CA -- San Diego -- Public Library -- Exhibit: San Diego Comic-Con Tie-In:
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SDLIBT_170718_003.JPG: The American "Dime Novel"
In 1860, Irwin O. Beadle & Company published the first paperback dime novel, "Malaeska, Indian Wife of the White Hunter" by Mrs. Ann S. Stephens. The series of paperbacks that followed -- Beadle's Dime Novels (1860-74), was aimed at adult readers, featuring historical fiction, biography, or stories of the contemporary American West. Lurid black and white covers illustrated booklets averaging 100 pages in length, costing between five and 25 cents.
By the late 1800s, rising literacy rates in the United States produced a huge demand for cheap reading material. The public soon craved the inexpensive dime novels, which were produced in massive editions sold at newsstands and dry goods stores. The physical format changed over the years -- novels became smaller and thinner usually costing five cents. In 1896, Tip Top Weekly became the first series with a colored over. Within a year most dime novels featured a color cover, an 8x11 inch size, and 32 pages of stories.
The Raymond A. Mengar Dime Novel Collection of the San Diego Public Library preserves nearly 800 dime novels with long runs from the most successful publishers, Frank Tousey and Street & Smith. The collection was acquired for the Wangerheim Room in 1970 with funds bequested by Edwin A. Benjamin.
SDLIBT_170718_006.JPG: Detective Library
SDLIBT_170718_021.JPG: The "Big Six"
Among dime novel publisher Frank Tousey's many serials were six highly successful sports and adventure weeklies. Work and Win featured the adventures of young Frank Fearnot as he traveled the world performing good deeds at every opportunity. Pluck and Luck contained complete adventure tales set in various locales and historical periods. Wild West Weekly featured the courageous hero 'Young Wild West' as he fought with cowboys and Indians in American West. Liberty Boys of '76 chronicled the exploits of Captain Dick Slater and the Liberty Boys during the American Revolutionary War. Secret Service featured the renowned team of Old and Young King Brady as US Secret Service agents on the trail of criminals around the globe. Fame and Fortune Weekly: Stories of Boys Who Make Money featured "Horatio Alger" type stories of enterprising young me rising from rags to riches.
SDLIBT_170718_023.JPG: Wild West Weekly
SDLIBT_170718_025.JPG: Dime Novels
or
Following an Old Trail in Popular Literature
by Edmund Pearson
SDLIBT_170718_043.JPG: Horatio Alger, Jr. (1832-1889), a Harvard-educated teacher and minister, wrote "rags to riches" tales for Street and Smith publications. Alger penned more than one hundred stories about impoverished young men who, through hard work and perseverance, gained fame and fortune.
Another prominent Street and Smith author was Theodore Dreiser (Sister Carrie) who earned fifteen dollars a week to write articles for Ainslee's, the Magazine that Entertains.
SDLIBT_170718_045.JPG: Wide Awake Weekly
SDLIBT_170718_048.JPG: "Reading dime novels today can give you insight into the 1800s. The student of social and intellectual history who tries to understand the transit of ideas, from the more favored to the less favored, must examine dime novels."
-- Merle Curti in The Yale Review
SDLIBT_170718_055.JPG: Beadle's New York Dime Library
SDLIBT_170718_056.JPG: Dime Novels
Time Line
SDLIBT_170718_060.JPG: 1860-ish
First Dime Novel
1865-ish
Horatio Alger's First Story
1870-ish
Typewriter introduced
SDLIBT_170718_063.JPG: 1885-ish
First "Nick Carter" Story
1900-ish
Full Color Dime Novel Covers
1905-ish
Nickelodeon Theatres Open
1910-ish
Holly US Movie Capital
Decline of Dime Novel
SDLIBT_170718_066.JPG: 1900-ish
Full Color Dime Novel Covers
1905-ish
Nickelodeon Theatres Open
1910-ish
Holly US Movie Capital
Decline of Dime Novel
1920-ish
Ruse of Pulp Fiction
SDLIBT_170718_069.JPG: The Comics
The earliest comic books were compilations of previously-published humorous strips from newspapers. The first comic book was Funnies on Parade, published in 1933. Comic books soon diversified to include stories from a variety of genres, but the name remained.
