Many written histories of comics ignore the Jewish influence on the medium. During the golden age, numerous comic creators denied their heritage and changed their names to succeed. The truth is the comic industry has been circumcised, Hebrew schooled, bar mitzvahed, and married to its fans under a chuppah. Nearly all the early creators owned many yarmulkes, rocked a tallit and wrapped their arms in tefillin. Some of these nice Jewish boys are: Jack Kirby, Bob Kane, Joe Shuster, Jerry Siegel, Will Eisner, Joe Kubert, Joe Simon and of course Stan Lee.

You cannot say the comic industry was run by Jews, because the industry has always been shaped by the predominantly gentile audience it was marketed towards. Even with this, the influence of members of the tribe on the industry is undeniable, but why the Jews?

“Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons”- Woody Allen

The great Jewish immigration to the US took place in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, with most settling in the birthplace of comics, New York. While there had been earlier waves of Jewish immigration, the majority of these Yids were escaping the pogroms, poverty, overpopulation, and oppression in the shtetls of Eastern Europe. Between 1880 and when America established restrictive immigration quotas in 1924, over 2 million Jews arrived from Russia, Poland, Austria-Hungary, and Romania.

The jobs accessible to immigrants are often those at the bottom of the social ladder, which the elite do not want to do, in this case, comic books. Jewish artists were not able to get into many of the more established fields such as newspapers and advertising agencies. Many jobs had unofficial Jewish quotas, and it was understood if you hired too many Yids you would be seen as a Kyke agency. Even those companies owned by Jews could only hire so many before being seen as too Jewy. Many of the early comic publishers were first or second generation Yids who published anything that sold including pulps and quasi-porn. The early comic books themselves were cheap reproductions, or rip offs of Sunday comic strips. No one wanted to work in comics, so most of the early creators were young, inexperienced, and Jewish.

“There is a big controversy these days concerning when life begins. In Jewish tradition the fetus is not considered a viable human being until after graduation from medical school”- Unknown Jew

Jews are people of the book. The saying, of course, refers to the Torah, but we are addicted to most every other kind of book. Members of the tribe have always valued literacy and education, often much more than other immigrant groups. While young Yiddish first and second generation immigrants could not always afford medical school, they were better equipped to write than other groups living in NY.

“Imagination is more important than Knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world”- Albert Einstein

Yiddish creators were imaginative and artistic and sought to express themselves. Let’s face it, how many of us have drifted off into make-believe realms daydreaming during Shabbat services? Comics afforded these nice Jewish boys an opportunity to not only make money but to be creative and use their minds.

“According to Jewish dietary law, pork and shellfish may be eaten only in Chinese restaurants”- Another Unknown Yid

After thousands of years of oppression, while family members were dying in the camps, many Jews started to question G-D. After the Haskalah, or Jewish enlightenment of the 18th and 19th century, many gave up on religion completely. Even with the religious doctrine gone, they carried with them the Judaic morals and values. They then infused these values into comics creating their own mythology.

“A friend you have to buy; enemies you get for nothing”- Proverb

Comic heroes are modern day Golems. The Golem of Prague is mythical creature created as a savior to protect the Jewish people from anti-Semitism and pogroms. The same way the Golem protected the Jews of Prague, the early comic creators wrote stories of superheroes protecting the underdog and the oppressed. At a time when much of America was isolationist, many Jews felt like no one cared for them, early heroes such as Superman fought dictators, fascists, and eventually declared war on the Nazis.

“Rejoice not at thine enemy’s fall–but don’t rush to pick him up, either”- Proverb

Jews know propaganda well; it has been used against us for centuries. From the Protocols of The Elders of Zion creating world domination conspiracies, to myths of us using young gentile children’s blood to create our matzah; we know the power of words and images. Comics were our way to use our own propaganda as a weapon. When the media in America rarely showed news of the realities of the holocaust overseas, comics did. In WWII, we motivated the soldiers against the real super villains, the Nazis. On the cover of Captain America #1, Steve Rogers was symbolic of the Jewish creators nailing Hitler on the nose. At a time when many of us felt powerless, we created power through comics.

I will be back in two weeks to talk more about why Jews took to comics. The next article will compare comics to your grandmother’s Yiddish! Check out my last article about the great prominent Jewish comic characters by clicking here. How else has Judaism influenced sequential art (a fancy way of saying comics, coined by the amazing Will Eisner)? Why do you think the early comic industry was soooooooooooo Jewy?

Resources:

Jews in American Comics: An Illustrated History of an American Art Form by Paul Buhle (Editor)

My Jewish Learning

The Big Little Book of Jewish Wit & Wisdom by Sally Ann Berk (Editor)

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