Russ Cochran (publisher)
Encyclopedia
Russ Cochran is a publisher of EC Comics
reprints, Disney comics
and books on Hopalong Cassidy
, Chet Atkins
, Les Paul
and vacuum tube
s. He has been a publisher for over 30 years, after quitting his job as a physics professor.
His EC Comics
reprints include the black-and-white The Complete EC Library, the full-color EC Annuals, and the full-color hardcover EC Archives
.
Cochran has been associated with Another Rainbow Publishing
, Gladstone Publishing
and Gemstone Publishing
.
. Cochran befriended Gaines and also handled the resale of the original artwork to collectors via mail-auction catalogs during the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s.
, which had both black-and-white edition and a color edition. These volumes included annotations and commentary by various comics historians, including John Benson, Max Allan Collins
, Martin Jukovsky, Bill Mason, Bill Spicer
and Bhob Stewart
. The Complete EC Library eventually reprinted every New Trend and New Direction comic and many of the Pre-Trend comics.
to reprint 4 comics (two different titles per issue). These included six issues of The Vault of Horror
(August 1990 - June 1991), six issues of Tales from the Crypt (July 1990 - May 1991), four issues of Weird Science
(September 1990 - March 1991), and two issues of The Haunt of Fear
(May/July 1991). After four issues of Weird Science, Gladstone changed it to The Haunt of Fear. This took the The Haunt of Fear from The Vault of Horror and replaced it with Weird Fantasy
. The Haunt of Fear took Weird Science as its second issue per comic. Tales from the Crypt kept Crime SuspenStories
for its double sized horror. A total of 18 issues were published. The cover has text such as "Double-Sized" or "Giant Horror" at the top, above the comic title, and a stylized triangular "G" logo at the upper right side.
, and many Pre-Trend comics as well. Distinguishing marks are the text "64 pages of vintage EC horror" at the top of the cover, and a cover price of $2.00 under the EC logo. There is also a series with vertical text "An Extra Large Comic" at the left side of the cover, and a $3.95 cover price.
, which naturally reprinted the Gladstone-printed issues as part of their EC reprints. From 1992, Gemstone also republished New Trend and New Direction titles in single issues. In association with Gemstone, Cochran has published the EC Annuals and EC Archives described below. The Gemstone reprints have a cover price of $1.50 under the EC logo at the right side, and text such as "First Fearsome Issue" or "First SuspensFul Issue" at the top above the comic title.
Gemstone reprints:
Cochran/Gemstone supplemented the 1980s The Complete EC Library with the 2005 Picto-Fiction collection, comprising the EC comics: Confessions Illustrated
, Crime Illustrated
, Shock Illustrated
and Terror Illustrated
, along with "18 previously unseen stories, never published before".
EC Comics
Entertaining Comics, more commonly known as EC Comics, was an American publisher of comic books specializing in horror fiction, crime fiction, satire, military fiction and science fiction from the 1940s through the mid-1950s, notably the Tales from the Crypt series...
reprints, Disney comics
Disney comics
Disney comics are comic books and comic strips featuring Walt Disney characters.The first Disney comics were newspaper strips appearing from 1930 on . In 1940, Western Publishing began producing Disney comic books in the United States...
and books on Hopalong Cassidy
Hopalong Cassidy
Hopalong Cassidy is a fictional cowboy hero created in 1904 by the author Clarence E. Mulford, who wrote a series of popular short stories and twenty-eight novels based on the character....
, Chet Atkins
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
, Les Paul
Les Paul
Lester William Polsfuss —known as Les Paul—was an American jazz and country guitarist, songwriter and inventor. He was a pioneer in the development of the solid-body electric guitar which made the sound of rock and roll possible. He is credited with many recording innovations...
and vacuum tube
Vacuum tube
In electronics, a vacuum tube, electron tube , or thermionic valve , reduced to simply "tube" or "valve" in everyday parlance, is a device that relies on the flow of electric current through a vacuum...
s. He has been a publisher for over 30 years, after quitting his job as a physics professor.
His EC Comics
EC Comics
Entertaining Comics, more commonly known as EC Comics, was an American publisher of comic books specializing in horror fiction, crime fiction, satire, military fiction and science fiction from the 1940s through the mid-1950s, notably the Tales from the Crypt series...
reprints include the black-and-white The Complete EC Library, the full-color EC Annuals, and the full-color hardcover EC Archives
EC Archives
The EC Archives are a series of American hardcover collections of full-color comic book reprints of EC Comics, published by Russ Cochran and Gemstone Publishing from 2006 to 2008....
.
Cochran has been associated with Another Rainbow Publishing
Another Rainbow Publishing
Another Rainbow Publishing is a company dedicated to the re-publication and greater recognition of the work of Carl Barks that was created in 1981 by Bruce Hamilton and Russ Cochran. Its name references Barks's saying that there would be "always another rainbow" for his character Scrooge McDuck,...
