Golden Legacy

From blackwiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Golden Legacy volume 01 (1966)

Golden Legacy is a series of comic books of black history comic book published by Fitzgerald Publishing Co. from 1966 to 1976.[1]

Bertram A Fitzgerald is the man behind the Golden Legacy Series of Black History Comic books. Bertram Fitzgerald was African American accountant and he acted as editor and publisher for the series and wrote almost half the books.[2] Many of the other contributors to the Golden Legacy series were also black, including Joan Bacchus and Tom Feelings. Other notable contributors included Don Perlin and Tony Tallarico.[1]

Mission

The subject of Golden Legacy is written black history so young people can easily understand and develop interest for further study of history. Golden Legacy called itself as non comic magazine but a new approach to the study of history. The intention of it's publication is to implant pride and self-esteem and empowering black community while dispelling myths in others.[3]

The series has been endorsed by representatives of most major Boards of Education, the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), The National Urban League, The Association for The Study of Negro Life and History, and many eminent educators, historians, religious and community leaders.[3]

Bertram A. Fitzgerald Publisher

History

Fitzgerald became interested in black history thanks to his seventh-grade history teacher, who made sure to highlight the contributions of blacks in various fields. Fitzgerald read Classics Illustrated comic books as a child, but was frustrated to see the African American experience either negatively stereotyped or omitted in their pages.[2]

The first edition of Golden Legacy Volume 1, The Saga of Toussaint L’ Ouverture, and the Birth of Haiti was published in 1966. Fitzgerald had a difficult time finding a printer to work on a black oriented magazine, eventually he had to settle on a small out of state printer who’s lack of modern printing equipment is apparent on the early editions, and he also faced the same problems with distribution. Comic books were seen as entertainment, not education, the market for black educational material was considered marginal indeed, and Fitzgerald was unable to break into this biased newsstand monopoly.

He approached the Coca Cola Company with the idea that since blacks accounted for a greater per capita share of soft drink sales than whites, they should acknowledge this by cultivating black customers through sponsorship of black culture. Coke was interested and they asked Fitzgerald to suspend newsstand distribution until they could work out a deal, which took about a year.

During this time Fitzgerald was introduced to Tom Feelings, an artist with a similar vision who had already prepared an illustrated feature on Crispus Attucks for another publication, and this feature was adapted for the third volume of Golden Legacy, with additional artwork by golden age artist Ezra Jackson.

After acquiring corporate sponsorship from Coca-Cola Company and a number of other prominent corporations, Golden Legacy published a total of nine million copies of its 16 32-page full-color volumes, distributing many of them to schools, libraries, churches, and civil rights organizations.[2]

Issues

# Title Year Writer Art
1. The Saga of Toussaint L’Ouverture and the Birth of Haiti 1966 Leo Carty Leo Carty
2. The Saga of Harriet Tubman, the Moses of her people 1966 Writer Joan Bacchus Joan Bacchus and Tom Feelings
3. Crispus Attucks and the Minutemen 1967 Tom Feelings Tom Feelings and Ezra Jackson
4. The Life of Benjamin Banneker 1968 Francis Taylor Ezra Jackson
5. The Life of Matthew Henson 1969 Joan Bacchus Joan Bacchus
6. Alexander Dumas and Family 1969 Bertram Fitzgerald Ezra Jackson
7. Frederick Douglas Part 1 1969 Bertram Fitzgerald Howard Darden
8. Frederick Douglas Part 2 1970 Bertram Fitzgerald Howard Darden
9. The Life of Robert Smalls 1970 Bertram Fitzgerald, Don Perlin Don Perlin
10. Joseph Cinque and the Amistad Mutiny 1970 Joan Bacchus Joan Bacchus
11. Men of Action: White, Wilkins & Marshall 1970 Bertram Fitzgerald Ezra Jackson, Don Perlin, Tony Tallarico
12. Black Cowboys 1972 Don Perlin Don Perlin
13. Martin Luther King, Jr 1972 Bertram Fitzgerald Don Perlin
14. The Life of Alexander Pushkin 1972 Warren Parker Tony Tallarico
15. Ancient African Kingdoms 1972 Robert Fitzgerald Howard Darden
16. The Black Inventors Latimer and Woods 1976 Bertram A Fitzgerald Leo Carty and Tony Tallarico

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Golden Legacy. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Christopher, Tom. Bertram A Fitzgerald and the Golden Legacy Series of Black History Comics . Tom Christopher. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  3. 3.0 3.1 ABOUT GOLDEN LEGACY. Golden Legacy. Retrieved January 15, 2021.