Classics Illustrated #124: The War of the Worlds (Gilberton, 1955)
The Classics Illustrated series was created by one of those driven individuals
with a real mission in life. Albert Lewis Kanter (1897-1973) had a vision
that he could introduce some of the world's greatest literature to a
generation of children reluctant to pick up the original books. In 1940,
he was working for the Elliott Publishing Company, which was then repackaging
unsold comics for resale. This gave him the germ of an idea to try something
entirely different. The American Comic Book industry was then coming
under sustained attack for what was seen as its negative influence on
young readers. Sterling North, a columnist for the Chicago Daily News
had led this attack, writing that comic books were "badly written
and badly printed. A strain on young eyes and young nervous systems
the effect of these pulp-paper nightmares is that of a violent stimulant
[and] unless we want a coming generation even more ferocious than the
present one, parents and teachers throughout America must band together
to break the comic magazine."
North's attack, while far from fair, was widely read and
supported, so Kanter's idea was a timely one. In October of 1941, Kanter
founded what would become known as The Gilberton Company, and the series
was launched with a 64-page adaptation of Alexandre Dumas' The Three
Musketeers. Not only did it contain the reworked novel, but unusually
for the time, there were no ads in the book other than for the Classic
Comic range. Kanter did not want his comics sullied by any crass commercial
aims. Further to this, supplemental material included biographical and
historical texts.
The series would eventually run for 169 issues, with an
additional spin off series called Classics Illustrated Juniors accounting
for many more. Of course, one can't help suspect that many a child facing
a deadline for a school book report made unfair use of the Classics
Illustrated books. Though I can't imagine the thought bothered Kanter
unduly. His comics got into the classroom officially, were endorsed
by educators and for a time, the series ranked as the largest juvenile
publication on the planet. The kids may have thought they were avoiding
a chore, but in terms of titles consumed, many of them had probably
inadvertently exposed themselves to a broader range of "literature"
than anyone could reasonably hope for. If just a little of that rubbed
off, then Kanter had surely achieved his aims.
The War of the Worlds edition of Classics Illustrated
was number 124 in the series. Drawn by Lou Cameron (who went on to write
westerns) and written by Harry Miller, this is one Classics Illustrated
that has been particularly well remembered and acclaimed. When the series
was briefly revived by First Comics in the early 1990's, artist Ken
Steacy was asked to redraw the story, but declined, having apparently
said  "There
is no way I could have done it any better." Certainly the art is
striking. The cover is simply superb, and Cameron's Tripods are a masterpiece
of design, and have even inspired a model kit.
The story is reasonably faithful to the novel and retains
its period setting, though given that Kanter was doubtless keen to maintain
his good relationship with educators, you wonder if there was some ulterior
motivation for the dilution of the story that takes place, such as for
instance the scenes between the narrator and the
priest. In the original novel, this powerful chapter exposes a real
raw nerve in Wells, who had little love for the church, and the dispatch
of the priest is strong stuff for the time and likely to have still raised
hackles in 1955 America.  Equally,
some material is added that is very welcome. The page illustrating the
artillery mans speculation on the fate of humanity under the Martians
is especially good, with a great panel depicting human collaborators
hunting down their fellow men.
While the art has certainly dated, the strength of the
Gilberton series has held firm. I would certainly recommend any parent
hoping to inspire an interest in the "classics" of literature
to consider exposing their children to this excellent version of the story.
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