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Current Comic Book Publishers from Z-A – entry #20

Dec 20, 2015

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Twenty days and counting…Luckily, it’s not a prison sentence ^_< I risk repeating myself – I’m in disbelief at how quickly this month is passing :O I definitely attribute it to my intense in-depth research of all these publishers. My fascination is immeasurable!! My curiosity is peaking. Yes, I spelled that correctly. Nineteen publishers for the twentieth day!! It almost worked out perfectly :/

Information is lacking for some companies. As usual, I did my absolute best combing the interwebs. Please contribute and give me a much-needed assist. All the names listed are due to their affiliation with Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. who are kind enough to give them page space in their monthly PREVIEWS catalog.

Established: 1998 (Partworks), 1995 (Hachette Collections)

Official Name: Hachette Partworks Ltd.

Place of Origin: Salvat, Spain (Partworks), France (Hachette Collections)

Distinction: Hachette Partworks Ltd is part of Hachette Livre, Europe’s largest publishing group, with nearly 200 years of publishing expertise. Hachette Partworks publish in most major English speaking markets including the UK, Republic of Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Singapore, Malaysia and Malta[1].

Hachette Partworks have an outstanding back catalogue of both mass market and niche partwork collections, from our hugely successful, innovative, craft collections such as The Art of Crochet, and exceptionally detailed build up models such as The Hood, to high-quality book collections including 30 Best Loved Recipes.[2]

With fascinating & inspiring editorial content across a wealth of subjects, and big name licenses such as Marvel, Disney and Agatha Christie, Hachette Partworks really do have a collection to suit everyone[3].

Our illustrated series can run up to 5000 pages over the course of a collection, with a strong emphasis on accurate and interesting editorial content. From The Art of Knitting to Tractors and the World of Farming we have a wide range of creative and interesting Partworks for everyone[4].

Operations: Unknown

Output: https://www.hachettepartworks.com/our-titles/

Current Titles: Judge Dredd: the Mega Collection

Branches: Worldwide. All five continents!!

Social Media: None but there is @HachetteUK ;

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 1989

Official Name: Harper Collins Publishers

Place of Origin: New York, NY

Distinction: HarperCollins Publishers is the second-largest consumer book publisher in the world[5].

HarperCollins has publishing operations in 18 countries. With nearly two hundred years of history and more than 120 branded imprints around the world, HarperCollins publishes approximately 10,000 new books every year in 17 languages, and has a print and digital catalog of more than 200,000 titles. Writing across dozens of genres, HarperCollins authors include winners of the Nobel Prize, the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, the Newbery and Caldecott Medals, and the Man Booker Prize[6].

At HarperCollins, authors and their work are at the center of everything we do. We are proud to provide our authors with unprecedented editorial excellence, marketing reach, long-standing connections with booksellers, and industry-leading insight into reader and consumer behavior. Consistently at the forefront of innovation and technological advancement, HarperCollins also uses digital technology to create unique reading experiences and expand the reach of our authors[7].

Operations: News Corp (parent company)

Output: http://comicbookdb.com/publisher.php?ID=214

Current Titles: http://www.harpercollins.com/

Branches: Numerous imprints.

Social Media: @HarperCollins ; Facebook ; YouTube

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 1990

Official Name: Harper Teen

Place of Origin: New York, NY

Distinction: HarperTeen is here for all your teen reads, young adult literature, and YA news! We want you to have a blast here on the fan page, share your stories, connect with other YA readers, and get the latest news on what’s happening in the book world. HarperTeen is the home of the most exciting teen publishing anywhere[8].

Operations: Unknown

Output: http://www.harpercollins.com/search-results?imprint=harperteen&

Current Titles: Nimona

Branches: Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers

Social Media: @harperteen ; Facebook ; MySpace ; YouTube

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 2015

Official Name: Hashtag Comics

Place of Origin: Unknown

Distinction: Unknown

Operations: Unknown

Output: Carpe Noctum; Tailwands

Upcoming Titles: Cloud Riders; Cosplay Club; Four Walls; Souls Eternal; Time to Die

Branches: N/A

Social Media: @HashtagComics ; Facebook

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: Unknown

Official Name: Hatter Entertainment

Place of Origin: Unknown

Distinction: Hatter Entertainment is the publishing company producing illustrated entertainment (in the form of comics, picture books, webcomics, etc.) and audio podcasts[9].

