S1-06 60 years of Seduction: Fredric Wertham and the Comic Book Code of 1954

Professor Footnote

In 1954, the United States Senate held subcommittee hearings on the corrupting influence of comic books on the nation's youth. Testifying against the comic book industry was one Fredric Wertham, M.D. Wertham's testimony was also a promotion of his book, Seduction of the Innocent, an account of Wertham's experience and findings working with juvenile delinquents (who may or may not have been comic book readers). On the 60th anniversary of Wertham's testimony, we take a look back at Wertham's book and the effects of the Senate Hearings on juvenile delinquency, including the rise of the Comic Book Code and the fall and rebirth of the comic book industry.