Alter Ego #135 Preview

Roy Thomas’ LENgthy Comics Fanzine

LEN WEIN

RE-LIVES THE LATE SILVER AGE AT DC & MARVEL!

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No.135 September 2015

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Characters TM & © DC Comics.

Hey—Maybe He Can get ME in!

P.S.: LEN WROTE A FEW OTHER THINGS, TOO!

Vol. 3, No. 135 / September 2015 Editor

Roy Thomas

Associate Editors Bill Schelly Jim Amash

Design & Layout

Christopher Day

Consulting Editor John Morrow

FCA Editor

P.C. Hamerlinck J.T. Go (Assoc. Editor)

Comic Crypt Editor Michael T. Gilbert

Editorial Honor Roll

Jerry G. Bails (founder) Ronn Foss, Biljo White Mike Friedrich

Proofreaders

Rob Smentek William J. Dowlding

If you’re viewing a Digital Edition of this publication,

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www.twomorrows.com

Cover Artists

Dick Giordano & Bernie Wrightson

Cover Colorist

Unidentified DC personnel

With Special Thanks to: Neal Adams Heidi Amash Pedro Angosto Richard J. Arndt Rodrigo Baeza Bob Bailey Rod Beck William Biggins Robert Brown Nick Caputo James Cassara Shaun Clancy Chet Cox John De Mocko The Dick Dillin Family John Ellis Harlan Ellison Shane Foley Stephan Friedt Janet Gilbert Grand Comics Database (website) Dan Hagen Hero Initiative Sean Howe Dr. M. Thomas Inge Jim Kealy

Douglas R. Kelly David Anthony Kraft Mark Lewis Jim Ludwig Doug Martin Brian K. Morris Mark Muller Chip Newton Dr. Amy Kiste Nyberg Barry Pearl John E. Petty Nik Poliwko Gene Reed Bob Rozakis Randy Sargent Vijah Shah Jeff Taylor Dann Thomas Jim Van Hise Lynn Walker George Warner John Warren Len Wein Marv Wolfman Andy Yanchus Mike Zeck

This issue is dedicated to the memory of

Roger Slifer

Contents Writer/Editorial: Out With The Old…? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 “I’ve Never Had To Get A Real Job!” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Writer & editor Len Wein tells Richard Arndt about his first decade in comics.

Seal Of Approval: The History Of The Comics Code – Chapter 6, Concluded . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Our ongoing serialization of Dr. Amy K. Nyberg’s 1998 study of comics censorship.

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt: Get A Clue – Part 2!!! . . . . . . . 51

Michael T. Gilbert examines more of the hilarious hoodlums on those Hillman crime covers.

Comic Fandom Archive: Chatting With Jim Van Hise . . . . . 57 Bill Schelly continues a multi-part tribute to G.B. Love and RBCC.

In Memoriam: Roger Slifer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 re: [correspondence, comments, & corrections] . . . . . . . . . 68 FCA [Fawcett Collectors Of America] #194 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73 P.C. Hamerlinck presents two unseen essays by Captain Marvel co-creator C.C. Beck.

On Our Cover: Len Wein, this issue’s intrepid interviewee, has been known particularly for his scripting (and editing) of super-heroes and of his muck-monster co-creation Swamp Thing—so we’ve conspicuously combined Dick Giordano’s cover for Justice League of America #105 (April-May 1973) with a masterful early-’70s Swamp Thing figure drawn by that entity’s other co-creator, Bernie Wrightson. With due thanks to Sean Howe, Pedro Angosto, & Mike Zeck for the 1971 photo of Len himself. [Art TM & © DC Comics.]

Above: The villain in Len Wein’s first scripting assignment on Marvel Team-Up (#11, July 1973), carried over from the previous couple of issues, was none other than Kang the Conqueror—while Spider-Man was teamed in #11 with the incomparable Inhumans. Pencils by Jim Mooney; inks by Mike Esposito. Thanks to Barry Pearl. [TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.] Alter EgoTM is published 8 times a year by TwoMorrows, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614, USA. Phone: (919) 449-0344.

Roy Thomas, Editor. John Morrow, Publisher. Alter Ego Editorial Offices: 32 Bluebird Trail, St. Matthews, SC 29135, USA. Fax: (803) 826-6501; e-mail: roydann@ntinet.com. Send subscription funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial offices.

Eight-issue subscriptions: $67 US, $85 Canada, $104 elsewhere. All characters are © their respective companies. All material © their creators unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter © Roy Thomas. Alter Ego is a TM of Roy & Dann Thomas. FCA is a TM of P.C. Hamerlinck. Printed in China. ISSN: 1932-6890 FIRST PRINTING.

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“I’ve Never Had To Get A Real Job!” Award-Winning Writer & Editor LEN WEIN Talks About Nearly Half A Century In Comics

I

Interview Conducted & Transcribed by Richard J. Arndt

NTERVIEWER’S INTRODUCTION: Len Wein is one of the crew of teen-age writers who entered the comics field in the late 1960s. Over the past 45 years, he’s created or co-created “The New X-Men,” Wolverine, Swamp Thing, The Human Target, Dominic Fortune, and many more. He’s been the writer on The Teen Titans, Fantastic Four, Thor, The Phantom Stranger, The Incredible Hulk, The Amazing Spider-Man, Before Watchmen, “Supergirl,” and an incredible number of other titles. He’s been an editor at Marvel, DC, and Disney. He was the editor who hired Alan Moore to write Swamp Thing, as well as the editor on Moore & Dave Gibbons’ Watchmen. He recently wrote the Ozymandias limited series for DC. This interview was conducted Aug. 21, 2012.

