Guide to the Joseph M. Shea Comix and Small Press Collection 1962-2010
SC 003.6

Summary Information

Repository
Washington State University Libraries, Manuscripts, Archives and Special Collections
Creator
Shea, Joseph M.
Title
Joseph M. Shea Comix and Small Press Collection
ID
SC 003.6
Date [inclusive]
1962-2010
Extent
4.75 linear feet of shelf space, 9 boxes
Location
(MASC Staff Use) 1:35
Language
Collection materials are in English.
Abstract
This collection consists of small press literature and comic books donated by underground writer and illustrator Joseph M. Shea. The collection includes holdings of unique and rare comics and homemade zines, along with popular underground comics spanning four decades in the small press/underground genre. Much of the subject matter is controversial, and contains violent and/or sexual themes.

Preferred Citation

[Item Description]

Joseph M. Shea Comix and Small Press Collection, 1962-2010 (SC 003.6)

Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries, Pullman, WA.

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Biography/History

Born in 1943, Joseph M. Shea graduated from American University in 1966 with a degree in history. In 1970, after serving in Vietnam, he went to work for the United States Department of Agriculture and moved to the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, DC. Shea began drawing and writing in Vietnam, becoming a prolific short storyteller whose work has been published in the United States, Canada, Denmark, the United Kingdom, and Russia (translated into Russian, and Poland (translated into Polish).

His story "Tribute" was a second prize winner in the 1982 Fandom Directory writers' contest. In 1985, his story "Fever Dream" won the United Fanzine Organization (UFO) Award for Best Fiction. In 1986, he was nominated for the SPCE Award for Favorite Writer. His script "Viet Nam Was A Girl," illustrated by Finnish artist Pekka A. Manninen, won the UFO Award for Best Single Strip of 1989. His poem "The Maiden and the Magician" was a 1993 Rhysling Award nominee. In the year 2000, his story "Books in Hell" won the Blue Plaque Publications (BPP) Quality Award for Best Fiction Piece. He also received in the year 2000 the BPP Quality Award for Best Fiction Writer. Examples of Shea's artwork can be seen in publications such as Friends of American Living, Out Of The Blue, 365 Women, Scavenger's Newsletter, The Vinyl Elephant, The Catbird Seat, and Lunatic Chameleon.

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Scope and Content

This collection consists of small press literature and comic books collected by underground writer and illustrator Joseph M. Shea. It includes holdings of unique and rare comics and homemade zines, along with popular underground comics spanning four decades in the small press/underground genre. Much of the subject matter is controversial, and contains violent and/or sexual themes. The Shea Collection, along with the much larger Willis Collection (SC 3.4) and similar sized Dissmeyer Collection (SC 3.5) offers a viewpoint into artistic expressions within the American underground and counterculture in the 1960s through 2000s, and many of the materials coincide with the birth of the underground comix scene (referred to by many cartoonists as "Newave").

The collection consists of several hundred items, including 121 unique titles, with sequential issues of many comix, newsletters, and zines. Standard and digest size comix make up about 40 percent of the collection, and many are popular cult underground comix with professional production, drawn/illustrated by many now-famous names in the industry. Notably, the standard comix include Blazing Combat, Eerie, and Vampirella. Minicomix are approximately 10 percent of the collection.

Approximately 50 percent of the collection is non-comix related, consisting of advertising and promotional materials, catalogs, newsletters, and zines (a term derived from "magazine," and self-published via photocopier). Of these, zines are the majority (about 20 percent of the collection), with extensive representation of the American music underground, counterculture, horror and fantasy writing, and several works by Joseph M. Shea.

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Arrangement

This collection is arranged in eight series. All material in each series is arranged alphabetically by title.

Series 1: Advertising, Promotional Material, and Bibliographic Correspondence and Documentation, 1999-2010. This series contains materials related to the advertising and promoting of comix, zines, comic books, comix-related events, as well as collection documentation (donation lists by Joseph M. Shea).

Series 2: Books and Catalogs, 1981-2003. This series contains published collections of comix or comix-related material with ISBN numbers, and catalogs for comix, comic books, anime, art supplies, and other related materials.

Series 3: Comics/Comix, 1965-2007. This series is consists of comix organized by format in two subseries: Subseries 3.1: Standard and Digest Comics, and Subseries 3.2: Minicomix.

Series 4: Magazines, 1962-2004. This series contains professional-quality published material in magazine format.

Series 5: Newsletters, 1998-1999 and undated. This series consists of newsletters of small press, library, and environmental groups and organizations.

Series 6: Comix Related Materials and Reference Materials, 1997 and undated. This series contains a variety of materials relating to comix and comix creators.

Series 7: Zines, 1987-2009. This series consists of small press zines written by one or multiple authors.

