Arnold Book Company (ABC) was a British publisher of

comic books A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

that operated in the late 1940s and 1950s, most actively from 1950 to 1954. ABC published original titles like the

war comic War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

''Ace Malloy of the Special Squadron'' and the

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

title ''Space Comics'', and reprints of American horror and

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

titles (many featuring the work of

Joe Simon Joseph Henry Simon (October 11, 1913 – December 14, 2011) was an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s–1940s Golden Age of Comic Books and served as the ...

and

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comic book artist, writer and editor, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He gr ...

) like ''

Adventures into the Unknown ''Adventures Into the Unknown'' was an American comic-book magazine series best known as the medium's first ongoing horror-comics title. Published by the American Comics Group, initially under the imprint B&I Publishing, it ran 174 issues (cover-da ...

'', '' Black Magic Comics'', and ''

Justice Traps the Guilty ''Justice Traps the Guilty'' was an American comic book title, a publication of the crime comics genre created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby and published by Prize Comics from 1947 to 1958. It followed the successful revamping of ''Headline Comics ...

''. British contributors to the company's titles include

Mick Anglo Michael Anglo (born Maurice Anglowitz, 19 June 1916 – 31 October 2011)Holland, Steve, "Who's Who in British Comics", ''Comics World'' No. 43, Aceville Publications Ltd (September–October 1995) was a British comic book writer, editor and arti ...

and

Denis Gifford Denis Gifford (26 December 1927 – 18 May 2000)Holland, Steve, Obituaries: Denis Gifford', ''The Guardian'', 26 May 2000. was a British writer, broadcaster, journalist, comic artist and historian of film, comics, television and radio. In h ...

. Arnold Book Company was closely connected to the fellow British comics publisher L. Miller & Son. In the 1950s, Arnold Book Company suffered from backlash for some of its

horror comic Horror comics are comic books, graphic novels, black-and-white comics magazines, and manga focusing on horror fiction. In the US market, horror comic books reached a peak in the late 1940s through the mid-1950s, when concern over content and the ...

reprints, leading to the company's closure in 1958. ABC's founder, Arnold L. Miller, later became a filmmaker and film producer, primarily in the

nudist Naturism is a lifestyle of practising non-sexual social nudity in private and in public; the word also refers to the cultural movement which advocates and defends that lifestyle. Both may alternatively be called nudism. Though the two terms ar ...

and

sexploitation A sexploitation film (or sex-exploitation film) is a class of independently produced, low-budget feature film that is generally associated with the 1960s and early 1970s, and that serves largely as a vehicle for the exhibition of non-explicit s ...

genre.

History

The company was founded in 1948 by Arnold Louis Miller, the "Son" in L. Miller & Son, Ltd. a British reprint publisher (founded in 1943) of many American comic books, primarily those of

Fawcett Comics Fawcett Comics, a division of Fawcett Publications, was one of several successful comic book publishers during the Golden Age of Comic Books in the 1940s. Its most popular character was Captain Marvel, the alter ego of radio reporter Billy Bats ...

. (L. Miller & Son became known later on for the 1954 creation [by British writer/artist

] of

Marvelman Miracleman (Michael ("Micky" / "Mike") Moran), originally known as Marvelman, is a fictional superhero appearing in comic books first published by L. Miller & Son, Ltd. Created in 1954 by writer-artist Mick Anglo for publisher L. Miller & So ...

– a blatant imitation of Fawcett's Captain Marvel.) Between 1950 and 1952,

produced a number of strips for Arnold Book Company, on stories such as "Captain Valiant" (in ''Space Comics'') and ''Ace Malloy of the Special Squadron'', while concurrently producing ''Space Commando Comics'', featuring "Space Commander Kerry," for L. Miller & Son.Holland, Steve, "Who's Who in British Comics", ''Comics World'' #43, Aceville Publications Ltd. (September–October 1995). In 1954, Anglo created one issue of ''Captain Universe'' for ABC, a near-identical character to Captain Marvel and

Relationship with Thorpe & Porter

In the period 1951 to 1953, the British distributor/publisher

Thorpe & Porter Thorpe & Porter (widely known as T & P) was a British publisher, importer, and distributor of magazines and comic books. At first, the company was known for repackaging American comics and pulp magazines for the UK market. Later on, it became a pu ...

(T & P) acquired a number of ABC's reprint titles, including ''

'', ''Young Brides'', ''Young Eagle'', and '' Young Love''. (When T & P acquired ''

'', it continued the numbering of the ABC version; with the other titles, T & P restarted the numbering at #1.) In 1953, Thorpe & Porter seems to have acquired the Arnold Book Company as a separate line; Arnold Book Company appears as an

imprint Imprint or imprinting may refer to: Entertainment * ''Imprint'' (TV series), Canadian television series * "Imprint" (''Masters of Horror''), episode of TV show ''Masters of Horror'' * ''Imprint'' (film), a 2007 independent drama/thriller film ...

on the T & P titles ''

'', ''

Kid Colt, Outlaw ''Kid Colt, Outlaw'' is a comic book title featuring the character Kid Colt originally published by Atlas Comics beginning in 1948 and later Marvel Comics. Publication history Kid Colt and his horse Steel first appeared in ''Kid Colt'' #1 (Augu ...