, Gladstone Publishing
Gladstone Publishing
Gladstone Publishing was an American company that published Disney comics from 1986 to 1990 and from 1993 to 1998. The company had its origins as a subsidiary of "Another Rainbow", a company formed by Bruce Hamilton and Russ Cochran to publish the Carl Barks Library and produce limited edition...
and Gemstone Publishing
Gemstone Publishing
Gemstone Publishing is a U.S. company that publishes comic books and collectors' guides. The company was formed by Diamond Comic Distributors President and Chief Executive Officer Stephen A. Geppi. Gemstone published licensed Disney comic books from June 2003 until November 2008. The company has...
.
EC Comics reprints
Cochran's reprints (which have been released through a number of publishers, including Cochran himself) were compiled primarily from copies of the original artwork pages (complemented when necessary by scans of the original printed comics), which were owned by EC Publisher William GainesWilliam Gaines
William Maxwell Gaines , better known as Bill Gaines, was an American publisher and co-editor of EC Comics. Following a shift in EC's direction in 1950, Gaines presided over what became an artistically influential and historically important line of mature-audience comics...
. Cochran befriended Gaines and also handled the resale of the original artwork to collectors via mail-auction catalogs during the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s.
EC Portfolios
The EC Portfolios consisted of a half dozen oversized issues between 1971 and 1977, published by Russ Cochran.The Complete EC Library
From 1978, this project reprinted every EC comic in hardbound volumes. Unlike the original comics, these were done in black and white, except for MadMad (magazine)
Mad is an American humor magazine founded by editor Harvey Kurtzman and publisher William Gaines in 1952. Launched as a comic book before it became a magazine, it was widely imitated and influential, impacting not only satirical media but the entire cultural landscape of the 20th century.The last...
, which had both black-and-white edition and a color edition. These volumes included annotations and commentary by various comics historians, including John Benson, Max Allan Collins
Max Allan Collins
Max Allan Collins is an American mystery writer. He has written novels, screenplays, comic books, comic strips, trading cards, short stories, movie novelizations and historical fiction. He wrote the graphic novel Road to Perdition , created the comic book private eye Ms...
, Martin Jukovsky, Bill Mason, Bill Spicer
Bill Spicer
Bill Spicer is an editor and publisher who spearheaded the 1960s movement away from commercial comics, opening the gateway to underground, alternative and independent comics, notably with his publication Graphic Story Magazine....
and Bhob Stewart
Bhob Stewart
Bhob Stewart is an American writer, editor, artist and film maker who has written for a variety of publications over a span of five decades. His articles and reviews have appeared in TV Guide, Publishers Weekly and other publications, along with online contributions to Allmovie, the Collecting...
. The Complete EC Library eventually reprinted every New Trend and New Direction comic and many of the Pre-Trend comics.
EC Classics
This group of magazine-sized reprints from Cochran appeared between 1985 and 1989. The first six issues featured various stories for each specific comic. Starting with issue 7, each reprint featured two specific issues. A total of 12 issues were released. These comics have no text at the top of the cover aside from the title, and have a cover price of $4.95 within a white circle at the upper right of the cover.Gladstone Publishing EC reprints
From 1990-1991, Cochran worked with Gladstone PublishingGladstone Publishing
Gladstone Publishing was an American company that published Disney comics from 1986 to 1990 and from 1993 to 1998. The company had its origins as a subsidiary of "Another Rainbow", a company formed by Bruce Hamilton and Russ Cochran to publish the Carl Barks Library and produce limited edition...
to reprint 4 comics (two different titles per issue). These included six issues of The Vault of Horror
The Vault of Horror
The Vault of Horror was a bi-monthly horror comic anthology series published by EC Comics in the early 1950s. Along with Tales from the Crypt and The Haunt of Fear, it formed a trifecta of popular EC horror anthologies...
(August 1990 - June 1991), six issues of Tales from the Crypt (July 1990 - May 1991), four issues of Weird Science
Weird Science (comic)
Weird Science was a science fiction anthology comic book that was part of the EC Comics line in the early 1950s. Over a four-year span, the comic ran for 22 issues, ending with the November–December, 1953 issue...
(September 1990 - March 1991), and two issues of The Haunt of Fear
The Haunt of Fear
The Haunt of Fear was a bi-monthly horror comic anthology series published by EC Comics in 1950. Along with Tales from the Crypt and The Vault of Horror, it formed a trifecta of popular EC horror anthologies. The Haunt of Fear was sold at newsstands beginning with its May/June 1950 issue...