Collectors categorize comic books by various "Ages." The publication of Action #1 (June, 1938), which contained all-new material and was the first appearance of Superman, marks the beginning of the Golden Age (1938-1956). Superman was soon followed by other super-characters. At their height, superhero comics were selling up to a million copies per monthly issue. The 1940s and 1950s also produced many non-superhero comics.
After the end of WWII superheroes declined in popularity, and the comic book industry struggled. Fortunately, new genres reflecting trends in popular culture -- crime, horror, science fiction, and romance -- emerged. The popularity of these genres gave the flagging comic industry a boost, but was almost it's [sic] downfall as well. In 1954 Dr. Frederic Wertham published "Seduction of the Innovent," which blamed comic books for juvenile delinquency. There were comic book burnings and Supreme Court hearings; to protect their industry comic book publishers created the Comics Code Authority to regulate and curb violence in comics. The Code symbol subsequently appeared on approved comic books, curtailing the crime and horror genre.
The Silver Age (1956-1970) saw superheroes make a comeback in updated forms. It began with the publication of DC Comics' Showcase #4 (Oct. 1956), which introduced the modern version of the Flash. Following the success of Showcase #4, several other 1940s superheroes were reworked. The characters' names remained the same, but their costumes and identities changed.
During the Bronze Age (1970-1985), traditional superhero titles remained the driving force of the industry. However, darker plot elements and more storylines addressing real-world issues (racism, drug use, urban property, and environmental pollution) began to flourish during this period.
The Dark Age -- also known as the Iron Age -- began in 1986, with the publication of Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns and Alan Moore's Watchmen. Dark and gritty , they kick-started a trend for portraying superheroes as Anti Heroes.
The Modern Age (1996-present) has some lingering elements of the Dark Age, but also a return towards lighter and happier comics. Other features of the era are the rise fo the graphic novel as respectable reading material and non-superhero comics becoming more mainstream.
SDLIBT_170718_078.JPG: Donald Duck
#28 (March 1953)
This series of comics originally started in the Four Color series. During the 1950s, if certain characters proved popular enough, they would get their own independent series, so the Donald Duck series started with #26 (#1-#25 appeared in the Four Color Comics series) in 1952.
SDLIBT_170718_083.JPG: Showcase presents Metal Men
#38 (June 1962)
Showcase has been the title of several comic anthology series published by DC Comics. The general theme of these series has been to feature new and minor characters as a way to gauge reader interest in them, without the difficulty and risk of featuring "untested" characters in their ongoing titles. The Metal Men appeared in three issues of Showcase (#38-40, June-October 1962) and proved popular enough to warrant a reappearance in their own eponymous title.
SDLIBT_170718_089.JPG: The Brave and the Bold
#51 (January 1964)
Originally, The Brave and the Bold comic book series was a showcase for new characters. The Justice League of America, Hawkman, the Suicide Squad, and Metamorpho all first appeared in this title. Later, the title featured team-up stories with Batman joining forces with other DC heroes.
SDLIBT_170718_094.JPG: Fantastic Four
#112 (July 1971)
One of the first fights (among many) between the Hulk and the Thing, ending with one of them being knocked out by a powerful blow.
SDLIBT_170718_098.JPG: Daredevil
#131 (March 1976)
This is the first appearance of Bullseye, one of the more famous and prominent nemesis of the super hero Daredevil. Bullseye has no superhuman powers but he does have the uncanny ability to use different weapons even common objects as lethal projectiles.
SDLIBT_170718_103.JPG: Tarzan
#12 (December 1949)
Tarzan #1-131 (Jan-Feb 1948 to July-August 1962) was published through Dell Comics which included original stories and other features but mostly adaptations of Edgar Rice Burroughs's original Tarzan books.
SDLIBT_170718_108.JPG: Secret Origins
#1 (March 1973)
In this comic book you learn the origins of Superman (first appeared in Action Comics #1), Batman (first appeared in Detective Comics #33) and the Silver-Age Flash (first appeared in Showcase #4). Also included in this comic is Hawkman's first battle with the Ghost (first appeared in Flash Comics #88).
