American Daredevil: Comics, Communism, and the Battles of Lev Gleason

In “American Daredevil: Comics, Communism, and the Battles of Lev Gleason,” Brett Dakin chronicles the life of his grand-uncle Leveret Stone Gleason, a publisher of newspapers and progressive political activist during the Great Depression, World War II, and the Cold War. Dakin not only chronicles Gleason’s life, but also explains his methods, including searching through family records, university archives, oral history interviews, requesting Gleason’s FBI file, and more. The story Dakin uncovers depicts a life working to advance causes that hold relevance in the present and that faced opposition that contemporary readers will find familiar. Dakin’s work also serves as a reminder of the importance of preserving family history, particularly when he acknowledges gaps in the record for Gleason’s later years.Gleason published newspapers, magazines, and more, though he is most well-known today for his comic books. Gleason’s “Daredevil,” a man who witnessed his father’s death at the hands of criminals when a child, was among the first superheroes to battle Hitler on the cover in July 1941 (just four months after “Captain America Comics” #1). Dakin argues, “‘Daredevil’ moved the medium past the merely fantastical and into the realm of current affairs, where reality offered more than enough material” (pg. 20). “Daredevil” was particularly noteworthy for this as the character did not begin as a patriotic superhero, but was rather in the mold of other costumed vigilantes. Further, under Gleason’s management, Charles Biro and Bob Wood developed the comic “Crime Does Not Pay,” the first true-crime comic book (pg. 31). Gleason writes, “The release of ‘Crime’ coincided with an increase in comics readership that would continue through the next decade. Even the federal government recognized the medium’s power, requesting that all publishers appeal directly to children and their parents to purchase war bonds and stamps” (pg. 34). Further, “[b]y 1948, one out of every seven comic books on the market was a ‘true crime’ title” (pg. 36).As postwar attitudes towards comic books changed, Gleason joined with Harold Moore and Irving Manheimer to form the Association of Comics Magazine Publishers in 1947 (pg. 91). They created a precursor to the later Comics Code Authority with some similar rules regarding profanity, sexuality, and the depiction of crime and government officials (pg. 93). Gleason advocated on behalf of his own titles and other member publishers, suing those at the government level who would seek to ban comics and winning based on the recent Winters decision (pgs. 96-97). Unfortunately, the ACMP was effectively defunct by 1950 as major publishers had not joined at the Association ran out of funding (pg. 104). As Fredric Wertham and Senator Estes Kefauver began investigating and publicly scorning comic books, leading to the Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency hearings, the publishers realized they needed a new defense and formed the Comics Magazine Association of America (pg. 149). The new Comics Code’s ban on crime effectively ended one of Gleason’s top-selling titles. Dakin writes, “Lev was hit particularly hard by the code in part because his titles had succeeded by reaching a broader market than kids alone. He had always denied that comics were for children only; he once claimed that as many as 60 per cent of comics were bought by adults” (pg. 151). Two years after the Code took effect, Gleason published the final issue of “Daredevil” and “on December 18, Lev Gleason Enterprises was dissolved” (pg. 152). Gleason allowed the copyright to lapse. He offered to sell “Daredevil” to Pete Morisi, but the deal fell through and left the brand open for Stan Lee and Jack Kirby to create Marvel’s Daredevil in 1964 (pg. 190).Gleason believed in progressive politics and worked to advocate for progressive causes. Dakin writes, “Lev recognized that the nation was at a crossroads: would the legacy of the New Deal, which had helped carry the nation out of the Great Depression, live on – or would it be crushed by conservatives in Congress?” (pg. 51). In his “New Castle News,” Gleason said of the House Un-American Activities Committee investigating the Joint Anti-Fascist Refuge Committee and other groups for suspected ties to communism, “We are in a period of a reactionary swing in this country, a very dangerous swing which holds many of the elements of potential fascism. There is a concerted drive against civil liberties, against labor’s rights and the democratic aspirations of the plain people” (pg. 122). As Dakin describes, even the FBI investigated Gleason, though he appears not to have known the depth of their interest. Summarizing Gleason’s politics, Dakin writes, “I like Lev’s term the best: he was a ‘Super New Dealer.’ FDR would always remain Lev’s hero. He never turned his back on the progressive values and social programs that helped bring the U.S. out of the Great Depression, and that meant remaining close to folks who continued to call themselves ‘communist’” (pg. 180). That led Gleason to frequent conflict in the Red Scare of the 1950s, though he retained his values and even worked to counter housing segregation in his final career as a realtor (pg. 188).Dakin’s “American Daredevil” will appeal to both comic book historians as well as cultural historians specializing in the U.S. Cold War culture. His writing is clear and he structures the story fairly chronologically, with his search for records in the present acting as the backbone of the book. A gripping account that brings together all the various stories and rumors surrounding Gleason’s life to create a nearly-complete portrait. Finally, Dakin demonstrates the continued importance of Gleason’s life and beliefs in our own times.

