Comics A-Z Podcast

Z is for Zines -The Origins of Comic Book Fandom

Z is for Zines -The Origins of Comic Book Fandom Long before online message boards, social media debates, convention livestreams, podcasts, YouTube essays, or even dedicated comic-book shops, comic-book fandom existed through the mail. It was a culture built out of typewriters, mimeograph machines, spirit duplicators, staplers, envelopes, and obsessive enthusiasm. The engine of that culture was the comic-book fanzine. Comic-book fanzines — amateur fan magazines produced by readers rather than publishers — became the connective tissue of early fandom. They were discussion forums before digital forums existed. They were criticism, scholarship, rumor columns, creator interviews, amateur comics, and classified ads all at once. Most importantly, they transformed comic-book readers from isolated consumers into an organized subculture. Recommended reading list for this episode: Essential Historic Fanzines Alter Ego [https://amzn.to/4tuK0XH] The Comic Reader [https://amzn.to/4ty8NKk] Rocket’s Blast Comicollector [https://amzn.to/49ztYED] Newfangles [https://amzn.to/3PGzgHE] Squa Tront [https://amzn.to/4fkO7C1] Fantasy Advertiser [https://amzn.to/4dpN4hI] Modern Historical Magazines Alter Ego (TwoMorrows) [https://amzn.to/3PF9eVh] The Comics Journal [https://amzn.to/4tzbifk] Comic Book Creator [https://amzn.to/4doqgie] Hogan's Alley [https://amzn.to/4fhBY0D] Books About Early Comics Fandom and Fanzines The Golden Age of Comic Fandom by Bill Schelly [https://amzn.to/4ugkbMe] Founders of Comic Fandom by Bill Schelly [https://amzn.to/4eLLOHZ] Alter Ego: The Best of the Legendary Comics Fanzine by Roy Thomas and Bill Schelly [https://amzn.to/4tyve22] Of Comics and Men: A Cultural History of American Comic Books by Jean-Paul Gabilliet [https://amzn.to/4u2YP4G] Men of Tomorrow by Gerard Jones [https://amzn.to/4ubwr0v] The Great Comic Book Heroes and Other Essays by Jules Feiffer [https://amzn.to/4dGs1sm] Comic Book Culture by Ron Goulart [https://amzn.to/4eKa3q7] Comic Book Nation by Bradford W. Wright [https://amzn.to/42tCpgZ] Demanding Respect: The Evolution of the American Comic Book by Paul Lopes [https://amzn.to/434n1aX] Pretty in Ink by Trina Robbins [https://amzn.to/4uLBSmq] COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry. COMIC A-Z is hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated Comics, and TV Comics.  Kevin was also the Sales Director for the Dream Factory chain of 22 stores and Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic book, trading card, and toy distributor in the country.  Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. He was the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic book related merchandise. He even wrote issue #4 of THE MUNSTERS from TV Comics. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer. This podcast is made by humans. Accept no substitutes. © Kevin Cleary 2026