SDLIBT_170718_118.JPG: Action Comics
#288 (May 1962)
Superman's June 1938 appearance in Action Comics gave birth to the superhero genre and marked the beginning of the Golden Age of comics. Superman used his extraordinary powers to fight for "truth and justice." The character's popularity led to the creation of other costumed crime fighters such as Batman and Captain Marvel.
SDLIBT_170718_123.JPG: The Avengers
#85 (February 1971)
Avengers comic books, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, were Marvel's first super-hero group. Known for their rallying cry "Avengers Assemble!". the team originally featured Ant-Man, Wasp, Thor, Iron Man, and the Hulk, all of whom were established superheroes.
SDLIBT_170718_128.JPG: Amazing Spider-Man
#82 (March 1969)
In this issue of the Amazing Spider-Man, Electro makes his second appearance in the series when he is hired by John Johan Jameson to defeat Spider-Man on national television.
SDLIBT_170718_133.JPG: Iron Man
#47 (November 1972)
This comic tells the detailed origin of Iron Man, which primarily focuses on his first adventure in Tales of Suspense #39. Tony Stark is captured by a North Vietnamese warlord and forced to develop weapons for them but instead creates a rudimentary battlesuit made from scrap metal and various electronics to escape.
SDLIBT_170718_141.JPG: Tales to Astonish
#60 (October 1964)
Tales to Astonish (January 1959 to March 1968) began as a science-fiction anthology that served as a showcase for such artists as Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, then featured superheroes during the Silver Age of Comic Books. It became The Incredible Hulk with issue #102 (April 1968).
SDLIBT_170718_146.JPG: Classic Comics
#23 (July 1945)
Classic Comics is a series of comic books that take novels, plays and other literary works and transforms them into comic format. The name was changed to Classics Illustrated in 1947.
SDLIBT_170718_151.JPG: Brave and the Bold
#54 (July 1964)
This is the first appearance of the Teen Titans: Robin, Kid Flash and Aqualad, who are sidekicks to major superheroes Batman, the Flash, and Aquaman. Later the Teen Titans added Wonder Girl and Speedy to the team, who were sidekicks to Wonder Woman and Green Arrow.
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Directly Related Pages: Other pages with content (CA -- San Diego -- Public Library -- Exhibit: San Diego Comic-Con Tie-In) directly related to this one:
[Display ALL photos on one page]:
2022_07_20B3_SD_Library_CCTie: CA -- San Diego -- Public Library -- Exhibit: San Diego Comic-Con Tie-In (70 photos from 07/20/2022)
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2015_CA_SD_Library_CCTie: CA -- San Diego -- Public Library -- Exhibit: San Diego Comic-Con Tie-In (18 photos from 2015)
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2017_CA_SDCCP04_170720: San Diego Comic-Con International 2017 -- Panel: The Mark, Sergio, Stan, and Tom Show (33 photos from 2017)
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2017 photos: Equipment this year: I continued to use my Fuji XS-1 cameras but, depending on the event, I also used a Nikon D7000.
Trips this year:
Civil War Trust conferences in Pensacola, FL, Chattanooga, TN (via sites in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee) and Fredericksburg, VA,
a family reunion in The Dells, Wisconsin (via sites in Ohio, Indiana, and Wisconsin),
New York City, and
my 12th consecutive San Diego Comic Con trip (including sites in Arizona).
For some reason, several of my photos have been published in physical books this year which is pretty cool. Ones that I know about:
"Tarzan, Jungle King of Popular Culture" (David Lemmo),
"The Great Crusade: A Guide to World War I American Expeditionary Forces Battlefields and Sites" (Stephen T. Powers and Kevin Dennehy),
"The American Spirit" (David McCullough),
"Civil War Battlefields: Walking the Trails of History" (David T. Gilbert),
"The Year I Was Peter the Great: 1956 — Khrushchev, Stalin's Ghost, and a Young American in Russia" (Marvin Kalb), and
"The Judge: 26 Machiavellian Lessons" (Ron Collins and David Skover).
Number of photos taken this year: just below 560,000.