Len Wein in his photo card from Eclipse’s Famous Cartoonists trading card series of the 1980s. [© Eclipse or successors in interest.]

“Oh Boy, I’m Gonna Be A Comic Book Artist!”

RICHARD ARNDT: Let’s start things off with your background.

Where did you grow up?

LEN WEIN: I was born in the Bronx, New York. I had one kid brother. When I was 7½ years old, I stepped out between two trucks onto the street. My father grabbed me by the back of the collar just in time to pull me out of the way of another truck driving by.

He stood there for a second and said, “We’re going to the suburbs!” So I grew up in Levittown, New York. I wasn’t the only comic fan there. Even though I didn’t meet many of these fellows until I was grown, Michael Gilbert grew up there. Bob Schreck grew up there. Bill Griffith grew up there. So there was a small group of comics enthusiasts who grew up there, completely unaware of each other.

Swamped!

(Above:) When Len Wein began writing The Phantom Stranger with #14 (July-Aug. 1971), he started off with a monster-in-a-swamp scene, illustrated

by Jim Aparo. (Left:) A year later, he and artist Berni(e) Wrightson caused a minor sensation with Swamp Thing #1 (Oct.-Nov. 1972). Thanks to Jim Ludwig for the page from PS #14, and to the Grand Comics Database for the cover shot. [TM & © DC Comics.]

“I’ve Never Had To Get A Real Job!”

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today—I drew a picture of a shark. My art teacher looked at me and said, “That’s a very good picture. You actually have artistic talent. Enough to be an actual artist.” I looked back at him and said, “Oh, boy! I’m gonna be a comic book artist.” He said, “That’s not what I mean.” But I said, “Yeah, but that’s what I meant!” So I majored in art the rest of my high school and college career, to help me in becoming a comic book artist.

RA: I haven’t actually seen a lot of your comic art… but I do recall you did a fan illustration for one of Jim Warren’s fan pages back in the 1960s… in Eerie #22 (July 1969). It wasn’t too bad, as I recall.

WEIN: Thank you. Yep, there were a lot of aspiring artists who showed up on those fan pages. When I became a professional, I actually got to draw one four-page story for Gold Key. It was a story called “Walk the Plank” for Grimm’s Ghost Stories [#9 (May 1973)]. That’s the only actual story I’ve ever drawn.

RA: The Grand Comics Database lists three stories you illustrated, one apparently a ghost penciling job for Sal Trapani for

Masquerader Of The Lost Arcs (Above:) Len Wein was a fannish double-threat. First, as a writer: His brief interview with Jack Kirby in the 6th issue of future fellow pro Mike Vosburg’s fanzine Masquerader in the early 1960s was quite possibly the first conversation with “The King” ever published.

Thanks to Doug Martin. [© the respective copyright holders.]

(Right:) Secondly, as an artist: Besides being assistant editor of the fanzine Popular Heroes Illustrated, he drew this 1964 cover spotlighting Steve Ditko’s Marvel co-creations. Thanks to Nick Caputo. [Spider-Man & Dr. Strange TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Later that same year, I got very sick. I spent some time in the hospital and my father brought me a bunch of comic books to keep me occupied. As they say, “Done is done.” I was hooked. I was a comic book fan from that moment on.

RA: Do you remember any of the titles in that batch?

WEIN: They were mostly DC, I think. I remember Batman and Superman. There were no Marvels, because Marvel didn’t exist back then. They would almost have to have been DC comics.

RA: When did you first begin to make your move to becoming a professional in the comics field?

WEIN: Eighth-grade art class. In the 8th grade back then, when the arts were part of our curriculum—unlike

“I’ve Never Had To Get A Real Job!”

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Hey, Kids—Comix!

(Left:) Writer Len Wein and artist Herb Trimpe created a horrific homage to underground comix in Marvel’s Creatures on the Loose #11 (May 1971)… in the person of an artist named “Roger Krass.” A tribute to Trimpe, who recently passed away, will appear in a near-future issue; a photo of him appears on p. 37.

(Right:) The legendary Reed Crandall drew Len’s story for Creatures on the Loose #13 (Sept. 1971). Thanks to Barry Pearl. [TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.]

[continued from p. 11] WEIN: I did a bunch of stories for Twilight Zone, a bunch for Boris Karloff. I wrote Star Trek for two years. I did The Microbots. I did Mod Wheels for a year or two. I had the best time at Gold Key. They were the nicest guys to work for.

Marv [Wolfman] and I had had a problem at DC. We’d gotten blackballed for something that we had not done. Artwork was disappearing, and we were the two young kids on the block, and it was assumed that we were taking it, which we had not. So Marv basically left the industry for a while and became an art teacher. I decided that I wasn’t quitting comics. There were other places to work besides DC. So I went literally down the block to the Gold Key offices one afternoon—made an appointment. I came in with samples of my work and told the two editors there—Wally Green and his assistant, Paul Kuen—that I wanted to work with them.

