Reading Room / Tales Twice Told SUSPENSE DETECTIVE "Short Step to Oblivion"

With the revelation that Fredric Wertham lied about comics' effects on kids...

...it seems appropriate to take a look at how his far-reaching deception altered pop culture as we know it!

BTW, most people (myself included) felt that Wertham exaggerated his claims, but altering/modifying evidence to validate his theories went over the line.

This pre-Comics Code tale appeared in Fawcett's Suspense Detective #1 (1952), illustrated by George Evans, but the writer is uncredited.

It seems to be a straightforward tale of mistaken identity and justice served with some violence mixed in, but nothing over-the-top, right?

Not according to the Comics Code Authority!

Be back Thursday to see how the Code altered this story, which they considered too violent!

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Ten-Cent Plague

The Great Comic Book Scare and How It Changed America

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Monday Maternity Madness MAD "Mad's All-Inclusive Do-It-Yourself Abortion Newspaper Story"

With minor updating, this never-reprinted two-page feature...

...written by long-time contributor Frank Jacobs from EC's MAD Magazine #324 (1994) could be used today!

Sad, isn't it?

CASPER THE FRIENDLY GHOST "Premiere"

Here's the first appearance of a comics legend (over 100 comic series with his name in the title)...

...who, at the time this came out, was already an animation mainstay!

Utilizing story elements from Casper's first cartoon (1945's Paramount NovelToon "The Friendly Ghost", written by Seymour Reit and Joe Oriolo) this opener written by Isadore Klien and likely illustrated by one of the cartoon series' animators appeared in St John's Casper the Friendly Ghost #1 (1949)

Interestingly, though Harvey Comics acquired the character rights from Paramount Pictures and continued the series after St John went out of business, they never reprinted the covers or stories of the five issues by St John!

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Casper the Friendly Ghost

60th Anniversary Special

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Space Hero Saturdays FANTASTIC COMICS "Space Smith and the Floating Island in the Lost Sun"

One of the Truly Difficult Things About This Feature...

...is coming up with titles for Fletcher Hanks' almost-always untitled stories!

How do you convey some of the truly weird goings-on?

This Space Smith tale from Fox Features' Fantastic Comics #5 (1940) could've had several different titles including "The Hopping Men of the Floating Island!" or "The Hopping Men of the Lost Sun!"!

We decided on the title based on the two locations shown in the story!
But, like most of Fletcher Hank's stories, there's so much going on that it's hard to pin down one or two aspects.

Best to just go along for the ride and enjoy!

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I Shall Destroy All the Civilized Planets!

by

Fletcher Hanks

Friday Fascist Fun UNQUOTABLE TRUMP "Subjective Comics"

From Now Until Election Day, We'll Be Presenting Examples of How Creatives See Don da Con...

"I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn't lose any voters, OK?" now-convicted felon Don da Con remarked at a January 2016 campaign stop at Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa.

"It's, like, incredible."

"Frightening" is more like it!

Based on the cover for DC's Detectyive Comics #69 (1942) by Jerry Robinson!

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Drawn & Quarterly Special Edition

Unquotable Trump

by R. Sikoryak

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