"If Warren Publishing is turning out this unpatriotic crap, we don't want any of their other books!"
- James Warren on the distributors for BLAZING COMBAT
BLAZING COMBAT
Vol. 1 No. 1
October 1965
Warren Publishing Co.
Publisher: James Warren
Editor: Archie Goodwin
Cover: Frank Frazetta
Writer: Archie Goodwin
Artists: Reed Crandall; George Evans; Gray Morrow; Joe Orlando; John Severin; Angelo Torres; Alex Toth
Letterer: Ben Oda
Pages: 52
Cover price: 35 cents
Publisher Jim Warren's inspiration for the quartet of "war comics" entitled, BLAZING COMBAT was his political view on the Vietnam War, but his method was straight out of the EC war comics line of the 1950's. Both were vehicles for anti-war statements told in the classic comics tradition, both used some of the best writers and artists available at the time, and both have achieved legendary status over the years since their original publication.
Warren was derided by his distributors for his overt sympathy towards the horrors of war in all countries and periods of history, but it was Archie Goodwin's story, "Landscape" (in issue #2) with its compassion towards the Vietnamese, that got Warren in hot water with the people who put his product on the shelves. The backlash was so intense that armed services base's PX's refused to carry the titles, and even newsstands were lobbied by organizations such as the American Legion to boycott the magazine.
The campaign worked, and BLAZING COMBAT survived for only four issues.
[BLAZING COMBAT #1 concludes tomorrow.]
Wish I could go through the pages by touching them but still, very nice of you to share!!
ReplyDeleteI think Joe Orlandos inkwork is the best because of his shading technique. I think it is stippling with something else...
Anyway, wish you many more great posts to come!! Grand entry!!
Joe Orlando also has the distinction of being the artist for the first story, "Voodoo", in CREEPY #1. Thanks for visiting MMW!
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