DR. WERTHLESS THE MAN WHO STUDIED MURDER

Acclaimed true crime author Harold Schechter and multiple Eisner award winning cartoonist Eric Powell (The Goon)  present a graphic novel that takes an unbiased look at this flawed and complex man whose obsessive dream of freeing the world from violence nearly murdered the comics industry.  Dr. Fredric Wertham: reviled by comic book fans as a witch-hunting zealot who stirred up a panic among American parents for his own self-promoting purposes, he was also a renowned psychiatrist who, among other accomplishments, opened a clinic in Harlem for disadvantaged African-American patients and played an important role in the desegregation of the nation’s schools. Believing that murder could be abolished through a proper understanding of the mental and social roots of criminal violence, he took a genuinely humane approach to some of the most notorious homicidal maniacs of his time, while simultaneously exploiting their stories for his own commercial ends. From the creative team behind the award-winning "Did You Hear What Eddie Gein Done?" “A compelling biography that challenges readers to reconsider their assumptions and poses provocative questions about censorship and the influence of popular culture…a rich, layered portrait of a man commonly viewed as a villain.” – Library Journal