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Classics Illustrated: A Cultural History, with Illustrations
"This work gives attention to the evolving mission of Classics Illustrated to bring serious literature to popular culture; the publication's ability to stand up to the anti-comics hysteria of the early 1950s; the growth of subsidiary educational series encompassing folklore, mythology, history, and science; and the unsuccessful attempts to revive the series in the 1990s"--Provided by publisher.
- GenresComicsHistoryNonfiction
287 pages, Hardcover
First published November 1, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 22, 2012
This is a comprehensive history of Classics Illustrated comics -- comic versions of "serious" literature -- that ran from the 1940s to the early 1970s. Jones tells the stories of the creators, the artists, the writers, and the fans and weaves in quite a bit of the general history of the great age of comics. Alternately snubbed by comics fans who thought they were too educational and educators who though they were tainted by the evilness of comics, Classics Illustrated nonetheless had a big fan base during its heyday, and a solid cadre of collectors today. Probably not worth reading unless you are really into comics or are a collector, but still interesting enough for an amateur like me to enjoy. The tons of illustrations (including two sets of color plates) really help.
May 23, 2022
Discovered this book by accident but since I was a Classics Illustrated reader in the mid-1950s I had to check it out. The author focuses on the creators (artists and story writers/adapters) and the history and controversy around the comics company that introduced kids to many of the world’s greatest authors and their novels. All of my favorites, that I remember, are included with commentary about the reissues of titles with better art and better storylines: Ivanhoe, Three Musketeers, Robinson Crusoe, Treasure Island, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Time Machine, Buffalo Bill, and Kit Carson. A great trip back down memory lane with lots of illustrations.
February 9, 2025
William Byron Jones's CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED: A CULTURAL HISTORY: Third Edition is a labor of love for its gifted author. However, it provides hours of fascinating immersion and incomparable reference work for buyers. The prime audience, of course, is baby boomers who fondly recall a childhood graced with collecting comic books, unlike so many others focused on superheroes and comic strip characters. For many of us, CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED was our introduction to the classics we took up in Junior High, but unlike the infamous Cliff and Monarch notes that replaced the reading of the works, CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED more often than not inspired young readers to pick up the books for plot and character expansions. My first introduction to OLIVER TWIST and TREASURE ISLAND was the CIs, which had me scurrying off to the Fairview Free Public Library in New Jersey to take out the novels. For me and many others, CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED was the seed from which I grew a deep appreciation of literature. In my case, it led to degrees in English literature.
CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED: A CULTURAL HISTORY THIRD EDITION, like its predecessors, the 1st and 2nd editions, is a smorgasbord of sublime, glossy covers, interviews, features on the artists and writers, a fascinating history of how the line was conceived, and how it was revised over decades to include the involvement of other publishers who made some vital enrichments to the presentations. Jones, a perfectionist in every aspect of the term, leaves no stone unturned in exploring this unique American publishing phenomenon and later achieved a more international involvement. Jones was hooked at an early age and parlayed every memory and hands-on experience to his writing talent to produce a work of scholarship I consider unparalleled in publishing books. To call CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED: A CULTURAL HISTORY, THIRD EDITION, the go-to work about a series or a hobby would be to short-change the extent of Jones's completism. The book is so excellent that you almost take much of the content for granted as if its release was inevitable. But it was clear from the opening pages that readers were in the hands of a master who was versed in the chronology, the artistry, and the intricate details of how an idea turned into a cultural and publishing revolution.
Jones moderates a FB page on CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED. When you ask a question, he enthusiastically provides details from the top of his head and enriches and expands the original question. Surely, when you make your way through this staggering tome, you realize there was only one human being on this planet capable and passionate enough to pull off this all-encompassing work of research and prose that for now and all-time will be the final word on CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED.
In my massive collection of comics, my favorite covers are the originals of THE PRINCE AND THE PAUPER, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, TOM SAWYER, LES MISERABLES, FRANKENSTEIN, DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE, MYSTERIES, THE CLOISTER AND THE HEARTH, but I adore many others. I also have a long history of CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED JUNIOR, which Jones also examines with authoritative bravado, right up the Jack Lake Productions, where the art was gloriously produced in vivid color.