(May/July 1991). After four issues of Weird Science, Gladstone changed it to The Haunt of Fear. This took the The Haunt of Fear from The Vault of Horror and replaced it with Weird Fantasy
Weird Fantasy
Weird Fantasy is a science fiction anthology comic that was part of the EC Comics line in the early 1950s. The companion comic for Weird Fantasy was Weird Science...
. The Haunt of Fear took Weird Science as its second issue per comic. Tales from the Crypt kept Crime SuspenStories
Crime SuspenStories
Crime SuspenStories was a bi-monthly anthology crime comic published by EC Comics in the early 1950s. The title first arrived on newsstands with its October/November 1950 issue and ceased publication with its February/March 1955 issue, producing a total of 27 issues...
for its double sized horror. A total of 18 issues were published. The cover has text such as "Double-Sized" or "Giant Horror" at the top, above the comic title, and a stylized triangular "G" logo at the upper right side.
RCP Reprints (Russ Cochran Publisher)
The RCP Reprints appeared from 1991–1992 and also reprinted various issues from the horror, sci-fi and crime comics. Starting in 1992, the comics were reprinted in chronological order in a 32-page form. This line eventually reprinted every New Trend and New Direction comic except for MadMad (magazine)
Mad is an American humor magazine founded by editor Harvey Kurtzman and publisher William Gaines in 1952. Launched as a comic book before it became a magazine, it was widely imitated and influential, impacting not only satirical media but the entire cultural landscape of the 20th century.The last...
, and many Pre-Trend comics as well. Distinguishing marks are the text "64 pages of vintage EC horror" at the top of the cover, and a cover price of $2.00 under the EC logo. There is also a series with vertical text "An Extra Large Comic" at the left side of the cover, and a $3.95 cover price.
Gemstone Publishing EC reprints
Cochran and the EC reprints moved to Gemstone PublishingGemstone Publishing
Gemstone Publishing is a U.S. company that publishes comic books and collectors' guides. The company was formed by Diamond Comic Distributors President and Chief Executive Officer Stephen A. Geppi. Gemstone published licensed Disney comic books from June 2003 until November 2008. The company has...
, which naturally reprinted the Gladstone-printed issues as part of their EC reprints. From 1992, Gemstone also republished New Trend and New Direction titles in single issues. In association with Gemstone, Cochran has published the EC Annuals and EC Archives described below. The Gemstone reprints have a cover price of $1.50 under the EC logo at the right side, and text such as "First Fearsome Issue" or "First SuspensFul Issue" at the top above the comic title.
Gemstone reprints:
- Crime SuspenStoriesCrime SuspenStoriesCrime SuspenStories was a bi-monthly anthology crime comic published by EC Comics in the early 1950s. The title first arrived on newsstands with its October/November 1950 issue and ceased publication with its February/March 1955 issue, producing a total of 27 issues...
, Shock SuspenStoriesShock SuspenStoriesShock SuspenStories was part of the EC Comics line in the early 1950s. The bi-monthly comic, published by Bill Gaines and edited by Al Feldstein, began with issue 1 in February/March 1952. Over a four-year span, it ran for 18 issues, ending with the December/January 1955 issue.- Artists and writers...
, Two-Fisted TalesTwo-Fisted TalesTwo-Fisted Tales was a bimonthly, anthology war comic published by EC Comics in the early 1950s. The title originated in 1950 when Harvey Kurtzman suggested to William Gaines that they publish an adventure comic. Kurtzman became the editor of Two-Fisted Tales, and with the advent of the Korean War,...
, Weird FantasyWeird FantasyWeird Fantasy is a science fiction anthology comic that was part of the EC Comics line in the early 1950s. The companion comic for Weird Fantasy was Weird Science...
and Weird Science-FantasyWeird Science-FantasyWeird Science-Fantasy was a science fiction anthology comic that was part of the EC Comics line in the early 1950s. Over a 14-month span, the comic ran for seven issues, starting in March 1954 with issue #23 and ending with issue #29 in May/June 1955....
(1992) - Incredible Science FictionIncredible Science FictionIncredible Science Fiction was a science fiction anthology comic published by EC Comics in 1955 and 1956, lasting a total of four issues.- Origin :...
(1994) - Frontline CombatFrontline CombatFrontline Combat was a bi-monthly, anthology war comic edited by Harvey Kurtzman and published by EC Comics. The first issue was cover dated July/August, 1951. Over a three-year span, the title ran for 15 issues, ending with the January, 1954 issue...
(1995) - PanicPanic (comic)Panic was part of the EC Comics line during the early 1950s. The bi-monthly humor comic, published by Bill Gaines as a companion to Harvey Kurtzman's Mad. Panic was edited by Al Feldstein . Beginning with its first issue , Panic had a 12-issue run for two years...
