The History Behind Comic Books and Comic Book Censorship

Did you know September 25 is National Comic Book Day? Did you know that the Comic Code Authority (the censorship code that ruled the comic’s industry for over 50 years) is now completely defunct? It’s a big year for comic books and to celebrate National Comic Book Day, let’s take a look at the rise and fall of the censorship code and the rise of comics in general. Which is the Real First? Historians May Never Agree

If you’ve ever wondered why so many dramatic titles have all been lumped under the title of “comic books,” that’s because the whole medium started out as a way for publishers to put together compilations of their  newspaper comic strips. While historians debate what defines an actual comic book, and thus, what the earliest comic book is, one of the earliest American contenders is 1842’s The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck, which was a hardcover book featuring an array of chronological stories about M. Vieux Bois.

The earliest contender for a comic book in the format we recognize was The Yellow Kid in McFadden’s Flats, printed in 1897. The magazine was a reprint of the newspaper strip Hogan’s Alley, which starred the Yellow Kid. Hogan’s Alley was already one of the earliest weekly comic strips and when the black and white, 5x7 inch magazine was released on newsstands, it may have been the first real comic book as well and even featured the words “comic book” on the back cover.

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