The Plush World of H.P. Lovecraft

Horror author H.P.Lovecraft has created some of the most terrifying, bizarre eldritch horrors known to mankind. He also had a keen sense of humor, so I think he'd appreciate that many of his horrors have been transformed into plush toys. Below are the ones in my collection.

Cthulhu, arguably Lovecraft's most famous creation, is described thus: "A monster of vaguely anthropoid outline, but with an octopus-like head whose face was a mass of feelers, a scaly, rubbery-looking body prodigious claws on hind and fore feet, and long, narrow wings behind." The traditional portrayal of Cthulhu looks something like this:

However, many years ago at the Compleat Strategist in NYC, I came across this adorable version:


Who could resist an eldritch horror like this? But this handmade rendition of Cthulhu was far from the end of the plush horrors awaiting fans. Toy Vault http://www.toyvault.com/ created this more accurate rendition of Cthulhu:

They've used this version of Cthulhu as the basis for several versions of the big critter, from a secret agent to a Halloween edition.

Then there's the Gug: "It was a paw, fully two feet and a half across, and equipped with formidable talons. After it came another paw, and after that a great black-furred arm to which both of the paws were attached by short forearms. Then two pink eyes shone and the head of the awakened Gug sentry, large as a barrel, wabbled into view. The eyes jutted two inches from each side, shaded by bony protuberances ovegrown by coarse hairs. But the head was chiefly terrible because of the mouth. That mouth had great yellow fangs and ran from the top to the bottom of the head, opening vertically instead of horizontally." Creepy, eh? But not quite as much when it looks like this:

This monster's jaw actually opens halfway down its torso. I'm just glad it hasn't devoured my plush wombat.

Finally we come to that accursed tome, the Necronomicon. Written by the mad Arab Abdul Alhazred, the Necronomicon is a source of information on the Great Old Ones, innumerable monsters, and spells and alchemical concoctions. It is the stuff of fictional legend, not to mention "real" copies ranging from simple paperback editions to a coffee table book illustrated by H.R. Giger. Thanks to the folks at ToyVault, it's also a Preschool Pillow Book!

There will doubtless be new editions of the Necronomicon released, but this will be the only one that comes with a hand-puppet and squeak toy. What more would the cultist who's young at heart want?

James Lynch,

Still waiting for a plush figure of H.P. Lovecraft himself