Russian-born publisher
Albert Lewis Kanter (1897–1973) recognizing the appeal of early comic books, believed he could use the new medium to introduce young and reluctant readers to "
great literature". In October 1941, with the backing of two business partners, he created
Classic Comics for
Elliot Publishing Company, its debut issue being
The Three Musketeers, followed by
Ivanhoe and
The Count of Monte Cristo. In addition to the literary adaptations, the comics featured author profiles, educational fillers, and ads for the coming titles. In later editions, a catalog of titles and a subscription order form appeared on back covers.
Ruth Roche created the first
Muslim superhero,
Kismet, Man of Fate, published in Gilberton's
Bomber Comics #1-4 (1944). By the time of
Classics Comics #4, in 1942, the title outgrew the space it shared with Elliot, and Kanter moved the operation to different offices, changing the corporate identity to the
Gilberton Company, Inc. Kanter was instrumental in getting
Classics Illustrated distributed nationally in the U.S. through
Curtis Circulation, alongside magazines like
The Saturday Evening Post, ''
Ladies' Home Journal, Holiday, The Atlantic, and Esquire. the Netherlands (Classics), Norway (Illustrerte Klassikere), Sweden (Illustrerade Klassiker), and West Germany (Illustrierte Klassiker). (The Norwegian branch took over publishing Classics Illustrated'' from Serieforlaget). In 1966, after going bankrupt, Thorpe & Porter was sold off to
National Comics Publications (i.e.,
DC Comics); this sale included all the Gilberton World-Wide Productions European branches. A few years later, in 1971, all those branches — now in the hands of
Warner Bros. — were renamed some variation of
Williams Publishing.
1967 sale and demise In 1967, Kanter sold Gilberton to Catholic business magnate
Patrick Frawley's Twin Circle Publishing Co., which brought out two more issues of
Classics Illustrated but mainly concentrated on foreign sales and reprinting older titles. After four years, Twin Circle discontinued the line because of poor distribution. By the early 1970s,
Classics Illustrated and
Junior had been discontinued, although the
Classics Illustrated branding would be used on a number of
made-for-television films in the period 1978–1982, including
The Time Machine,
Donner Pass: The Road to Survival, and
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Since the series' demise, various companies have reprinted its titles. == Imprints ==