Jones' work is meant to be a reference for collectors and readers, but because he is such a skillful writer, those taking it up will find the experience similar to a chaptered novel. Indeed, Jones's meticulous chronological approach can be compared to reading DAVID COPPERFIELD from cover to cover. There's nothing quite like it in the arts or any field.
The new edition includes expansion on every front, including lists, deeper footnotes, and a lengthened appendix. Those who own the previous editions would be well advised to add the THIRD EDITION, which the author revisits and tweaks with heightened clarity and appreciation. I compare it to a film collector upgrading titles from DVD to Blu-ray. Fans of the comics can't possibly be without it.
CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED: A CULTURAL HISTORY THIRD EDITION, like its predecessors, the 1st and 2nd editions, is a smorgasbord of sublime, glossy covers, interviews, features on the artists and writers, a fascinating history of how the line was conceived, and how it was revised over decades to include the involvement of other publishers who made some vital enrichments to the presentations. Jones, a perfectionist in every aspect of the term, leaves no stone unturned in exploring this unique American publishing phenomenon and later achieved a more international involvement. Jones was hooked at an early age and parlayed every memory and hands-on experience to his writing talent to produce a work of scholarship I consider unparalleled in publishing books. To call CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED: A CULTURAL HISTORY, THIRD EDITION, the go-to work about a series or a hobby would be to short-change the extent of Jones's completism. The book is so excellent that you almost take much of the content for granted as if its release was inevitable. But it was clear from the opening pages that readers were in the hands of a master who was versed in the chronology, the artistry, and the intricate details of how an idea turned into a cultural and publishing revolution.
Jones moderates a FB page on CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED. When you ask a question, he enthusiastically provides details from the top of his head and enriches and expands the original question. Surely, when you make your way through this staggering tome, you realize there was only one human being on this planet capable and passionate enough to pull off this all-encompassing work of research and prose that for now and all-time will be the final word on CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED.
In my massive collection of comics, my favorite covers are the originals of THE PRINCE AND THE PAUPER, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, TOM SAWYER, LES MISERABLES, FRANKENSTEIN, DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE, MYSTERIES, THE CLOISTER AND THE HEARTH, but I adore many others. I also have a long history of CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED JUNIOR, which Jones also examines with authoritative bravado, right up the Jack Lake Productions, where the art was gloriously produced in vivid color.
Jones' work is meant to be a reference for collectors and readers, but because he is such a skillful writer, those taking it up will find the experience similar to a chaptered novel. Indeed, Jones's meticulous chronological approach can be compared to reading DAVID COPPERFIELD from cover to cover. There's nothing quite like it in the arts or any field.
The new edition includes expansion on every front, including lists, deeper footnotes, and a lengthened appendix. Those who own the previous editions would be well advised to add the THIRD EDITION, which the author revisits and tweaks with heightened clarity and appreciation. I compare it to a film collector upgrading titles from DVD to Blu-ray. Fans of the comics can't possibly be without it.
February 24, 2024
It started years ago with a 'good story'. #129 'Davy Crockett'. Thus began a lifelong devotion to Classics Illustrated by author William B. Jones, Jr.
Jump to 1992. An abortive account of Bill Clinton's rise to the White House leads Jones into a bout of writers block. His editor instructs the writer to craft a list of ideas; one of which is a historic account of Albert Kanter and his dream of creating a line of comic books that inspire countless generations to further explore the classics of world literature.
After a 1993 phone interview with former Classics Illustrated artist Rudy Palais, Jones began a near decade of research, interviewing artists, writers, editors and fans to craft an extensive history of the line. Starting as Classic Comics as an imprint of Elliot Publishing in 1941, Kanter took the series private with the creation of the Gilberton Company, Inc. the following year. As comic books came under fire as the leading source of juvenile delinquency by 'experts' such as Dr. Wertham, Kanter made a brilliant attempt to distance his volumes from the industry by rebranding them as Classics Illustrated.
