| Underground comix | |
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 The cover artwork for an issue of Zap Comix, featuring the character Mr. Natural. |
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| This topic covers comics that fall under various genre. | |
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| Alternative comics |
Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books which are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, including explicit drug use, sexuality and violence. They were most popular in the United States between 1968 and 1975 and between 1973 and 1974 in the United Kingdom.
Early underground comics were influenced by the publications of EC Comics and the works of Harvey Kurtzman, whose magazine Help! featured early work by cartoonists who would later become strongly associated with the underground scene, including Robert Crumb and Gilbert Shelton, and were strongly associated with the counterculture scene. Underground titles were also associated with the punk scene. Underground comix further gained prominence with films and television influenced by the movement, and also began to influence mainstream comic books. Underground comix also influenced the alternative comics scene.
Contents |
History
Early history (1967-1972)
Between the late 1920s and late 1940s, anonymous artists produced counterfeit pornographic comic books featuring unauthorized depictions of popular comic strip characters engaging in sexual activities. Often referred to as Tijuana bibles, these books are often considered the predecessors of the underground comix scene.[1] Early underground comix appeared sporadically in the early and mid-1960s, but did not begin to appear frequently until after 1967. The first underground comix were personal works produced for friends of the artists, in addition to compilations of comic strips which appeared in alternative newspapers.[2]
The United States underground comics scene emerged in the late 1960s as an antithesis to mainstream comic books. Early underground titles focused on subjects relating to the counterculture, including recreational drug use, politics, rock music and sexual intercourse. These titles were termed "comix" in order to differentiate the comics from mainstream publications. The "X" also emphasized the X-rated contents of the publications.[2] Many of the common aspects of the underground comix scene were in response to the strong restrictions forced upon mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, which refused publications featuring depictions of violence, sexuality, drug use, and socially relevant content, all of which appeared in greater levels in underground comix.[2]
American underground comix were strongly influenced by the satirical comics and magazines edited by Harvey Kurtzman, including Mad.[2] Kurtzman's Help! magazine featured the works of artists who would later become well known in the underground comix scene, including Robert Crumb and Gilbert Shelton.[2] Other artists published work in college magazines before becoming known in the underground scene.[2]
In 1968, Robert Crumb self-published his first solo comic, Zap, and sold the issues out of a pram on street corners in Haight-Ashbury. The title was financially successful, and was reprinted by professional publishers The Print Mint, and opened up a market for underground comix. Zap developed into a continuing anthology, with contributions by other cartoonists, and Crumb began to work on a series of solo titles, including Despair, Uneeda (both published by Print Mint in 1969), Big Ass Comics, R. Crumb's Comics and Stories, Motor City Comics (all published by Rip Off Press in 1969), Home Grown Funnies (Kitchen Sink Press, 1971) and Hytone Comix (Apex Novelties, 1971), in addition to founding the pornographic anthologies Jiz and Snatch (both Apex Novelties, 1969).[2]
The underground comix scene had its strongest success in the United States between 1968 and 1975,[2] with titles initially distributed primarily though head shops.[3] Underground comix often featured covers intended to appeal to the drug culture, and imitated LSD-inspired posters to increase sales.[2] Robert Crumb stated that the appeal of underground comix was their lack of censorship: "People forget that that was what it was all about. That was why we did it. We didn't have anybody standing over us saying 'No, you can't draw this' or 'You can't show that'. We could do whatever we wanted."[2]
Crumb's best known underground features included Whiteman, Angelfood McSpade, Fritz the Cat and Mr. Natural. Crumb also drew himself as a character, portraying himself as he was often perceived — a self-loathing, sex-obsessed intellectual.[2] While Crumb's work was often praised for its social commentary, he was also criticized for the misogyny that appeared within his comics. Trina Robbins stated "It's weird to me how willing people are to overlook the hideous darkness in Crumb's work [...] What the hell is funny about rape and murder?"[2] Because of his popularity, many underground cartoonists tried to imitate Crumb's work.[2]