'', ''Young Brides'', and ''Young Romance'' from that point until 1958. (T & P later published a second volume of 13 issues of ''Justice Traps the Guilty''.)

Horror comics controversy and closure

Starting around 1950, "lurid American '

' and '

horror comics Horror comics are comic books, graphic novels, black-and-white comics magazines, and manga focusing on horror fiction. In the US market, horror comic books reached a peak in the late 1940s through the mid-1950s, when concern over content and the ...

' reached Britain." Titles such as

EC Comics Entertaining Comics, more commonly known as EC Comics, was an American publisher of comic books, which specialized in horror fiction, crime fiction, satire, military fiction, dark fantasy, and science fiction from the 1940s through the mid-195 ...

' ''

The Haunt of Fear ''The Haunt of Fear'' was an American bi-monthly horror comic anthology series published by EC Comics, starting in 1950. Along with '' Tales from the Crypt'' and '' The Vault of Horror'', it formed a trifecta of popular EC horror anthologies. ''T ...

'', ''

Tales from the Crypt Tales from the Crypt may refer to: * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (album), by American rapper C-Bo * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (comics), published by EC Comics during the 1950s ** ''Tales from the Crypt'' (film), a 1972 Amicus film starring Ralph Ric ...

'', and '' The Vault of Horror'' first arrived as

ballast Ballast is material that is used to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within a boat, ship, ...

in ships from the United States, and at first were only available in the "environs of the great ports of

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

and London." EC's comics, which exhibited a gruesome ''joie de vivre'', with grimly ironic fates meted out to many of the stories' protagonists, prompted what in retrospect has been characterised as a

moral panic A moral panic is a widespread feeling of fear, often an irrational one, that some evil person or thing threatens the values, interests, or well-being of a community or society. It is "the process of arousing social concern over an issue", usua ...

. In 1952, Arnold Book Company cashed in on the popularity of

with reprints of the (relatively gore-free)

Prize Comics A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements.

title '' Black Magic Comics'', publishing that title into 1954. Around that same time, in 1952 and again in 1954, "using blocks made from imported American

matrices Matrix most commonly refers to: * ''The Matrix'' (franchise), an American media franchise ** ''The Matrix'', a 1999 science-fiction action film ** "The Matrix", a fictional setting, a virtual reality environment, within ''The Matrix'' (franchis ...

," ABC printed British single-issue editions of EC's ''The Haunt of Fear'', ''Tales from the Crypt'', and ''The Vault of Horror'', selling them in "small back-street newsagents." The ensuing outcry was heard in the British press; an article in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' of April 22, 1955, accused horror comics of deranging young readers, pushing the most susceptible to desecrate local cemeteries. Shortly, at the urging of the Most Reverend

Geoffrey Fisher Geoffrey Francis Fisher, Baron Fisher of Lambeth, (5 May 1887 – 15 September 1972) was an English Anglican priest, and 99th Archbishop of Canterbury, serving from 1945 to 1961. From a long line of parish priests, Fisher was educated at Marlb ...

, the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

, Major

Gwilym Lloyd George Gwilym Lloyd George, 1st Viscount Tenby, (4 December 1894 – 14 February 1967) was a Welsh politician and cabinet minister. The younger son of David Lloyd George, he served as Home Secretary from 1954 to 1957. Background, education and milit ...

, the

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

and

Minister of Welsh Affairs The secretary of state for Wales ( cy, ysgrifennydd gwladol Cymru), also referred to as the Welsh secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Wales Office. The incumbent is a member ...

, and the

National Union of Teachers The National Union of Teachers (NUT; ) was a trade union for school teachers in Education in England, England, Education in Wales, Wales, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. It was a member of the Trades Union Congress. In March 2017, NU ...

, Parliament passed the

Children and Young Persons (Harmful Publications) Act 1955 The Children and Young Persons (Harmful Publications) Act 1955 (c.28) is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom Parliament that prohibited comics that were thought to be harmful to children. The Act was introduced by the Home Secretary, Gwil ...

. The act targeted horror comics — especially ABC's EC reprint titles. As a result of this backlash, Arnold Book Company had mostly shut down its comic book activities after 1954, and was closed down entirely in 1958.(French) Depelley, Jean
"Miller & Son (2ème et dernière partie),"
BDZoom.com (March 18, 2014).

Arnold Miller's later career

Arnold Miller moved on to publishing the glamour magazine ''Photo Studio'', and then transitioned to a career in filmmaking, particularly

and

movies. Arnold Miller's father Leonard was against his son's new career, and as a result of their dispute, he ejected Arnold from L. Miller & Son, which became simply L. Miller & Co. Arnold Miller directed seven films in the period 1959 to 1970, produced several movies with

Stanley Long Stanley A. Long (26 November 1933 – 10 September 2012) was an English exploitation cinema and sexploitation filmmaker. He was also a driving force behind the VistaScreen stereoscopic (3D) photographic company. He was a writer, cinemato ...

