Crossover of the Week

Autumn 1940

THE STUFF THAT DREAMS ARE MADE OF 

Private eye Steve Donnelly, investigating his partner’s murder, becomes involved in the struggle between worshippers of the Great Old Ones called the Olde Fellowes over a statue of Cthulhu. One of the Olde Fellowes, Constantine Garland, names various objects that, like the statue, can bestow upon the bearer unimaginable power and are being sought by the Nazis, including the Scroll of Thoth, the Lament Configuration, the Ark of the Covenant, the Eye of Agomotto, and the Spear of Destiny. A mysterious barman comes to Steve’s rescue, and says he knows his granddaughter. Steve, befuddled, says he’s thirty-three, but the barman replies he won’t always be. 

Short story by Peter Atkins in The Lovecraft Squad: Waiting, Pegasus Books, 2017. Steve Donnelly is the grandfather of Atkins’ modern lesbian P.I. Kitty Donnelly. The Scroll of Thoth is from the 1932 film The Mummy. The Lament Configuration is from the Hellraiser films, based on Clive Barker’s “The Hellbound Heart.” Not coincidentally, Atkins wrote or co-wrote the scripts for Hellbound: Hellraiser II, Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth, and Hellraiser: Bloodline. The Ark of the Covenant is from the Book of Exodus, but given the other references, this is probably a specific allusion to the first Indiana Jones film, Raiders of the Lost Ark. The Eye of Agamotto (to use the correct spelling) is one of the mystic talismans wielded by Marvel Comics’ Sorcerer Supreme, Dr. Stephen Strange. The barman is Atkins’ character Dr. James Arcadia, who has been described as somewhat akin to an occult version of Doctor Who. 

This crossover writeup is one of hundreds included in my book Crossovers Expanded: A Secret Chronology of the World Volume 3, to be released by Meteor House! Much like the first two volumes, this one is an AUTHORIZED companion to Win Scott Eckert's Crossovers: A Secret Chronology of the World Volumes 1 and 2!

Crossover of the Week

December 25, 2003
DR. DOA 
Eddie Drood and Molly Metcalf go after the assassin known as Dr. DOA, who has poisoned Eddie. Appearing or mentioned are: the Wood Between the Worlds; Strangefellows bar, in the Nightside; the Walking Man; the Adventurers Club; Shadows Fall; the Unholy Grail; Baron Frankenstein; Castle Frankenstein; Dead Boy; Larry Oblivion; the Ghost Finders; tanna leaf; a woman with something moving inside her back; a woman smoking a cigarette through a hole in her throat; Cthulhu; Shoggoth’s Old Peculiar; Black Heir; Persecution Psmith; the Necronomicon; the Book of Eibon; the Mysteries of the Wurm; Harry Fabulous; Dorian Gray; Martian red weed; MI Thirteen; a Maltese falcon; the Organization; the Hydra’s teeth; and Hadleigh Oblivion. 
Novel by Simon R. Green. The Wood Between the Worlds is from C. S. Lewis’ The Magician’s Nephew. Strangefellows bar, the Walking Man, the Adventurers Club, the Unholy Grail, Dead Boy, Larry and Hadleigh Oblivion, and Harry Fabulous are from Green’s Nightside series. Shadows Fall is from Green’s novel of the same name. Baron Frankenstein and Castle Frankenstein are from Mary Shelley’s novel. The Ghost Finders are the subject of another series of novels by Green. Tanna leaves are from Universal Studios’ Mummy film series. The woman with something moving inside her back is Karen Tandy from Graham Masterson’s novel The Manitou. The thing inside her back is Misquamacus, originally from August Derleth’s The Lurker at the Threshold. The woman smoking through a hole in her throat may be Juno from the movie Beetlejuice. Cthulhu, shoggoths, the Necronomicon, the Book of Eibon and the Mysteries of the Wurm are from the Cthulhu Mythos. Shoggoth’s Old Peculiar is from Neil Gaiman’s story of the same name. Black Heir and the Organization are from Green’s Ishmael Jones Mysteries series. Persecution Psmith, an immortal Puritan adventurer, is a thinly veiled version of Robert E. Howard’s Puritan hero Solomon Kane. Matthew Baugh also portrayed Kane as long-lived in his story “The Heart of the Moon.” Dorian Gray is from Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray. Martian red weed is from H. G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds. MI Thirteen is the CU version of the British intelligence organization of the same name in the Marvel Comics Universe. The Maltese Falcon is from Dashiell Hammett’s classic detective novel. The Hydra’s teeth are from the movie Jason and The Argonauts. 
This write-up is one of hundreds included in my book Crossovers Expanded: A Secret Chronology of the World Volume 3, to be published by Meteor House! All three volumes are AUTHORIZED companions to Win Scott Eckert's Crossovers: A Secret Chronology of the World Volumes 1 and 2!