Gilbert Shelton became famous for comedic works such as the superhero parody Wonder Wart-Hog (Millar, 1967), Feds 'n' Heds (self-published in 1968) and The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers (Rip Off Press, 1971), a strip about a trio of "freaks" whose time is spent attempting to acquire drugs, and avoiding the police.[2]
S. Clay Wilson is noted for his use of shocking portrayals of sex and violence. In addition to contributing to Zap, Wilson's work includes Bent (Print Mint, 1971), Pork (Co-Op Press, 1974) and The Checkered Demon (Last Gasp, 1977).[2] Spain Rodriguez had already achieved success in alternative newspapers before becoming known within the underground comix scene. His works are often political, including Trashman, Zodiac Mindwarp (East Village Other, 1967) and Subvert (Rip Off Press, 1970).[2] While Zap was the best known anthology of the scene, other anthologies appeared, including Bijou Funnies, a Chicago publication edited by Jay Lynch and heavily influenced by Mad.[2] The San Francisco anthology Young Lust (Company & Sons, 1970) parodied the 1950s romance genre, and featured works by Bill Griffith and Art Spiegelman. Another successful anthology, Bizarre Sex (Kitchen Sink, 1972) was influenced by science fiction comics, and featured the work of Denis Kitchen and Richard "Grass" Green, one of the few African American contributors to the scene.[2]
Horror also became a popular subgenre within the underground comix scene, with titles such as Skull (Rip Off Press, 1970), Bogeyman (San Francisco Comic Book Company, 1969), Fantagor (Richard Corben, 1970), Insect Fear (Print Mint, 1970), Up From The Deep (Rip Off Press, 1971), Death Rattle (Kitchen Sink, 1972), Gory Stories (Shroud, 1972), Deviant Slice (Print Mint, 1972) and Two Fisted Zombies (Last Gasp, 1973), which were strongly influenced by EC Comics publications such as Tales from the Crypt.[2]
While many male underground cartoonists produced work that was deemed to be misogynistic by some critics, underground publications also featured the work of female cartoonists, including Melinda Gebbie, Lynda Barry, Aline Kominsky and Shary Flenniken, who were prominently featured in anthologies such as Wimmen's Comix (Last Gasp, 1972), Tits 'n' Clits (Nanny Goat Productions, 1972) and It Aint Me Babe (Last Gasp, 1970).[2]
British underground comix also began to appear, influenced by the United States scene. The London scene was associated with hippie publications such as International Times and Oz, which featured the works of British underground cartoonists, as well as reprints of American underground strips.[2] Financial issues led International Times and Oz to finance comix offshoots, hoping that the new publications would make up for their financial loss. International Times financed Cyclops (Innocence and Experience, 1970) and Nasty Tals (Bloom, 1970), and Oz financed Cozmic Comics, which printed British underground comic strips and reprints of American underground comix. Creators associated with the London scene included Chris Welch, Edward Barker, Michael J. Weller, Malcolm Livingstone, William Rankin, Dave Gibbons and Brian Bolland.[2] American comics featured heavily in these publications because they were not as controversial in the United Kingdom as they were in the United States.[2] Because of the contractual terms set by the publishers, underground artists had no claims on their work, and the editors of these publications could publish as much of it as they wanted.[2]
Recognition and controversy (1972-1982)
Film and television began to reflect the influence of underground comix in the 1970s, starting with the release of a film adaptation of Robert Crumb's Fritz the Cat directed by Ralph Bakshi, which was the first animated film to receive an X rating from the MPAA.[3] Further adult-oriented animated films influenced by underground comix followed, including The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat and Down and Dirty Duck.[3] The influence of underground comix has also been attributed to films such as The Lord of the Rings (1978) and Forbidden Zone (1980).[3] The popularity of Monty Python's Flying Circus, which featured the animation of Help! contributor Terry Gilliam, has also been attributed to the prominence of the underground comix scene.[2][3] Mainstream publications such as Playboy and National Lampoon also began to publish comics and art similar to that of underground comix.[2]
Critics of the underground comix scene claimed that the publications were socially irresponsible, and glorified violence, sex and drug use.[2] In 1973, the Supreme Court ruled that local communities could decide their own First Amendment standards wth reference to obscenity. In the mid-1970s, sales of drug paraphernalia was outlawed in many places, and the distribution network for these comics (and the underground newspapers) dried up, leaving mail order as the only commercial outlet for underground titles.[3] While the American underground comix scene was beginning to decline, British underground comix came into prominence between 1973 and 1974, but soon faced the same kind of criticism that American underground comix received.[2]