Those two were among the nicest guys I’ve ever met. Well, when I said I wanted to work for them, they hit me with the “Springtime for Hitler” face. You know the reference? [INTERVIEWER’S NOTE: Mel Brooks’ film/play The Producers had Jewish stage producers trying to make a light musical called Springtime for Hitler as a tax dodge, so it was a play that they never intended to succeed.] There are great shots in the films where the audience at opening night gets a look at what’s coming at them, and the expression is always “What the f—- are we watching?” Well, both Wally and Paul looked at me with that kind of expression and said, “In God’s name, why? Why do you want to work for us?”

I said, “I like your books. I’m a professional writer and I think we can help each other.” They agreed to go ahead and try. I became their top writer for 2½ years. I did a lot of work there. Most of my work was there, actually. Some appeared at Marvel at the same time. And at the end I got back with DC. Dick Giordano’s attitude towards my blacklisting was “Blackball, smackball!” He said, “I’ll use you.” With that, I started getting back to DC. They finally discovered the truth about the art thefts and the blackballing was lifted. I started making much more money at DC than at Gold Key. I finally had to ask Wally and Paul, “I know you can’t match this but I’ve got to ask… otherwise, I’ve got to go.” So they said “No, no. Go. Go. Thank you for everything you did. We loved everything you did. We loved working with you and we’d love to keep working with you, but we can’t afford you anymore. You should go where the money is.” So they sent me on my way. [laughs] It was very sweet, very paternal.

RA: That’s nice. One of the stories I recall as being very good during this time period was one you did for Marvel called “The Underground Gambit.” It was a spoof on underground comics and Robert Crumb. I don’t know if you remember that one or not…

WEIN: I do remember it. I don’t recall the artist—was it Sal Buscema or Marie Severin?

RA: Actually it was Herb Trimpe. It was a story about a guy who fakes

16

Writer & Editor Len Wein Talks About Nearly Half A Century In Comics

being a hip underground cartoonist and ends up in hell.

WEIN: Oh, yeah! Well, Herb would have been my next guess. I vaguely remember that. It certainly sounds like one of my titles.

RA: One of the reasons it sticks in my memories was that this was the first time (1972) I’d ever heard of underground comics. As a Midwestern boy who grew up in a rural area, the notion that there were these comics that were unheard of by most people—hidden even, secreted away—was fascinating to me. It was like a Steve Ditko curio-shop story come to life. It eventually led me to search out these books, and the creators like Robert Crumb, so thank you for that.

WEIN: [laughs] You’re welcome!

RA: Still, it was a pretty good little story. You probably sold it to Tower of Shadows or Chamber of Darkness, but it ended up in one of the retitled, mostly reprint-filled, monster titles—Creatures on the Loose #11 (May 1971).

You must have just gotten back into DC’s good graces when you wrote the first “Swamp Thing” story—the eight-pager that appeared in House of Secrets in 1972.

WEIN: Yeah, I’d been back at DC for a little while at that point.

“‘Swamp Thing’ Was One Of Those Weird Cases”

RA: Can you tell us how that story came about?

Just One Of Those [Swamp] Things The cover of DC’s House of Secrets #92 (June-July 1971), showcase for the first Len Wein/Berni Wrightson “Swamp Thing” story, which was originally intended as a stand-alone effort. Wrightson (the spelling of whose first name soon reverted to “Bernie”) is seen in a 1975 photo from a fanzine.

Thanks to Bob Bailey for the cover scan, and to Stephan Friedt for locating the photo.

[Page TM & © DC Comics.]

WEIN: “Swamp Thing” was one of those weird cases. I don’t really remember. I know that it came to me on the subway on the way to the office. I was still writing mystery stories by the dozens for Joe Orlando. I was on my way in and I had nothing really firm to give him. So I came up with the idea on the subway, but I don’t remember what sparked the notion. I do remember how it got titled. That’s one of my favorite stories. I kept talking about the untitled story as I worked on it. It was that “swamp thing” story that I’m doing. So when the story finally needed an actual title, I found it was actually already in place, just sitting there.

RA: Well, it did work out pretty good.

WEIN: Yeah, it worked out nice! [laughs]

RA: I’ve talked to Gerry Conway about his co-creation of Man-Thing.…

WEIN: Oh, I’m having lunch with Gerry tomorrow!

RA: Say hello for me. Now, at the time, he was your roommate?

WEIN: Gerry and I were sharing an apartment.

RA: He was working on the first “Man-Thing” story [for Marvel]. Both initial stories were published at nearly the same time. The first two stories didn’t really resemble each other plot-wise, but both were featuring swamp monsters.

WEIN: I know. It’s one of those bizarre coincidences that crop up from time to time.

RA: I should mention here that Roy Thomas had a big hand in creating “Man-Thing.”

WEIN: Yeah, I’m told he did. Roy was a fan of a character that I discovered later and became very fond of, which was the old “Heap,” the one published by Hillman Comics. A lot of people say that I just stole the idea of “Swamp Thing” from “The Heap.” But I had never heard of “The Heap” at the time.

RA: Well, “The Heap” was also “stolen,” if that’s the word you want to use. So it doesn’t really matter.

