The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books, generally thought of as lasting from the late 1930s until the late 1940s.
Fans differ in marking the end of the Golden Age. Some events considered demarcation points include:
- The rise of gritty crime and horror comics, such as those of EC Comics, in the late 1940s and early 1950s and the beginning of the United States Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency hearings.
- 1950. For Timely Comics, the Golden Age ended with the cancellation of Captain America Comics at issue #75 (Feb. 1950) — by which time the series had already been Captain America's Weird Tales for two issues, with no superhero stories. The company's flagship title, Marvel Mystery Comics, starring the Human Torch, had already ended its run (with #92, June 1949), as had Sub-Mariner Comics (with #32, the same month).