A comic book (often shortened to simply comic and sometimes called a funny book, comic paper or comic magazine) is a magazine Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles, generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three. Magazines can be distributed through the mail; through sales by newsstands, bookstores or other vendors; made up of narrative artwork in the form of separate "panels A panel is an individual frame, or single drawing, in the multiple-panel sequence of a comic strip or comic book. A panel consists of one drawing that depicts a single moment. Comic strips in daily newspapers typically consist of either four panels or three panels (Garfield, Dilbert), all of the same size. In Asia, a vertical 4-panel arrangement (" that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog Dialogue is a literary and theatrical form, the most notable examples of which in Western literature are the dialogues of Plato. Dialogue is, fundamentally, a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people (usually in word balloons Speech balloons are a graphic convention used most commonly in comic books, strips, and cartoons to allow words (and much less often, pictures) to be understood as representing the speech or thoughts of a given character in the comic. There is often a formal distinction between the balloon that indicates thoughts and the one that indicates words, emblematic of the comic book art form) as well as including brief descriptive prose. The first comic book appeared in the United States of America ^ b. English is the de facto language of American government and the sole language spoken at home by 80% of Americans age five and older. Spanish is the second most commonly spoken language in 1934, reprinting the earlier newspaper comic strips A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions. Traditionally, throughout the 20th century and into the 21st, these were published in newspapers, with horizontal strips printed in black-and-white in daily newspapers, while, which established many of the story-telling devices used in comics. The term "comic book" arose because the first comic books reprinted humor comic strips, but despite their name, comic books do not necessarily operate in humorous mode; most modern comic books tell stories in a variety of genres. The Japanese and European comic book markets demonstrate this clearly. In the United States the super-hero A superhero is a type of stock character possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers" and dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes—ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas—have dominated American comic books and crossed genre dominates the market, even though other genres also exist.

American comics

Since the introduction of the comic-book format in 1934 with the publication of Famous Funnies Famous Funnies is an American publication of the 1930s that represents what popular culture historians consider the first true American comic book, following seminal precursors, the United States ^ b. English is the de facto language of American government and the sole language spoken at home by 80% of Americans age five and older. Spanish is the second most commonly spoken language has produced the most titles, with only the British comic British comics are usually comics anthologies which are typically aimed at children, and are published weekly, although some are also published on a fortnightly or monthly schedule. The top three longest-running comics in the world, The Dandy, The Beano and Comic Cuts are all British, although in modern times British comics have been largely and Japanese manga Manga (kanji: 漫画; hiragana: まんが; katakana: マンガ; listen ; English: /ˈmɑːŋɡə/ or /ˈmæŋɡə/) consist of comics and print cartoons (sometimes also called komikku コミック), in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th century. In their modern form, manga date from shortly after as close competitors in terms of quantity of titles. The comic-book industry in the U.S. markets the majority of its output to young adult Young-adult fiction is fiction written for, published for, or marketed to adolescents and young adults, roughly ages 14 to 21 readers, though it also produces titles for young children as well as catering to adult audiences.

Cultural historians divide the career of the comic book in the U.S. into several ages or historical eras The categorization of time into discrete named blocks is called periodization. This is a list of such named time periods as defined in various fields of study. Major categorization systems include cosmological , geological (concerning time periods in the origin and evolution of earth ) and historical (concerning time periods in the origin and:

• the Proto-comic books and the Platinum Age Since the invention of the comic-book format in 1934, the United States has produced the most examples, with only the British comic books and the Japanese manga as close competitors in terms of quantity.[citation needed]
• the Golden Age The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books, generally thought of as lasting from the late 1930s until the late 1940s. During this time, modern comic books were first published and enjoyed a surge of popularity; the archetype of the superhero was created and defined; and many of the most famous superheroes
• the Silver Age The Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those in the superhero genre. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an interregnum in the early to mid-1950s, the Silver Age is considered to cover the period from 1956 to circa 1970, and was succeeded
• the Bronze Age The Bronze Age of Comic Books is an informal name for a period in the history of mainstream American comic books usually said to run from the early 1970s to the mid-1980s. It follows the Silver Age of Comic Books
• the Modern Age The Modern Age of Comic Books is an informal name for the period in the history of mainstream American comic books generally considered to last from the mid-1980s until present day. In this period, comic book characters generally became darker and more psychologically complex, creators became better-known and active in changing the industry,

Comic-book historians continue to debate the exact boundaries of these eras, the terms for which originated in the fandom Fandom is a term used to refer to a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of sympathy and camaraderie with others who share a common interest. Fans typically are interested in even minor details of the object(s) of their fandom and spend a significant portion of their time and energy involved with their interest, often as a part press Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information – the activity of making information available for public view. In some cases authors may be their own publishers, meaning: originators and developers of content also provide media to deliver and display the content.