Crossover of the Week

Autumn 1887 LES VAMPIRES DE PARIS Erik’s Angels of Music (La Marmoset, Sophy Kratides and Unorna) investigate a murder that appears to be the work of a vampire. Appearing or mentioned are: Montsou; Sybil Vane; Mr. Calhoun; Harold Latimer; Wilson Kemp; Sherlock Holmes; Paul Kratides; Scapinelli; Keyork Arabian; the power to cloud men’s minds in the mountain lamaseries of Tibet; strange orchids from the mangrove swamps of the Andaman Islands; the Scroll of Thoth; the Shout; Irene Adler; Trilby O’Ferrall; Christine Daaé; Olympia; Svengali; the Persian; Les Vampires; the Grand Vampire; Vénénos; the Hôtel du Libre Echange; Monsieur Morillon; Frederick Hohner; Ayda Heidari; Count Camille de Rosillon; Pontevedro; Dr. Geneviève Dieudonné; Inspector Raoul d’Aubert; the Black Coats; Sesostris, the Sorceress of Ecbatana; the lost treasure of Monte Cristo; Anatole Garron; Giovanni Jones; Monsieur Rémy; Dorabella; Clarimonde; Geraldine; the Count; Des Esseintes; the Marquis de Coulteray; Joséphine Balsamo; Gravelle; Dr. Michel Falke; Mircalla Karnstein; Abraham Van Helsing; the Princess Addhema; Firmin Richard; Jean Macquart; Simon Buquet; Bernard Hichcock; Patou; Inspecteur Legris; Monsieur Moncharmin; Jacques Rival; Henri Paillardin; Lord Ruthven; Sir Francis Varney; Ezzelin von Klatka; Inspecteur Bec; Chief Magistrate Barrière; and John Seward. Story by Kim Newman in Angels of Music, Titan Books, 2016. Erik, Christine Daaé, the Persian, Monsieur Rémy, Firmin Richard, and Armand Moncharmin are from Gaston Leroux’s The Phantom of the Opera. La Marmoset and Mr. Calhoun are from Albert W. Aiken’s story “La Marmoset, the Detective Queen; or, the Lost Heir of Morel.” Sophy Kratides and her brother Paul, Harold Latimer, and Wilson Kemp are from Doyle and Watson’s Sherlock Holmes tale “The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter.” Irene Adler is from the Holmes story “A Scandal in Bohemia.” Ayda Heidari will later marry Bob Ferguson, as seen in “The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire.” Unorna and Keyork Arabian are from F. Marion Crawford’s The Witch of Prague. Montsou is from Émile Zola’s novel Germinal. Jean Macquart is from Zola’s La Terre. Sybil Vane is from Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray. Scapinelli is from the movie The Student of Prague. The power to cloud men’s minds was learned in Tibet by the shadowy vigilante. Strange orchids from the mangrove swamps of the Andaman Islands are from H. G. Wells’ “The Flowering of the Strange Orchid.” The Scroll of Thoth is from the 1932 film The Mummy. The Shout is from the British horror film of the same name. Trilby O’Ferrall and Svengali are from George du Maurier’s Trilby. Olympia is from Jacques Offenbach’s opera Tales of Hoffmann. Les Vampires, the Grand Vampire, and Vénénos are from the film serial Les Vampires. The Hôtel du Libre Echange is from Georges Feydeau and Maurice Desvallières’ play of the same name, as are Bastien Morillon and Henri Paillardin. Frederick Hohner is from the movie The Climax. Count Camille de Rosillon and Pontevedro are from Franz Lehár’s operetta The Merry Widow. Geneviève Dieudonné is from Newman’s Diogenes Club series and has a counterpart in the Anno Dracula Universe. Inspector Raoul d'Aubert and Anatole Garron are from the 1943 film version of The Phantom of the Opera. Simon Buquet is from the 1925 silent version of the novel. The Black Coats are from Paul Féval’s novels. The Princess Addhema is from Féval’s The Vampire Countess. Sesostris, the Sorceress of Ecbatana is from Aldous Huxley’s Crome Yellow. The lost treasure of Monte Cristo is from Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo. Giovanni Jones is from the Bugs Bunny cartoon “Long-Haired Hair”; this must be his CU counterpart. Dorabella is the title character of an episode of the 1970s British television series Supernatural. Clarimonde is from Théophile Gautier’s “La Morte Amoureuse.” Geraldine is from Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem “Christabel.” Here, the three female vampires are the Brides of Count Dracula. This story takes place during the events of Stoker’s novel. Abraham Van Helsing and John Seward are from Dracula. Professor Madame Saartje Van Helsing must be Abraham’s second wife; his first, Elizabeth, died in circumstances recounted in the Marvel Comics black-and-white magazine Dracula Lives! Jean des Esseintes is from J.-K. Huysmans’ A Rebours. The Marquis de Coulteray is from Gaston Leroux’s The Bloody Puppet. Joséphine Balsamo is from Maurice Leblanc’s Arsène Lupin novels. Gravelle is from the movie Charlie Chan at the Opera. Dr. Falke is from Johann Strauss II’s operetta Die Fledermaus. The first name Michel is derived from the 1946 film version of the operetta. Mircalla Karnstein is from J. Sheridan Le Fanu’s “Carmilla.” Bernard Hichcock is from the movie The Horrible Dr. Hichcock. Patou, a gendarme, is an ancestor of gendarme Nestor Patou from Marguerite Monnot and Alexandre Breffort’s musical Irma la Douce. Inspecteur Legris is from the movie The Man Who Could Cheat Death. Jacques Rival is from Guy de Maupassant’s Bel-Ami. Lord Ruthven is from John Polidori’s “The Vampyre.” Sir Francis Varney is from James Malcolm Rymer’s Varney the Vampire. Ezzelin von Klatka is from Anonymous’ story “The Mysterious Stranger.” Inspecteur Bec is from the 1986 TV movie adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Murders in the Rue Morgue.” Paul Barrière is from Cole Porter’s musical Can-Can.