Series 8: Oversize Materials, 1982-1999. This series consists of large items stored separately. Separation sheets are filed for these materials in their respective series.

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Administrative Information

Publication Information

Washington State University Libraries Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections  © 2015

https://libraries.wsu.edu/masc/

Terrell Library

P.O. Box 645610

Pullman, WA, 99164-5610 USA

509-335-6691

mascref@wsu.edu

Restrictions on Access

This collection is open and available for research use.

Restrictions on Use

Copyright restrictions apply.

Acquisition Information

Joseph M. Shea donated this collection to the Washington State University Libraries in 2009 and 2010 (MS.2009.19, MS.2010.01).

Processing Information

Robert Franklin processed this collection in 2014 and 2015.

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Related Materials

Related Material

Steve Willis Underground Comics Collection, 1966-1997 (SC 003.1)

Lynn R. Hansen Underground Comics Collection, 1899-1994 (SC 003.2)

Paul Brians Comics Collection, 1950-2004 (SC 003.3)

Steve Willis Comix and Small Press Collection, 1968-2004 (SC 003.4)

Clark Dissmeyer Comix and Small Press Collection, 1977-2002 (SC 003.5)

Jeff Zenick Comix and Small Press Collection, 1984-2003 (SC 003.7)

Comic Art and Culture Collection 1969-2009 (SC 003.8)

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Names and Subjects

Subject(s)

  • Comic books, strips, etc.
  • Graphic novels
  • Underground press publications
  • Underground comic books, strips, etc.
  • New wave comics
  • Erotic comic books, strips, etc.
  • Publishers and Publishing.

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Detailed Description of Collection

Series 1: Advertisements, Promotional Material, and Bibliographic Correspondence and Documentation 1999-2010 

box folder

Brave New Fringe 1999 

1 1

Corky's Ads 1999 

1 2

Comic Society: Reflections 2010 

1 3

Shea Transmittal Correspondence 2009-2010 

1 4

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Series 2: Books and Catalogs 1981-2003 

box folder

The Apex Treasury of Underground Comics 1981 

1 5

The Great Challenge 1998 

1 6

Ikinokoru 1987 

1 7

Ultra Klutz 1996 

1 8

Unshelved Volume 1 2003 

1 9

Work Is Hell 1986 

1 10

Squid Works Quarterly 2002 

1 11

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Series 3: Comics/Comix 1965-2007 

