Crime Does Not Pay
English
227 pages
Volume 1
Blackjacked and Pistol Whipped: A Crime Does Not Pay Primer
1.6K views • May 21, 2025
Gangsters, kidnappers, maniacal killers, and thugs of all stripes had their lurid stories recounted in Crime Does Not Pay! Featuring thrilling, brutal tales and disturbing, despicable characters, Crime Does Not Pay enthralled a nation and was the most popular comic book of its time. The series was a favorite target of Dr. Fredric Wertham and other censors and is partially responsible for the creation of the Comics Code Authority—yet it was also an inspiration for Harvey Kurtzman's reality-based EC Comics. See why this series was both revered and reviled in this unique best of primer! *Contains a selection of stories from across the series' run in the 1940s, a new cover, an illustrated essay by Denis Kitchen, and an introduction by Brian Azzarello.
285 pages
Volume 2
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 1
295 views • May 21, 2025
Uncut and uncensored, the infamous pre-Code Crime Does Not Pay comics are finally collected into a series of archival editions! With brutal, realistic tales focusing on vile criminals, Crime Does Not Pay was one of the most popular comics of the 1940s. The series was a favorite target of Dr. Fredric Wertham and other censors and is partially responsible for the creation of the stifling Comics Code Authority. Now revered and mythic, this collection of the first four hard-to-find Crime Does Not Pay comics features a fine roster of Golden Age creators and a new introduction by Matt Fraction (Iron Man, Casanova)!
266 pages
Volume 3
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 2
4 views • May 21, 2025
The celebrated pre-Code Crime Does Not Pay comics are finally collected into a series of unflinching and uncensored deluxe editions! The infamous Crime Does Not Pay stories, focusing on criminal scum, nefarious mobsters, and urban legends, made Crime Does Not Pay one of the most popular comics of the 1940s. This series was a favorite target of censors and is partially responsible for the creation of the stifling Comics Code Authority! Revered, influential, and very hard to find, Crime Does Not Pay issues #26 to #29 are collected for your enjoyment and education!
240 pages
Volume 4
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 3
3 views • May 21, 2025
One of the best-selling comics of the 1940s, Crime Does Not Pay focused on violent mobsters and murderous lowlifes who machine-gunned their way through the urban underworld . . . until justice landed them in the chair! In 1954, the Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency targeted this comic series for its graphic violence, eventually leading to the creation of the repressive Comics Code Authority. Issues #30 to #33 of Crime Does Not Pay are finally collected in this deluxe edition, which includes Million Dollar Robbery—perhaps the first story in US comics history drawn by an African- American artist—and features a new introduction by comic-book giant Howard Chaykin (Marked Man, American Flagg!).
222 pages
Volume 5
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 4
98 views • May 21, 2025
Crime Does Not Pay—the true-crime comic that enjoyed massive circulation throughout the forties and fifties—was a hit with readers. Issues #34-#37 of this visceral, provocative series are now collected into one fine, head- walloping edition. New foreword by David Lapham (Stray Bullets, The Strain)! Set the pace for the violent pre-Code comics era.
222 pages
Volume 6
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 5
221 views • May 21, 2025
Issues #38–#41 are collected into one edition with a new foreword by Paul Gravett (editor of The Mammoth Book of Best Crime Comics)! Extremely rare comics—finally collected for a new generation of readers! 1940s million-a-month seller! Gangsters, kidnappers, maniacal killers, and thugs... One of the more controversial series in comics history.—Comic Book Resources
252 pages
Volume 7
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 6
281 views • May 21, 2025
Tommy-gun-toting toughs guys roar across the pages of Crime Does Not Pay, the sensational 1940s comic that enraptured millions with its scandalous stories of criminal scum, ripped right from the headlines! This edition collects issues #42–#45 of this infamous series and features a new foreword by Goosebumps author R.L. Stine! Collects Crime Does Not Pay #42–#45. Nearly seventy years later, CRIME still has the power to thrill and shock!
280 pages
Volume 8
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 7
13 views • May 21, 2025
A crooked path of theft, extortion, and murder can only lead one place: the electric chair! When will these no-good mugs learn? The latest volume of the Eisner and Harvey Award–nominated archival series collects issues #46–#49 of the wildly popular 1940s true-crime comic series, with a new foreword by Lorenzo Carcaterra (Sleepers). 2013 Eisner and Harvey Award–nominated series! Foreword by Lorenzo Carcaterra (New York Times best-selling author of Sleepers)!
236 pages
Volume 9
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 8
2 views • May 21, 2025
Pyromaniacs, murderous thugs, and pinstriped goons wreak havoc in the notorious pre-Code Crime Does Not Pay anthology. This collection—featuring every uncensored page from Crime Does Not Pay issues #50 to #53—also includes a new foreword. Eisner and Harvey Award–nominated series! Foreword by Joel Rose (Get Jiro!, Miami Vice)!
222 pages
Volume 10
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 9
4 views • May 21, 2025
Our latest collection—including every uncensored page from Crime Does Not Pay issues #54 to #57—is brimming with razor-sharp work by artists George Tuska, Fred Guardineer, Dan Barry, Charles Biro, and others! This volume also features a new foreword by crime and comics storytelling all-star Max Allan Collins (Road to Perdition, King of the Weeds)! Featuring pre-Code work by Tuska, Biro, Guardineer, and others!
222 pages
Volume 11
Crime Does Not Pay Archives Volume 10
3 views • May 21, 2025
Our latest deluxe edition—including every uncensored page from Crime Does Not Pay issues #58 to #61—is packed with timeless true-crime tales by artists George Tuska, Fred Guardineer, Dan Barry, Charles Biro, and others! This volume also features an enlightening new foreword by Eisner Award–winning writer Jeff Jensen (Green River Killer)! Includes all prose pieces and fan pages! * Foreword by Jeff Jensen (Green River Killer, Tomorrowland).