WEIN: Really?

RA: The Heap, DC’s Solomon Grundy [the Heap’s first appearance was in 1942, Grundy’s was in 1944], all the early undead swamp creatures in comics were “inspired,” either directly or indirectly, by the classic story “It” by Theodore Sturgeon, which was originally published in the magazine Unknown in 1940. Alfred Bester, who created Solomon Grundy, admitted in an interview that he’d gotten the idea for Grundy directly from Sturgeon’s story. In fact, Roy Thomas and Marie Severin did a great adaptation of “It” for Marvel in 1971 [Supernatural Thrillers #1 (Dec. 1971)], just a few months after both “Man-Thing” and “Swamp Thing” first appeared.

WEIN: I’m a big Solomon Grundy fan. I don’t like the new one, but I used to like the old one. At the time, though, I just wasn’t that knowledgeable about older comics. I just knew what I knew. I used to follow Kirby and stuff. It really comes down to “great minds thinking alike,” I think. I’ve made that point many times over the years, including one in court on a case where I was testifying as an expert witness. Every year, every single year, there are two movies about exactly the same thing. Same thing happens in stories, especially SF stories. Two or more writers will come out with similar stories at roughly the same time. Notions or ideas get

“I’ve Never Had To Get A Real Job!”

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two weeks! That’s how I sold “The Human Target”! I basically just made Jonny Double into a new character.

he recognized me. All those visits to DC back in the day when I was a fan and so on. He yells, “You! What the hell are you doing there?”

RA: Did Dick Giordano do the first few stories?

WEIN: No! Carmine Infantino drew the first two “Human Target” stories. Dick inked them.

Dick was involved in nearly every “Human Target” story in some way or another for years while I was writing him. He drew and inked or just inked another artist on almost all the stories I wrote. But how Carmine got involved was interesting. Most of us at DC used to go out to a local pub after work on Friday nights. One Friday night, a week or two after I sold the “Human Target” story, Carmine and I were the only two guys left in the room. He said, “I’m tired of being this boss all the time. I’d love to draw something again.” I asked him what he wanted to do. He says “I don’t know. Some good old-fashioned detective stories. I used to love those.” I asked him, “What about the character you just OKed? What about ‘The Human Target’?” He thought about it and said, “Naw. I don’t think so.” It took me a half hour and a couple more drinks to talk him into penciling the first one.

RA: That’s pretty good. Carmine’s a great artist.

I was terrified, because Julie could be terrifying. I started to stammer and said I was just trying to sell some “Lois Lane” stories to Mr. Bridwell. He literally grabbed me by the back of my collar, pulled me out of Nelson’s guest chair, dumped me in his guest chair and said, “No, you’re not. You’re writing The Flash!” I said, “What?” He said, “You couldn’t possibly be any worse than the son of a bitch I just fired.” That’s how I got to write The Flash! [laughs] RA: I’m not going to ask then who was fired.

WEIN: I’m not going to tell you, either. [both laugh] RA: You also wrote at least one story for “El Diablo.” That would have been for Joe Orlando.

Target Practice The first “Human Target” splash page, from Action Comics #419 (Dec. 1972).

Script by Wein; pencils by Carmine Infantino; inks by Dick Giordano. Thanks to Bob Bailey. [TM & © DC Comics.]

RA: I guess because he spent all night out riding horses?

WEIN: Yep. It worked out pretty neatly.

“You’re Writing The Flash!”

RA: You also worked on The Flash. This would have been after Carmine’s days on that book, though…

WEIN: I only did the one. It was a four-pager that Gray Morrow drew. El Diablo had a very odd origin. He was struck by lightning and was in his civilian persona a quadriplegic! He became a version of Zorro at night! I always wondered if the people who were reading the strip wondered how this guy who couldn’t move kept such great muscle tone?

WEIN: Exactly! Fighting crime and using a whip! It was an odd strip.

Carmine Infantino

WEIN: Yes. I think the artist was Irv Novick.

Editorial director of Irv and Dick Giordano were illustrating my DC Comics from 196771, publisher 1971-76— stories there. That reminds me of one of my and, as the original favorite stories. Julie shared an office in artist of the Silver Age those days with the late, and much beloved, title The Flash, one of E. Nelson Bridwell. Nelson was editing Lois the most important Lane early in my career. I came in to pitch comic artists of the some ideas for a possible “Lois Lane” story, late 1950s and early because it would give me a chance to write ’60s.

Superman. While I was sitting in his guest chair, Nelson was called into a meeting. So I’m just sitting there waiting. The room was empty. Julie wasn’t there. Nelson wasn’t there. I’m just sitting there, as patiently as possible. Suddenly Julie comes storming into the room. Mind you,

Dick Giordano, who would serve as DC’s managing editor from 1983 into the 1990s, was an artist whose work (esp. his inking) adorned many a comic book over the years. Thanks to Pedro Angosto and Mike Zeck.

RA: You did a lot of fill-ins during this time period, for both DC and Marvel.

WEIN: Yeah. I was hungry. When I was hungry, I would write anything.

RA: Then you went with Joe Kubert on Korak, Son of Tarzan and “Carson of Venus”—both of them being Edgar Rice Burroughs adaptations.

