Reefer Madness is a classic example of a smear campaign that caught fire and helped the government declare marijuana as a schedule one substance. The movie has appeared so many times, it has become a joke, but that didn’t stop the comic book industry from getting in on the action with a series of Reefer Madness comics.
Dark Horse Books has collected those classic tales, warning readers about the devil’s cigarettes, in a new Reefer Madness trade paperback.
Like the anti-drug propaganda films of that era, these stories range from comically misinformed to soberly concerned about the influence of Mary Jane on the youth of America. With titles like Teenage Dope Slaves, Satan’s Cigarettes, and Hopped-Up Killer, the gulf in attitudes between today and the days of Reefer Madness could not be wider.
Includes a long introduction summarizing the anti pot campaigns of the first drug czar, Harry Anslinger, and newspaperman William Randolph Hearst, with lurid covers from many of the comics and magazines of the day. The comics collected in Reefer Madness come from comic book legends like Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster (Adventure Comics), Frank Frazetta, Jerry Robinson, and Jack Kirby. Eisner and Harvey award winner Craig Yoe brings a new collection of wacky, wild, and culturally relevant comics to the mix.
If you want to get Reefer Madness, you can on March 28th, 2017.
