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Racist comics

Started by shrunkenhead,

41 posts in this topic

shrunkenhead

shrunkenhead

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Hey guys,

 

Enjoying all the responses and pics thus far. Learning a lot, too! (I had no idea that All-Negro Comics was started by an african-american).

 

I think those of you who are saying that these books reflect upon a time period that we can never fully understand and/or appreciate are right on the money. My dad barely survived the Nazi occupation of Western Europe, and the stories he has to tell, well, they just don't quite match up with anything that's ever happened in my life or anyone else that I know. It was a different world, a very rare and extreme moment in history in so many ways, and I think the covers of these books reflect that.

 

As an aside, has anyone seen the no-longer-circulated Disney and Warner Bros cartoons from the era? Those ones about growing up under Hitler and all that? I saw a few of those at a screening once; couldn't believe what I was seeing. Can't remember any titles, though, but I'm sure you can't purchase them anywhere--unless it's a boot.

 

Great thread!! Glad I started it acclaim.gif

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logansgirl-migration

logansgirl-migration

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I have never been able to collect the GoldAge comics but being an African-American women I don't never see too many. I have looked in old Overstreet Price Guides and it offends me to see things like Superman saying "Slap A Jap". You even see these things in the modern age such as Ex Machina #2 with that Lincoln Picture with the N-Word I wasn't expecting that when I picked it up. Look at 9/11 all of those people where of different races. When I go into a new comic shop they don't know what to expect from me I spend a lot of money on comics because I like to read. But i think why it was like that back then was because of the wars and the Japanese were the enemy same as it is now. smirk.gif

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seank

seank

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For me, enjoyment of the golden age stuff is historical. I find some of the images shocking and my response is usually, "You won't see that nowadays!" But we do have to consider those WWII covers in context. They were propaganda, plain and simple.

 

That last statement also explains why Japanese were depicted evilly and Chinese weren't. The Japanese were the enemy while the Chinese were not. At that time, the Japanese were actually committing horrific war crimes against the Chinese. The war in the pacific wasn't just USA v. Japan. It started years before Pearl Harbor with Japan invading China.

 

As for cartoons, there's some great war-era stuff out there if you can find it. There's one Donald Duck cartoon, "Der Furher's Face" which features the Spike Jones song and Donald working in a bomb factory. I've also seen a Daffy Duck where he fights a Nazi billy-goat in a junk yard. Daffy is trying to stop the goat from eating all the tin cans needed for the war effort. Lastly, one of my favorites involves Hitler going to bomb Moscow because the Nazi pilots are inept. His airplane is attacked by gremlins. The jokes come fast and furious and many of them work even out of the WWII context.

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PovertyRow

PovertyRow

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I don't know if any of you have seen this publication. It was part of a 1986 exhibition and has some interesting articles on the evolution of ethnic characters in the comics: 581998-eth.jpg

 

So what's the coop on that 143? Assume it is yours? What exhibition was it? Seen any available? Looks pretty interesting!

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MikeS

MikeS

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As for cartoons, there's some great war-era stuff out there if you can find it. There's one Donald Duck cartoon, "Der Furher's Face" which features the Spike Jones song and Donald working in a bomb factory.

 

It's actually available right now in the "limited edition" DVD "Walt Disney Treasures - On the Front Lines" Check it out at Amazon. A very cool DVD that is definitely not politically correct.

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143ksk

143ksk

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So what's the coop on that 143? Assume it is yours? What exhibition was it? Seen any available? Looks pretty interesting!

 

The book was given to me and I've never seen another one. I think it is the catalog for an exhibition at the Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies in Philadelphia. It contains articles such as "A Brief HIstory of Ethnicity in the Comics" and "From Subhuman to Superhuman: Ethnic Characters in the Comics." It contains sections on the portayal of Blacks, Jews and Orientals and is heavily illustrated. Kind of a cool item smile.gif

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nearmint

nearmint

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There was a lot of demonizing going on during WW II, and not just of the Japanese. This is a very extreme image as well:

 

374625-pep34.jpg

 

Metro has a VG+ copy of this book that I'd be all over, but they want almost six times guide for it.

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ft88

ft88

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Don't forget this classic Disney cover. Not exactly racist but it might raise some eyebrows today. BTW, I've always thought this was a very undervalued book. It is the second Scrooge cover ever and comes just 7 issues prior to FC 386 (first Scrooge) plus it is a Disney racist cover. The downside is, it's not a Barks cover or story so it slips under the radar. If I could get a 9.4 for $200 I'd buy it.

 

Scrooge.jpg

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shrunkenhead

shrunkenhead

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Hey all,

 

So since I started this thread, I've been flipping through the Gerber books quite a bit, musing over some of the more overtly racist (and sexist) covers. Anyhow, reading this thread has surprisingly spurred my interest in these books. I've been particularly struck with jefferykli's comments about how these covers can be used contextually to demonstrate that we're not all the "evolved" in our thinking in the present day (my wife was floored by that "jap road" example!).

 

So Heritage was offering a CGC'd fine copy of that Air fighters/rats book. I placed a bid that was under guide and won! (my first heritage auction win btw--I ALWAYS get outbid.) So now I've got my very own racist pop artifact. Who'd have thunk it?

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