WEIN: Well, Joe Orlando edited the first three or four issues, and then Joe took the book over. I wrote three Burroughs adaptations—“Carson of Venus,” “Pellucidar,” and “Korak,” all for Joe Orlando and then Joe Kubert—God rest his soul [INTERVIEWER’S NOTE: This interview took place only a week or so after Kubert’s death]—came in to take over.

That was interesting. I have a very peculiar, personal style of

“I’ve Never Had To Get A Real Job!”

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book, Paul Levitz, bless him, who was in charge of the sales records at that time, came and told me that sales on Swamp Thing didn’t drop one copy when Bernie left.

When I left, the sales went right into the toilet. I told him, “Thank you! That does more for my ego than you have any idea!” The emphasis in comics is so dependent on the artist that it really helped knowing that people bought the book for my stories, too! Who knew?

“Roy Thomas And Gerry Conway Were Very Sly”

RA: Somewhere in the mid-1970s on, the majority of your books began to be from Marvel Comics. You did The Incredible Hulk…

WEIN: I did all four of the top titles: Amazing Spider-Man, Incredible Hulk, Mighty Thor, and the Fantastic Four—all at the same time.

RA: Was your work on those titles why you ended up getting the editor-in-chief title?

WEIN: No, Roy Thomas and Gerry Conway were very sly. They decided early on that they wanted me working for Marvel. As I mentioned earlier, Gerry and I were roommates. Gerry would give up a book and, offhandedly, say to me that he was giving up that book— Werewolf by Night was the first one. He’d say, “You wanna take it over?” I’d say “The same pay rates? Yeah? Then why not?” So I took over Werewolf by Night. Then it was, “I’m leaving Marvel Team-Up. You wanna take it over?”

“Want to do Spider-Man?” Well, you bet! Sure! So I kept taking on titles that Gerry was leaving. So, and one-byone, my schedule filled and I had to give up books at DC to do the Marvel books. I left Phantom Stranger. I left… whatever. One morning I woke up and discovered that I was working for Marvel. It took me a while to realize how that happened!

Later, after I was fully at Marvel, Roy Thomas offered me a job as his assistant editor. At Marvel, there was only If The Hulk’s Hunting For The Missing Link— one editor and one assistant for all the books. So I took it, Has He Tried Looking In A Mirror? what the hell! Joe Orlando, before I left DC, spent a lot of While Len had stepped in to take a Roy Thomas “plotline” and turn it into a script for time trying to convince Carmine to make me an editor.

The Incredible Hulk #145 (Nov. 1971), that proved to be a one-issue stand… and he didn’t return as Ol’ Green-skin’s full writer till #179 (Sept. ’74), aided and Carmine, being old-school, wouldn’t do it. He said, “Give abetted by penciler Herb Trimpe and inker Jack Abel. Thanks to Barry Pearl for the scan. him ten years. Let him get seasoned. We’ll talk about it [TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.] then.” But Roy, when he hired me, knew he was going to be leaving the editor-in-chief job and becoming a writer/editor in just a few months. He basically hired me was killing me, as it did every editor who followed me, until to replace him. He didn’t tell me this, though. Then, six months in, Shooter. There was no better editor who ever lived than Archie I was offered the job of editor-in-chief. I took it! What am I, an Goodwin, with the exception of maybe Julie Schwartz, and it even idiot? Over at DC, Joe Orlando’s going over to Carmine and burned him out after a year or two. saying, “See, Schmuck! I told you! Now he’s running the competition!”

I lasted about half a year before it completely burned me out. It was a rough job. Marv Wolfman followed me, than Gerry stepped in…. He lasted about three weeks and asked me how I could do this job. It was driving him crazy! There was only one editor and a huge amount of books! There were a half dozen or more DC editors, and none of them had more than ten books. No one editor could really do the body of work that Marvel expected. Eventually, under Jim Shooter, they split the books among a whole community of editors, like any normal publishing company. It was a lot easier to take care of eight books a month as opposed to 58 books a month! That’s how many I was doing, about 50 books a month! It

“Bat-Murderer!” And “Gideon Faust”

RA: We’re near the end of the time period we’re discussing, but I really wanted to talk about your “Batman” story “Bat-Murderer!,” which came out in Detective just after Archie Goodwin’s acclaimed run on that title.

In fact, the only reason I was reading Detective at that point was for Archie’s stories. Plus, he had great artists drawing those stories. Some were young and just starting out like Simonson or Chaykin. Others were at the top of their game, like Toth and Aparo.

WEIN: Archie was one of those guys that artists loved to draw for.

Look at those Creepy and Eerie stories he wrote. Artists fell over

41

Dr. Amy K. Nyberg

Seal Of Approval: The History Of The Comics Code Concluding Chapter 6 Of Our Serialization Of The 1998 Study

By DR. AMY KISTE NYBERG

EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION: We near the conclusion of our reprinting of Dr. Nyberg’s groundbreaking history of comic book censorship—a work we’ve felt honored to be able to re-present, with a wealth of added illustrations, for Alter Ego’s audience. Previous installments have appeared in A/E #123-128, 130, 133, & 134. As we’ve said before, Seal of Approval is “footnoted” in the MLA style which lists book, article, or author name, plus page numbers, between parentheses in the main text: e.g., “(Hart 154-156)” refers to pp. 154-156 of whichever work by an author or editor named Hart appears in the bibliography (which will be printed at the conclusion of our serialization, a few issues from now). When the parentheses contain only page numbers, it’s because the other pertinent information is printed in the text almost immediately preceding the note.

