Text - Rhodes University

For the first two decades of the twentieth century, the novelty of the medium itself was
reason enough for adults to read them. But public opinion held that comics were not a
real medium like writing, and therefore not worthy of serious attention: comics were a
humourous diversion, read in earnest only by children and illiterate adults.
"From the beginning, then, comics were produced within a climate in which
they were counterposed to everything
dangerous. They were guaranteed to be non-serious literature, specially
suited to children." (Barker, 1989, p.8)
In the 1920s strips like Tarzan and Buck Rogers were introduced. Being tales of
adventure and intrigue, these comics were drawn in a classically realistic, though
exaggerated, style. Neccesitating longer narratives than funnies, the four to six frame
daily newspaper strips were lengthened, becoming monthly comic books. Strips were still
serialized in the newspapers, and stories sometimes ran over several years, but comic
books became independant of the newspapers. For the first time, publishing houses
concentrating on comic books were profitable ventures.
Superman was created in the late 1930s; imitations soon followed.
Superheroes
dominated the market completely in the 1940s and 1960s, with a brief respite during the
1950s when crime comics, a closely related genre, gained popularity for a while. At
present superhero comics still make up the bulk of comics produced in the United States.
"[These comics] partly owed their success to the fact that they never
sounded the least note of satire or parody, and steered clear of controversy
in any form." (Davidson, 1982, p.9)
The studio system of comic book production became the norm: instead of individual
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