While Kanter's decision saved Classics Illustrated through the tumultuous 1950s, the move would ultimately halt production of new works at the beginning of the hopeful 1960s. The United States Postal Service ruled that Gilberton was publishing books, not periodicals. This decision would remove the much needed second class parcel classification essential for direct sales subscriptions. The company appealed and was overruled resulting in Gilberton ceasing publication of all-new works in 1962.
For another decade, Classic Illustrated would exist only in reprint form. Kanter would update the existing books with new scripts and art. Its most popular and iconic update were the painted covers. In 1967, the line was sold to Frawley Corporation who unfortunately didn't understand how to properly publish comics. The original Classic Illustrated would cease entirely 4 years later. Over the next 3 decades, various companies would attempt to revitalize the brand. But none of them could ever match the success of Gilberton.
Jones second edition would expand upon the writers and authors that graced the Gilberton doors. Not a fan of the witch hunt of the Senate hearings that resulted in the creation of the Comics Code, Albert Kanter became a lifeline to a number of EC Comics staff including Joe Orlando and 'Ghastly' Graham Ingels. Even a pre-coronated Jack Kirby worked for a time on Classics Illustrated as did cover painting genius George Evans and comics strip maestro Al Williamson.
The updated volume would also research Canadian Jack Lake's digital reproductions of both the main series and its sister publication Classics Illustrated Junior. Jim Salicrup would end up licensing the brand from Jack Lake Productions to create brand new titles in the mid 2000s with Papercutz. Jones would close out his updated research with a look at fanzines devoted to collecting any and everything Gilberton and the fans that collect it.
Classics Illustrated: A Cultural History is 381 pages long. However, only about 300 pages are what I would determine to be readable. There are over 50 pages of appendices that read like the Dewey decimal system. What can you expect from a series of 170 comics that were collectively reprinted nearly 1,400 times!
The binding for this book is similar to a college textbook. Add in appendix A-J, extensive chapter notes that were cross-referenced and perhaps the largest index on comic book history and you've got a reference book that comic book historians will salivate over. Almost a balanced look at Gilberton, warts and all. A little bit of the commentary does dote too far over the complaints and praise on multiple aspects of the books chronicled over the years from fans collective. Otherwise, this would be a required reading for any History of Sequential Arts course.
Jump to 1992. An abortive account of Bill Clinton's rise to the White House leads Jones into a bout of writers block. His editor instructs the writer to craft a list of ideas; one of which is a historic account of Albert Kanter and his dream of creating a line of comic books that inspire countless generations to further explore the classics of world literature.
After a 1993 phone interview with former Classics Illustrated artist Rudy Palais, Jones began a near decade of research, interviewing artists, writers, editors and fans to craft an extensive history of the line. Starting as Classic Comics as an imprint of Elliot Publishing in 1941, Kanter took the series private with the creation of the Gilberton Company, Inc. the following year. As comic books came under fire as the leading source of juvenile delinquency by 'experts' such as Dr. Wertham, Kanter made a brilliant attempt to distance his volumes from the industry by rebranding them as Classics Illustrated.
While Kanter's decision saved Classics Illustrated through the tumultuous 1950s, the move would ultimately halt production of new works at the beginning of the hopeful 1960s. The United States Postal Service ruled that Gilberton was publishing books, not periodicals. This decision would remove the much needed second class parcel classification essential for direct sales subscriptions. The company appealed and was overruled resulting in Gilberton ceasing publication of all-new works in 1962.
For another decade, Classic Illustrated would exist only in reprint form. Kanter would update the existing books with new scripts and art. Its most popular and iconic update were the painted covers. In 1967, the line was sold to Frawley Corporation who unfortunately didn't understand how to properly publish comics. The original Classic Illustrated would cease entirely 4 years later. Over the next 3 decades, various companies would attempt to revitalize the brand. But none of them could ever match the success of Gilberton.
