Posted in: Comics, Vintage Paper | Tagged: pre-code horror, Promise Collection

Promise Collection 1949: Stan Lee and Lovecraftian Horror

"In our magazines, we try to give you good pictures and interesting stories," wrote Stan Lee in an editorial published in Marvel comic books cover-dated July 1949.  It was a sentiment the fan who assembled the Promise Collection likely agreed with. "We would like to feel, also, that we are helping you to take a stand in favor of right and justice, develop respect for law and order, and learn to protect weaker people, just like the heroes in our adventure stories. The grown-ups of this world owe you young people an apology, because we haven't made the world a very secure and peaceful place in which to live. Our comics portray, it is true, some of the unhappy things that happen in the world. But they are things you know about anyway—and in the stories, at least, the good people always win. All of us wish it were that way in real life as well. Just as there are good and bad people, good and bad radio programs, good and bad movies, so there is good and bad literature. in order to help you always choose the good, we will continue to do our best to maintain a high standard in our own magazines. Please remember that comics, with their many pictures, are just one type of literature. We also want you to grow familiar with the great books in our vast literary heritage, and we have no doubt that, with guidance from your parents, teachers, and town librarians, you will become interested in those classics, and learn to love them."

"Meanwhile, don't forget, though you can get the thrill of humor and adventure in comic magazines—they should, nonetheless, be considered in two ways: Not only for the pleasure they give you, but also as a stepping-stone to your appreciation of books that have stood the test of time as reading fare for all people, young and old. Incidentally, one of our recent editorials used the word 'endorsement' in connection with Dr. Thompson's services to us as Editorial Consultant. In the interest of further clarification of Dr. Thompson's functions, we wish to state that Marvel Comic Group submits all its published magazines to Dr. Thompson for review, criticism, and report to our staff, which is under constant instruction to accept Dr. Thompson's criticisms, and to abide by the same. In this way, we constantly strive to bring better comic magazines to our vast group of readers."

Welcome to Part 21 of the Promise Collection series, which is meant to serve as liner notes of sorts for the comic books in the collection. The Promise Collection is a set of nearly 5,000 comic books, 95% of which are blisteringly high grade, that were published from 1939 to 1952 and purchased by one young comic book fan.  The name of the Promise Collection was inspired by the reason that it was saved and kept in such amazing condition since that time. An avid comic book fan named Junie and his older brother Robert went to war in Korea.  Robert Promised Junie that he would take care of his brother's beloved comic book collection should anything happen to him. Junie was killed during the Korean War, and Robert kept his promise.  There are more details about that background in a previous post regarding this incredible collection of comic books.  And over the course of a few dozen articles in this new series of posts, we will also be revealing the complete listing of the collection.  You can always catch up with posts about this collection at this link, which will become a hub of sorts regarding these comic books over time.

May Through August 1949 in the Promise Collection

Mid-1949 represented a turning point for comic books, and Stan Lee and everyone else in the comic book business likely understood that.  Junie, the fan who assembled the Promise Collection, likely understood it as well.  He would've turned 18 years old in 1949, and in lots of ways, the comic book industry grew up and evolved with him — and the times they all lived in. The news was full of the possibility of Communist spy rings operating in America, in the wake of the Alger Hiss hearings of the prior few months.  And in the origin moment of the Cold War, the Soviet Union conducted its first nuclear bomb test in August 1949.  The world would learn in the months to come that this too was a result helped along by Communist spies.   ACG's Spy and Counterspy can be viewed as an early example of a Cold War era comic book.  And events such as these during this era are likely the impetus for Stan's editorial comment that, "we haven't made the world a very secure and peaceful place in which to live."

Beyond such history-altering moments, changes inside the comic book industry continued to unfold in the wake of the attacks on the industry by Fredric Wertham, as well as historic market forces. Good Girl titles were starting to give way to Romance.  Even crime comic books were past their peak era.  But perhaps most importantly, the heroes who had become famous as super-soldiers during WW2 continued their post-war decline.  The Human Torch series had ended just prior to this period, and these months would likewise see the end of Sub-Mariner Comics and Marvel Mystery Comics.  But the new series launches from the Promise Collection of May-August 1949 contain two big hints as to the next big trend.

• Buffalo Bill Picture Stories #1
• Casey – Crime Photographer #1
• Spy and Counterspy #1
• Western Love #1
• Amazing Mysteries #32
• Marvel Tales #93

Amazing Marvel Mysteries

The end of the Marvel Golden Age of Superheroes seems to have happened before the publisher was quite ready for it.  Marvel Mystery #92 contains a retelling of the Human Torch's origin with a few changes (most notably, the Human Torch and Professor Horton do not part ways on bad terms at the end of the origin, as they do in Marvel Comics #1), and the ending blurb of the story in this issue promised, "More about the early days of the torch in the next issue of Marvel Comics!"  Of course, that issue would never come.

Meanwhile, Amazing Mysteries #32 had already become Marvel's first true horror comic.  It's commonly believed that this series launched with #32 to take over numbering from Sub-Mariner Comics — but of course, Sub-Mariner Comics would also run its own series #32 the next month.  Since both titles have the same Marvel indicial publisher (Comic Combine Corp.), it's possible that this is some sort of bookkeeping error and that the horror of Amazing Mysteries #32 was launched sooner than originally anticipated.  The lead story of that issue includes obvious stand-ins for Stan Lee and Marvel publisher Martin Goodman, working for at a company that is clearly meant to be Marvel — and participating in a tale which itself was clearly inspired by H.P. Lovecraft's Shadow Over Innsmouth.  Although the Amazing Mysteries series would be short-lived, the series that did pick up where Marvel Mystery leaves off, Marvel Tales, would continue Marvel's fledgling horror line.

While Eerie Comics #1 is widely considered the first horror comic book, and ACG's Adventures into the Unknown is considered the first comic book horror series, Amazing Mysteries #32 is likely much more important than it gets credit for as the start of the boom period of Pre-Code Horror.  Marvel would become the driver of the genre with around 389 comics which can be considered PCH, vs EC Comics PCH output of about 91 comic book issues.  And before the end of 1949, Marvel's head-first dive into horror would result in one of the most famous and sought-after issues of Captain America Comics ever published.

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