In 1974, Marvel Comics offered to publish a regular comic featuring the work of underground artists, titled Comix Book, requesting that artists submit work that was significantly less explicit in order for the material to be sold at newsstands.[2] A number of underground artists agreed to contribute work, including Art Spiegelman, Trina Robbins, and S. Clay Wilson. However, the comic did not sell well, and lasted only five issues.[2][4] In 1976, Marvel achieved success with Howard the Duck, a satirical comic aimed at adult audiences that was inspired by the underground comix scene. While it did not depict the explicit content that was often featured in underground comix, it was more socially relevant than anything Marvel had previously published.[2]
By this time, some artists, including Spiegelman, felt that the underground comix scene had become less creative than it had been in the past. According to Spiegelman, "What had seemed like a revolution simply deflated into a lifestyle. Underground comics were stereotyped as dealing only with Sex, Dope and Cheap Thrills. They got stuffed back into the closet, along with bong pipes and love beads, as Things Started To Get Uglier."[2]
Autobiographical comics began to come into prominence in 1976, with the premiere of Harvey Pekar's self-published comic American Splendor, which featured art by underground cartoonists, including Robert Crumb.[2]
In the late 1970s, major publishers Marvel and D.C. agreed to sell their comics on a no return basis at large discounts to comic book retailers, which led to later deals that helped underground publishers.[3] During these period, underground titles focusing on feminist and Gay Liberation themes began to appear, as well as comics associated with the environmental movement.[2] British underground cartoonists also created political titles, but they did not sell as well as American political comics.[2] The punk subculture began to influence underground comix.[5]
Recent history (1982-present)
In 1982, the distribution of underground comix changed through the emergence of specialty stores.[3]
In response to attempts by mainstream publishers to appeal to adult audiences, the alternative comics emerged, focusing on many of the same themes as underground comix, as well as publishing work that was experimental in nature.[5] Artists formally associated with the underground comix scene began to associate themselves with alternative comics, including Robert Crumb, Bill Griffith, Kim Deitch, Justin Green and Lynda Barry.[5] In the 1980s, sexual comix came into prominence, which integrated sex into their story lines rather utilizing sexual explicitness for shock value.[5] The first of these features was Omaha the Cat Dancer, which made its first appearance in an issue of the underground publication Bizarre Sex. Inspired by Fritz the Cat, Omaha the Cat Dancer focused on an anthropomorphic feline stripper.[6] Other comix with a sexual focus included Melody, based on the life story of Sylvie Rancourt, and Cherry Poptart, a comedic sex comic featuring art similar in style to that of Archie Comics.[5][6]
Art Spiegelman's graphic novel Maus originated from a strip published in a 1973 underground comic.[3] Bill Griffith's Zippy the Pinhead originally appeared in underground titles before being syndicated.[3] Alternative cartoonist Peter Bagge was strongly influenced by underground comics.[5]
Today, reprints of early underground comix continue to sell alongside modern underground publications.[3]
References
- ^ Sabin, Roger (1996). "Comical comics". Comics, Comix & Graphic Novels: A History Of Comic Art. London, United Kingdom: Phaidon Press. p. 35. ISBN 0714830089.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai Sabin, Roger (1996). "Going underground". Comics, Comix & Graphic Novels: A History Of Comic Art. London, United Kingdom: Phaidon Press. pp. 92; 94-95; 103-107; 110; 111; 116; 119; 124-126; 128. ISBN 0714830089.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Estren, Mark James (1993). "Foreword: Onward!". A History of Underground Comics. Ronin Publishing. p. 7-8; 10. ISBN 091417164X.
- ^ Sabin, Roger (1996). "Picking up the pieces". Comics, Comix & Graphic Novels: A History Of Comic Art. London, United Kingdom: Phaidon Press. p. 151. ISBN 0714830089.
- ^ a b c d e f Sabin, Roger (1996). "Alternative Visions". Comics, Comix & Graphic Novels: A History Of Comic Art. London, United Kingdom: Phaidon Press. pp. 177-78; 182; 188; 200; 208-209. ISBN 0714830089.
- ^ a b Skinn, Dez (2004). "Can't Get Enuff". Comix: The Underground Revolution. Thunder's Mouth Press. p. 71; 73.
Bibliography
- Estren, Mark James. A History of Underground Comics, (Straight Arrow Books/Simon and Schuster, 1974; revised ed., Ronin publishing, 1992)
- Kennedy, Jay. The Underground and New Wave Comix Price Guide. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Boatner Norton Press, 1982.
- Rosenkranz, Patrick. Rebel Visions: the Underground Comix Revolution,1963-1975 Fantagraphics Books, 2002. ISBN 1-56097-464-8
External links
- Moore Collection of Underground Comix - A special collection of the library of California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly)
- Lynn R. Hansen Underground Comics Collection - A special collection of the library of Washington State University
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