Jones second edition would expand upon the writers and authors that graced the Gilberton doors. Not a fan of the witch hunt of the Senate hearings that resulted in the creation of the Comics Code, Albert Kanter became a lifeline to a number of EC Comics staff including Joe Orlando and 'Ghastly' Graham Ingels. Even a pre-coronated Jack Kirby worked for a time on Classics Illustrated as did cover painting genius George Evans and comics strip maestro Al Williamson.
The updated volume would also research Canadian Jack Lake's digital reproductions of both the main series and its sister publication Classics Illustrated Junior. Jim Salicrup would end up licensing the brand from Jack Lake Productions to create brand new titles in the mid 2000s with Papercutz. Jones would close out his updated research with a look at fanzines devoted to collecting any and everything Gilberton and the fans that collect it.
Classics Illustrated: A Cultural History is 381 pages long. However, only about 300 pages are what I would determine to be readable. There are over 50 pages of appendices that read like the Dewey decimal system. What can you expect from a series of 170 comics that were collectively reprinted nearly 1,400 times!
The binding for this book is similar to a college textbook. Add in appendix A-J, extensive chapter notes that were cross-referenced and perhaps the largest index on comic book history and you've got a reference book that comic book historians will salivate over. Almost a balanced look at Gilberton, warts and all. A little bit of the commentary does dote too far over the complaints and praise on multiple aspects of the books chronicled over the years from fans collective. Otherwise, this would be a required reading for any History of Sequential Arts course.
January 4, 2012
THE PROBLEM WITH REVIEWING THIS BOOK:
There are two kinds of people, those who love CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED comics and those who wonder why. Fans cite the great stories they discovered in their childhood, and complain that we scoffers underrate this, do not understand the art, and do not appreciate the variety in CI comics as evidenced by our cheap dismissals of all things CI. The things they praise most, in my experience, is the faithfulness of the stories to their sources, especially in the latter years, and the research that went into getting the facts and artifacts right. Jones’s book, and I doubt if there is one better at explaining the history of CI or defending it to people like me, mentions these values often.
My own studies, I have written extensively about comic book versions of Shakespeare, confirms the obvious, that a novel or play is not a comic book and a comic book is not a novel or a play. Each does different things well, so to my ears saying that a comic was faithful to the original story is almost the same as saying that it is a bad comic book because each medium has its own demands, its own strengths and weaknesses. Even if we allow that some comic book adaptations of classics are good, and I do, obviously some texts lend themselves to being pictorialized better than others. Good adaptations are rare. The more talky the book, the less successful it will be as a comic. Books are very good at nuance. Nuance is hard to draw and harder to sustain over many pages in a comic. The more a book expresses ideas, the worse the comic book will be unless those ideas can be translated into interesting and revealing pictures. This is simply the nature of the different mediums. Because of these problems, it is my opinion that most issues of CI are bad comics. Jones differs. He is happy to settle for what is left after much of what made the book the book have been removed as long as the basic story is there and the artist gets the hats, furniture, and hair styles right. If he likes the story, he'll read the better version later.
Scoffers don’t care if the hats, furniture, or the hair styles are correct historically. We want a breathtakingly well told story that meshes words and art in ways that a book cannot, and this usually means original stories, not stories adapted from literature. We simply value different things in comic books.
It is hard for CI fans not to look down on the rest of us as cretins because we do not see the value in these pictorial versions of great (and sometimes not so great) literature and as people who settle for basically stupid stories about men in tights, and hard for us not to look at CI fans and snobs, and rather clueless snobs at that, so invested in their belief that CI comics are great that they do not see what is so obviously wrong with them or what is so obviously right about the best in other comics. The two sides barely have a basis for conversation. In other words, I strongly disagree with the theoretical stance that informs every page of this book, yet I believe it a good book because it is so informative.
