Horror Comics in Black and White

In 1954, the comic book industry instituted the Comics Code, a set of self-regulatory guidelines imposed to placate public concern over gory and horrific comic book content, effectively banning genuine horror comics. Because the Code applied only to color comics, many artists and writers turned to black and white to circumvent the Code’s narrow confines.
With the 1964 Creepy #1 from Warren Publishing, black-and-white horror comics experienced a revival continuing into the early 21st century, an important step in the maturation of the horror genre within the comics field as a whole.
This generously illustrated work offers a comprehensive history and retrospective of the black-and-white horror comics that flourished on the newsstands from 1964 to 2004. With a catalog of original magazines, complete credits and insightful analysis, it highlights an important but overlooked period in the history of comics.

Richard J. Arndt is a noted comics historian whose work has appeared in numerous magazines, including Alter Ego, Back Issue, Comic Book Artist, Spooky, From the Tomb, and others. He lives in Nevada, where he works as a librarian and writer.

Richard J. Arndt
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 300
Bibliographic Info: 77 photos, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2013
pISBN: 978-0-7864-7025-9
eISBN: 978-0-7864-9315-9
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents


Acknowledgments vi

Pitching Tents in the Darkness: A Foreword by Stephen R. Bissette 1

Preface 4

Introduction: A Black and White Horror Comics Overview 5

The Warren Magazines 13

The Complete Skywald Checklist 162

Marvel’s Black and White Horror Magazines Checklist 200

The Best of the Rest! Web of Horror, Atlas/Seaboard, and Others

Major Publications  240

DC Comics  242

Atlas/Seaboard  243

Myron Fass  245

Quality Communications  247

Archie  258

Spider-Baby Graphix  259

Globe Communications  267

Bruce Hamilton  269

IDW Publishing  272

Hoffman and Crawley  274

A Time of Wine-Dark Horrors 276

The Best Black and White Horror Tales 283

Sources 287

Index 289

“Recommended”—Choice; “a great book…indispensable”—Mania.com; “Arndt draws on the original magazines, as well as reference books and interviews with publishers, editors, writers, and artists, to document the history of b&w horror comic magazines”—Reference & Research Book News.