The Monster Times billed itself as the world’s first newspaper of horror, sci-fi, and fantasy. Originally published in January of 1972, it promised readers a tabloid full of monster news, backstories, and interviews. The biweekly issues featured original articles.
Pages were devoted to Frankenstein, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, and werewolves. Analyses of various Dracula incarnations in film and literature occupied a six-page spread. One issue took subscribers behind the scenes of the Planet of the Apes film set, explaining in detail how the hair and makeup team on set transformed actors into apes. Another explored the history of the movie King Kong and its use of stop motion animation.
Debates raged as to which monsters were the scariest. The Monster Times polled readers, reporting that, in the history of monsters, Godzilla was the most popular. But the paper didn’t take itself too seriously. The letters to the editor section included a spoof letter from one “Count Dracula”.
See copies of The Monster Times in the Robert Bloch papers at UW’s American Heritage Center. to learn more.