Number 2162: Tripping with Turok, Son of Stoned

Turok and Andar eat some tasty fruit that makes them hallucinate. Of course, no hallucinogen works the way this fruit does. One does not share the same hallucination with others under the influence. Paul Newman wrote it, and used artistic license.

Despite that, I am no expert, because I have never taken hallucinogens. I had an Army friend who took LSD and went on sick call complaining of a skunk rotting in his stomach. It made me vow to myself to never go anywhere near LSD.

But back to the story. Like some other people, Andar wants to relive the experience, but older and wiser Turok steers him away from the fruit. In sixties jargon, Turok would have been a downer, but I think of him as smart. Who needs a pal who is seeing dinosaurs with three heads? Or has a skunk rotting in his stomach?

The story, from Turok Son of Stone #31 (1963), is drawn by Giovanni Ticci and inked by Alberto Giolitti. Giolitti lived in America for a time, became a naturalized citizen, then moved back to Italy and founded an art service, Studio Giolitti. The artwork is slick and illustrative. They did a lot of stories for Whitman (Dell, then Gold Key) over the years. Giolitti, born in 1923, died in 1993 at age 69.

The striking cover painting is by George Wilson.