Operations: Gregg Schigiel (Founder) publishes original work and audio podcasts. He is also a regular contributor to SPONGEBOB COMICS, wrote the X-BABIES: STARS REBORN graphic novel for Marvel Comics, and has worked for Nickelodeon, DC Entertainment, and Disney. He likes donuts, enjoys comedy, and makes sure he drinks plenty of water[10].

Output: Five Star Pile-Up; From What School?; Grown-Up Pinocchio; Pix; Safari Junior High School; Stick Figure Night Live

Branches: N/A

Social Media: @GreggSchigiel

Multi-Media: Cruisin’ Together; Stuff Said (podcasts)

Established: 1966

Official Name: Haynes Publishing UK

Place of Origin: Sparkford, England, UK

Distinction: John Haynes OBE wrote and published his first book, on building an Austin 7 Special, whilst he was still at school in 1956. He wrote two more ‘Special’ builders’ manuals while doing his National Service in the RAF. The first ‘proper’ Haynes Owners Workshop Manual, for the Austin Healey ‘Frogeye’ Sprite, was published in 1966. Based on the stripdown and rebuild of the project vehicle and with extensive use of step-by-step photographs – a process that has not changed to this day – this manual set the standard for the Haynes brand and started what is now a globally recognised publisher of practical information[11].

Operations: John Haynes OBE (Founder)

Output: The Haynes Owner’s Workshop Manuals (commonly known as simply Haynes Manuals) are a series of practical manuals from the Haynes Publishing Group (LSE: HYNS) aimed at both DIY enthusiasts and professional garage mechanics. The series primarily focuses upon the maintenance and repair of automotive vehicles, covering a wide range of makes and models (300 models of car and 130 models of motorcycle), but it also includes manuals in the same style for domestic appliances and personal computers, digital photography, model railways, men and babies, sex, and women. The last four were made slightly tongue in cheek, but have proved very popular. Additionally, they have released manuals based on popular fictional series including Star Trek and Thomas and Friends.[12]

Current Titles: https://corporate.haynes.co.uk/catalogue

Branches: M^cCann handles the publicity unit.

Social Media: @HaynesManuals ; Facebook

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 1977

Official Name: Heavy Metal Magazine

Place of Origin: Rockville Centre, NY

Distinction: World’s foremost fantasy illustrated magazine. Heavy Metal, the Premier Illustrated Fantasy Magazine, explores fantastic and surrealistic worlds, past present and future. Illustrators from around the world take you to places you never dreamed existed[13].

An American science fiction and fantasy comics magazine, known primarily for its blend of dark fantasy/science fiction and erotica. In the mid-1970s, while publisher Leonard Mogel was in Paris to jump-start the French edition of National Lampoon, he discovered the French science-fantasy magazine Métal Hurlant which had debuted January 1975. The French title translates literally as “Howling Metal”.[14]

Operations: Leonard Mogel (Founder), Kevin Eastman (Publisher)

Output: http://shop.heavymetal.com/shm/index.php

Current Titles: Heavy Metal; Interceptor; Narcopolis: Continuum; Three Floyds: Rise of the Alpha Kings

Branches: N/A

Social Media: @HeavyMetalInk ; Facebook ; Tumblr ; YouTube

Multi-Media: Film studio – Heavy Metal (1981)’ Heavy Metal 2000; War of the Worlds: Goliath (2012). Interceptor is being adapted into a movie.

Established: 1866

Official Name: Henry Holt and Company

Place of Origin: New York, NY

Distinction: One of the oldest publishers in the United States. Currently, the company publishes in the fields of American and international fiction, biography, history and politics, science, psychology, and health, as well as books for children’s literature[15].

