Love on the Racks ― A History of American Romance Comics

For the better part of three decades romance comics were an American institution. Nearly 6000 titles were published between 1947 and 1977, and for a time one in five comics sold in the U.S. was a romance comic. This first full-length study examines the several types of romance comics, their creators and publishing history. The author explores significant periods in the development of the genre, including the origins of Archie Comics and other teen publications, the romance comic “boom and bust” of the 1950s, and their sudden disappearance when fantasy and superhero comics began to dominate in the late 1970s.

Michelle Nolan has been a newspaper and magazine feature writer for more than 50 years. She received an Inkpot Award for her work as a comics and pop cultural historian and entrepreneur. She has published more than 10,000 stories and columns. She lives in Bellingham, Washington.