(1997) - PiracyPiracy (comic)Piracy is an EC Comics title published in the early 1950s. The bi-monthly comic book, published by Bill Gaines and edited by Al Feldstein, began with an issue cover-dated October-November, 1954. It ran for seven issues, ending with the October-November, 1955 issue.Front covers were by Wally Wood,...
and Valor (1998) - Aces High, ImpactImpact (comic)Impact was a short-lived comic book series published by EC Comics in 1955 as the first title in its New Direction line. The bi-monthly comic, published by Bill Gaines and edited by Al Feldstein, began with an issue cover-dated March-April, 1955. It ran for five issues, ending with the...
, M.D.M.D. (comics)M.D. was a short lived comic book published by EC Comics in 1955, the sixth title in its New Direction line. The bi-monthly comic was published by Bill Gaines and edited by Al Feldstein...
and PsychoanalysisPsychoanalysis (comics)Psychoanalysis was a short-lived comic book published by EC Comics in 1955, the fifth title in its New Direction line. The bi-monthly comic was published by William Gaines and edited by Al Feldstein. Psychoanalysis was approved by the Comics Code Authority, but newsstands were reluctant to display it...
(1999) - Crime Patrol and Extra! in 2000.
Cochran/Gemstone supplemented the 1980s The Complete EC Library with the 2005 Picto-Fiction collection, comprising the EC comics: Confessions Illustrated
Confessions Illustrated
Confessions Illustrated was a black-and-white magazine published by EC Comics in early 1956. Part of EC's Picto-Fiction line, each magazine featured three to five stories. The format alternated blocks of text with several illustrations per page....
, Crime Illustrated
Crime Illustrated
Crime Illustrated was a black-and-white magazine published by EC Comics in late 1955 and early 1956. Part of EC's Picto-Fiction line, each magazine featured three to five stories. The format alternated panels of typography with panels of illustrations...
, Shock Illustrated
Shock Illustrated
Shock Illustrated was a black and white magazine published by EC Comics from late 1955 to early 1956. Part of EC's Picto-Fiction line, each magazine featured three to five stories. The artists drew one to four panels per page with the text overlaid onto the artwork...
and Terror Illustrated
Terror Illustrated
Terror Illustrated was a black-and-white magazine published by EC Comics in late 1955 and early 1956. Part of EC's Picto-Fiction line, each magazine featured three to five stories. The format alternated blocks of text with several illustrations per page....
, along with "18 previously unseen stories, never published before".
EC Annuals
The Cochran/Gemstone EC Annuals are full color, comic-book sized reprints with four to six complete comics in each Annual. Titles in the series include Tales from the Crypt, The Vault of Horror, The Haunt of Fear, Shock SuspenStories, Crime SuspenStories, Weird Science, Weird Fantasy, Weird Science-Fantasy, Two-Fisted Tales, Frontline Combat, Panic, Piracy, Impact, Valor, Aces High, Extra!, Psychoanalysis and MD.EC Archives
The Cochran/Gemstone 2006 project EC Archives is a series of full-color hardcover books, each containing six issues of the comic.See also
- Another Rainbow PublishingAnother Rainbow PublishingAnother Rainbow Publishing is a company dedicated to the re-publication and greater recognition of the work of Carl Barks that was created in 1981 by Bruce Hamilton and Russ Cochran. Its name references Barks's saying that there would be "always another rainbow" for his character Scrooge McDuck,...
- Gladstone PublishingGladstone PublishingGladstone Publishing was an American company that published Disney comics from 1986 to 1990 and from 1993 to 1998. The company had its origins as a subsidiary of "Another Rainbow", a company formed by Bruce Hamilton and Russ Cochran to publish the Carl Barks Library and produce limited edition...
- Gemstone PublishingGemstone PublishingGemstone Publishing is a U.S. company that publishes comic books and collectors' guides. The company was formed by Diamond Comic Distributors President and Chief Executive Officer Stephen A. Geppi. Gemstone published licensed Disney comic books from June 2003 until November 2008. The company has...
- EC ArchivesEC ArchivesThe EC Archives are a series of American hardcover collections of full-color comic book reprints of EC Comics, published by Russ Cochran and Gemstone Publishing from 2006 to 2008....
- EC ComicsEC ComicsEntertaining Comics, more commonly known as EC Comics, was an American publisher of comic books specializing in horror fiction, crime fiction, satire, military fiction and science fiction from the 1940s through the mid-1950s, notably the Tales from the Crypt series...
- List of Entertaining Comics publications
- Nostalgia PressWoody GelmanWoodrow Gelman , better known as Woody Gelman, was a publisher, a cartoonist, a novelist and an artist-writer for animation and comic books. As the publisher of Nostalgia Press, he pioneered the reprinting of vintage comic strips in quality hardcovers and trade paperbacks...