THE REVIEW:
This much material is notoriously difficult to organize and present. Compromises must be made, and Jones bravely makes them. Perhaps CI fans might see a better way, but the decision to go through the series semi-chronologically by giving separate sections to different artists and looking at what each brought to CI mostly works. Readers get a sense of what each artist’s style and background brought to the books they illustrated and how their approach played to the strengths (or failed to) of each story they illustrated. You get an excellent sense of the artist as an artist, both at CI and elsewhere. You understand what Jones likes about these artists and the stories they illustrate. It is invaluable, especially for a scoffer, to see these books through another's eyes, and I have found perhaps 20 CI issues that I want to study despite liking so few issues in the past. Let’s also note that since Jones presents the artists for more than 200 pages, you will come away with a excellent idea of the breath of the entire CI list as seen through the art. This was a smart approach.
The artist-centered organization solves many problems intrinsic to presenting this material, though it creates others—any other organization would too. The disadvantage is that many names of non-artists come and go in a jumble because their work is not studied individually. Founder Albert Kantor, writer/editor/and more Roberta Strauss Feuerlicht, and too few other people get their own chapters or sections. These help a lot, but I longed to know especially about the different writers: the background of their careers, which CI titles they adapted and want was distinctive about their adaptations compared to the adaptations of the other writers, which is exactly what is done for the artists. Aside from the theoretical problem of CI’s quality (not a flaw to CI fans), this lack of non-artist information is the book’s other chief flaw, and one I hope will be corrected if there is a third edition. I am very well oriented to the history of CI as understood through the artists. I am not oriented to the history as understood in other important ways.
I don’t mind that Jones does not explore the other literature adapted into comics that came after CI in any depth, after all, the book is about CI not its followers, but he barely mentions the precursors and does not say enough about those published at the same time for me to feel fully informed about the comic book world into which CI was launched and against which it competed. Most comments about the competition are about the effects on CI. Only a few sentences explain what these books are like (113-4). This is a minor problem, but please sir, I want some more.
I also found some small factual errors that I understand will be corrected in the second printing of this second edition, so I shall not detail them here. That second printing is the one to buy, and despite my reservations about the CI fan/non-fan thing and my longing for even more of the story, you should buy this fine and informative book if you have any interest in CI comics as a fan or even as a scoffer.
There are two kinds of people, those who love CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED comics and those who wonder why. Fans cite the great stories they discovered in their childhood, and complain that we scoffers underrate this, do not understand the art, and do not appreciate the variety in CI comics as evidenced by our cheap dismissals of all things CI. The things they praise most, in my experience, is the faithfulness of the stories to their sources, especially in the latter years, and the research that went into getting the facts and artifacts right. Jones’s book, and I doubt if there is one better at explaining the history of CI or defending it to people like me, mentions these values often.
My own studies, I have written extensively about comic book versions of Shakespeare, confirms the obvious, that a novel or play is not a comic book and a comic book is not a novel or a play. Each does different things well, so to my ears saying that a comic was faithful to the original story is almost the same as saying that it is a bad comic book because each medium has its own demands, its own strengths and weaknesses. Even if we allow that some comic book adaptations of classics are good, and I do, obviously some texts lend themselves to being pictorialized better than others. Good adaptations are rare. The more talky the book, the less successful it will be as a comic. Books are very good at nuance. Nuance is hard to draw and harder to sustain over many pages in a comic. The more a book expresses ideas, the worse the comic book will be unless those ideas can be translated into interesting and revealing pictures. This is simply the nature of the different mediums. Because of these problems, it is my opinion that most issues of CI are bad comics. Jones differs. He is happy to settle for what is left after much of what made the book the book have been removed as long as the basic story is there and the artist gets the hats, furniture, and hair styles right. If he likes the story, he'll read the better version later.
Scoffers don’t care if the hats, furniture, or the hair styles are correct historically. We want a breathtakingly well told story that meshes words and art in ways that a book cannot, and this usually means original stories, not stories adapted from literature. We simply value different things in comic books.
It is hard for CI fans not to look down on the rest of us as cretins because we do not see the value in these pictorial versions of great (and sometimes not so great) literature and as people who settle for basically stupid stories about men in tights, and hard for us not to look at CI fans and snobs, and rather clueless snobs at that, so invested in their belief that CI comics are great that they do not see what is so obviously wrong with them or what is so obviously right about the best in other comics. The two sides barely have a basis for conversation. In other words, I strongly disagree with the theoretical stance that informs every page of this book, yet I believe it a good book because it is so informative.