A/E

We’ve again retained such usages and spellings from Nyberg’s book as “superhero,” an uncapitalized “comics code,” “E.C.” and “DC,” etc. In the captions we ourselves have added, however, we have reverted to A/E house style and preference. These captions, of course, do not necessarily

reflect the opinion of Dr. Nyberg or of the University Press of Mississippi, the original publisher of the book—the original edition of which can still be obtained from UPM at www.upress.sate.ms.us. Our thanks once again to Dr. M. Thomas Inge, under whose general editorship the volume was originally published in 1998 as part of its Studies in Popular Culture series, and who was of great help to A/E in helping to arrange for its reprinting here… to William Biggins and Vijah Shah, acquisitions editors past and present at the U. Press of Mississippi… and to Brian K. Morris for retyping the text on a Word document for Ye Editor.

The preceding segment dealt with the alterations made to the code in 1971 in order to acknowledge changes in American society since 1954— which included allowing the use of “vampires, ghouls, and werewolves,” as long as they were handled in the “classic tradition” of “high caliber literary works… read in schools throughout the World.” In 1976, outsider Jenette Kahn became DC’s new publisher, and longtime comics writer Jim Shooter ascended at the beginning of 1977 to the post of Marvel’s editorin-chief….

T

he four publishers who remained active in the CMAA during the late 1970s and the 1980s—Archie, Marvel, Harvey, and DC—continued to challenge the need for a code. Marvel president James Galton, at a meeting of the board of directors in October 1976, questioned whether there was any need to continue the use of the seal. Others, however, felt that the seal remained “essential to the viability of the comics magazine industry” (CMAA Files [minutes, 19 Oct. 1976]). Galton’s question was spurred in part by changes in the comic book publishing industry that would enable new publishers to bypass the CMAA and its code administrator entirely. Beginning in the late 1970s, an innovation was under way in comic book distribution that was to have tremendous impact on the way comic books were marketed and sold. That innovation was direct market distribution.

Changes in distribution during this period were linked to an earlier change in the industry, the rise of independent publishers.

In the 1970s, there was a movement toward independent publishing, which initially served as an outlet for creator-owned properties. Until that time, all of the rights for characters were owned by companies, not by individual writers and artists. New publishing companies were started that allowed creators to retain the rights to their characters. At first, distribution was limited to mail order and a small number of specialty shops, and the profits

Publish Or Perish (Left:) Jenette Kahn, publisher of DC Comics from 1976-2002. Photo undated.

(Right:) Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Jim Shooter, on left, and Marvel publisher Jim Galton, circa 1980. From Jim Shooter’s blog. An in-depth interview with Shooter will appear in Alter Ego #137. (Note: Galton’s last name is spelled “Galston” in Nyberg’s book. Typist Brian K. Morris corrected the spelling for this reprinting.)

were not high enough to lure top talent away from the major companies. But by the end of the decade, a proliferation of specialty shops and the emergence of direct market distribution created a market capable of sustaining these independent publishers (Jacobs and Jones 269).

42

Concluding Chapter 6 Of Our Serialization Of The 1998 Study By Dr. Amy Kiste Nyberg

The Declaration Of Independents Two early independent comics were writer/artist Dave Sim’s Cerebus (a.k.a.

Cerebus the Aardvark), published by the Canadian company Aardvark-Vanaheim, and Elfquest, published in the U.S. by Wendy & Richard Pini’s WaRP Graphics.

Wendy was the writer/artist, with coplotting by Richard. Earlier, in 1974, had come Mike Friedrich’s Star*Reach #1, commonly considered the first true “independent” (as opposed to “underground”) comic book. [Cerebus cover TM & © Dave Sim; Elfquest cover TM & © Wendy & Richard Pini.]

Under the old system, which is still in place [in 1998] and accounts for about one-quarter of all comic book distribution, comic books are distributed by companies that also handle other periodicals and are sold in outlets that Dave Sim. carry a variety of magazines.

Retailers are able to return unsold copies to the publisher for credit. Under the direct market system, distributors who specialize in comic books and comicsrelated merchandise solicit orders for upcoming titles and sell comic books directly to retailers on a non-return basis. Their primary customers are comics specialty shops, which pay less for their comics through the direct market system but forfeit the right to return unsold copies. Store owners develop an inventory of back issues that then may be sold to fans and collectors at a later date.

The number of specialty stores in the United States increased from an estimated twenty-five in the mid-1970s to between 3,500 and 5,000 by 1990 (Thompson 58). The number of such stores is hard to estimate because many of these retail outlets were served by more than one distributor, and because distributors protected their customer lists.

As a result of this change in distribution, companies were able to eliminate some of the guesswork involved in production. Under the newsstand distribution system, as many as seven of every ten copies of a comic book were returned to the publisher. Because comic book orders for direct market sales are solicited before the comics are published, publishers know in advance how many copies of each title to print for distribution to specialty shops.

