EC Comics
Above: a classic Jack Davis cover for 'Tales From The Crypt'
Entertaining Comics, was headed by
William Gaines but is better known by its publishing name of
EC Comics. The firm was a
publisher of
comic books specializing in crime, horror, war, and science-fiction comics from the
1940s through the
1950s. It also published
MAD and other satire comics which evolved into
MAD Magazine.
The firm, first known as Educational Comics, was owned by
Max Gaines, who published
Picture Stories from the Bible and biographies of important figures from science and history in comic book form.
When Max died in
1947 in a boating accident, his son,
William Gaines inherited the business. He had no previous interest in publishing, being a student studying to become a science teacher at
SUNY. After a time, he began to enjoy publishing, but only after turning the company into a more successful publisher. He did this by focusing on
horror,
suspense,
science fiction,
war, and
humor comics. With this new content, the company needed a name change, and so it became Entertaining Comics.
The firm had success with its many titles, and pioneered in forming relationships with its readers through its letters to the editor and its fan organization, the National E.C. Fan-Addict Club.
After the comic book industry imploded during the 1950s in the wake of the hysteria caused by Dr.
Frederick Wertham's book
Seduction of the Innocent (and, just as important, a shakeup in the distribution companies who sold comic books and
pulp magazines in America), most of EC Comics' titles were cancelled.
William Gaines attempted to revive a few of the
science fiction based EC comics, watering down the story lines and artwork in order to conform to the newly founded
Comics Code. However this was unsuccessful, and instead the company shifted its focus to publishing the comedy and satire magazines.
William Gaines waged a number of battles with the
Comics Code, in an attempt to keep his magazines free of censorship during the later days of EC. One notable incident involved his threatening the members of the
Comics Code board with a lawsuit after being ordered to alter the climactic scene of a science fiction story, so that one of the characters would not be seen sweating. When EC found a large audience of young readers embracing its humor magazine
Tales Calculated to Drive You MAD, the company abandoned its other titles and focused exclusively on publishing
MAD magazine for the next four decades.
Above: cover of 'Impact' comics reprint of EC title
'Shock SuspenStories', featuring classic artwork by Wallace Wood
Entertaining Comics New Trend and
New Direction titles included;\n*
Weird Science\n*
Weird Fantasy\n*
Weird Science Fantasy\n*
Crime SuspenStories\n*
Shock SuspenStories\n*
Two Fisted Tales\n*
Frontline Combat\n*
Tales from the Crypt\n*
The Haunt of Fear\n*
The Vault of Horror\n*
Psychoanalysis\n*
M.D\n*
Impact\n*
Aces High\n*
Extra\n*
Valor'\'\n*Piracy
\n*Panic
\n*MAD''\n \n
External link
Category:Comic book publishers