Ray Bradbury's The Lake

[cyberghostface]

In honor of Ray Bradbury, who passed away last night, I decided to post an adaptation of one of his short stories from EC's Vault of Horror.

Bradbury had an interesting relationship with EC -- they initially 'borrowed' (i.e. ripped off) some of his stories without his permission, so he requested payment for their use. They did with so without any fuss and in response Bradbury lent his stories to EC for official adaptations. EC adapted more than twenty of his works for their comics.

This one, The Lake, deals with loss.

The story opens with a young boy visiting the lake on one of the last days of summer and calling out for his young friend, Tally.





The boy (now a man) grows up and is married to a woman named Margaret. They return to his childhood home for their honeymoon and visit all the places that he grew up in. One day they pass by the lake when he sees the lifeguard carrying a small shape from the water. The man tells Margaret to stay and runs over.

The lifeguard says the body (which is wrapped in tarp) must have been dead for ten years. He says in all the people who drowned since then, only one body hadn't been recovered. The man demands that the lifeguard open the tarp.