Zap Comix
Zap Comix is an underground comix series which was originally part of the youth counterculture of the late 1960s. While a few small-circulation self-published satirical comic books had been printed prior to this, Zap became the model for the "comix" movement that snowballed after its release. The title itself published 17 issues over a period of 46 years.
| Zap Comix | |
|---|---|
Cover of Zap Comix #1 (Feb. 1968), art by R. Crumb. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Apex Novelties (issues #0–3) Print Mint (issues #4–9) Last Gasp (issues #10–15) Fantagraphics (issue #16) |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Genre | Underground |
| Publication date | February 1968 – November 2014 |
| No. of issues | 17 |
| Main character(s) | Mr. Natural R. Crumb Angelfood McSpade Wonder Wart-Hog Checkered Demon Trashman |
| Creative team | |
| Created by | Robert Crumb |
| Artist(s) | Robert Crumb, Victor Moscoso, S. Clay Wilson, Gilbert Shelton, Spain Rodriguez, Robert Williams, Rick Griffin, Paul Mavrides |
Premiering in early 1968 as a showcase for the work of Robert Crumb, Zap was unlike any comic book sensibility that had been seen before. After the success of the first issue, Crumb opened the pages of Zap to several other artists, including S. Clay Wilson, Robert Williams, "Spain" Rodriguez, Gilbert Shelton, and two artists with reputations as psychedelic poster designers, Victor Moscoso and Rick Griffin. This group of artists, along with Crumb, remained mostly constant throughout the history of Zap.
While the origin of the spelling "comix" is a subject of some dispute, it was popularized by its appearance in the title of the first issues of Zap. Design critic Steven Heller claims that the term "comix" ("co-mix") refers to the traditional comic book style of Zap, and its mixture of dirty jokes and storylines.