- You know, one of my favorite parts of Spider-Man's mythos
is his most constant and reoccurring antagonist.
No, not some costume super villain or a mob boss,
or anything like that.
Just a really loud, really mean man.
His name is J. Jonah Jameson,
and although he's been mayor of New York,
and reporter for Fact Channel News,
he's unquestionably best known
as the editor in chief at the Daily Bugle,
New York's primary source of web head coverage.
J. Jonah Jameson was introduced
in the inaugural of Amazing Spider-Man from 1963,
and serves as the series' first bad guy.
To this day, he continues to stand out
above the rest of Spider-Man's rogues' gallery
as a constant foil that Peter just can't punch away.
He's a fun and interesting character
who adds contrast and texture to the world of Spider-Man
that has helped make the wall crawler's stories
dynamic from the start.
But, where did the inspiration for Jameson come from?
Well, there are two answers to this question,
the official one, and the one that goes much, much deeper.
Establishing the relationship between Spider-Man and Jameson
is a metaphor for the comic book industry itself.
This is the real origin of J. Jonah Jameson,
and it's hot off the presses.
(laughs) That is so dumb.
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so I can finally get pictures of Spider-Man.
How are you doing, you wonderful nerds?
Scott here, and last time we talked about Spidey,
we focused on his debut in Amazing Fantasy #15,
with the looming censorship of the Comics Code Authority.
That video will be linked up here, if you want to catch up,
but for now, let's just pick up where we left off.
Just a few months after the web head's first story,
he was given his very own comic series that introduced
the greatest supporting character of all time.
That is a fact, that is a comic book fact.
- A fact I'm very proud of.
- Before Peter Parker became a photographer
for the Daily Bugle, he was a poor high school student,
desperate to earn money and help his Aunt May.
One of his early ideas was to become
an entertainer on television.
That might strike you as a bit of an odd choice,
but you'll see why Stan Lee made this decision
for the character in a bit.
As Spidey performs, he becomes a bit
of a cultural phenomenon, actually,
in the entertainment industry, making a name for himself
while garnering lots of love and attention.
And then, here comes J. Jonah Jameson
to critique and crusade against Spider-Man.
Now, we're going to pause the story
right there for a second,
but if you were to ask Spider-Man co-creator Stan Lee
where the inspiration for ole 'three J' came from,
he would tell you that the character was introduced
almost out of practicality.
He wanted Peter Parker to have an occupation
that wouldn't tie him down.
A freelance job that would give him time to be Spidey
and earn money on his own schedule.
And, while he could have made Jameson a nice enough guy
like Superman's Perry White,
the comedy of having J. Jonah loathe Spider-Man,
and yet have him working under his nose as a photographer
was too much for Stan to resist.
- I didn't want this guy to be a nice guy.
I wanted him to hate Spider-Man, 'cause I like the irony
of the fact that he has Spider-Man working for him,
and he hates Spider-Man, and yet,
he always wants to get pictures of Spider-Man,
because he sells papers. - Sells papers.
- But, as Stan explains further,
the exact personality of Jameson was taken
from a much more personal place.
You see, the Daily Bugle's editor in chief
was based on the real life Marvel Comics editor in chief,
Stan himself.
- You know who J. Jonah Jameson was?
- [Interviewer] Who was it?
He was me. - Really?
- He was (mumbles), he was bad tempered, he was dumb.
He thought he was better than he was.
He was the version that so many people had of me, anyway.
- (laughs) Right, right.
- So, cool, video over, I guess.
It's not often that you learn authorial intent
directly from the author,
so perhaps we should just close the book on this exposee,
and call Jameson a self-insert character.
But, I'm not so sure.
I mean, if you know anything about Stan Lee,
you know that it's often hard to take him at his word.
- I've told this story so often it might even be true.
I can't remember, but,
- Stan's a storyteller.
Often at the cost of revising history,
to either make himself look better
or Marvel, as a whole, look better.
I can sit here and list examples, but, for the sake of time,
just trust me and the many documented accounts
in Marvel Comics, the Untold Story,
when I say that Stan lies.
Cool? Cool.
The point is, I think J. Jonah Jameson's origins
are a lot more meaty than a Stan Lee self parody.