This write-up is one of hundreds included in my forthcoming book Crossovers Expanded: A Secret Chronology of the World Volume 3, which will be published by the fine folks at Meteor House! All three volumes are AUTHORIZED companions to Win Scott Eckert's books Crossovers: A Secret Chronology of the World Volumes 1 and 2!

Crossover Cover: Some of These Cons Go Way Back

This issue includes a Nightside story by Simon R. Green. Conman Harry Fabulous is tricked by a fallen angel into murdering a woman. Taduki (from H. Rider Haggard’s Allan Quatermain novels and stories), tanna leaves (from Universal Studios’ original series of Mummy films), Martian red weed (from H. G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds), black centipede meat (from William S. Burroughs’ novel Naked Lunch), and the Jekyll and Hyde formula (from Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde) are mentioned.

Crossover Covers: The Halflife Chronicles

Chris Cséjthe finds his life turned upside down when he discovers vampires, werewolves, and other supernatural creatures exist, and he himself is now halfway through the transition between human and vampire. Dracula appears prominently in the first novel, One Foot in the Grave, as do tanis leaves, legends of which inspired the tana leaves in Universal Studios’ Mummy movies. A vampire named Barnabas who carries a wolf’s head cane appears; this is Barnabas Collins of Dark Shadows fame. A New Orleans vampire enclave with literary pretensions is mentioned, a reference to Anne Rice’s The Vampire Chronicles. In the fourth book, Dead Easy, Chris encounters the Great Old Ones and Captain Nemo. Nemo tells Chris Professor Aronnax was fictional and Verne made The Mysterious Island up out of whole cloth. Nemo died in the 19th century, and was later resurrected as a rakshasa, a spirit being from Hindu mythology. Several individuals experienced in dealing with the supernatural are mentioned: a wizard in Chicago (Harry Dresden from Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files novel series); a necromancer in St. Louis (Anita Blake from novels by Laurell K. Hamilton); a waitress in Bon Temps (Sookie Stackhouse from Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire Mysteries); a weather warden (Joanne Baldwin, the protagonist of a series by Rachel Caine); and a guardian in London (Aisling Grey from novels by Katie MacAlister). Simmons’ take on Captain Nemo is very different from his established history in the CU. Combined with the fact both Sookie Stackhouse and Anita Blake’s exploits take place in worlds where the public is aware vampires and other supernatural entities are real, this places The Halflife Chronicles in an alternate universe.