Subseries 3.1: Standard and Digest Comics 

box folder

[Untitled] 1999 

1 12

365 Women issues 5, 7, 8 1999-2000 

1 13

The 2001 BPP Quality Awards Strip! 2001 

1 14

Billy the Kid number 109 1974 

1 15

Blazing Combat numbers 1-4 1965-1966 

2 1

Blue Beetle number 3 1967 

2 2

The Bruno Cult 2000 

2 3

Buzzizyk numbers 20, 22, and unknown 2002 

2 4

Captain Atom number 83 1966 

2 5

Charlie Chong 2003 

2 6

Classical Punks versus Superiorman and Environmental Man 2001 

2 7

Colonia issue 2 1999 

2 8

Comico Primer numbers 1 and 6 1982-1984 

2 9

Condorman numbers 1 and 2 1981 

2 10

Creepy number 9 1966 

2 11

Eerie numbers 38, 42-46  1971-1972 

2 12

Eerie numbers 47-51 1973 

2 13

Flaming Couch number 10 2000 

2 14

Flash Gordon number 8 1967 

2 15

Flooby Comics number 16 undated 

2 16

Flying Colors 1998 

2 17

The Guard number 2 2005 

2 18

Heroic number 2 1987 

2 19

Jonny Quest numbers 7-18 1986-1987 

2 20

Legion of Stupid Heroes number 1 1997 

3 1

Midnight Tales number 17 1975 

3 2

Nut number 2 2005 

3 3

Outlaws of the West number 64 1969 

3 4

Patriot number 1 1987 

3 5

Pizzazz and Frog Boy numbers 1 and 2 1987-1988 

3 6

Six-Guns and Saddles number 2 2007 

3 7

Skinned Alive Boy Comix number 13 1998 

3 8

The Spirit numbers 1-7 1974-1975 

3 9

The Spirit number 20 1979 

3 10

Startstream numbers 1-4 1976 

3 11

Supermonster issues 4 and 7 1997 

3 12

Tales from the Seventh Galaxy 2002 

3 13

Texas Rangers in Action number 76 1969 

3 14

Tim Corrigan's Comics and Stories number 2 2008 

3 15

The Tree and the Fortress (Shea) undated 

3 16

Twilight Samurais numbers 2 and 3 2006-2007 

3 17

Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction numbers 4 and 6 1975 

3 18

Vampirella numbers 1-7 1969-1970 

3 19

Vampirella numbers 8-14 1970-1971 

4 1

Vampirella numbers 15-21 1972 

4 2

Vampirella numbers 27-33 1973-1974 

4 3

Vampirella numbers 34-38 1974 

4 4

Vengeance Squad number 5 1975 

4 5

Zoomkranx number 16 1999 

4 6

Subseries 3.2: Minicomix 

box folder

[untitled] undated 

5 1

As I Recall the Sixties 1999 

5 2

Dante's Coat 1999 

5 3

The Girl Who Trod on an Oaf 1997 

5 4

Morty Comix number 2173 1999 

5 5

Musical Chairs 1999 

5 6

Naugacomics number 57 undated 

5 7

Sketchbook Drawings From June and July 2000 2000 

5 8

The Women Without a Moth undated 

5 9

Write-in Morty the Dog for McCleary Mayor! undated 

5 10

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Series 4: Magazines 1962-2004 

box folder

Amazing Heroes numbers 1-4, 6-8 1981 

5 11

The Comics Journal numbers 200 and 210 1997-1999 

5 12

Jack and Jill volume 24, number 9 1962 

5 13

Morbid Curiosity number 7 2003 

5 14

Riverwurst number 4 2004 

5 15

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Series 5: Newsletters 1998-1999 and undated 

box folder

Busted! Numbers 3 and 4 1998-1999 

5 16

ForEvergreen 1999 

5 17

Penstuff  1999 

5 18

Quicklist number 8 undated 

5 19

Small Press Creative Explosion numbers 14, 17, 19 undated 

5 20

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Series 6: Comix Related Materials and Reference Materials 1997 and undated 

box folder

The Love Joys (sticker) undated 

5 21

Comic Book Index Update 1997 

5 22

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Series 7: Zines 1987-2009 

box folder

Alien Worlds numbers 21 and 22 2001-2002 

5 23

An Experience of War by Joseph M. Shea 2004 

5 24

Bad Year Zeppelin volumes 6-9 undated 

6 1

Black Petals 2001 

6 2

Capitol Hill, the Neighborhood, Not the Congress undated 

6 3

The Catbird Seat numbers 4 and 7 1998-1999 

6 4

Classic Pulp Fiction Stories numbers 77, 78, 80 2001-2002 

6 5

Coffeeroom numbers 3 and 4 2001 

6 6

Cyrano De Bergerac Was A Real Person and He Wrote Science Fiction 2001 

6 7

Dark Corridor number 1 2007 

6 8

Dark Corridors issue 4 undated 

6 9

Dark Eyes 2 undated 

6 10

Facsimile of the Published Works of Joseph M. Shea volumes 6-9 undated 

6 11

Fandom Gazette undated 

6 12

Freezerburn Magazine issue 1 1995 

6 13

JOMP Jr. (Journal of Mind Pollution) numbers 20, 23, 26, 31, 34 2001-2009 

6 14

Lunatic Chameleon numbers 1 and 2 2002-2003 

6 15

Mantra number 10 2006 

6 16

The Monthly Independent Tribune Times Journal Post Gazette News Chronicle Bulletin number 55 1987 

6 17

N.O.T.A. Issue 3 undated 

6 18

Nomadic Underground issue 5 undated 

7 1

Out of the Blue numbers 1,2,5-8, 10 and 11 2001-2002 

7 2

Out of the Blue numbers 12-16 undated 

7 3

Palm's Red 2004 

7 4

The Plague Doctor 1987 

7 5

Ppfszt! number 24 2000 

7 6

Scavenger's numbers 201, 208, 210, 213, 217, 219, 221, 223, 225, 227 2000-2003 

7 7

The Shadow of Dracula number 2 2005 

7 8

Story Rules issue 3 1996 

7 9

Sunwing number 3 undated 

7 10

Supplement Containing English Language Approximations of Russian Language Material Found in Volume 6 of Facsimile of the Published Works of Joseph M. Shea undated 

7 11

Topical Studies numbers 11 and 13 1994-1996 

7 12

Twenty-eight Pages Lovingly Bound with Twine numbers 10 and 11 undated 

7 13

Typical Studies numbers 2 and 4 2002-2004 

7 14

Up Dare? Autumn 1998 1998 

7 15

White Buffalo Gazette 1999-2002 

7 16

White Buffalo Gazette (continued) 1999-2001 

8 1-3

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Series 8: Oversize Materials 1982- 

box folder

The Comic Co-op Classifieds volume 1, number 7 1997 

9 1

December 1967 Vietnam Calendar 1967 

9 2

Pulp Fandom number 2  1998 

9 3

The Evergrateful undated 

9 4

The Bear Delux numbers 11 and 12 1998-1999 

9 5

Too Busy Fighting To Do PM? undated 

9 6

Twisted Image 1982-1987 

9 7

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