Spring Break
The Daily OrangeComic books becoming geek chic with movie adaptations
By Nathan Mattise
Posted: 4/15/08, 12:19 AM EST Section: Feature
Comic books, in the past 20 or so years, have been classified as a nerd activity. Didn't matter what kind they were, who the superhero was, they were a dorky thing to buy, read and collect. But apparently this wasn't always the case.
Growing up, they seemed more irrelevant than my "Goosebumps" collection does today. Comics were for the Bart Simpsons and Milhouses of the world. Milhouse was the rule when I was a kid, but in the 1950s and right now, it's all about Bart.
On Friday, former Entertainment Weekly editor, pop-culture aficionado and former SU faculty member David Hajdu is coming to speak at Newhouse in conjunction with his new book "Ten-Cent Plague: The Great Comic Book Scare and How It Changed America."
It chronicles comics in American popular culture post-World War II, when they were surprisingly the most far-reaching and culturally relevant form of entertainment. Hajdu cites that back in the 1940s and early 50s, anywhere between 60 and 100 million comics were consumed per week.
"I don't think we'll ever see that again," Hajdu said. "It's hard for me to imagine how any one thing can be that popular because the modes of distribution are so split, and popular culture is no longer as centralized. Think about the most popular TV shows today like 'American Idol,' and its viewership isn't 100 million - it's only a fraction."
Comics were so ingrained in society that in 1954 a self-governing body was formed to create publishing restrictions in response to a growing public concern that they were having negative influence on its readers. Some folks felt comics were influential to the point that they needed to be feared.
No crimes could be portrayed, the words "horror" or "terror" couldn't appear in the titles, obscenity and profanity needed to be gone and any comics focusing on love and romance needed to promote the values of home and sanctity in marriage. Talk about one single entity being highly bad ass, counter-culture or simply cool even back in the conservative 50s. Comic books were indie rock, Sundance films and alternative 'zines combined, times 10.
Growing up, they seemed more irrelevant than my "Goosebumps" collection does today. Comics were for the Bart Simpsons and Milhouses of the world. Milhouse was the rule when I was a kid, but in the 1950s and right now, it's all about Bart.
On Friday, former Entertainment Weekly editor, pop-culture aficionado and former SU faculty member David Hajdu is coming to speak at Newhouse in conjunction with his new book "Ten-Cent Plague: The Great Comic Book Scare and How It Changed America."
It chronicles comics in American popular culture post-World War II, when they were surprisingly the most far-reaching and culturally relevant form of entertainment. Hajdu cites that back in the 1940s and early 50s, anywhere between 60 and 100 million comics were consumed per week.
"I don't think we'll ever see that again," Hajdu said. "It's hard for me to imagine how any one thing can be that popular because the modes of distribution are so split, and popular culture is no longer as centralized. Think about the most popular TV shows today like 'American Idol,' and its viewership isn't 100 million - it's only a fraction."
Comics were so ingrained in society that in 1954 a self-governing body was formed to create publishing restrictions in response to a growing public concern that they were having negative influence on its readers. Some folks felt comics were influential to the point that they needed to be feared.
No crimes could be portrayed, the words "horror" or "terror" couldn't appear in the titles, obscenity and profanity needed to be gone and any comics focusing on love and romance needed to promote the values of home and sanctity in marriage. Talk about one single entity being highly bad ass, counter-culture or simply cool even back in the conservative 50s. Comic books were indie rock, Sundance films and alternative 'zines combined, times 10.
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