This collection is located on-site.
In 1936-1937, David Kyle (who would go on to become a Columbia College alumnus) produced three issues of "The fantasy world" (or "The phantasy world"), believed to be the first comics fanzine ever. His daughter, Kerry Kyle, has donated a black-and-white copy of issue 1 and color copies of issues 2-3, as well as Kyle's 1939 manifesto, "A warning!" which cautioned attendees of the 1937 Newark science fiction convention about the possibility of coercion by the organizers.
You will need to make an appointment in advance to use this collection material in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room. You can schedule an appointment once you've submitted your request through your Special Collections Research Account.
This collection is located on-site.
Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. Permission to publish material from the collection must be requested from the Curator of Manuscripts/University Archivist, Rare Book and Manuscript Library (RBML). The RBML approves permission to publish that which it physically owns; the responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron.
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); David Kyle Fanzines; Box and Folder; Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University Library.
Materials may have been added to the collection since this finding aid was prepared. Contact rbml@columbia.edu for more information.
Columbia University Libraries, Rare Book and Manuscript Library
The heyday of comics fanzines is generally regarded to be the 1960s and 1970s, inspired by the science-fiction fanzines of the 1930s and 1940s. The Kyle fanzines represent a bridge between these two communities, and serves as a sort of Ur-text for the fanzines to come.
The subject headings listed below are found in this collection. Links below allow searches for other collections at Columbia University, through CLIO, the catalog for Columbia University Libraries, and through ArchiveGRID, a catalog that allows users to search the holdings of multiple research libraries and archives.
All links open new windows.
| Subject | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cartoonists -- United States | CLIO Catalog | ArchiveGRID |
| Fan magazines | CLIO Catalog | ArchiveGRID |