And, just like the journalists at the Daily Bugle,
we can't stop at the first possible result.
We have to keep digging,
and I think I have a lead.
- [Fredric] It is my opinion, without any reasonable doubt
and without any reservation, that comic books
are an important contributing factor
in many cases of juvenile deliquency.
- Meet Dr. Fredric Wertham, a sociologist and author
of one of the most important books in comics history,
the Seduction of the Innocent.
You may now all let out your collective groans,
because almost everything in comics history
leads back to Wertham, in some capacity.
If you're unfamiliar, Wertham went on a crusade
against comics during the 1940s and '50s.
His writings claimed that comics
were dangerous for children's morals
and were a contributing factor of juvenile deliquency.
Seduction of the Innocent became a best seller
and caused a panic amongst parents nationwide,
leading to a congressional inquiry
and the formation of the Comics Code Authority.
In addition to his book, he also held conferences
on the psychopathology of comic books,
wrote several articles
about the negative affects that comics had
on the American youth that appeared in popular publications,
he made television and radio appearances and,
probably most notably, was the major player
in the Senate subcommittee hearing on juvenile delinquency
where he explained his nuanced views of comics, like this.
- [Fredric] I think Hitler was a beginner
compared to the comic book industry.
- Okay, to be fair to Wertham,
we are going to do a full video about him
and the Senate hearing later this year
to give you full context,
because one, that Senate hearing is amazing,
and two, it doesn't seem right to just cherry pick
a handful of examples simply to make him look bad.
Not that he gave comic books the same courtesy,
but it's fine, I'm not bitter about it.
But, that's precisely one of the points
that links him up with J. Jonah Jameson.
In their writings, they both skew information
and cherry pick details that align with their agenda.
Much like Jonah's accusations against Spider-Man,
Wertham had very little legitimate evidence
to support all his claims.
It's generally accepted that much of Wertham's research
was either heavily biased or even completely fabricated.
The doctor was effectively deceiving the public
and stirring outrage with misinformation.
I'm sure you can see the similarities there.
- [JJJ] Spider-Man set that fire, Parker.
- But, there's no proof that he did.
- Proof, schmoof.
- All right, run a fix of a rancid chicken,
here's the headline, 'Food Poisoning Scare Sweeps City'.
- Some food got poisoned? - I'm a little nauseous, yeah.
- And, if Jonah was a stand in for Wertham in these stories,
then Spider-Man represented comics themselves.
The rivalry between Jameson and Spidey
can be read as a metaphor
for Wertham's critiques of the comic book industry.
This teenage superhero debuted
during the medium's own teenage years
with an outspoken adversary.
A trusted authority figure who stokes fear
and gains the public's trust
without legitimate evidence to back it up.
That's just the start.
Re-reading through Amazing Spider-Man #1
with this view in mind
makes the comparisons almost too obvious.
Remember how Peter became a television performer?
That sets him up as a source of entertainment,
much like comic books, with Peter Parker
simply wanting to earn a living entertaining people.
And, it works, at first.
But, as his fame starts to grow,
a critic steps into frame.
"When I'm through with this article,
"Spider-Man will be run out of town."
My Jameson impression is
terrible.
The first time we see J. Jonah Jameson,
he's typing away at his desk, writing a newspaper editorial
explicitly intending to damage the web warrior's reputation.
The next day, Spider-Man learns that the public
is actually buying into Jameson's article,
as the Bugle's chief is now propped up at the podium,
delivering lectures about Spider-Man's danger to the public.
Remember, this is the first time we've ever seen JJJ,
and the first time that Spider-Man's been met
with anything other than approval by the public.
People are listening to him, and buying into his rhetoric,
a lot like Dr. Wertham's rise to public prominence,
berating comic books, and gaining a platform as a result.
Just as Wertham's fight evolved from print
to him speaking at conferences
about the dangers of comic books
on the impressionable minds of children,
Jonah takes his own crusade off of the page,
giving lectures about how the web head
is a danger to society in general,
and the youth in particular.
"He's a bad influence to our youngsters.
"Children may try to imitate his fantastic feats."
For my money, there's no clearer comparison
between the two men then their shared concern
for the impressionable youth.
