All-Star Comics #57 not only marked the end of the original run of the Justice Society of America, for many it marks the end of the Golden Age. Many would end the Golden Age with World War II, others at some point in the late Forties, but, regardless, it was quite clearly the end of an era. After all, the Justice Society of America had been one of the last remaining superhero titles from the Golden Age. In the early Fifties the comic book industry would be dominated by other genres. Science fiction, horror, western, and romance comic books could be found on newstands everywhere. Perhaps the two most popular genres at the time were crime and horror. Lev Gleason' Crime Does Not Pay had debuted in 1942 and proven to be a great success. In the late Forties several other companies followed Gleason's lead and produced their own crime comic books. Horror comics appeared on the scene in the late Forties. Among the most popular titles in the genre were those published by E. C. Comics, a relative latecomer to the field. Tales from the Crypt, The Haunt of Fear, and The Vault of Horror were among the best sellers in the industry. Indeed, they would become classics in the medium, inspiring not only a generation of young comic book artists and writers, but novelists and film makers as well.

It seemed that the day of the superhero was past. In 1954 Atlas Comics (formerly Timely Comics) tried to revive their superhero line. Unfortunately their revivals of Captain America, The Human Torch, and The Sub-Mariner failed--Sub-Mariner Comics lasted the longest, at nine issues. Charlton Comics' attempt to revive Fox Feature Syndicate's flagship superhero, the Blue Beetle, in the pages of Space Adventures also met with failure. Superheroes were passé or so it seemed.

Unfortunately for the comic book industry, it might have been better had they stood by the superheroes of old. Since 1947 comic books had been increasingly coming under attack in newspaper editorials and magazine articles. Many people believed that they had a deleterious effect on youth and some even believed that they led to juvenile delinquency. As hard as it is to believe today, some areas even held comic book burnings. Foremost among the industry's critics was Dr. Frederic Wertham, a noted author and at one time the senior psychiatrist at Belleview. Beginning in the Forties Wertham wrote several articles attacking comic books and in 1954 published a book on the subject, Seduction of the Innocent.

Contrary to popular belief, Wertham's primary target was not the horror comic books of the era. Dr. Wertham was much more concerned about crime comic books, although he included a large number of genres under the heading of "crime (including science fiction and horror)." Nor did he single out E. C. Comics in his attacks, though they were one of his favourite targets. In fact, the company whose comic books Wertham cited most often in his works was Fox Features Syndicate, the notorious publisher of sensationalistic and often graphic crime and jungle comic books (who, ironically, had gone out of business in 1950).

Regardless, neither Wertham's articles nor his book, Seduction of the Innocent, were hardly based on sound scientific principles. His conclusions were based primarily on his work with juvenile delinquents and contained no empirical evidence of comic books' effects on normal children. Seduction of the Innocent, in particular, is filled with a priori assumptions, conclusions based on guilt by association, and  interpreting material out of context. Despite the fact that Seduction of the Innocent offered no real evidence for the harmful effects comic books supposedly had on children, the book severely damaged the industry. What had once been mere public outcry against violence in comic books soon became all out war against the comic book industry. The United States Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency, headed by Estes Kefauver, would even investigate comic books to see if there was a link between them and juvenile delinquency.

The Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency regarding comic books ended inconclusively and, contrary to what many believe now, there appears to have been no real threat of government intervention in the comic book industry. Even in the absence of government intervention, however, the comic book industry perceived its existence as being threatened. In October 1954 several major publishers joined together to create the Comics Code Authority.  The publishers referred to the Comics Code as "the most stringent code in existence for any communications media (sic)." With the Comics Code in effect, most comic books became very squeaky clean affairs, with an absolute minimum of violence and absolutely no sex (not that there ever had been any to begin with). Perhaps as a result, comic book sales plummeted to all time lows.

Indeed, by 1956 many established companies had either gone out of business or were in the process of doing so. That year Quality Comics, home of such Golden Age superheroes as Doll Man and The Black Condor, would close up shop and sell their characters in toto to National Periodical Publications Inc. The last issue of  their best selling superhero title, Plastic Man, ended its run in November 1956, just two scant months after the first appearance of the Barry Allen Flash and the official beginning of the Silver Age. Lev Gleason , publisher of Crime Does Not Pay, left the comic book field that year too. Boy Comics, home of  Crimebuster, ended its run only six months before the Silver Age Flash first appeared. Atlas Comics, formerly Timely Comics and soon to be Marvel Comics, nearly went extinct. Only by cancelling two thirds of their titles and working out a deal with National Periodical Publications to distribute their magazines did they stay afloat.

During this entire time, which could quite aptly be called the "Dark Age" of American comic books, the Justice Society of America was not to be seen. This is not to say that there were no superhero comic books whatsoever. As stated above, both Plastic Man and Daredevil nearly lasted into the Silver Age. Comic books featuring Captain Marvel continued to be published until National's lawsuit accusing Fawcett Publications of having plagiarised Superman drove them off the stands in 1953. And, of course, Atlas (formerly Timely) attempted to revive their Golden Age characters in 1954.

As the home of the world's first superhero, Superman, National Periodical Publications naturally continued to publish superhero titles. Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman would continue being published without interruption. The Green Arrow and Aquaman continued appearing in Adventure Comics well into the Silver Age. Other DC superheroes nearly made it into the Silver Age. Robotman continued in the pages of Detective Comics until 1953. The Vigilante ended his run in Action Comics in 1954. Johnny Quick appeared for one last time in Adventure Comics in 1954.

For superhero fans the mid-Fifties must have seemed like a bleak time. Hope, however, was on the horizon. In Detective Comics #225, November 1955, the first new superhero in quite some time appeared--the Martian Manhunter. And there were still those who held out hope that the Justice Society of America would return. In particular, Jerry Bails (later a noted comic book historian) and Roy Thomas (later a noted comic book writer), unbeknownst to each other, deluged National with requests for a revival of the Justice Society of America. Fortunately, they would soon get their wish after a fashion.

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 Unless otherwise stated, all text on this site is © 1999 T. L. Canote