Former American publishing company
Pendulum Press
was a publishing company based in
West Haven, Connecticut
, that operated from 1970
[1]
to 1994,
[2]
producing the bulk of their material in the 1970s. The company is most well known for their
comic book
adaptations of literary classics. The
Pendulum Now Age Classics
series published black-and-white paperback adaptations of more than 70 literary classics, such as
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
,
The War of the Worlds
, and
Moby-Dick
. These stories were later widely reprinted by other publishers (including by
Marvel Comics
) well into the 2000s. Pendulum also published a line of historical comics, a line of comic book biographies, and a line of comic book adaptations of inspiring stories and morality tales.
Founded by David Oliphant
[2]
as a division of Academic Industries, Inc., Pendulum's comics division was overseen by veteran creator/editor
Vincent Fago
. The company received
Title One
funds from the
U.S. government
to produce
comics with an educational focus
.
[1]
[3]
History
[
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]
Pendulum Illustrated Classics
[
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]
In 1970,
Vincent Fago
, the former editor-in-chief of
Timely Comics
, was hired by Pendulum to produce the
Pendulum Now Age Classics
series, which were black-and-white paperback adaptations of literary classics. Specifically designed for classroom use, the series used
set type
instead of hand
lettering
, vocabulary appropriate for grade levels, and included word lists and questions at the back.
[4]
Acting as a publisher from his studio in
Bethel, Vermont
, Fago edited and handled production on the nearly one hundred titles in the series.
[3]
Adaptations were handled by writers like
Otto Binder
,
Naunerle Farr
,
Kin Platt
,
Irwin Shapiro
, and Fago's son
John Norwood Fago
.
[5]
After having difficulty finding American artists to illustrate the comics,
[1]
Fago turned to Filipino artist
Nestor Redondo
, who offered to help recruit some of his fellow
Filipino comics artists
[1]
? these artists ended up illustrating almost every comic Pendulum produced. In addition to the work of Redondo, who illustrated more than 20 books in the series, the
Pendulum Illustrated Classics
featured the artwork of
Alex Nino
,
[6]
Gerry Talaoc
,
[7]
Vicatan
,
Rudy Nebres
,
Jun Lofamia
,
Nestor Leonidez
, and
E. R. Cruz
. (Redondo's brothers
Virgilio
and
Frank
also illustrated books in the series.)
Comics in the series were published from 1973 to 1980; the series ended with a selection of
Shakespeare
plays adapted into comics form.
Ancillaries and reprints
[
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From 1976?1981, Fago produced a multimedia read-along program for the series, called
New Matter Sounds
. Each packet contained a reading booklet, a student activity booklet, a sound cassette, and an answer key sheet. Some of the packets contained a narrated film strip along with the other materials.
Many of the early issues in the
Pendulum Illustrated Classics
series were reprinted, in color with new covers, in 1976 by
Marvel Comics
as
Marvel Classics Comics
.
[8]
In 1984, Pendulum's parent company Academic Industries reprinted a number of the
Illustrated Classics
(as well as other Pendulum comics) in a smaller format.
[9]
In 1984?1988, Pendulum and the Indian publisher Pai and Company (Paico) co-published series as
Paico Classics
in various
Indian languages
(as well as the original
English
). Paico republished the series in 1998?2000.
In 1990?1991, Pendulum itself reprinted a selection of
Pendulum Illustrated Classics
, retitled
Pendulum's Illustrated Stories
, in colorized versions with new painted covers. Originally planned to run 72 issues, the company only produced six issues before abandoning the project.
[3]
In 1994, Pendulum reprinted its 1974 adaptation of
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame
, colorized in a prestige format comic under the banner of the
Phonics Classic Achievement Series.
It announced more titles but these were also abandoned when the company closed down.
Also in 1994,
Lake Illustrated Classics
(a division of
AGS Secondary
) reprinted many of the
Pendulum Illustrated Classics
under their own banner.
Since 2006,
Saddleback Educational Publishing
has reprinted many of the
Pendulum Illustrated Classics
under their own banner, using the 1990-91 cover format.
Other publications
[
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In 1976, to tie in with
America's bicentennial
, Pendulum published a line of historical comics called the
Basic Illustrated History of America
. This line was edited by Vince Fago's wife, D'ann Calhoun, and written by
Naunerle Farr
.
In 1978 Pendulum also published a primer on the value of comics as an education tool.
In 1978?79, Pendulum published a line of comic book biographies under the series title
Pendulum Illustrated Biography Series
. The books were flip books ? half the book would feature one notable person, and then the reader would flip the book over to read the biography of the other featured notable.
In 1978?79, Pendulum published the series
Contemporary Motivators
, a line of comic book adaptations of inspiring stories and morality tales like
Banner in the Sky
,
God Is My Co-Pilot
,
Guadalcanal Diary
,
The Diary of Anne Frank
, and
Lost Horizon
; as well as a rough adaptation of
Star Wars
. Like the
Illustrated Classics
series, these comics were specifically designed for classroom use, with typeset instead of hand lettering, vocabulary appropriate for grade levels, and word lists and questions at the back.
