FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CRAIG YOE’S GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY OF PUBLISHING
50 Years of Making Comics History
This year Craig Yoe, whom USA Today calls, “The comic book genre’s master archaeologist,” begins another chapter in “Making Comics History.” Yoe produced his first publication on comics history 50 years ago – a fanzine printed on a hand-cranked mimeograph machine. 2017 will be a year long Golden Anniversary Celebration of Craig Yoe’s sharing his comics findings with comics lovers!
Yoe says, “I never lost my passion for comics or publishing but, career-wise, I got distracted.” Those distractions included being a nightclub owner, a long-haired minister, a toy inventor, and a creative director for Disney and Nickelodeon. And Yoe was a Creative Director/Vice President General Manager for The Muppets, too. He drew the initial character sketches for the Dinosaurs TV show and created designs for the Muppet Disney World attraction. Jim Henson said, “Craig brings with him his valuable creativity and enthusiasm. He has a nice mix of business and creative talent!”
After Henson’s passing, Yoe began Yoe Studio. He took on a full creative and business partner in the studio—and a life partner—when he met his future wife Clizia Gussoni at the Lucca Comics convention in Italy, which included an exhibit from Yoe’s book The Art of Mickey Mouse. The book touted interpretations of Mickey by Peter Max, Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, and even Michael Jackson!
The New York Times exclaimed, “Yoe Studio has designed logos, toys, advertising, and websites for a list of clients that reads like the Fortune 500!” Those clients included Microsoft, Mattel, Marvel, DC Comics, Pepsi, Toys R Us, and the United Nations. For MTV, he created their heaviest rotated station ID that garnered a Mobius (Yoe’s storyboard was animated by the famed J.J. Sedelmaier Productions).
But Craig Yoe had a hankering to get back to his first love in popular culture, comics. He discovered unknown fetish artwork and edited a book, Secret Identity: The Fetish Art of Superman’s Co-Creator Joe Shuster. It whipped up excitement around the world, even making the front page of USA Today. Yoe was interviewed on Fox News and on NPR’s Fresh Air. The revelation was breathless news in Time and Playboy. Vice Magazine proclaimed, “Craig Yoe is an Indiana Jones for perv/nerd artifacts!”
Secret Identity was introduced by the legendary Stan Lee and other Yoe books have sported introductions by John Updike, R. Crumb, Adam West, Bill Watterson, Jerry Only of the Misfits, and Muhammad Yunus, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.
One of the first moves of IDW Publishing’s COO and President Greg Goldstein after joining the company, along with CEO and Publisher Ted Adams, was to ink a deal with Yoe Studio to start the imprint Yoe Books. In six years the imprint has published over 60 books of classic comics highlighting artists like Steve Ditko, Jack Kirby, Walt Kelly, Joe Kubert, Milt Gross, Carl Barks, Dick Briefer, Bud Sagendorf, Frank Frazetta, and many more. The collections have featured horror, humor, kids comics, fantasy, and romance.
Yoe is a two-time Eisner Award winner, has received a Gold Medal from the Society of Illustrators, a Mobius, and the Jerry Bails Fandom Award. Of all of the recognition Yoe is proudest of the awards for The School of Five comic books, published in 26 countries, in 23 languages in over 40 million copies (a world record). These superhero comics, done in conjunction with Unilever and various social mission organizations, teach children in developing countries the importance of washing their hands to prevent deaths from diarrheal diseases. The comics are saving countless lives.
Craig Yoe and Yoe Books have garnered high praise:
ABC News called Craig Yoe ”America’s Foremost Comics Historian!”
MTV opined, ”If you’re a comic book lover and are looking for the perfect ‘coffee table’ tome for your rad crash pad, seek no further than Yoe Books and their swank collection of retro favorites—from the wacky to the bizarre! Yoe is an exceptional comics historian, unearthing fascinating comics!”
The Library Journal calls Yoe Books publications,” Wildly creative historical comic collections!” “Scale breaking!” and “Beautifully produced!”
Actor and pop culture icon Mark Hamill has tweeted, “I keep buying books from Yoe Books as gifts, then keeping them for myself! Check it out: https://YoeBooks.com”
To kick of the celebration of 50 Years of Making Comics History, Craig Yoe is available for interviews and comic convention appearances. Yoe Books (A Proud Imprint of IDW) can be found at this website: https://YoeBooks.com.
About IDW
IDW Media Holdings, Inc. (OTC:IDWM) is a fully integrated media company, which includes publishing, games, entertainment, and the San Diego Comic Art Gallery.
IDW Publishing’s comic book and graphic novel catalog includes some of the world’s most popular entertainment brands, including Transformers, My Little Pony, Star Trek, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Ghostbusters, and Disney’s classic characters. At IDW’s core is its commitment to creator-owned comics including 30 Days of Night, Locke & Key, Wormwood, Ragnarök, V-Wars, and Archangel by bestselling sci-fi author William Gibson.
IDW Publishing is also home to the acclaimed and award-winning imprints; Top Shelf, The Library of American Comics, Yoe! Books, and Artist Editions, showcasing the greatest original art ever published in American comic books.
IDW Games’ diverse line-up includes the international phenomenon Machi Koro, as well as hit licensed games such as X-Files, Back to the Future, The Godfather, and TMNT.
IDW Entertainment currently serves as the worldwide distributor of Wynonna Earp airing on the Syfy Channel in the U.S. and is producing BBC America’s Dirk Gently, based the best seller by Douglas Adams starring Elijah Wood and Sam Barnett, and Brooklyn Animal Control.
