If you open the business section of The New York Times you'd expect to see stock quotas, the latest industrial law passed by Congress, or news from the Treasury. The last image you'd expect to see is Spider-man and Superman but that’s just what happened in May of 1998. The article that accompanied the picture (above) was about "the dire nature of the comic book market and the struggle for [executive] control over Marvel" (McAllister, 15). The Times was not alone; a series of news reports circled the media surrounding the Marvel comics’ executive problem and the plummeting stocks of the D.C and Marvel. Such articles collectively represent an image that has gone unnoticed by many: the comic book industry as an economic powerhouse.
Since the 1960's the comic book industry has been one of the most profitable print industries. Although it has experienced a major economic downturn since the mid 1990's, from the 850 million dollar mark in 1993, comic literature is still one of the highest grossing entertainment industries (McAllister, 17). Monthly entertainment magazines aspire for the sales of monthly installments of comic books. Beside comic book revenue, "licensing activities (the sales of comic book related merchandise) brings in many more millions" (McAllister, 17). Marvel alone generated near a billion dollars in licensing activities in the past year. And licensing practices of the comic book industry also influence the creation of motion picture, television, print, and video game productions that collectively generate revenue in the multi-billions of dollars.
What does all this have to do with increasing comic literature in public libraries? The United States is a capitalist country and as a capitalist country we are dependent on the economy. Its general outlook influences every aspect of society; if the stock market is in peril, you can expect to see milk rise or oil prices increase or even paper prices jump in price. The comic book industry, and comic literature in general, with its massive economic power is one of the most important, arguably THE most important, entertainment industries in the United States. Children wear the industry’s superheroes on their shirts. Adults, sometimes unknowingly, watch the industries best, and sometimes worst, penned scripts on the big and silver screens; did you know five of the top ten movies of all time are/have comic book series? With the comic industry having such a stranglehold on society, culture, and the media it is time more academics and common readers start examining comic books in the same manner we examine television, movies, videogames, and literature.
Public libraries may just be the forum to start this critical evaluation. Public libraries, like online blogs, have been an area of public discourse for years. Their mandate is to serve the public's information needs generally, as well as offering materials for general entertainment and leisure purposes. They primarily focus on popular materials such as popular fiction and movies, as well as educational and nonfiction materials. Since the late 90’s some public libraries have started incorporating comics into collections. In Brazil, for instance, public libraries are organizing special branches/departments for comic books, calling them Gibitecas, for public use (Vergueiro). Yet aside from a few dozen specialized, non-circulating research collections, retrospective comic book holding remain virtually unknown as a library resource. Browsing collections of current comic books are equally rare in public school and college libraries. Sadly, public libraries that have the latest issue of popular titles are still the exception rather than the rule. If increased, comic literature and public libraries could provide the perfect area for an in-depth examination of comic literature.
Why hasn't comic literature been used in more public libraries thus far? Librarians offer many answers to that question.
One of the more popular responses is that they are too expensive to obtain. The average price of a comic book has increased at an accelerated rate over time. From 1968 to 1988, the average cost of comics rose only 63 cents, from 12 cents to 75 cents. Then from 1988 to 2008, the average cost rose $2.24, from 75 cents to $2.99 . Yet even if a library followed the 4 most popular comic book heroes (Batman, Superman, Spider-man, and X-Men) in only their main comic series, the library would spend about 12 dollars a week on comics. And while a substantive collection of a hero’s catalogue may be expensive in the short run, new membership and increased publicity could offset that cost in the long run. Librarians in Missouri noted at the conclusion of their study that, “Library traffic experienced an immediate and lasting change after the introduction of comic books” (Lavin, 2). A Connecticut library reported similar findings, noting also that “nothing the library had done before had so captured people’s imagination and attention” (Lavin, 2). And virtually all articles on the subject of comic literature and libraries made a point of noting that no negative reactions were received from parents, teachers, or taxpayers. This idea, that comics are simply too expensive for library use, is a fallacy.
A second popular response is that the durability of a comic book is too fragile. Historically, this is accurate. From the 1960’s until the 1980’s, comic books were printed on newsprint and lasted half a dozen to a dozen readings. Color was cheap and tended to smear, drawings were rudimentary and, at times, illegible writing would serve as a script. But the days of newsprint are gone. Publishers use more sophisticated printing and coloring techniques, creating a comic of even better quality than most paperback books. But regardless of their physical characteristics, individual comics are not expected to last long, only about 60 days (Lavin, 2). Browsing collections are intended to consist of a rotating selection of current issues only and if a library contains a catalogued collection, online archiving and/or lamination tend to ensure durability. However, libraries should find the cost per circulation of a comic to be quite cost friendly (Lavin, 2).
The end result of this post is that comic books are important, should be studied in a critical context, and public libraries are the perfect area to accomplish this critical study. While librarians state reasons for comic’s exclusion from libraries, few of them are especially convincing and none present insurmountable obstacles to establish a collection. The resistance, it seems, may not result from general disapproval of comics but from a well-establish literary habits that exclude comics from the realm of literature.