THE REVIEW:
This much material is notoriously difficult to organize and present. Compromises must be made, and Jones bravely makes them. Perhaps CI fans might see a better way, but the decision to go through the series semi-chronologically by giving separate sections to different artists and looking at what each brought to CI mostly works. Readers get a sense of what each artist’s style and background brought to the books they illustrated and how their approach played to the strengths (or failed to) of each story they illustrated. You get an excellent sense of the artist as an artist, both at CI and elsewhere. You understand what Jones likes about these artists and the stories they illustrate. It is invaluable, especially for a scoffer, to see these books through another's eyes, and I have found perhaps 20 CI issues that I want to study despite liking so few issues in the past. Let’s also note that since Jones presents the artists for more than 200 pages, you will come away with a excellent idea of the breath of the entire CI list as seen through the art. This was a smart approach.
The artist-centered organization solves many problems intrinsic to presenting this material, though it creates others—any other organization would too. The disadvantage is that many names of non-artists come and go in a jumble because their work is not studied individually. Founder Albert Kantor, writer/editor/and more Roberta Strauss Feuerlicht, and too few other people get their own chapters or sections. These help a lot, but I longed to know especially about the different writers: the background of their careers, which CI titles they adapted and want was distinctive about their adaptations compared to the adaptations of the other writers, which is exactly what is done for the artists. Aside from the theoretical problem of CI’s quality (not a flaw to CI fans), this lack of non-artist information is the book’s other chief flaw, and one I hope will be corrected if there is a third edition. I am very well oriented to the history of CI as understood through the artists. I am not oriented to the history as understood in other important ways.
I don’t mind that Jones does not explore the other literature adapted into comics that came after CI in any depth, after all, the book is about CI not its followers, but he barely mentions the precursors and does not say enough about those published at the same time for me to feel fully informed about the comic book world into which CI was launched and against which it competed. Most comments about the competition are about the effects on CI. Only a few sentences explain what these books are like (113-4). This is a minor problem, but please sir, I want some more.
I also found some small factual errors that I understand will be corrected in the second printing of this second edition, so I shall not detail them here. That second printing is the one to buy, and despite my reservations about the CI fan/non-fan thing and my longing for even more of the story, you should buy this fine and informative book if you have any interest in CI comics as a fan or even as a scoffer.
August 11, 2022
Overdue examination of the genesis, impact, process, and quality of Classics Illustrated (formerly Classics Comics), the pictorial adaptations of literary masterworks that flourished from 1941-71 (with ill-fated revivals and variations). The book is made up largely of mini-biographies of the anonymous artists who turned in the pages (that said, while author Jones tries hard, he hits a lot of dead ends), with insightful analyses of their contrasting styles. Adapters of the stories get shorter shrift, but all in all, it's a satisfying history.
October 29, 2020
"This is a book about memory and a moment in cultural history." writes the author, who was born in 1950.
February 3, 2021
Scholarly and Well-Written
Everything you could want to know about CI is in here. Author is articulate and expert in the topic. Could have used a gallery of covers.
Everything you could want to know about CI is in here. Author is articulate and expert in the topic. Could have used a gallery of covers.
January 8, 2014
This is a very dense account of the enterprise, too dense for me. Details about the publisher, the artists, the management, history, etc. I read the intro and the epilog. The idea of encouraging readers to read the originals after reading the comic is still hanging around. The author mentions the high/low brow culture wars of the Fifties. The high brows lost.
I liked the pictures, especially the color reproductions of the covers, though.
I liked the pictures, especially the color reproductions of the covers, though.
February 27, 2012
thought it would contain actual CI stories as examples at least, just has single panel or page examples.
July 17, 2012
Shout out to my friend Bill Jones, who wrote an engaging, meticulous account of the Classics Illustrated comic book series.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews