A Brief History in American Comics: Part 6- The Comic Rebirth of the 1960s

“The 1950s backlash that resulted in the Comics Code mainly affected adventure comics… in the 1960s, criticism was focused on the humor comics for being violent, sexist, and racist. In the US, humor comics were similarly attacked, and were additionally prone to criticism from the Left for being conveyors of capitalist propaganda…” especially of the Disney titles (ex. Uncle Scrooge) ^[3]. 

As soon as the Comic Code was implemented, the world of comics transformed. Sales slumped almost immediately as lines of comics were cancelled. Whole genres virtually destroyed, and entire publishing companies sunk.  “For parents and educators, the Code meant peace of mind, but for kids, it signified little except insipidly ‘safe’ entertainment ^[3].”

As one of the leading comic companies of the 50’s, EC Comics (short for “Entertaining Comics”) went near-bankrupt (if not for their MAD comic-turned-magazine), the comic market became available for other publishers to fall in place, and thus was done so by DC Comics and Marvel (previously known as ‘Atlas’ and ‘Timely’), and smaller companies, like Gilberton. At the same time, as horror and crime comics were pushed down and out of the magazine stands, the adventure story and romance tales were pushed into the forefront ^[3].

Various genres took over the spotlight as media venues were constantly grabbing for any content that would stick.  Although this was met with a multitude of new content, not all content was seen as high quality. As described by Blackbeard, “By the 1960s, the newspapers’ need for quantity of strips had triumphed almost entirely over any series interest in quality of storyline or art.” 

ROMANCE

“Crime was going out. Sex was in” said Morisi. Although crime titles were still being published, “many had disappeared since 1948”. “Meanwhile, romance was blooming in the stands.” Crime publishers switched to romance titles, recognizing an “appeal of comic books across gender lines ^[5].” 

According to Hajdu, “The first comic book devoted to love stories, Crestwood’s Young Romance, had not appeared until the summer of 1947… In 1948, there were only three new love titles: Sweethearts, My Romance, and My Life,” creating a slow start for the genre. However, “by the end of 1949, there were some 125 romance comics, and, a year later, 148 from 26 publishers ^[5].” Romance may not have been new to the stands by the 1960s, but by then the titles had exploded with interest and popularity. 

Part of the reason romance titles became so popular was that they were adapted to approach another new audience: adolescents. With older teenage characters, romance stories attempted to reach their like-minded readers. For comics, this would be a new, conscious attempt for an older audience than previously generated ^[5]. 

 Social politics also held as a topic in romance titles, with stories of “free-spirited, willful girls who thought and acted independently, challenging not only their parents, but their boyfriends,” romances provided a unique model placement in a young woman’s eyes.  Being most probably the only venue of young womanly independence at the time, “no other genre of comic books was as overt in its depiction of youthful rebellion as romance comics ^[5]. “

ADVENTURE

Although it usually required a greater sense of artistic detail, the adventure genre is said be one of the (if not the) most diversely flexible comic genres.  It is probably this flexibility which has allowed the adventure genre to uphold its longevity and resiliency in the post-Comic Code era. It was not long until sub-genres took hold, including war anthologies (briefly spoken about before) and sports ^[3]. 

IPC (International Publishing Corporation) was an initial leader in the adventure genre just as they had been early on in humor comics. However, the comic industry shift in the 1960s brought in new comic company giants, Marvel and DC comics. Marvel and DC worked within the Code with their Superhero comics. Marvel’s continued success “had the effect of kick-starting the entire industry back into life.” Superman and Batman became DC Comics’ main stars, but the diverse crew allowed the Superhero genre to thrive until the end of the 60s ^[3].

THE INTELLECTUAL COMIC

Post-Code years also brought about the intellectual comic, which covered an array of subjects, from social topics to physiological, and would include subjects not yet portrayed in American comic strips. From the late 50s through the 1960s, the intellectual comic would continue to grasp a greater hold of the reader’s world, even incorporating politics. 

Illustrative “stereotypes of blacks as criminals and ‘social problems’ were common” within comics throughout the 1950s and 1960s, and derogatory representatives rampant. “Arabs were ‘shifty’, conniving and treacherous; Orientals were ‘inscrutable’ sadists; and Native Americans were monosyllabic savages.” As one could expect, “both in Britain and America, there were only a handful of creators from ethnic backgrounds working in the industry” creating an obvious imbalance of insight in the comics released ^[3].  

 “Sexism was seen as an even bigger problem…” and was dealt with much quicker.  Women were usually only portrayed in three different ways; as ‘helpers’ (nurses, housewives), ‘victims’ (to be rescued), or sex objects (plunging necklines and long legs). In response to this, “Wonder Woman was revolutionary in a psychological sense” and served as a self-imposed high-calling to all women that they should “realize their potential, should fight for equal rights, and that a feminized society would be more caring than the prevailing patriarchy ^[3].” 

Walt Kelly’s beloved strip, POGO, made its debut in 1949. Through Albert the alligator and his cast of animal characters, he “was the first to deal with the great moral, social, and political questions” within the lines of a comic. The characters at times fall under a political sphere of conversation, and are each endowed with their own “highly individual personalities.” It is this beginning which Couperie points out as “contributing to the rehabilitation of the comic strip ^[1].” 

Perhaps Kelly’s intellectual “kindred spirit”, Charles Schulz arrived on the scene soon afterwards in 1950. Schulz continued Kelly’s portrayal of intellectual comics by “penetrated still deeper into intellectual analysis with his Peanuts”. Between the both of them, “Schultz and Kelly endowed the comics with their patent of nobility, and assured the birth and development of the intellectual comic strip ^[1].” 

The 1950s intellectual comic brought about the first antihero by Bernard Mergendeiler, Feiffer comic strip (“anti-comic strip”) in 1956, dubbed the “blackest and most depressing ever depicted by the comic strip.” and B.C. in 1958. They continued in the 1960s with the Wizard of Id. Other intellectual comics of the time included The Strange World of Mr. Mum by Irving Phillips, Short Ribs by Frank O’Neal, and Still Life by Jerry Robinson, which portrayed only inanimate objects ^[1]. 

These ‘intellectual strips’ “present a remarkable esthetic unity. Their creators’ affinities lie not with the easy models of the novel and the cinema, but with the most exacting of all methods of artistic expression: the theatre... the characters are presented in full view, at eye level... and the only space we are permitted to see is that defined within the rectangle of the picture… ^[1]”

UNDERGROUND

Perhaps the biggest dynamic of comics that wasn’t regulated by the Comic Code (and rather, was inspired by its effects), was the underground movement established within the United States. As San Francisco attracted musicians in the 1960s, it also intrigued some artists in a new “comix” movement, influenced by MAD, “the hippie generation”, and other surrounding culture developments ^[4]. 

Many aspiring artists and writers founded and sought out University humor magazines and other unorthodox publishing means in order to publish their own works. According to Garcia, the comic Help! is seen as the first underground comic book due to the various artists who worked on the project. As the decade continued, various titles, including Zap and Wonder Wart-Hog, the pig parody of superhero comics ^[4].

 

NEXT TIME ON A SCROLL IN TIME…

Although the Comic Code changed the comic world forever, the medium itself showed to be more resilient and transformative as some may have earlier predicted. The devastation of the 50s and resurrection of the 60s within the comic domain was, although crude, perhaps necessary to prepare it for the development and progressive period of the 1970s, as American society was soon to see...

CATCH UP WITH ME IN THE NEXT INSTALLMENT!

[1] Couperie, Pierre, Maurice Horn, Proto Destefanis, EdouardFrançois, Claude Moliterni, GéraldGassiot-Talabot, and Eileen Hennessy. A History of the Comic Strip. New York: Crown, 1968. Print.
[2] Steranko, James. The Steranko History of Comics. Reading, PA. 1970. Print.
[3] Sabin, Roger. Comics, Comix & Graphic Novels. Hong Kong. 1996. Print.
[4] Garcia, Santiago. On the Graphic Novel. University Press of Mississippi. 2015. Print.
[5] Hajdu, David. The Ten-Cent Plague: The Great Comic-Book Scare and How It Changed America. New York. 2008. Print.

A Brief History of American Comics: Part 3.5- The Birth of a New Format

The 1940’s Part II: The Birth of a New Format

The idea of the comic book was cultivated in the early part of the 20th century, when in 1911, Chicago American issued a collection of Mutt & Jeff strips in an 18”x16” page book format; readers were requested to clip coupons from the newspapers and send them in with postage in order to receive the book in the mail. The collection sold 45,000 copies, vastly surpassing all expectations ^[4]. The great success of this project brought attention to the idea of combining comic strips into this new format. However, it would be decades before it was fully cultivated. 

1st issue of The Funnies

In 1929, George Delacorte published an “experimental comic” entitled The Funnies (in reference to the common term used for comics at the time) by the Eastern Color Printing Company. The books included all new material, but was much less successful (possibly due to its appearance compared to a newspaper’s comic section), only lasting 13 issues ^[4].

The 1930s ended up being the starting point for the fully-realized comic book. In 1933, the Eastern Printing Company provided giveaway comic books by Proctor and Gamble, a promotional stunt by including advertisements for household products and other items they intended to help sell. The “books”, entitled Funnies on Parade, utilized color printing and were about 7 ½” x 10 ¼” in size, resembling more like a thin magazine rather than a book ^[3]. Based on the great realization in this stunt by P&G, the measurements of these small magazines became the accepted format for comic books that followed ^[4].

 Although this utilized reprints of popular strips, it was considered a success and the idea stuck. In 1934, the Eastern Color Printing Company, encouraged by their prior success, produced the 1st commercial comic book, Famous Funnies. This book also generated good sales, and in 1935, New Fun, including original material, was released to the public ^[3].

While newspapers trended towards family-generated and light-hearted topics, authors of comic books generally focused on a rather opposing side of the spectrum. The new format for comics allowed for greater depth and stretches of material, often including more mature topics. Among the humor and adventure genres, detective comics became a big focal point in the comic book field throughout the late ‘30s and whole of the ‘40s.

The War within Comics (cont.)

Comic book heroes were
often put right in the midst
of WWII fights.

Throughout the 1940’s, changes came to comic pages and in the lives of their readers and creators in the form of political voice. Although comics had introduced political thoughts previously/during WW1, WWII made it near impossible to avoid. Some comic strip heroes were offered as examples by joining the R.A.F., the Canadian Forces, and the Foreign Legion to fight the “Huns” ^[4].  Title characters like Joe Palooka (the first to do so) were seen fighting face to face with Japanese or German enemies ^[3]. Some heroes joined alongside the public with their own rallies or pro-Allied propaganda. The actions of these made-up characters became strong inspirations for real-life readers, even furthering the public morale ^[4].

Terry and the Pirates showed the most faithful depiction of American attitudes after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and dredged further into the realities of war. Despite the main titled character, the comic focused more on the collective heroic actions versus the act of an individual in war time. 1943’s Buz Sawyer and 1944’s Johnny Hazard, both comics about pilots at war, are also comparable comics to “Terry” ^[3].

Although the three prior mentioned comics were developed for civilian audiences, other comics were also developed specifically for being read by the Armed Forces. GI Joe, The Sad Sack, and Male Call are three titles from 1942 which, finding popularity by their initial audience, eventually sought commercial advertisement as well ^[3].

Detective Comics

A pre-Batman cover of
Detective Comics, showing
mature content well known of
the detective genre

January 1937 brought the world Detective Comics comic book, which introduced comics focused on a single hero ^[3]. This series, which would eventually bring Batman into the world, was at first merely a collection of comics centered on detective mysteries. Kerry Drake and his conniving adventures hit stands in 1943, boasting real or realistic stories and featuring authentic use of police techniques. Other popular detective comics included Dick Tracy, and Charlie Chan, which each followed a similar concept and often including the same type of realism that readers had grown to become accustomed to ^[3].

Pulps

Pulp comics came into the industry during the 1940s. Pulps were “untrimmed magazines named for the soft paper flecked with shreds of wood fiber on which they were printed. Publishers used pulp paper because there was nothing cheaper available. Pulps had little to do with quality.”  Measured 9 ½” x 7 ½” and had 114-162 pages between two full color enamel stock covers. Ranging between 20k-80k words. They were weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, and quarterly comics, but there were always around 250 titles for sale at any given time. They also included any kind of story or idea, often adding more thrill and entertainment to the reader. Titled characters like The Shadow became popular and emulated ^[4].

Iconic cover of Superman's
first appearance in Action
Comics

In June 1938, Action Comics made history with their introduction of the character Superman ^[3]. The premiere of Superman brought about several other heroes: Batman (May 1939), The Spirit (1940), Captain America (March 1941), Fantastic Four (November 1961), The Hulk (May 1962), Spiderman (Aug 1962), and many more to follow ^[5]. According to at least one source, Superman’s inspiration had strong roots in pulp star Doc Savage. The icon’s frame and build matches that of Doc, and even his name can be found from a Doc Savage pulp advertisement in early 30’s ^[4].

Behind the Scenes

The comic book industry not only opened up to more genres in the comic industry, but opened the industry up to a whole other demographic of workers- Jewish writers and artists ^[5]. The battles that took place throughout comic strips and books were often more than just storylines for greater sales. As example with Superman’s creators, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shusta, both American Jews growing up in Cleveland, Ohio. Their ability to take to the pages and fight Nazis also showed their own plea for action based on what they saw as attacks against their own welfare.

As World War II persisted, comic book writers began incorporating their own Jewish heritage into the lives of their superhero characters. Allowing these heroes to join the war helped audiences to become more and more enveloped with war storylines, holding the attention of much of the industry. Of course, this also gave the great impact of providing a political voice to the comic book authors by offering their own call to action and presenting their own war cry against Nazi Germany (“Superman is a Jew!”) ^[3].

As World War II comes to a close in 1945, so does the Nation’s need for comic book heroes at war! What will this mean for the comic book industry? What happens when the Nation’s favorite warriors come home?                Find out next time… in A Scroll in Time!

[1] Marschall, Richard. America’s Great Comic-Strip Artists. New York, NY. 1989. Print.
[2] Blackbeard, Bill and Crain, Dale. The Comic Strip Century: Celebrating 100 Years of an American Art Form. Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 1995. Print.
[3] Couperie, Pierre, Maurice Horn, Proto Destefanis, EdouardFrançois, Claude Moliterni, GéraldGassiot-Talabot, and Eileen Hennessy. A History of the Comic Strip. New York: Crown, 1968. Print.
[4] Steranko, James. The Steranko History of Comics. Reading, PA. 1970. Print.
[5] Weinstein, Simcha. Up, Up, and Oy Vey! How Jewish History, Culture, and Values Shaped the Comic Book Superhero. Baltimore, MD. 2006. Print.