The moral panic around children watching superhero television animations in the 1960s.

What is it about?

In the 1960s, moral panic about violent superheroes extended beyond comics into television. The controversy came to a head in 1968, when superheroes became one of the dominant genres in the children’s Saturday morning animation slot on US television. The objections of commentators famously focused on violent content and perceived negative impact upon young viewers. This chapter uses the case studies of the two aquatic superheroes Namor the Sub-Mariner and Aquaman—who appeared in the syndicated series Marvel Super Heroes (1966) and The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure on CBS (1967–68) respectively—to argue that underlying the calls to rein in superhero shows was a sharp divide in generational taste around genre and aesthetics, a split strongly informed by adult nostalgia.

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Photo by Jonathan Cosens Photography on Unsplash

Photo by Jonathan Cosens Photography on Unsplash

Why is it important?

The moral panic surrounding children's television in the 1960s, and superhero programs in particular, focused on their violent content. However, this chapter identifies that the real underlying problem was around generational taste, genre, and aesthetics. Put simply, adults liked the old animation style they grew up with, and did not take to the new 'limited' animation style popular on TV in the 1960s. When examined closely, the arguments about violence in animation in the 1960s do not stand up, given the levels of violence in earlier animations.

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