Often, companies will print more copies of a particular title than were ordered so they can fill back orders. In addition, distributors may speculate on how well a particular issue of a comic book will sell and purchase more copies than retailers order. Particularly successful comic books may have additional press runs (Salicrup 38).

The new distribution system, which eliminated some of the risk in publishing comics, led to a boom in independent publishing in the 1980s. Independent companies who were early leaders in this trend included Aardvark-Vanaheim, created in 1977 to publish a

Conan parody entitled Cerebus; and WaRP Graphics, started by Richard and Wendi Pini in 1978 to publish their comic, Elfquest. The first company to bring out regular-format comics among the independents was Pacific Comics, which published comics from 1981 to 1984. First Wendy & Richard Pini.

Comics, started in 1983 in Chicago, was a strong performer in the 1980s before folding. The leading independent company in the early 1990s has been Image Comics, started by a group of creators who capitalized on their popularity with the fan community to produce titles that have outsold many comics marketed by the larger companies. While Marvel and DC still dominate the comic book industry in terms of number of titles, sales figures on their titles have dropped as independents cut into their market. Although some of these independent publishers, like Image, produce professional quality four-color comic books on a monthly schedule and compete successfully with the major publishers, many independent companies publish only one or two books, often on a highly erratic schedule, and the number of such companies fluctuates almost daily as smaller companies are started, merge, or fold.

These independent companies distribute comics only through the direct market system. Bypassing the newsstand distribution system, the enforcement arm of the comics code, these independent publishers do not submit their titles for code approval nor are they members of the Comics Magazine Association of America. As a result, the CMAA and its code administrator have no say in the content of comic books which make up a significant part of the comic book industry today. It was inevitable that independent companies, freed from the constraints of the comics code, would produce adult-oriented material for the evolving market—which one study suggests has led the industry “once again—but this time not innocently—to confront the adult themes of violence, sexuality and obsession” (McCue and Bloom ix).

Unlike the underground comics, these new independently published comics did represent an economic challenge to the established publishers. And, more important, these comics demonstrated the possibilities of a distribution system that was more open to experimentation and to the expansion of the audience for

[©2015 Cracked Entertainment.]

51

Bums On The Run! I don’t know who’s the bigger loser, the mug hot-footing it from the cops, or the clueless crook taking notes. From Real Clue Crime Stories Vol. 5, #1 (March 1950). Art by Dan Zolnerowich.

[Real Clue cover © the respective copyright holders.]

52

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt!

Get A Clue (Part 2!)

by Michael T. Gilbert

L

ast issue we shared some amusing Hillman crime covers. This time we’ve unearthed more gems, many drawn by the talented Dan Zolnerowich. “Zolne” is perhaps best remembered for his classic Planet Comics covers for Fiction House. But his work for Hillman is equally striking.

And, speaking of Hillman....

Noted art collector, book, and magazine publisher Alex L. Hillman founded the company in 1938 with a line of True Confessions titles. These included Real Confessions, Real Romances, True Crime, Crime Detective, and Real Detective.

Hillman branched out into comics with the publication of Miracle Comics #1 and Rocket Comics #1. Both sported a February 1940 publication date.

Stupid Crook Tricks!

(Above:) Boy, leave it to those country hicks! First the store-owner sheriff makes a killing selling expensive bank-robbing gear to the city slickers—then he arrests them for the heist! Say, didn’t I see the same plot on an old Green Acres episode? From Real Clue Crime Stories, Vol. 4, #10 (Dec. 1949). Art by Dan “Zolne” Zolnerowich. [© the respective copyright holders.].

“I Get No Respect!”

(Left:) Rodney Dangerfield has nothing on this poor slob. He’s too broke to afford a decent hotel, thanks to a botched bank job (see cover above!). And even mean Mrs. O’Leary doesn’t want the bum in her cheap flophouse. From Real Clue Crime Stories, Vol. 4, #4 (June 1949). Art by Zolne. [© 2015 the respective copyright holders.]

Comic Fandom Archive

G.B. Love.

Alter Ego’s Multi-Part Tribute To G.B. Love & RBCC – Part 3

Photo by Robert Brown.

Chatting With JIM VAN HISE Introduction

omic fandom has a lot of reasons to thank the late Gordon Belljohn Love, publisher and editor of the adzine juggernaut, RBCC... or, to spell it out, Rocket’s Blast-Comicollector. Over time, it has become even clearer how much we owe G.B.

C

Certainly, Jim Van Hise would second that motion, for it was at Gordon’s side that he learned the writing and magazine business. I talked to Jim on October 8, 2012... and thanks to Brian K. Morris for transcribing our conversation. —Bill Schelly.

BILL SCHELLY: I thought we should start with just talking about you and your background first, like where you were born and where you grew up.

JIM VAN HISE: Okay, I was born in Tonawanda, New York, which is not far from Buffalo, in 1949.

SCHELLY: How did you end up in Florida?

VAN HISE: I had grandparents who lived in Florida because my grandfather worked at Cape Canaveral. We would go down there every summer. Sometimes, we’d stay as long as a month to visit, and we started doing that in the early 1960s. And so in 1970, when I decided I just wanted to go out on my own, I decided that where I would move is to Florida, because I always hated the winters in New York. Since I had been exposed to Florida and I knew what it was like, I decided to move there.