Comic books as a print medium have existed in America since the printing of The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck Histoire de M. Vieux Bois, published in English as The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck, and also known as Les amours de Mr. Vieux Bois or simply Monsieur Vieuxbois, is a 19th-century publication written and illustrated by the Swiss caricaturist Rodolphe Töpffer. Published first in Europe as Histoire de M. Vieux Bois, and then in the United States in 1842 in hard cover - making it not only the first known American comic book but the first American graphic novel as well. The introduction of Jerry Siegel Jerome "Jerry" Siegel , who also used pseudonyms including Joe Carter, Jerry Ess, and Herbert S. Fine, was the American co-creator of Superman (along with Joe Shuster), the first of the great comic book superheroes and one of the most recognizable of the 20th century and Joe Shuster Joseph "Joe" Shuster was a Canadian-born American comic book artist, son to a Dutch father and a Ukrainian mother, who was best known for co-creating the DC Comics character Superman, with writer Jerry Siegel, first published in Action Comics #1 (June 1938). He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio's Superman Superman is a fictional character, a comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective Comics, Inc. in 1938, the character first in 1938 turned comic books into a major industry,^[1] and is often presented^{[by whom?]} as the start of the Golden Age of comics. Historians have proposed several names for the Age before Superman, most commonly dubbing it the Platinum Age.^[2]

While the Platinum Age saw the first use of the term "comic book" (The Yellow Kid in McFadden's Flats (1897)), the first known full-color comic (The Blackberries (1901)), and the first monthly comic book (Comics Monthly (1922)) it was not until the Golden Age that the archetype An archetype is an original model of a person, ideal example, or a prototype upon which others are copied, patterned, or emulated; a symbol universally recognized by all. In psychology, an archetype is a model of a person, personality, or behavior of the superhero would originate.

The Silver Age of Comic Books is generally considered^{[by whom?]} to date from the first successful revival of the dormant superhero form — the debut of Robert Kanigher Robert Kanigher was a prolific comic book writer and editor whose career spanned five decades. He was involved with the Wonder Woman franchise for over twenty years, taking over the scripting from creator William Moulton Marston. In addition, Kanigher spent many years in charge of DC Comics' war titles, as well as creating the popular character and Carmine Infantino Carmine Infantino is an American comic book artist and editor who was a major force in the Silver Age of Comic Books. He was inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2000, and was cited in Comics Buyer's Guide Millennium Poll as the greatest penciller of all time's Flash The Flash is a name shared by several fictional comic book superheroes from the DC Comics universe. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in Flash Comics #1 in Showcase Showcase has been the title of several anthology series published by DC Comics. The general theme of these series has been to feature new and minor characters as a way to gauge reader interest in them, without the difficulty and risk of featuring "untested" characters in their own ongoing titles. The original series ran from March 1956 #4 (September-October 1956).^[3][4] The Silver Age lasted through the early 1970s, during which time Marvel Comics Marvel Publishing, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media. Marvel Entertainment, Inc., a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, owns Marvel Publishing revolutionized the medium with such naturalistic Naturalism was a literary movement taking place from 1880s to 1940s that used detailed realism to suggest that social conditions, heredity, and environment had inescapable force in shaping human character. It was depicted as a literary movement that seeks to replicate a believable everyday reality, as opposed to such movements as Romanticism or superheroes as Stan Lee Stan Lee is an American comic book writer, editor, actor, producer, publisher, television personality, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics and Jack Kirby Jacob Kurtzberg , better known by the pen name Jack Kirby, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor. Growing up poor in New York City, Kurtzberg entered the nascent comics industry in the 1930s. He drew various comic strips under different pseudonyms, ultimately settling on Jack Kirby. In 1941, Kirby and writer Joe Simon created the's Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a fictional superhero team appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 , which helped to usher in a new level of verisimilitude in the medium. The Fantastic Four was the first superhero team created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist and co-plotter Jack Kirby, who and Stan Lee and Steve Ditko Stephen J. "Steve" Ditko is an American comic book artist and writer best known as the co-creator of the Marvel Comics heroes Spider-Man and Doctor Strange's Spider-Man Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15 . Lee and Ditko conceived of the character as an orphan being raised by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben, and as a teenager, having to deal with the normal struggles of youth in.

