Charlton Lives!

Comic book characters have become big business outside of their original print form over the past few years. Marvel Comics (or, if you will, Marvel Studios) has proven that fact with their massively successful films of characters such as Iron Man, Thor and Spider-Man. While a lot of the interest may lie in that few of these characters have been portrayed in live action, it certainly brought a new focus on comic books as a moneymaking bonanza from both television and movies. Blockbusters like AVENGERS and the Batman series only solidified that point. Regular comic book fans are not unaware of the potential of these great creations; they’ve been following some of them for their entire lives. They have watched larger and larger companies swallow up their favorite heroes as the income wrought by what may be thought of as kid entertainment grows enormous. The two largest and oldest comic book companies, DC and Marvel, are owned by two of the largest entertainment houses in the country, Time/Warner and Disney, respectively. It makes a comic fan, and Connecticut resident, what would have been if the state had stayed as big a part of the comic book business as it once had been.

Once, it could be argued, that Connecticut was a reigning force in the production of the four-color magazines. (Four-color being a printing process using three primary colors of cyan, magenta and yellow, with black added as needed.) Soon after comics started hitting the newsstands in the late 1930’s, an impressive number of companies in the state jumped aboard this new cash cow, as the successes of Superman and Batman sparked off a phenomenon. Many made few, disappearing quickly. A much smaller number survived to make a heavier mark on fandom, collectors and history, with one being Derby’s own Charlton Comics.

The Charlton Comics line came about in 1946, a segment of the Charlton Publications company organized by John Santangelo, Sr. and Ed Levy around 1940 (previously known as T.W.O. Charles Co.), starting with the popular “mystery men” styled stories. From their beginning and until the early 1980’s, Charlton produced, printed and distributed comics from one massive building on Division Street, a near aberration in the comic book world, as most printing and distributing was and remains outsourced. Continuing with their belief that ‘in house’ was best, they employed their own drivers and owned their own fleet of trucks, which is unique in the annals of comic book history.

Charlton produced comic books in nearly every genre: science fiction, romance, Westerns, humor, TV and movie tie-in, horror and war. Super hero titles, such as the fondly remembered “Action Heroes” line of the mid-1960’s, were never a major center of revenue for the company and tended to be short-lived. The newsstands were extremely crowded at times, and Charlton sometimes had difficulties getting onto the racks, thereby maintaining sales. Series would end abruptly and other titles would pick up the sequential numbering from the previous title as they were excised from the line. So, a series such as CAPTAIN ATOM never had an issue numbered one, it picked up sequentially from a previous title and continued from there, then being renamed. Charlton was essentially, then and now, known for two primary concerns: speed and efficiency. They wanted their comics produced quickly and cheaply, so they spent little and kept the presses running 24/7, as an idle press made them nothing. Strangely enough, though they would never be known for their high rate of pay, they seemed to always find quality artists who would not only willingly work for them, but happily and loyally do so. It’s been said that editorial freedom allowed some of these artists to experiment, trying new techniques or styles. It may not have been noticed by readers at the time, but it is in retrospect.

Fans of Charlton Comics are an interesting breed. The company produced some very oddball comics, few of which are seen as “historically significant” i.e. the first appearance of Superman, Batman or Spider-Man. Charlton fans love the search for that rare issue that didn’t see wide distribution or sales, with a short story by their favorite artist, such as Steve Ditko or Sal Trapiani. They enjoy the difficulty in discovering high quality copies, as the comics were known for their lesser grade paper and tend not to weather the years well. There are fans that collect only the monster titles or the humor books or certain television titles they enjoy. No matter what era, what genre, what artist or writer, interest in Charlton seems to grow every year, even though the comic books were phased out of production at the plant by 1985, and with hardly any tears.

There are numerous web-based groups that are wholly Charlton-centric. Some collect every bit of Charlton oriented ephemera created, photos or news clippings. Some are active discussions with many of the surviving creators that once worked for Charlton and indeed, still live in Connecticut. One Facebook group, THE CHARLTON ARROW, has gone one step further and will be producing comic books by fans and professionals, including some of the aforementioned former Charlton artists and writers.

THE CHARLTON ARROW began as a tribute fanzine by the mysterious Fester Faceplant, whose secret identity must be kept or democracy as we know it may end. The project started “snowballing last summer and a lot of pros and fans got onboard... 'cause everyone loves Charlton, right?” says editor/publisher Mort Todd. Initially intended as a black and white magazine, Mort felt it needed more. “Fest was gonna do a black & white publication but I felt it deserved the color treatment, so I ended up taking the publishing reigns, with Fester and Roger McKenzie as co-editors with me.”

THE ARROW will be a 44 page extravaganza of talent, including well known names as John Byrne, Paul Kupperberg, Joe Staton and Batton Lash, alongside a host of artists and writers that are aficionados of Charlton Comics. All of the stories within the issue will include characters that have lapsed into Public Domain, in all new, exciting adventures. Future issues of THE ARROW plan to include characters wholly owned by their creators, as well as unpublished stores from collected Charlton archives.

“Charlton had a pretty unique vibe, more than many publishers, even the "better" ones,” says Mort. He has a point; the history of the company alone is a curiosity, not just in the annals of Connecticut business, but in pop culture. Some of the characters still exist in print, in some form, at DC Comics. The majority of the “Action Heroes” of the 1960’s were purchased from Charlton in the early 1980’s and integrated into their worlds. They’ve gone on to appear in comics and animated television shows since. It’s also well known nerd trivia that these same “Action Heroes” were the basis for the bestselling story THE WATCHMEN (serialized in comic form at DC between 1986 and ’87, collected in 1987), which was adapted for the screen and released in 2009. Charlton continued publishing certain genre comics longer than many of the other company. They held the rights to print comics on many different television shows, from Space:1999 to Emergency! to The Partridge Family, and yes, even Hee Haw. They absorbed titles and characters from defunct companies, a tradition that continues with comic book houses today. Charlton Comics seem, even now, to have that feel of the company that just about had major success in their grasp. You can’t help but want to urge them on, even 30 years after their demise.

THE CHARLTON ARROW, aiming for a bi-monthly publishing schedule, is a solid way of recalling what was while enjoying good, solid fun from the unsung characters once of a third-rate, defunct outfit from Derby. It can be obtained from Mort’s website, http://morttodd.com/charlton.html. Also coming soon from Mort Todd’s ACE Comics is a collection of Charlton's Classic Hot Rods and Racing Car Comics by Jack Kellar, shot from the original stats! See http://morttodd.com/hotrods.html for more information.

THE CHARLTON ARROW, Mort Todd and others will be part of an NPR radio and print report in the next few days. Watch for it!