SCHELLY: I know that you are a fan of comics, but you also have other interests, maybe even stronger interests, in pulps and science-fiction and so on. Can you describe how your personal interests evolved as a kid?

A Dynamic Duo (Above:) Jim Van Hise (on left) and G.B. Love at Miami Con in 1971. Photo courtesy of John Ellis.

(Right:) Showcase #2 (Nov.-Dec. 1960), featuring the “Sea Devils,” was one of the first comics Jim remembers reading.

[Cover TM & © DC Comics.]

VAN HISE: When I was a kid, there was a package of movies going around, the horror and science-fiction movies that they started showing in the ’50s. I guess the package was called Shock Theatre, but in Buffalo they called it something else, like Super-Duper All-Night Theatre or something. So I became interested in those kinds of science-fiction movies. I picked up a science-fiction paperback around 1959 called Forgotten Planet by Murray Leinster because it showed, like, a giant insect on the cover, and that’s how I started reading science-fiction. I didn’t discover pulps till the late ’60s, when I found a couple copies of Weird Tales in an old book store.

SCHELLY: So that came later. What about comics?

VAN HISE: I got interested in comics when I was probably around ten or so. My father brought home a comic book for me when I was sick. It was Showcase #29 with the “Sea Devils,” and I actually still have it. [NOTE: That was the Nov.-Dec. 1960 issue.

—Bill.] And when I started buying comics regularly around ’63, that’s when I started

57

Chatting With Jim Van Hise—About G.B. Love & RBCC

59

difficult over the phone, because he was kind of hard to understand. When you met him initially, were you able to communicate with G.B., given his cerebral palsy? How was that for you?

VAN HISE: When I first met him, he had an assistant working at the office, Andy Warner, and Andy would be able to explain what G.B. was saying. But when I started to work for G.B. later in 1970, I worked for him six days a week and I came to be able to understand what he was saying. It was basically like learning how to understand what someone is saying who has a thick accent. He could talk over the phone, but unless you were used to talking to him, you probably wouldn’t be able to understand what he was saying.

SCHELLY: Fandom was a great place for people who weren’t in the mainstream and maybe who were shut-ins or maybe had various issues.

In a way, it was a saving grace, probably, for Gordon, wouldn’t you think?

VAN HISE: Well, it started out as a hobby. I mean, I think he only made like five copies of the first issues of Rocket’s Blast, using carbon paper in the typewriter. Then he had letters in some early DC comics in the early ’60s and people started writing to him from that. Then he began printing copies in mimeograph, and it was worthwhile to put ads in Marvel Comics to build up his circulation even more.

SCHELLY: He found a place where he was accepted and in fact could excel, really.

Warner Time Andy Warner (left) and G. B. Love at Multicon 1970, the occasion when Jim Van Hise cemented his relationship with Love. Photo courtesy of John Ellis.

The Rocket’s Blast Specials #1-2 Love’s Rocket’s Blast Special fanzine presented early attempts to chronicle the history of comics. RBS #1 (1963) presented “The Timely Story” by Raymond Miller, behind an illo of the Human Torch, Captain America, and Sub-Mariner (who else?). RBS #2 (1963) offered “I Remember This” by Margaret Gemignani, and numerous tracings of Golden Age comic book panels and covers, and sported a Human Torch cover. Cover art by Buddy Saunders. RBS #1 shown from the photo-offset re-issue in 1967.) [Human Torch, Captain America, & Sub-Mariner TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.; other art elements © Buddy Saunders.]

Shazam hero TM & Š DC Comics. Beck caricature Š Estate of C.C. Beck.

Original art by C.C. Beck and Pete Costanza.

The Limitations Of Comics BY # # "ECK %DITED BY 0 # (AMERLINCK WITH * 4 'O From )&$’s C.C. Beck archives come two previously unpublished essays from the mid-1980s on the rudiments of comic art, dogmatically delineated by Captain Marvel’’s co-creator and chief artist. The bonus second piece is a snippet from one of Beck’’s several aborted book projects on comic art instruction. ³3&+

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Beck And Call (Above:) Charles Clarence Beck was always willing to impart his artistic wisdom and wizardrry to aspiring artists everywhere, as he did with his one-page drawing lesson from the Ă’Shazam!Ă“ issue of the tabloid-sized Mjnjufe!DpmmfdupstĂ–!Fejujpo #C-21 (Summer 1973), published while he was still on board with DC during the Captain Marvel revival.

(Leftt:) Believing in the power of a young personÕs imagination, Beck gladly accepted an invitation to be a special guest speaker at the Hillcrest Elementary School in Lake Wales, Florida, on February 24, 1979, where he delighted students with his knowledge of cartooning basics. Photo by Chip Newton. [Shazam ALTER EGO #135 heroes TM & Š DC Comics.]

LEN WEIN (writer/co-creator of Swamp Thing, Human Target, and Wolverine) talks about his early days in comics at DC and Marvel! Art by WRIGHTSON, INFANTINO, TRIMPE, DILLON, CARDY, APARO, THORNE, MOONEY, and others! Plus FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America), MR. MONSTER’s Comic Crypt, the Comics Code, and DAN BARRY! Cover by DICK GIORDANO with BERNIE WRIGHTSON! (84 FULL-COLOR pages) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $3.95 http://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=98_55&products_id=1206