The precise beginnings of the Bronze and Modern ages remain less well-defined. Suggested starting points for the Bronze Age of comics include Roy Thomas Roy William Thomas, Jr. is a comic book writer and editor, and Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibly best known for introducing the pulp magazine hero Conan the Barbarian to American comics, with a series that added to the storyline of Robert E. Howard's character and helped launch a sword and sorcery trend and Barry Windsor-Smith Barry Windsor-Smith, also known as Barry Smith is a British comic book illustrator and painter whose best known work has been produced in the United States's Conan Conan the Barbarian is a fictional character in books, comics and movies. He is a hero, a well known and iconic figure in American fantasy, and the most famous barbarian in fiction #1 (October 1970), Denny O'Neil Dennis J. "Denny" O'Neil is an American comic book writer and editor, principally for Marvel Comics and DC Comics in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, and Group Editor for the Batman family of books until his retirement and Neal Adams Neal Adams is an American comic book and commercial artist known for helping to create some of the definitive modern imagery of the DC Comics characters Superman, Batman, and Green Arrow; as the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates; and as a creators-rights advocate who helped secure a pension and recognition for Superman' Green Lantern Green Lantern is the name of several fictional characters, superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The first was created by writer Bill Finger and artist Martin Nodell in All-American Comics #16 (July 1940)/Green Arrow Green Arrow is a fictional character, published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp, he first appeared in More Fun Comics #73 in 1941. His secret identity is Oliver "Ollie" Queen, billionaire and former mayor of fictional Star City. Dressed like Robin Hood, Green Arrow is an archer, who invents trick arrows with #76 (April 1970) or Stan Lee and Gil Kane Eli Katz who worked under the name Gil Kane and in a few instances Scott Edwards, was a comic book artist whose career spanned the 1940s to 1990s and every major comics company and character's Amazing Spider-Man The Amazing Spider-Man is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics, featuring the adventures of the superhero Spider-Man #96 (May 1971) (the non-Comics Code The Comics Code Authority is part of the Comics Magazine Association of America (CMAA), and was created to regulate the content of comic books in the United States. Member publishers submit comic books to the CCA, which screens them for conformance to its Comics Code, and authorizes the use of their seal on the cover if the books comply. At the issue). The start of the Modern Age (occasionally referred to as the "Iron Age") has even more potential starting points, but is generally agreed to be the publication of Frank Miller Frank Miller is an American comic book creator and film director best known for his dark, film noir-style comic book stories and graphic novels Ronin, Daredevil: Born Again, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300. He recently directed the film version of The Spirit, shared directing duties with Robert Rodriguez on Sin City and produced's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Batman: The Dark Knight Returns is a four-issue comic book limited series written and drawn by Frank Miller, originally published by DC Comics in 1986. The Dark Knight Returns tells the story of a middle-aged Batman who comes out of retirement to fight crime, only to face opposition from the Gotham City police force and the United States graphic novel and Alan Moore's Watchmen by DC Comics in 1986, as well as the publication of DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths, with Marv Wolfman as writer and George Pérez on the pencils.

Comics published after World War II in 1945 sometimes get labelled as products of the "Atomic Age" (referring to the dropping of the atomic bomb), while commentators^[who?] sometimes refer to titles published after November 1961 as belonging to the "Marvel Age" (referring to the advent of Marvel Comics). However, the secondary literature refers to these "eras" far less frequently than to the aforementioned designations.

A notable event in the history of the American comic book came with the psychiatrist Fredric Wertham's criticisms of the medium in his book Seduction of the Innocent (1954), which prompted the American Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency to investigate comic books. In response to attention from the government and from the media, the US comic book industry set up the Comics Code Authority in 1954 and drafted the Comics Code in the same year.

Underground comics

In the late 1960s and early 1970s a surge of creativity emerged in what became known as underground comics. Published and distributed independently of the established comics industry, most of such comics reflected the youth counterculture and drug culture of the time. Many had an uninhibited, often irreverent style; their frank depictions of nudity, sex, profanity, and politics had no parallel outside their precursors, the pornographic and even more obscure "Tijuana bibles". Underground comics were almost never sold at news stands, but rather in such youth-oriented outlets as head shops and record stores, as well as by mail order.

Frank Stack's The Adventures of Jesus, published under the name Foolbert Sturgeon,^[5][6] has been credited as the first underground comic.^[5][6]

Alternative comics

The rise of comic-book specialty stores in the late 1970s created/paralleled a dedicated market for "independent" or "alternative comics" in the United States. The first such comics included the anthology series Star Reach, published by comic-book writer Mike Friedrich from 1974 to 1979, and Harvey Pekar's American Splendor, which continued sporadic publication into the 21st century and which Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini adapted into a 2003 film. Some independent comics continued in the tradition of underground comics, though their content was generally less explicit, and others resembled the output of mainstream publishers in format and genre but were published by smaller artist-owned companies or by single artists. A few (notably RAW) were experimental attempts to bring comics closer to the status of fine art.

During the 1970s the "small press" culture grew and diversified. By the 1980s several independent publishers, such as Pacific, Eclipse, First, Comico and Fantagraphics had started releasing a wide range of styles and formats: from color superhero, detective and science fiction comic books to black-and-white magazine-format stories of Latin American magical realism.

A number of small publishers in the 1990s changed the format and distribution of their comics to more closely resemble non-comics publishing. The "minicomics" form, an extremely informal version of self-publishing, arose in the 1980s and became increasingly popular among artists in the 1990s, despite reaching an even more limited audience than the small press.

As of 2009^[update] small publishers regularly releasing titles include Avatar Comics, Hyperwerks, Raytoons, and Terminal Press, buoyed by such advances in printing technology as digital print-on-demand.

Graphic novels

Rich Kyle coined the term "graphic novel" in 1964 in an attempt to distinguish newly translated European works from what Kyle perceived as the more juvenile subject matter common in the United States.

Will Eisner popularized the term when he used it on the cover of the paperback edition of his work A Contract with God, and Other Tenement Stories in 1978. This represented a more thematically mature work than many had come to expect from the comics medium, and the critical success of A Contract with God helped to bring the term into common usage.^{[citation needed]}

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