Y is for The Yellow Kid - The Birth of The American Comic Strip

Y is for The Yellow Kid - The Birth of The American Comic Strip Although later comic icons such as Superman, Mickey Mouse, and Charlie Brown would become more globally recognizable, The Yellow Kid occupies a singular historical position: it stands at the point where cartooning, mass media, urban culture, advertising, and serialized storytelling converged into what would become the comic strip industry and eventually the comic-book medium itself. The history of The Yellow Kid is not merely the story of one comic character. It is the story of industrialized American media at the dawn of the twentieth century, the rise of immigrant urban culture, technological innovation in color printing, and the emergence of modern mass entertainment. Recommended reading list for this episode: Children of the Yellow Kid: The Evolution of the American Comic Strip [https://amzn.to/4bWTG6h] by RC Harvey (1998) The Yellow Kid: A Centennial Celebration of the Kid Who Started the Comics [https://amzn.to/4u0xX5b] Comic Strips and Consumer Culture [https://amzn.to/4tkK8Jw] 1890–1945 by Ian Gordon The Comics: The Complete Collection by Brian Walker [https://amzn.to/4u0W3wG] The Funnies: 100 Years of American Comic Strips [https://amzn.to/4bX9iXH] by Ron Goulart (1995) American Newspaper Comics: An Encyclopedic Reference Guide by Allan Holtz [https://amzn.to/3ReW9SV] Masters of American Comics - John Carlin Paul Karasik, editors [https://amzn.to/4d2Pa8l] The Smithsonian Collection of Newspaper Comics [https://amzn.to/4tqyxc5] by Bill Blackbeard & Dale Crain Winsor McCay: His Life and Art [https://amzn.to/3PuCtdm] Krazy Kat: The Comic Art of George Herriman [https://amzn.to/4daAaUE] Three Rocks: The Story of Ernie Bushmiller: The Man Who Created Nancy by Bill Griffith [https://amzn.to/42XQSlg] The Comic Strip Century by Bill Blackbeard [https://amzn.to/42ZgCxK] The Early Comic Strip: Narrative Strips and Picture Stories in the European Broadsheet from c.1450 to 1825 by David Kunzle [https://amzn.to/3RuALsW] Comic Art in America: A Social History of the Funnies, the Political Cartoons, Magazine Humor, Sporting Cartoons, and Animated Cartoons by Stephen Becker [https://amzn.to/4u3xuiY] COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry. COMIC A-Z is hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated Comics, and TV Comics.  Kevin was also the Sales Director for the Dream Factory chain of 22 stores and Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic book, trading card, and toy distributor in the country.  Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. He was the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic book related merchandise. He even wrote issue #4 of THE MUNSTERS from TV Comics. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer. This podcast is made by humans. Accept no substitutes. © Kevin Cleary 2026

X is for X-Men - A Tale of Two Super Teams

X is for X-Men - A Tale of Two Super Teams The X‑Men occupy a singular place in American popular culture, a franchise whose longevity and resonance stem not only from its colorful characters and superhero spectacle but from its deep engagement with the social anxieties, political tensions, and cultural transformations of the last six decades. Their story begins in 1963, in the cramped offices of Marvel Comics, where Stan Lee and Jack Kirby were in the midst of reinventing the superhero genre in what would become a pop culture revolution. Recommended reading list for this episode: Marvel Comics: The Untold Story by Sean Howe [https://amzn.to/4uvlHcW] The Marvel Age of Comics 1961–1978 by Roy Thomas [https://amzn.to/49xQDRF] The X Men: The Characters and Their Universe by Michael Mallory [https://amzn.to/42d96z5] X Men: The Art and Making of the Animated Series by Eric Lewald & Julia Lewald [https://amzn.to/4wcZIJw] Kirby: King of Comics by Mark Evanier [https://amzn.to/4tSTY5Y] Stan Lee: A Life in Comics by Liel Leibovitz [https://amzn.to/4u3WiqX] True Believer: The Rise and Fall of Stan Lee by Abraham Riesman [https://amzn.to/4uuQvue] Stan Lee Lied: Your Handy Guide to Every Lie in the Origins of Marvel Comics By Chaz Gower [https://amzn.to/4w9O1mG] Chris Claremont’s X Men (Documentary, 2018) [https://amzn.to/49by4mc] Jim Lee’s X Men Artist Editions (IDW) [https://amzn.to/4cR4Qvf] The Ages of the X Men: Essays on the Children of the Atom in Changing Times by Joseph J. Darowski [https://amzn.to/42h27oS] The Unauthorized X Men: SF and Comic Writers on Mutants, Prejudice, and Adamantium — Ed. Len Wein [https://amzn.to/3PnOcu7] COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry. COMIC A-Z is hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated Comics, and TV Comics.  Kevin was also the Sales Director for the Dream Factory chain of 22 stores and Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic book, trading card, and toy distributor in the country.  Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. He was the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic book related merchandise. He even wrote issue #4 of THE MUNSTERS from TV Comics. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer. This podcast is made by humans. Accept no substitutes. © Kevin Cleary 2026

