365 T-shirts - the reasoning

This blog should be sub-titled: a journal of my life in geek.

I get my geek on with things about which I am geeky: comic books, Baseball, Ultimate, science fiction, my favorite bands, books I have read and loved, and Jungian psychology to name some of the most frequently traversed subjects.

I began this project simply as a way to count my T-shirts. I own a lot of T-shirts. But how many do I have? Do I have 365? We shall find out.

When I started this blog, I thought about how each T-shirt means something to me. I bought it for a reason, after all. I set myself the task to post an entry about a new T-shirt every day as a way to simply write something every day, a warm up for writing fiction, which is my passion. Writing is like exercise. Warm ups are good for exercise. But after completing a month of blogging about T-shirts, I have learned that this blog serves as a journal; it documents my life in geek, sort of a tour of my interests in pop culture. The blog serves as a tool for self-inventory, for assessment and analysis of self and the origins of self, for stepping through the process of individuation in catalogues, lists, and ranks.

The blog also made me aware that I have some serious gaps in my T-shirt ownership, and I am in the process of collecting some new T-shirts for several of the great popular culture icons that I truly love. Stay tuned.

I was also a bit surprised that people checked out my blog and continue to check it, read it, and even comment on it. I am very appreciative of this readership. Please feel free to share your thoughts in my comments section. I will respond.

Also, please note that I have moved the original introductory text to the side bar. And now, I present to you the most recent entry of 365 T-shirts: a journal of my life in geek. Thank you for reading.
(Second Update - 1310.24. First Update - 1306.05 Originally Posted - 1304.25.)

Thursday, May 23, 2013

T-shirt #63: Comics Code Authority

T-shirt #63: I am "approved" by the Comics Code Authority

Given my love of logos and insignias, when this shirt came along, I had to have it.

I like the idea of being "approved" by the Comics  Code Authority.

Also, this shirt has special significance as it was a Christmas gift from my parents in 2011. I am sentimental by nature but especially sentimental about gifts.

What is the Comics Code Authority?

"The Comics Code Authority was formed by the Comics Magazine Association of America, to allow the comic publishers to self-regulate the content of comic books in the United States but its code, commonly called "the Comics Code," was ultimately abandoned by every major comic book publisher by the early 21st century. It was formed as an alternative to government regulation. Many have linked the CCA's formation to the publication of Fredric Wertham's book Seduction of the Innocent. Members submitted comics to the CCA, which screened them for adherence to its Code, then authorized the use of their seal on the cover if the book was found to be in compliance. At the height of its influence, it was a de facto censor for the U.S. comic book industry" (Comics Code Authority, Wikipedia, 2013).
EC comics were a thing of the past by the time I started buying comics. I have read many since, especially in the collected volumes. And though I have loved Mad Magazine and have been an avid reader since the 1970s, it was not the same as it had been in the pre-Authority days.

I remember how Marvel Comics earned itself a great deal of press when the CCA rejected issues 96-98 of The Amazing Spider-Man because of the depiction of drug abuse in the stories. I have always loved that Stan Lee chose to publish the stories without the CCA seal, a brash move for the House of Ideas, Marvel Comics.

I wear this shirt as a statement of irony: contrast and contradiction.

I would like to have the white shirt with the code symbol as I only wear black shirts in the cooler months and tend to wear white shirts all summer. Expect to see more white shirts hit the blog in the weeks to come.

- chris tower - 1305.23 - 10:27

PPS: Postscript note written 1310.27: Somehow I made a numbering error and so the T-shirt number in the URL for this entry is not accurate. But this is entry #63.