, and worked with

Tigon British Film Productions Tigon British Film Productions or Tigon was a film production and distribution company, founded by Tony Tenser in 1966. It is best remembered for its horror films, particularly ''Witchfinder General'' (directed by Michael Reeves, 1968) and '' ...

. Films directed by Miller include: * ''

Nudist Memories ''Nudist Memories'' is a 1961 British naturist film. It was inspired by the success of '' Nudist Paradise'' and was a success at the box office.Sheridan, Simon (2011). ''Keeping the British End Up: Four Decades of Saucy Cinema'', Titan Books pp. ...

'' (1959) * '' Nudes of the World'' (1961) * '' West End Jungle'' (1961) * '' Take Off Your Clothes and Live!'' (1963) * '' London in the Raw'' (co-directed with

Norman Cohen Norman Cohen (11 June 1936 in Dublin – 26 October 1983 in Van Nuys, California) was an Irish film director and producer, best known for directing two feature films based on television comedy programmes, ''Till Death Us Do Part'' (1969) and ...

) (1964) * ''

Secrets of a Windmill Girl ''Secrets of a Windmill Girl'' is a 1966 British exploitation film directed by Arnold L. Miller. It recounts the road to ruin of a young woman (Pauline Collins) who becomes involved with the striptease scene after becoming a dancer at the Windmill ...

'' (1966) * ''

A Touch of the Other ''A Touch of the Other'' is a 1970 British drama film directed by Arnold L. Miller and starring Hélène Françoise, Kenneth Cope and Shirley Anne Field. Premise A London private detective finds himself the target of a gangster. Delger, "the ma ...

'' (1970)

Titles published (selected)

Original titles

* ''Ace Malloy of the Special Squadron'' (17 issues, 1952–1954) * ''Captain Universe'' (1 issue, 1954) —

's clone of Captain Marvel/

* ''Space Comics'' (32 issues, 1953–1954) — contributions from

and

Reprint titles

* ''

'' (20 issues, 1950– 1951) —

American Comics Group American Comics Group (ACG) was an American comic book publisher started in 1939 and existing under the ACG name from 1943 to 1967. It published the medium's first ongoing horror-comics title, ''Adventures into the Unknown''. ACG's best-known ch ...

title of the same name * '' Black Magic Comics'' (16 issues, 1952–1954) —

Crestwood Publications Crestwood Publications, also known as Feature Publications, was a magazine publisher that also published comic books from the 1940s through the 1960s. Its title ''Prize Comics'' contained what is considered the first ongoing horror comic-book fea ...

Prize Comics A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements.

title of the same name; published by ABC under its Prize imprint "Arnold Book Company : Prize (Brand Groups),"
Grand Comics Database. Retrieved Dec. 21, 2020. * ''The Haunt of Fear'' (3 issues, 1952–1954) — reprints from

's ''

'' and ''

Shock SuspenStories ''Shock SuspenStories'' was part of the EC Comics line in the early 1950s. The bi-monthly comic, published by Bill Gaines and edited by Al Feldstein, began with issue 1 in February/March 1952. Over a four-year span, it ran for 18 issues, ending wi ...

'' * ''

'' (28 issues, 1951–1953) — Crestwood Publications/Prize Comics title of the same name; acquired in 1957 by

and continued for another 15 issues under the Arnold Book Company imprint * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (2 issues, 1952–1954) — reprints from the EC Comics' ''

'', ''Shock SuspenStories'', and ''

Crime SuspenStories ''Crime SuspenStories'' was a bi-monthly anthology crime comic published by EC Comics in the early 1950s. The title first arrived on newsstands with its October/November 1950 issue and ceased publication with its February/March 1955 issue, produc ...

'' * '' The Vault of Horror'' (1 issue, 1954) — EC Comics title of the same name * ''Young Brides'' (10 issues, 1952) — Prize Comics title of the same name; acquired by Thorpe & Porter in 1953 * ''Young Eagle'' (8 issues, 1951) —

Fawcett Publications Fawcett Publications was an American publishing company founded in 1919 in Robbinsdale, Minnesota by Wilford Hamilton "Captain Billy" Fawcett (1885–1940). It kicked off with the publication of the bawdy humor magazine ''Captain Billy's Whiz B ...

title; acquired by Thorpe & Porter in 1951 * '' Young Love'' (12 issues, 1952) — Crestwood Publications title of the same name; acquired by Thorpe & Porter in 1953

References

Notes

Citations

Sources consulted

* {{Authority control 1948 establishments in England 1958 disestablishments in England British companies established in 1948 British companies disestablished in 1958 Comic book publishing companies of the United Kingdom Defunct comics and manga publishing companies Defunct companies of the United Kingdom Publishing companies established in 1948 Publishing companies disestablished in 1958