W is for Wonder Woman - The Amazonian Goddess Next Door

W is for Wonder Woman - The Amazonian Goddess Next Door Since her debut in All Star Comics #8 in December 1941, Wonder Woman has stood as one of the “trinity” of DC superheroes, alongside Superman and Batman, yet her origins, themes, and cultural mission have always been radically different. Wonder Woman was conceived not merely as a crimefighter or adventurer but as a political, psychological, and feminist project, created by a man who believed that comic books could reshape society. Recommended reading list for this episode: The Secret History of Wonder Woman — Jill Lepore (2014) [https://amzn.to/4eMawrx] Wonder Woman Masterpiece edition: The Life and Times of the Amazon Princess by Les Daniels (2000) [https://amzn.to/3OP9nVB] Wonder Woman: The Golden Age Omnibus Vol. 1 [https://amzn.to/4eMvvdS] Wonder Woman Unbound: The Curious History of the World’s Most Famous Heroine — Tim Hanley (2014) [https://amzn.to/4udA9Ge] The Ages of Wonder Woman — Joseph J. Darowski (ed.) [https://amzn.to/49e3jNn] Superwomen: Gender, Power, and Representation — Carolyn Cocca (2016) [https://amzn.to/4d8WsXU] Wonder Woman: Spirit of Truth — Paul Dini & Alex Ross [https://amzn.to/4vR6NiR] Wonder Woman: Earth One — Grant Morrison & Yanick Paquette [https://amzn.to/4uhSXo4] Superheroes!: Capes, Cowls, and the Creation of Comic Book Culture — Laurence Maslon & Michael Kantor (2013) [https://amzn.to/4ucmkIf] The Golden Age of DC Comics — Paul Levitz (Taschen) [https://amzn.to/4eNL1WV] The Supergirls: Fashion, Feminism, Fantasy, and the History of Comic Book Heroines — Mike Madrid [https://amzn.to/48s23Gg] Wonder Woman and Philosophy — Jacob M. Held (ed.) [https://amzn.to/4cPD00W] COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry. COMIC A-Z is hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated Comics, and TV Comics.  Kevin was also the Sales Director for the Dream Factory chain of 22 stores and Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic book, trading card, and toy distributor in the country.  Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. He was the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic book related merchandise. He even wrote issue #4 of THE MUNSTERS from TV Comics. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer. This podcast is made by humans. Accept no substitutes. © Kevin Cleary 2026

V is for Vampirella - Pin-up to Superhero

V is for Vampirella - Pin-up to Superhero Today we trace the creation and evolution of Vampirella from her origins in 1969 through her decades of reinvention, exploring the corporate history that shaped her, the creative figures who defined her, the social and cultural forces that influenced her reception. In doing so, it reveals how a figure initially conceived as a tongue‑in‑cheek horror hostess became one of the most enduring female icons in comics history. Featured Biography: Frank Frazetta  Recommended reading list for this episode: Vampirella Archives Vol. 1 [https://amzn.to/3NVu3uV] Vengeance of Vampirella Vol. 1 [https://amzn.to/47M2kDI] Vampirella Masters Series [https://amzn.to/4spYasC] The Art of José González [https://amzn.to/4dVg1Ef] James Warren: Empire of Monsters by Bill Shelly [https://amzn.to/4mlwN1d] Gothic in Comics and Graphic Novels by Julia Round [https://amzn.to/4slmxaM] Comic Book Nation by Bradford Wright [https://amzn.to/4eacSjF] The Encyclopedia of Superheroes by Jeff Rovin [https://amzn.to/3QtqNaL] The Vampire Encyclopedia by Matthew Bunson [https://amzn.to/4cycpGU] Horror Comics in Black and White: A History and Catalog, 1964–2004 by Richard J. Arndt [https://amzn.to/48lyAO0] Last Girl Standing by Trina Robbins [https://amzn.to/4mlXNxR] Pretty in Ink: North American Women Cartoonists 1896–2013 Trina Robbins Editor [https://amzn.to/3PQ8Sen] COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry. COMIC A-Z is hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated Comics, and TV Comics.  Kevin was also the Sales Director for the Dream Factory chain of 22 stores and Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic book, trading card, and toy distributor in the country.  Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. He was the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic book related merchandise. He even wrote issue #4 of THE MUNSTERS from TV Comics. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer. This podcast is made by humans. Accept no substitutes. © Kevin Cleary 2026