And, in a fun twist, both men had a special affinity
for calling their opponent a menace.
- Who is Spider-Man?
He's a criminal, that's who is he is.
A vigilante, a public menace.
- Because of Jameson's campaign against the wall crawler,
Spider-Man loses his job as a performer.
He can no longer make money entertaining the masses.
And, you get it, right?
That's obviously echoes the many comic book publishers
who were struggling to earn a living
in the face of Wertham's media rampage against the medium.
As the story continues, Peter has an idea, right?
He would try to appeal to Jonah, get on his good side.
As it so happens, Jonah's son John,
- You know, the astronaut,
- Was being launched into orbit,
but the rocket's guidance system failed
and sent him tearing through the sky
on a fatal trajectory back towards Earth.
Spider-Man steps in to save John's life,
because, yes, it is the right thing to do,
but also because it might help Jonah
get off his anti-Spider pedestal
and allow Peter to make money entertaining people again.
Yet, even after the web slinger
rescues the son of his most vocal opponent,
Jameson still disapproves of Spider-Man's antics.
Reading this methaphorically, Spidey appealing to Jameson
echoes the comic book industry's attempts
to appeal to Wertham, and other critics.
The Comic Code Authority was established
to provide strict guidelines regarding what kinds of stories
writers and artists were allowed to tell,
and yeah, it was overly harsh,
but it was a form of self regulation
that many believed would make comics look good
in the eyes of the public once again.
But, it didn't matter.
- In this comic book is a love story.
A boy and girl in love.
They get married,
and after an offensively lurid description,
illustrated, of course, of the couple's wedding night,
the book shows how the bride murders her husband
by chopping his head off with an ax.
I think there oughta be a law against them.
Tonight I'm going to show you why.
- No change, no demonstrably good act could affect anything.
Wertham still rallied against comics,
and Jameson still rallied against Spider-Man.
Wertham's crusade, combined with the censorship of the CCA,
caused many comic's publications
to close their doors forever, unable to turn a profit,
a struggle that Stan Lee experienced first hand.
As author Aaron Drucker points out
in an essay in Web-Spinning Heroics,
"It's not difficult to hear Lee's experience
"echo into Peter Parker's frustration."
- [Peter] It's all his fault.
Because of him, I can't perform as the Spider-Man.
I can't give up.
I've gotta earn some money, somehow.
- We have one final video to wrap up
this unintentional three part series,
so subscribe if you don't want to miss it.
We'll be diving into the hidden meaning
behind the Amazing Spider-Man #50,
the iconic 'Spider-Man no more' story,
so, stay tuned for that,
but first, I want to know what you guys think.
In your opinion, was J. Jonah Jameson
based off of Fredric Wertham
or was the metaphor purely coincidental,
and he literally was just based off of Stan Lee?
I would love to know what you're thinking
down in the comments below.
I'll respond to some of them
in the next comment response video.
And now, I'm actually recording this bit in the future, ooh.
I want to give a huge thanks to our patrons
who support us every month over at Patreon.
There's a link in the description.
Here are their names, they're all lovely people
and I love them, but that's just between us.
And, if you want your name here,
you can go to www.patreon.com/nerdsync
and support the videos we make, it means a lot to me.
And also, I want to give a huge shoutout
to Sal from ComicPop for, really last-minute,
recording that Spider-Man line
and also a bunch of other Spider-Man lines
for the next video that we have coming out,
hopefully later this week.
We'll see how that goes.
But, he did a fantastic job under such short notice,
so, huge props to him.
Please check out his channel,
also linked in the description, for more comic book stuff
that's uploaded on a more frequent basis than this channel.
Um, promise I'm working on it, guys.
Anyway, if you're new here, subscribe,
you know how it works.
If you're feeling really crazy, hit that like button.
Who knows what'll happen? Probably nothing.
Also, like I mentioned at the beginning of this video,
here is a previous Spider-Man video we did,
talking about how the web head
may have secretly been introduced as a horror monster.
It's a really weird concept, but I had a lot of fun with it,
and you guys seemed to like it, too.
So, if you haven't seen it, go check it out.
As always, my name is Scott,
reminding you to read between the panels
and grow smarter through comics, see ya.