Operations: Henry Holt, Frederick Leypoldt (Founders)

Output: http://us.macmillan.com/henryholt

Current Titles: The Arab of the Future

Upcoming Title: The Great Cat Escape

Branches: Operates under Macmillan Publishers. Imprints include Francis Coady, John Macrae, Metropolitan Books, Times Books.

Social Media: @HenryHolt ; Facebook ; Tumblr ; YouTube

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 2001

Official Name: Hermes Press

Place of Origin: Newcastle, PA

Distinction: Hermes Press is one of a handful of publishers which exclusively produces books and comic strip reprints focusing on the art and artists of the comics, cartoon and comic strips, pulp magazines of the 1920s and 1930s, art books covering science fiction, and popular culture[16].

The company was initially known for popular culture art books such as Works of Art: Joe Chiodo (2003) and Bill Sienkiewicz: Precursor (2004), and later moved on to reprints of famous comic book strips, such as Gil Kane and Ron Goulart’s Star Hawks: The Complete Series (2004). Hermes Press now specializes in reprinting comic books and comic strips, acquiring the rights to Buck Rogers and The Phantom, among others[17].

In April of 2015, Hermes Press was nominated for an Eisner Award for their reprint of Walt Kelly’s Pogo: Volume 1 & Volume 2.[18]

Operations: Daniel Herman (Publisher), Louise Geer (VP)

Output: http://hermes-press.myshopify.com/collections/comic-books

Current Titles: Brenda Starr: Reporter; Buck Rogers in the 25^th Century Dailies; Johnny Hazard; Mickey Spillane’s Mick Hammer; Milton Caniff’s Male Call; The Phantom; Roy Rogers; Terry and the Pirates

Upcoming Title: Walt Kelly’s Pogo: the Complete Dell Comics

Branches: N/A

Social Media: @HermesPress ; Facebook ; Tumblr

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: Unknown

Official Name: Hero Tomorrow Comics

Place of Origin: Akron, OH

Distinction: Unknown

Operations: Ted Sikora (Creator, Owner, Publisher)

Output: Unknown

Current Titles: Apama: the Undiscovered Animal

Branches: N/A

Social Media: @TedSikora ; Facebook ; Amazon ; iTunes ; Vimeo ; YouTube

Multi-Media: Hero Tomorrow (2007) – film, re-released on Blu-ray in 2015

———————————————————————————————

Established: 1981

Official Name: High Speed Productions

Place of Origin: San Francisco, CA

Distinction: Thrasher magazine – The publication consists primarily of skateboard- and music-related articles, photography, interviews and skatepark reviews. The magazine also maintains a website, which includes segments with names such as “Firing Line” and “Hall of Meat”, an online store, a video collection, a radio show, and a forum for registered users[19].

Operations: Kevin Thatcher, Eric Swenson, Fausto Vitello (Founders, Thrasher magazine)

Output: Juxtapoz; SLAP; Thrasher (magazines)

Branches: Online store.

Social Media: @thrashermag ; @slap_pals ; @JuxtapozMag ;

Multi-Media: Radio show. Video collection. King of the Road skateboarding competitions. Skate Rock music compilation series.

Established: 1956

Official Name: Hill & Wang

Place of Origin: New York, NY

Distinction: A publishing company focused on American history, world history, and politics[20].

Hill & Wang was founded as an independent publishing house in 1956 by Arthur Wang (1917/18–2005) and Lawrence Hill, who were both working at A. A. Wyn. They bought backlist books from Wyn and started Dramabooks, publishing plays in trade paperback, then a new format. The series included Jean Cocteau, Arthur L. Kopit and Lanford Wilson. In 1959, Arthur Wang acquired Elie Wiesel’s Holocaust memoir, Night, which had been turned down by several English-language publishers, publishing it in 1960. They continued to build the Hill & Wang list to include such authors as Roland Barthes, Langston Hughes, and American historians Stanley Kutler and William Cronon[21].

The imprint also launched a graphic line, “Novel Graphics,” when it published a graphic adaptation of the 9/11 Commission Report by Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colón. It has since published several graphic biographies and works of graphic journalism, and a graphic adaptation of the United States Constitution[22].

