The Comic Book Code Authority

The comic book code authority was formed in 1954 because people believed that the comic book industry was becoming too graphic and violent. The content was deemed inappropriate for the populace. Some of the restrictions included the misrepresentation of the police, judges and governmental representatives. In addition, the drawings of vampires and werewolves were prohibited. Titles could not use terminology like "horror" or "terror".

While the comic book authority had no legal jurisdiction over the comic book publishers, they yielded a large influence. Some comic book companies went out of business while others prospered. The restrictions placed were meant to help society deal with the comic book industry. Society began to loosen some of the taboos of that time, and the furor over the language suggested that the loosened traits needed to be reined in. In such times, it becomes necessary to look at why the comic book code authority was set up. In 1954, McCarthyism was at its peak. Censorship abounded and the who, what, why, where and when all dealt with Communism. A natural branch with that scenario was the printed material. While there are no direct links to such a statement, one must consider what was transpiring during the period. Celebrities were blacklisted if deemed
outside of conventional standards. Comic books could have linked the publisher with Communist propaganda if the material was considered subversive in nature. Again, this is conjecture on my part. Any words or statements can be intentionally misconstrued and false analogies can be applied.

Another prominent explanation is a book written by Dr. Frederic Wertham entitled 'The seduction of the innocent'. In the book, Dr. Wertham espoused that the super hero genre had helped incite the rise of young people's misbehavior. The public chorus of disapproval was pivotal in the implementation of the comic book code authority. Both issues helped sustain the need for something to be done.

The mentality was in place until the 1960's with the advent of the flower child era. Without the suppression, underground comics took on a life of their own. They developed comic books that were distributed through unconventional means. That process enabled the fledging comic book industry not to adhere to the restrictions the comic book code suggested. In 1971 Stan Lee, the editor- in -chief did a three part mini series of Spiderman that depicted banned drug use. The code stated that the topic of drug use was prohibited, so Stan Lee took the seal off for the three issues and then put it back on. That took a lot of courage to defy the code. Considering the wide spread use of illicit drug use, that was an important step. If a topic that is controversial is banned in comic books, then how do you draw attention to its negative side affects? That was the quandary the comic book code authority faced. It did not want to become irrelevant.

In the 2000's the influence of the comic book code started to diminish. More and more publishers wanted to branch out and create comic books that illustrated topics that were more controversial.

The comic book code authority of today is not what it used to be. Marvel comics no longer align themselves. Instead, they created their own code. Some of DC comics still submit to the comic book authority, but will publish it despite their ruling. Archie comics regularly send their comic books to the comic book authority for approval.

What was once a powerful and prominent organization has been reduced to a minor player in the comic book world.