A Short Comic-Book History

By Andrew Arnold

1897 NEWSPAPER COMIC STRIPS LIKE RICHARD OUTCAULT'S "YELLOW KID" ARE COLLECTED AND SOLD AS TABLOIDS

1933 "FUNNIES ON PARADE" IS THE FIRST COLLECTION OF STRIPS PRINTED AT ABOUT THE SIZE WE NOW ASSOCIATE WITH COMIC BOOKS

1935 FIRST PRINTING OF COMIC BOOK WITH ORIGINAL MATERIAL

1938 SUPERMAN DEBUTS, BEGINNING THE GOLDEN AGE OF COMICS

1950-55 EC COMICS MAKES A MINT OFF LURID BOOKS LIKE "TALES FROM THE CRYPT" BUT IS ALMOST PUT OUT OF BUSINESS BY A CENSORIOUS COMICS CODE. ALL COMIC SALES PLUMMET, AND THE MEDIUM SUFFERS

1961 "THE FANTASTIC FOUR," ABOUT A SQUABBLING, DYSFUNCTIONAL SUPERHERO TEAM, BEGINS MARVEL'S REINVIGORATION OF COMICS

1967 R. CRUMB SELLS "ZAP COMIX" No. 1 OUT OF A BABY CARRIAGE IN SAN FRANCISCO, BEGINNING THE ADULT, UNDERGROUND COMICS MOVEMENT

1978 WILL EISNER MAKES UP THE PHRASE GRAPHIC NOVEL TO DESCRIBE HIS BOOK "A CONTRACT WITH GOD," WHICH TARGETS A MORE MATURE, LITERARY READERSHIP

1986 ART SPIEGELMAN'S "MAUS," DEPICTING HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS, WILL GO ON TO WIN A PULITZER. FRANK MILLER'S "THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS" AND ALAN MOORE'S "THE WATCHMEN" REDEFINE SUPERHEROES. ALL THREE RECEIVE MAINSTREAM ATTENTION, AND COMICS BEGIN TO ENJOY SOME RESPECTABILITY.

2000-01 "JIMMY CORRIGAN: SMARTEST KID ON EARTH" BY CHRIS WARE AND "SAFE AREA GORAZDE" BY JOE SACCO ACHIEVE NEW HEIGHTS IN THE ART FORM, GAINING WIDESPREAD RECOGNITION. "GHOST WORLD" AND "FROM HELL" MOVIES BASED ON NONSUPERHERO COMICS, APPEAR

2002 MAINSTREAM AND ALTERNATIVE COMIC PUBLISHERS PULL TOGETHER TO RELEASE SEVEN CHARITY BOOKS BASED ON THE EVENTS OF 9/11. THE VARIETY OF COMICS HAS NEVER BEEN GREATER OR MORE MOVING

--By Andrew Arnold, www.time.com/comix