Crossover Cover: Live and Let Drood

Eddie Drood discovers that the murdered Droods and the damaged Drood Hall that he has come home to are from a different dimension, meaning that his family has been sent somewhere else, and sets out to find them, going up against Unholy Crow Lee, the most evil man in the world. Appearing or mentioned are: Merlin’s Glass (an alternate universe version of the one seen in Green's Nightside books); the Nightside, Walker, the London Knights, John Taylor, Dead Boy, the Walking Man, Augusta Moon, Kayleigh’s Eye and the Salvation Army Sisterhood (all from the Nightside series); the Kandarian language (a nod to the Kandarian demons from the Evil Dead films); Castle Frankenstein (from Mary Shelley's novel); an ancient flame that bestows eternal youth (from H. Rider Haggard's Ayesha books); tana leaves (from Universal Studios' original Mummy film series); the Carnacki Institute and Catherine Latimer (from Green's Ghost Finders books); MI13 (the CU version of the British government agency seen in the Marvel Universe); an old Transylvanian vampire count who was trying to set himself up in England (Dracula); the Scooby-Doo gang (self-explanatory); SAS combat sorcerers (from Warren Ellis' comic Gravel); and the Traveling Doctor, who said that bow ties are cool (the CU version of the Doctor of Doctor Who fame, specifically his eleventh incarnation.)

Crossover of the Week

1935

THE GRAY REAPERS

            The Spider (aka Richard Wentworth) battles dead men brought back as zombies by an Egyptian cult. When Nita Van Sloan expresses astonishment at the idea of resurrecting the deceased, Wentworth cites a monograph on the subject by a Dr. West who works at a university in New England, and also notes that Savage claims to have revived an Egyptian mummy using a process involving tana leaf extract; however, the tana plant is extinct, and Savage used the last known specimens of the extract for his experiment.

            Short story by Matthew Baugh in The Spider: Extreme Prejudice, Joe Gentile and Tommy Hancock, eds., Moonstone Books, 2013. This story explains how the Spider’s chauffeur and aide Ronald Jackson appeared alive and well in the pulp novel Reign of the Death Fiddler and later novels after his death in The Pain Emperor. Both of the aforementioned novels were published in 1935. Dr. West is the title character of H.P. Lovecraft’s “Herbert West—Reanimator.” The university West teaches at is Miskatonic University, which is featured prominently in Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos. Savage is Doc Savage, of course. Doc resurrected a mummy in the pulp novel Resurrection Day; however, both Philip José Farmer and Rick Lai’s Doc Savage chronologies place the events of that novel in 1936. Perhaps Doc resurrected a mummy in 1935 or earlier using the tana leaves, and turned to other methods when his supply ran out, leading to another mummy resurrection in 1936. Doc’s first revived mummy probably did not live very long. Tana leaves are from Universal Studios’ original cycle of Mummy films.

Crossover Cover: Tales from the Nightside

This collection reprints all of Simon R. Green's short stories set in the milieu of his Nightside series, which is firmly in the CU. Naturally, several of these stories have crossovers of their own. For instance, in "The Difference a Day Makes," John Taylor sees a lipstick-red Plymouth Fury with a dead man grinning at the wheel (the titular car from Stephen King's novel Christine) and a great black beauty of a car, driven by an Oriental in black leathers, and a man in the back in a green face mask and a snap-brimmed hat (the Green Hornet and Kato; per CU continuity, this is probably the most recent duo to use those names, Paul Reid and Kono Kato), among other references in that story. "Some of These Cons Go Way Back" refers to taduki (from H. Rider Haggard's Allan Quatermain tales), tanna leaves (from Universal's original Mummy film series), Martian red weed (from H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds), Hyde formula (from Robert Louis Stevenson's novel, of course), and black centipede meat (from William S. Burroughs' novel Naked Lunch.) There is also a new novella pitting Taylor against Sir Francis Varney from James Malcolm Rymer's Varney the Vampire.

Crossover Cover: Refried Dead

In this story, Wynonna Earp, a monster-hunting government agent who claims to be descended from Wyatt Earp, battles a mummy animated by tanna leaves, from Universal Studios' original Mummy films.