020/02/03/the-secret-origin-of-the-house-of-mystery   

I asked Mr. Kupperberg about the location of the House: "Mr. Kupperberg, did you have a specific locale in mind for the House? I lived in Louisville for 11 years and Northern Kentucky for another 3, and I never spotted it. [winking emjoji]"  He replied: "Depends on which world in the Multiverse you're talking about.  Seriously, I had no specific location in mind.  All I know about Kentucky is the horse race and the airport I flew into once to get to Cincinnati."   

The House of Mystery ended with issue #321 in 1983.... However, that was neither the end of Cain, nor the end of The House of Mystery... Stay tuned for more... 



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