In 1947, Bill Gaines inherited EC Comics, the still-young publishing company founded by his legendary father M. C. Gaines, who had helped shape the birth of the modern comic book during his time at All-American Publications, introducing characters such as Wonder Woman and Green Lantern to the world. Over the next eight years, Bill Gaines and an extraordinary roster of creators including Al Feldstein, Harvey Kurtzman, and Wally Wood would completely redefine the medium with titles such as Tales from the Crypt, Crime SuspenStories, Weird Science, and MAD.
EC captivated readers with gruesome, macabre horror and crime comics known for their shocking twists and dark irony. At the same time, the publisher pioneered realistic war comics, some of the first truly sophisticated science fiction stories, and narratives that confronted taboo subjects including racism, bigotry, vigilantism, drug addiction, police corruption, and antisemitism. Ultimately, the material proved too daring and intellectually ambitious to survive unchallenged. Moral crusaders of the 1950s became convinced that EC’s provocative comics were contributing to juvenile delinquency, and roughly a year after sweeping public hearings targeted horror and crime comics, the groundbreaking EC line disappeared from newsstands.
TASCHEN presents the complete story of this legendary publisher in a volume conceived, designed, and written by EC historian Grant Geissman in collaboration with the Gaines family, who opened their archives and uncovered more than 100 previously unpublished rarities. Many of the reproduced covers were sourced directly from Gaines’s own archive copies, widely regarded as some of the finest surviving EC comics in existence. Even longtime EC devotees are likely to discover something new here.
WHY WE PICKED IT
Featuring more than 1,000 illustrations — including rare and infamous covers, interior pages, artwork, archival photographs, and original vintage drawings — alongside some of the most celebrated stories ever printed in four-color comic form, this volume stands as the definitive EC Comics compendium and an essential work for comic enthusiasts and pop culture historians alike.
DETAILS • Author: Grant Geissman • Publisher: Taschen • Format: Hardcover