So a Senate Subcommittee hearing was held, and subsequently their quantity and quality, already a mixed bag with respect to writing and illustration, quickly declined.Īlthough Seduction essentially accomplished its goals, its text has continued to be challenged ever since, with increasing effectiveness.
It was the era of McCarthyism, rampant paranoia, and misplaced fears and blame. But in 1954 the devious doctor published Seduction of the Innocent, which claimed that these 10¢, 4-color periodicals were actually leading these youths to lives of depravity and debauchery. As an entertainment medium, comics were the digital devices of their day: Sales could be counted in hundreds of millions, and more than 80% of kids and 90% of teens were reading them. Wertham was an anti-comic book crusader who did some serious damage back in the 1950s. Since this is Banned Books Week, I’ve come to bury Dr.