Curtis Circulation Company, LLC (abbreviated as CC), is a magazine distribution company.

History

Curtis Circulation Company began as the circulation department of the

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

-based

Curtis Publishing Company The Curtis Publishing Company, founded in 1891 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, became one of the largest and most influential publishers in the United States during the early 20th century. The company's publications included the ''Ladies' Home Jour ...

, publisher of ''

The Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely ...

'', '' Ladies' Home Journal'', and '' Holiday''; Curtis Circulation became a subsidiary in 1946. Besides the publishing company's own magazines, other titles distributed by Curtis Circulation included ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'' and '' Esquire''. One of Curtis' most notable clients in the 1950s was ''

Classics Illustrated ''Classics Illustrated'' is an American comic book/magazine series featuring adaptations of literary classics such as ''Les Misérables'', '' Moby-Dick'', ''Hamlet'', and '' The Iliad''. Created by Albert Kanter, the series began publication ...

'', which Curtis distributed, starting first in Canada in 1948, and then nationally in the U.S. beginning in 1951.Jones Jr., William B. ''Classics Illustrated: A Cultural History'', 2d ed. (McFarland & Company, 2017). In 1969, Perfect Film & Chemical Corporation purchased Curtis Circulation from the Curtis Publishing Company. Beginning in 1969 (and lasting until 1995), Curtis became the distributor of

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

(Perfect Film had bought out publisher Martin Goodman—owner of

Magazine Management Company Magazine Management Co., Inc. was an American publishing company lasting from at least 1947 to the early 1970s, known for men's-adventure magazines, risque men's magazines, humor magazine, humor, Romance novel, romance, puzzle, celebrity/film and ...

, the parent of

in 1968). Joseph M. Walsh (1944–2016) became president of Curtis Circulation in 1970 (he also held high-ranking titles at its parent company, Cadence). In 1973, Perfect Film renamed itself

Cadence Industries Cadence Industries Corporation, formerly known as Perfect Film & Chemical Corporation, was an American conglomerate owned by Martin S. Ackerman. From 1968 through 1986, Cadence Industries was the parent company of Marvel Comics Group (formerl ...

. In 1978, CC was the U.S.'s largest magazine distributor."House of Hammer Volume Two,"
DezSkinn.com. Retrieved Apr. 19, 2021. In 1982, Joseph M. Walsh became Chairman and CEO of Curtis, acquiring an ownership stake. Cadence Industries was liquidated in 1986, selling Curtis Circulation to Hachette Distribution Services (a division of the

Lagardère Group Lagardère S.A. () is an international group with operations in over 40 countries. It is headquartered in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. The group was created in 1992 as Matra, Hachette & Lagardère. Headed by Arnaud Lagardère, it is focused ...

); Walsh retained his ownership stake. Comag Marketing Group (CMG) acquired Curtis Circulation Company, effective October 1, 2019

References

Marketing companies established in 1946 Comics industry Distributors 1946 establishments in Pennsylvania {{comics-company-stub

History

See also

References