In 1979, the company introduced the
Pendulum Illustrated Original
series, mostly featuring the new superhero
Solarman
, created by Pendulum founder and president David Oliphant.
[2]
Solarman was later revived by
Marvel Comics
in a 1989 series.
Pendulum also published a small line of prose books, by authors such as
David M. Kennedy
,
Bertram Wyatt-Brown
, and
Joseph Payne Brennan
, including biographical, sociology, and poetry titles.
Titles
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Comics
[
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]
Pendulum Illustrated Classics
[
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]
Pendulum's Illustrated Stories
[
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]
- Colorized reprints of the
Pendulum Illustrated Classics
- Moby-Dick
(1990)
[12]
- Treasure Island
(1990)
- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
(1990)
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
(Mar. 1991)
- A Christmas Carol
(1991)
- A Midsummer Night's Dream
(1991)
Basic Illustrated History of America
[
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]
- edited by D'Ann Calhoun with Lawrence Bloch
- The New World, 1500-1750
(1976) ? written by
Naunerle Farr
and illustrated by
E. R. Cruz
; part of
New Matter Sounds
multimedia packet
- The Fight for Freedom, 1750?1783
(1976) ? written by Naunerle Farr and illustrated by
Virgilio Redondo
- The United States Emerges, 1783?1800
(1976) ? written by Naunerle Farr and illustrated by
Fred Carrillo
- Problems of the New Nation, 1800-1830
(1976) ? written by Naunerle Farr &
Dennis Dostert
, and illustrated by
Jun Lofamia
- Americans Move Westward, 1800-1850
(1977) ? written by Naunerle Farr and illustrated by
Frank Redondo
; 16 pp.
- Before the Civil War, 1830-1860
(1976) ? written by
Naunerle Farr
& Dennis Dostert] and illustrated by
E. R. Cruz
- The Civil War
, 1850-1876
(1976) ? written by Naunerle Farr and illustrated by
Nestor Redondo
; part of
New Matter Sounds
multimedia packet
- The Industrial Era, 1865-1915
(1976) ? written by Naunerle Farr & Dennis Dostert, and illustrated by
Fred Carrillo
- America Becomes a World Power, 1890-1920
(1977) ? written by Naunerle Farr and illustrated by
Resty Ronguillo
- The
Roaring Twenties
and the
Great Depression
, 1920?1940
(1976) ? written by
Naunerle Farr
and illustrated by
Tony Caravana
- World War II
, 1940-1945
(1976) ? written by Naunerle Farr and illustrated by
N. E. Phillips
- America Today, 1945-1976
(1976) ? written by Naunerle Farr and illustrated by
Nardo Cruz
Pendulum Illustrated Biography
series
[
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]
Contemporary Motivators
series
[
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]
- The Caine Mutiny
- Banner in the Sky
- God Is My Co-Pilot
adapted by Linda A. Cadrain and
Charles Nicholas
- Guadalcanal Diary
(June 1978)
- Hiroshima
- Hot Rod
(1978)
- Just Dial a Number
by Edith Maxwell, adapted by
Charles Nicholas
- The Diary of Anne Frank
(1979)
- Lost Horizon
adapted by Catherine Wichterman and
Charles Nicholas
(1978)
Books
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See also
[
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Other companies/imprints known for comics adaptations of literature:
References
[
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]
- ^
a
b
c
d
Fago, Vincent. "Nestor Redondo and the Pendulum Classics," in
Arthur Conan Doyle: Rosebud Graphic Classics
(Eureka Productions, 2002), pp. 4-6.
- ^
a
b
c
Oliphant entry
,
Who's Who in American Comics Books, 1928?1999
. Accessed Jan. 31, 2014.
- ^
a
b
c
Kleefeld, Sean.
"Vince Fago Post Script,"
Kleefeld on Comics
(May 16, 2008).
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Inge, M. Thomas (1993). LeMaster, J. R.; Wilson, James D. (eds.).
Comics
. New York:
Garland
. pp. 168?71.
- ^
"D’Ann Calhoun Fago: 70 Yrs. of Art,"
Archived
2014-02-01 at the
Wayback Machine
The Herald of Randolph
(Sept. 30, 2010).
- ^
Arndt, Richard J.
"A 2005 Interview with Steve Bissette about Bizarre Adventures!"
Enjolrasworld.com: Marvel’s Black & White Horror Magazines Checklist. Accessed May 8, 2013.
- ^
Gerry Talaoc
at Lambiek's Comiclopedia.
- ^
Nestor Redondo entry
, Grand Comics Database. Accessed Jan. 29, 2014.
- ^
Kujawa Henry R.
"Jules Verne, Part 2,"
Professor H's Wayback Machine
(Sept. 6, 2013).
- ^
Image of the book cover
, ComicBookDB.com. Accessed Jan. 29, 2014.
- ^
Bridwell, E. Nelson
(November 1974). "In Memorium: Otto Oscar Binder".
The Amazing World of DC Comics
(3): 30.
- ^
Moby-Dick
entry
, Grand Comics Database. Accessed Jan. 29, 2014.
- ^
The Beatles entry
, Grand Comics Database. Accessed Jan. 30, 2014.
External links
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]