Mixed emotions about this one. I love in-depth biographies of comics creators. The author is very talented, although the book is oddly marred with instances of typos where there is no space between sentences. The main two problems here are that the book is 20 years too late - almost all the primary and even second-hand sources are long gone, and there is WAY too much speculative prose. But mostly the author failed to learn the true lesson... that communists lie, and that their philosophy destroys not just nations, but the lives and livelihoods of all fools who hold such beliefs. The business success of Gleason was entirely - ENTIRELY - due to Jack Cole, Bob Wood, and Charlie Biro. The ruination of the company and his life was the inevitable result of the foolish business practices, foolish spending, and foolish politics of Gleason. The author desperately wants his great-uncle to be the hero, but he's really the villain of his own story. And the book is utterly ruined by a gratuitous, self-indulgent, and disingenuous political screed labeled "Epilogue". It out McCarthy's McCarthy in unfairly villifying political enemies with lies. A very pathetic ending chapter that costs the author any respect that such a biography might have earned him.

As with Tom Wolfe, Hunter Thompson and the other New Journalists, Brett Dakin writes here of himself and his feelings, Joe McCarthy, Donald Trump, the House Committee on Un-American Activities (which he consistently misnames), and other matters of interest to him. Was Gleason Red? There is an answer in this book but it is very easy to miss it. Because. So much attention is given to explaining how FDR got us out the Depression, how the Communist party was like a group of super new Dealers, how the party was motivated by desire to improve social conditions, how the Soviet Union was the answer to the world’s problems and still more. And barely a peep about the problems caused by Communism and its followers: the Holodomor, how Russia and Germany had teamed up to conquer Poland and initiate WW II, the Red spies and traitors serving in Washington and the White House, the theft of atomic secrets, the enslavement of people in Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Moldova, Ukraine and others. He does devote three pages to the final years of Bob Wood. And a few sentences to Charles Biro.

We all have stories about that uncle or cousin or friend-of-the-family who was such a scandalous or famous or interesting figure—but most of us don’t follow through and do the research to discover the real story. I’m glad that Mr. Dakin did the work to share with us what he learned about his Uncle Lev. From family lore Mr. Dakin knew that Uncle Lev was a fascinating figure contributing to the story of American comic books. Who doesn’t love comics as a cultural artifact? But for the story to turn to political intrigue, journalism, a deep personal commitment to generous socialist values, a thick file at the FBI, and hearings before the committee on un-American activities was a surprise. All that and service in both World Wars because of a commitment to American values: free speech, activism, fairness. Lev was never daunted by the establishment juggernaut that opposed his creativity and imagination. Did he really have a separate identity as a Soviet agent? Did he really give away his copyright interests in creating the first superheroes in American culture? What a prize it would be to do the work to learn about a family figure and come up with someone as amazing as Uncle Lev.

A fascinating biography of a pioneer of golden age comics. The context of Red Scare McCarthyism and the 'Seduction of the Innocents' campaign against comics is compelling. The book outlines how comic publishing became so successful and how it fitted in to American and world history.