Operations: Lawrence Hill & Arthur Wang (Founders)

Output: http://us.macmillan.com/series/hillandwangcriticalissues

Branches: Division of Farrar, Straus, and Giroux. Which has been absorbed by Macmillan Publihers.

Social Media: N/A

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 2002

Official Name: Hippy Comix Inc.

Place of Origin: Cleveland, OH

Distinction: Multi-Media Adult Content Production & Distribution, Publisher of Adult Star Stories and Fogel’s Underground Price & Grading Guide![23]

Operations: Dan Fogel(?)

Output: http://www.demicomix.com/DemStore01.htm

Current Titles: Fogel’s Underground Price & Grading Guide

Branches: Imprint of Carnal Comics.

Social Media: Facebook ; Linkedin ; Skype ; Tumblr

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 1994

Official Name: Hogan’s Alley

Place of Origin: Atlanta, GA

Distinction: A publication devoted to comic art, is subtitled the magazine of the cartoon arts. It has been published on an irregular schedule since 1994 by Bull Moose Publishing. Covering comic strips, comic books, cartoons and animation, each hefty issue contains at least 144 pages with a square-backed spine. Originally planned as a quarterly, the frequency is closer to that of an annual, with 16 issues published in 15 years[24].

The scope of the magazine ranges from historical articles to coverage of current comic strips. Contributing writers have included Ron Goulart, R. C. Harvey and Allan Holtz. In issue #12, Holtz examined the early evolution of Sunday comics supplements to the daily comic strip, notably The Importance of Mister Peewee, which ran in Joseph Pulitzer’s New York World in 1903-04. In that same issue, R. C. Harvey offered an in-depth profile of cartoonist Dave Breger[25].

Operations: Tom Heintjes & Rick Marschall (Founders), Tom Heintjes (Publisher)

Output: http://cartoonician.com/category/features/reprints/

Current Title: http://cartoonician.com/purchase-hogans-alley/

Branches: N/A

Social Media: @Hoganmag; Facebook

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 1880

Official Name: Houghton Mifflin Company

Place of Origin: Boston, MA (HQ)

Distinction: We aim to spark a lifelong love of learning in every individual we touch[26].

Changing people’s lives by fostering passionate, curious learners. It’s not just our mission; it’s our passion. As a global learning company, HMH specializes in pre-K–12 education content, services and cutting edge technology solutions for today’s changing landscape[27].

HMH creates engaging, dynamic and effective educational content and experiences from early childhood to K-12 and beyond the classroom, serving more than 50 million students in more than 150 countries. Available through multiple media, our content meets the needs of students, teachers, parents and lifelong learners, no matter where and how they learn[28].

Operations: Henry Oscar Houghton & George Mifflin (Founders), Linda K. Zecher (CEO)

Output: http://www.hmhco.com/trade-publishing

Branches: Clarion, Graphia, HMH Books for Young Readers, Mariner, Sandpiper (imprints)

Social Media: @HMHCo, @HMHbooks, @HMHKids ; Facebook ; Instagram ; Linkedin ; Pinterest ; YouTube

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 1967

Official Name: House of Anansi Press

Place of Origin: Toronto, Ontario, CANADA

Distinction: Anansi started as a small press with a mandate to publish Canadian writers, and quickly gained attention for publishing authors such as Margaret Atwood, Matt Cohen, Michael Ondaatje, and Erín Moure, as well as George Grant and Northrop Frye. French-Canadian works in translation have always been an important part of the list, and prominent Anansi authors in translation include Roch Carrier, Marie-Claire Blais, Anne Hébert, and France Daigle[29].

Today, the company specializes in finding and developing Canadian writers of literary fiction, poetry, drama, and nonfiction, including Lisa Moore, Patrick DeWitt, Lynn Coady, Rawi Hage, Kathleen Winter, Peter Behrens, Gil Adamson and Eric Siblin, and in maintaining the culturally significant backlist that has accumulated in the decades since the house was founded[30].

