An Open Letter to Mr. Jack T. Chick
I have long been an admirer of Jack Chick, who publishes those frightening little comics that tell of the Outer Darkness that surrounds us all; I sent him this letter of praise in 2006, and though I have yet to hear back from him, I thought that others might like to read my thoughts on this fine interpreter's of Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos.
Dear Mr. Chick,
I am writing to praise you for your long line of horror comics. As narratives, they are truly frightening, for unlike Oedipus and his progeny, your protagonists suffer their awful ends because of their willful ignorance of the laws of the cosmos. It reminds me of that passage from the foreword to Paul Huson's Mastering Witchcraft, which The Catholic Herald proclaimed to be "a genuine vade mecum" to the Craft of the Wise: "[T]hose who timidly shun the darkness win temporary respite only, until such a time as the darkness itself reaches out and takes them when they are least forearmed." Your comics, like Huson's books, are a reminder that the darkness outside our little circle of light is very large, very deep, and full of strange creatures "not bound to be kind to man," as Thoreau puts it.
Indeed, I would say that you are one of the more successful authors writing about the world Lovecraft created, with his visions of ancient magic and modern science blending together to open doors that could bring harm to those who turn the key. I do not read your comics late in the evening, for doing so has caused me many a sleepless night, as they always inspire me to dream of being assaulted by demons and succubi. You have removed the more incredible elements in Lovecraft's universe--toadlike creatures intent upon commingling sexually with us, or squid monsters from Outer Elsewhere intent upon devouring us--while retaining the spirit of his universe. Bravo!
You also have an interesting take on the Father/Son/Satan trilogy--never have I seen God and Jesus play Good Cop/Bad Cop so effectively, with Satan mixing in to make a sort of cosmic mosh pit to disturb and taunt his rivals. The evolutionary biologist E.O. Wilson has described some of his colleagues at Harvard as "brilliant enemies" who inspired him to test and further prove his works, and the Satan of your narratives reminds me of that statement. He takes his place among the great interpretations of Satan throughout literature: Milton's fallen angel in Paradise Lost, Mephistopheles in Goethe's Faust,, and The Master in the Jon Pertwee episodes of Dr. Who.
I hope that there is some sort of movement to convert these wonderful narratives into movies. I can see them being brought to the screen by any number of directors. Ken Russell, whose The Devils dealt with similar material, springs to mind, as does Bob Clark of Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things. Guillermo del Toro, of Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth, has often dealt with related themes, and he is clearly one of the up and coming directors. Finally, Alfonso Cuarón, who directed Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, would do a fine job, since he works so closely with this sort of material. For your more salacious materials, may I recommend Wash Westmoreland, who recently made the transition from directing gay and transsexual porn to mainstream film with his box-office smash Quinceanera? I am sure that he would be able to portray the horrors of adultery, fornication, sodomy, and bestiality in a manner that would fix them indelibly in the minds of today's youth.
Now that I am through wearying you with praise and questions, I am writing to let you know that my wife Fayaway and I have added the invisible book, "Majik Spells," which appears in your comic Here, Kitty, Kitty! to the catalog of the Malibu Lake Branch of the Invisible Library. The mission of this library, as
stated by its founder, Mr. Brian Quinette of
Providence, Rhode Island, is to gather together "a
collection of books that only appear in other books.
Within the library's catalog you will find imaginary
books, pseudobiblia, artifictions, fabled tomes,
libris phantastica, and all manner of books unwritten,
unread, unpublished, and unfound." Fayaway & I are curators of the Malibu Lake branch, and the catalog can be read here:
Malibu Lake Branch of the Invisible Library
We are very pleased at having obtained this acquisition for the collection. Furthermore, Fay, who is one of those who walks in the darkness when it suits her, has tried several of the spells therein and has informed me that they do indeed work. Doubt not, o poet, but persist!
Curiously,
Hermester Barrington
Webmaster,
Cenotaph of the Jackalope
P.S. An artist should be proud of his followers; I am sure that you are pleased by of Howard Hallis' "Who Will Be Eaten First?" which introduces the Lovecraftian material which inspired you back into your writing, making use of your comics as ready made aided materials. I applaud your ability to inspire a younger generation of writers, and it is a shame that the lawyers felt compelled to enforce copyright laws on such an innovative interpretation of your own ideas.
© 2007 Hermester Barrington
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