Confidential File: Horror Comic Books!

A report by Paul Coates. Produced by Jim Peck. Directed by Irvin Kershner. Aired October 9, 1955. A KTTV Production, Los Angeles, for Times-Mirror.

In 1954 the Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency conducted an investigation into how the comic book industry was supposedly contributing to the moral decay of a nation's youth. The investigations were spurred on by a number of articles that blamed comics for the rise in juvenile delinquency in post-war America. Chief among the critics was Doctor Frederic Wertham, whose book, "Seduction of The Innocent" has been blamed for nearly single-handedly crippling the entire comics industry.

In 1955, the comic book publishers formed the self-regulating organization, The Comics Code Authority, which great impacted on how comic books were perceived by the public and what kind of stories were told in the comics for decades. The effects of the virtual witch-hunt from this period in American history still has effect on the comic book industry to this day.

"Confidential File" was aired in 1955, after the senate hearings and the formation of the Comics Code, but it serves as a perfect example of how the media reacted to the comic book industry, and sought a scape goat by blaming the comic book publications for society's own lack of responsibility in raising its children. A blame game that would later manifest itself when later TV cartoons, rock and roll music, Dungeons & Dragons, videogames, and so on would become the new whipping boy for those that didn't want to look to themselves for the state of their own children and society's sad state.

It is my understanding that the television program uploaded here is in the public domain, and is being shown here for educational purposes.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• comic
• books
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• history
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• horror
• crime
• senate
• investigation
• frederic
• wertham
• seduction
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• ec
• educational
• entertainment
• juvenile
• delinquents

[pinchiguero1]

Didn't they think having the children make this film would also put the idea of torturing someone in their minds? Especially since they had them actually act it out.

[MattHawes]

@pinchiguero1, I'm sure that they still would have found a way to blame even that on comics.

[twistedtweek]

Awesome! Great post. thanks Matt

[MattHawes]

@twistedtweek , Thanks!

[ragnarok739]

Hi there, My sister-in-law's grandmother appeared in some episodes of Confidential File and she wanted to know if there were more out there to be found.

Thanks

[MattHawes]

@ragnarok739, Hi! I don't know about any of the other episodes from this series, so I won't be able to help you on that. Sorry.

[westeightyone]

@TheDavidfilms

The so-called 'romantic story' that the host talks about at the beginning of this video was called

"My Ass, My Rules".

[MattHawes]

@betaraybrad91. The 1950's was full of it, wasn't it?

[felixjazzage]

Bernie sounds a lot like the Milton character from "Office Space."

I wish I had a time machine so I could go back to 1955 and punch the pompous host of this program in the face repeatedly and make him sit down and read some EC comics for a few hours in order to get me to stop. Sorry, I guess the horror comics drove me to that.

[charliedontsurf70]

today parents beg their kids to read!

[666offering]

Bernie seemed like a real cut up

[RutnRampage]

They tore up thousands of dollars worth of comics in this thing LOL I read that stuff when I was a kid...I didnt have a problem...I actually became interested in the artists and drawings rather than buy an axe and chop off peoples heads. Im 52 and actually began drawing myself and still have a few of those which are 35 years old.

[MiHiVidz]

@brandxofttl I don't think Kershner actually supported this anti-comic book shit personally. Besides, the guy is dead too so it doesn't really matter.

Oddly enough, even Dr. Wertham himself (the biggest anti comic book crusader out there in the 50's) later wrote a book in the early 70's called "The World of Fanzines", where he praised the medium.

[brandxofttl]

The craziest part about this? This was directed by the same guy who directed The Empire Strikes Back and Robocop 2. Fanboys everywhere are torn in two.

[RetroToledo]

@LopezMelendez Except for those EC legends that had to accept their fate.