Four Color Wonders
Comics and censorship: From the Seduction of the Innocent to Boiled Angel.
      by Tara O'Shea

Crypt of Terror #17 was 1st issue of Crypt Keeper tales, from EC comics.

Although the hearing was inconclusive and the industry was in fact vindicated, the damage had already been done. America clamored for restrictions on what could and couldn't be published in comic book form. "Objection to censorship which can be, and has been, abused has been raised," said one of the editors of the Christian Science Monitor in 1954, "but the conviction remains that the restriction of so-called personal liberty in an effort to produce the best interests of the public is not nearly as unconstitutional as the violation of decency by the money-making interests, and cannot be used as a reason for no regulations."

The hue and cry was answered by the establishment of the Comics Code Authority -- the industry's attempt at self-policing that has held for fifty years. Drawing heavily from the Hays code established in Hollywood during the Depression, the Comics Code effectively curtailed comics ability to tell complex and adult stories with its simplistic approach. Guidelines include:

• Crimes shall never be presented in such a way as to create sympathy for the criminal, to promote distrust of the forces of law and justice, or to inspire others with a desire to imitate criminals.
• No comics shall explicitly present the unique details and methods of a crime.
• Policemen, judges, government officials, and respected institutions shall never be presented in such a way as to create disrespect for established authority.
• If crime is depicted it shall be as a sordid and unpleasant activity.

The Comics Code seemed to enforce the idea that comics - unlike other forms of written and artistic expression - were no longer subject to the protection of the First Amendment.

• Criminals shall not be presented so as to be rendered glamorous or to occupy a position which creates the desire for emulation.
• In every instance good shall triumph over evil and the criminal punished for his misdeeds.

However, the Code was also created by the other publishers to bring EC Comics--which at the time was outselling all other comics publishers while publishing a mere 9 titles -- to its knees. Rules aimed specifically at EC Comics included:

• No comic magazine shall use the word "horror" or "terror" in its title.
• Scenes of excessive violence shall be prohibited. Scenes of brutal torture, excessive and unnecessary knife and gun play, physical agony, gory and gruesome crime shall be eliminated.
• The letter of the word "crime" on a comics magazine shall never be appreciably greater than the other words contained in the title. The word "crime" shall never appear alone on a cover.
• All scenes of horror, excessive bloodshed, gory or gruesome crimes, depravity, lust, sadism, masochism shall not be permitted.
• All lurid, unsavory, gruesome illustrations shall be eliminated.
• Scenes dealing with, or instruments associated with walking dead, torture, vampires and vampirism, ghouls, cannibalism, and werewolfism are prohibited.

EC Comics -- home of the Old Witch, the Crypt-Keeper, and the Vault Keeper -- was decimated. However, one of its publications survived the mid 50s by changing its name. The 10-cent satirical comic Mad became Mad Magazine in 1955 and went on to become a cultural icon.

MAD Magazine

But the real kicker is Part C of the original Comics Code, which states, "All elements or techniques not specifically mentioned herein, but which are contrary to the spirit and intent of the Code, and are considered violations of good taste or decency, shall be prohibited."

Virtually no mainstream comic was sold in the following decades without the CCA seal of approval. But more importantly, the Code seemed to enforce the idea that comics -- unlike other forms of written and artistic expression -- were no longer subject to the protection of the First Amendment.

Although the Code was revised and expanded in 1971 and 1989, the attitude lingers that comics are for kids. Herein lies the cause of most of the censorship and First Amendment Rights cases against comics authors, artists, distributors, and publishers: the belief that not only are comics for children, but anything published in comic book form should automatically be suitable for all-ages.

The logic of this escapes most sane human beings.

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