Operations: Dennis Lee & David Godfrey (Founders)

Output: http://houseofanansi.com/collections/all

Current Titles: The Outside Circle ; http://houseofanansi.com/collections/graphic-novels

Branches: Groundwood Books (imprint)

Social Media: @HouseofAnansi ; Facebook ; Instagram ; Tumblr ; Vine ; YouTube

Multi-Media: Funded by Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council and the Government of Canada.

Established: 2012

Official Name: Human Comics

Place of Origin: Venice Beach, CA

Distinction: Self-published company. Focuses on creating original fictional narrative content that can be translated from comic book format to larger multi-media projects for major studios and game developers[31].

“My biggest inspirations as a writer are still Calvin and Hobbes, and JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy … and The Hobbit,” Smith says, adding his Human series — Anthropocene: The Human Saga – came out of a curiosity as to where mankind would be in two centuries, in the new epoch of humanity.” – Gabe Smith[32]

Operations: Gabe Smith (Founder, Creator, Writer), David Press (CFO) Ryan Merrill, Chris Malidore (artists)

Output: http://humancomics.com/ [store]

Current Titles: Human

Upcoming Titles: Bacon & Sausage; The Fall of Ebla

Branches: N/A

Social Media: @HumanComics ; Facebook ; Instagram; Tumblr ; Vine

Multi-Media: N/A

Established: 1998

Official Name: Humanoids Publishing

Place of Origin: Los Angeles, CA (US HQ)

Distinction: In 1988, Swiss entrepreneur Fabrice Giger purchased Humanoids from European media giant Hachette. Besides fostering talent, Giger’s goal was to implement a unique creative approach that emphasized international collaboration. Over the years, Humanoids has achieved and maintained that mandate. It has become completely international in its thinking and creative process, with artists, writers, and staff in multiple countries working jointly to create art and stories with global appeal[33].

Humanoids has published thousands of original titles, with third-party publishers translating many of them into numerous languages. Some, such as The Incal, have achieved stellar performances worldwide and sold millions of copies[34].

Operations: Fabrice Giger (Founder)

Output: http://www.humanoids.com/humanozone/goodies#.VnX-2lKzDFk

Current Titles: Bouncer; Different Ugliness Different Madness; Freddy Lombard; Izuna; Jihad; Legend of the Scarlet Blades; Millennium; Redhand: Twilight of the Gods; Mandalay; The Swords of Glass; Through the Walls

Upcoming Titles: The Ark; District 14 Season 1,2; The Metabarons; The Metabarons: Genesis – Castaka

Branches: The only non-Japanese company publishing its graphic novels directly in Japan, under the brand ユマノイド (“Humanoido”).

Social Media: @humanoidsinc ; Facebook

Multi-Media: Film – Tubro Kid (premiered at Sundance Festival 2015); Bouncer, Incal, The Zombies that Ate the World (three-picture deal announced at Cannes Film Festival 2015)

Established: 1990

Official Name: Hyperion Books

Place of Origin: New York, NY

Distinction: A general-interest book publisher of the Hachette established in 1990. A former subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, it is named after Hyperion Avenue, the location of Walt Disney Studios prior to 1939.[35]

Hyperion is the home of about 250 bestselling novels, including Mitch Albom’s The Five People You Meet in Heaven. Hyperion’s strategy is to not purchase backlists, to go after newer or lesser known authors and to “capitalized on Disney talent and products[36].

Operations: Michael Eisner, Robert S. Miller (Founders)

Output: Percy Jackson and the Olympians; http://hyperionbooks.com/books/

Current Titles: Throne of Fire

Branches: Hyperion Audio, Hyperion eBooks, Hyperion East, Voice (imprints for adult books); Disney-Hyperion (imprint for children’s books)

Social Media: Facebook ; Pinterest ; Spreecast ; YouTube

Multi-Media: Parternship with Disney Publishing Worldwide for Disney-ABC Television Group content.

[1] https://www.hachettepartworks.com/

[2] Ibid

[3] Ibid

[4] https://www.hachettepartworks.com/about-us/

[5] http://corporate.harpercollins.com/about-us/company-profile

[6] Ibid