No Mental Resistance to the Weirdly Impossible!

Using your knowledge of comic book history, take a guess at who made the following anti-comics statement:

"Comics...have created a world of fantasy that is almost as real to adults as it is to children. And that means that sane grownups cannot tell the difference between fact and fancy. There are millions of normal men and women today who have no mental resistance at all to tales of the weirdly impossible. No supernatural being is too illogical to believe in. Orson Welles' fascinating radio experiment proved that Americans today are living an imaginary mental life in a comics-created world."

Any ideas who it could have been? For the answer, I'll see you after the jump....

Okay, the guy who made that disparaging comment about comic books and their readers was none other than Dr. William Moulton Marston, the psychologist who created Wonder Woman for All-American (DC) Comics the very next year!

This was just one of the fascinating facts I've learned from The DC Vault , a "Museum in a Book" that I received as a Christmas gift a few weeks back. In addition to a very well-written history of DC Comics by Martin Pasko, it's also packed with nifty replicas and reproductions of various DC treasures from the past 70+ years. Highly recommended.

So, what was the deal with Marston? The quote above appeared in the October 1940 issue of Family Circle magazine as part of an expose' titled "Don't Laugh At The Comics", which condemned comics as unsavory and full of "blood-curdling masculinity". Max Gaines, co-publisher of All-American Comics', tried to counter the negative publicity by arranging a dinner meeting with Dr. Marston. According to Pasko's description of the meeting, "by the time they had finished dinner, the psychologist had not only agreed to end his anti-comics rants and help form a new Editorial Advisory Board for the publisher, but to develop a female super hero for All-American as well."

As it turned out, Marston's Wonder Woman was every bit as surreal, unsavory, and bizarre as he claimed comic books to be in his Family Circle expose'. Infusing the title with his kinky theories and an obsession with bondage themes, the zany doctor's deeply weird stories generated more than a few complaint letters from the general public, which likewise generated more than a few headaches for All-American Comics.

In fact, as one the hundreds of interesting goodies in the book, here's a memo to Marston from Max Gaines (who was probably regretting that dinner meeting) asking him to cut back on his use of chained characters...along with a handy list from Miss Roubicek!

Comments

[Pat Curley]

Hehe, that letter gives me an idea for a great cover blurb on Wonder Woman issues: "Now with 75% fewer chains!"

[greyman24]

That is absolutely fascinating. I mean, what other business would you find a letter like that?

"My secretary has listed the many different ways to bind, gag, or generally restrain women. Please choose any of these." As if it was just the chains that were the problem. Classic!

[Mark Engblom]

Yeah, imagine being Miss Roubicek and getting that assignment!

"Miss Roubicek, I need a list of methods which can be used to keep women enclosed or confined without the use of chains."

"Uh...like maybe packing string or dental floss?"

"Exactly. Now get to it. Oh, and bring me some more coffee."

[suedenim]

So what's on the list, then?

I recently listened to an interview with Martin Pasko on the "Word Balloons" podcast about the DC Vault. Fascinating interview, and I'll really need to buy the Vault itself now!

[Mark Engblom]

Pasko is an impressive guy. In the interview I heard (possibly another Word Balloon interview), he came across as a really thoughtful and engaged guy who, while not currently writing comics, still has great insights into them. He was a great choice to write the DC Vault.

[Mark Engblom]

"So what's on the list, then?"

The list wasn't reprinted in the DC Vault...and that's probably for the best.

[ShadowWing Tronix]

I know I'll sleep better tonight not knowing.

This guy scares me more and more every time there's an article or post about him.