October 2019 Wallpaper: Rot Your Brain
Shaenon: The Cartoon Art Museum has a show of 1950s EC horror comics planned for the Halloween season, so I decided to draw a tribute to one of the most infamous EC covers. In 1954, the Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency held a hearing on comic books, which led to this exchange with EC publisher Bill Gaines:
Chief Counsel Herbert Beaser: There would be no limit, actually, to what you’d put in the magazines?
Gaines: Only within the bounds of good taste.
Senator Estes Kefauver: Here is your May issue. This seems to be a man with a bloody ax holding a woman’s head up which has been severed from her body. Do you think that’s in good taste?
Gaines: Yes sir, I do — for the cover of a horror comic. A cover in bad taste, for example, might be defined as holding her head a little higher so that blood could be seen dripping from it and moving the body a little further over so that the neck of the body could be seen to be bloody.
As you can see, I have made the revisions suggested by Gaines to officially put my cover within the bounds of bad taste.
As usual, if you make a donation in any amount to the Skin Horse Tip Jar, or contribute any amount to our Patreon, we’ll give you a link to this wallpaper, designed for two computer desktop sizes and cell phones. Patreon contributors will continue to receive new wallpaper for the length of their contribution.
As a bonus, you’ll get this bonus October wallpaper from the archives:
Channing:Let it never be said that we are not in reverse-compliance with the Comics Code and 1950’s social mores.
Bill Gaines really let himself get mousetrapped by these guys. Perhaps it led to his refocusing on Mad Magazine…
I remember reading somewhere that he was on rather strong medication at the time, which didn’t exactly help his courtroom performance.
“:Let it never be said that we are not in reverse-compliance with the Comics Code and 1950’s social mores.”
Ah, but have you embraced Communism yet?
Ah, but it’s a comic about social services and helping people who are different and/or in need — according to the current administration, that’s exactly the same thing as COMMUNISM!!!
Where have I been? I had no idea the museum had reopened! This is good! Very good!
Presently entering a typical weekend comment from me. Regards, etc.
You know you complain on a regular basis when you don’t even need to detail your complaint any more, and people still know what you’re talking about. Nice to see you adding a touch of humour to the day’s commentary.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled interruption.
Fundamental changes happen on the basis of regular complaints.
… though strategically applied force is often needed.
Of course, preferably they would be *improvements*…
Thank you,Awgiedawgie!
I luv the magazine cover! It would make for a cool t-shirt!