DC Comics

DC Comics, Inc.
DC Comics' current logo, introduced with the DC Rebirth relaunch in 2016
Parent companyDC Entertainment
StatusActive
Founded
FounderMalcolm Wheeler-Nicholson
Country of originUnited States
Headquarters location4000 Warner Blvd., Burbank, California
Distribution
Key people
Publication typesList of publications
Fiction genres
ImprintsList of imprints
Owner(s)Warner Bros. Discovery
No. of employees~230[5]
Official websitedc.com

DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment,[6][7] a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.[8][9] DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book series first published in 1937.[10]

DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with their first comic under the DC banner being published in 1937.[11] The majority of its publications take place within the fictional DC Universe and feature numerous culturally iconic heroic characters, such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, the Flash, and Aquaman; as well as famous fictional teams including the Justice League, the Justice Society of America, the Teen Titans, and the Suicide Squad. The universe also features an assortment of well-known supervillains such as the Joker, Lex Luthor, Deathstroke, the Reverse-Flash, Brainiac, and Darkseid. The company has published non-DC Universe-related material, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, Fables and many titles under their alternative imprint Vertigo and now DC Black Label.

Originally in Manhattan at 432 Fourth Avenue, the DC Comics offices have been located at 480 and later 575 Lexington Avenue; 909 Third Avenue; 75 Rockefeller Plaza; 666 Fifth Avenue; and 1325 Avenue of the Americas. DC had its headquarters at 1700 Broadway, Midtown Manhattan, New York City, but DC Entertainment relocated its headquarters to Burbank, California in April 2015.[12]

Penguin Random House Publisher Services distributes DC Comics' books to the bookstore market,[13] while Diamond Comic Distributors supplied the comics shop direct market[12][14] until June 2020, when Lunar Distribution and UCS Comic Distributors, who already dominated direct market distribution on account of the disruption to Diamond that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic, replaced Diamond to distribute to that market.[4]

DC Comics and its longtime major competitor Marvel Comics (acquired in 2009 by The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros. Discovery's main competitor) together shared approximately 70% of the American comic book market in 2017,[15] though this number may give a distorted view since graphic novels are excluded. With the sales of all books included, DC is the second biggest publisher, after Viz Media, and Marvel is third.[16]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Fifty was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Goulart55 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Benton17 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b McMillan, Graeme (June 5, 2020). "DC Cut Ties with Diamond Comic Distributors". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  5. ^ McMillan, Graeme (January 23, 2019). "DC Publishing Laying Off 3 Percent of Its Workforce". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  6. ^ Melrose, Kevin (October 10, 2009). "DC Entertainment – what we know so far". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on September 13, 2009. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  7. ^ "DC Entertainment Expands Editorial Leadership Team" (Press release). DC Entertainment. May 5, 2017. Archived from the original on May 13, 2017. Retrieved May 11, 2017.
  8. ^ Brent Lang; Matt Donnelly (April 14, 2022). "Warner Bros. Discovery Exploring Overhaul of DC Entertainment (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
  9. ^ "Inside David Zaslav's Overhaul of the Warner Bros. Movie Division | Analysis". June 1, 2022. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
  10. ^ Jung, Michael (May 7, 2020). "What Does DC Comics Stand For?". ScreenRant. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
  11. ^ Galloway, Ryan (July 5, 2021). "What Was The First DC Comic?". We Got This Covered. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  12. ^ a b DC Comics Inc. Archived September 21, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Hoovers. Retrieved October 18, 2008.
  13. ^ "DC Comics, Random House Ink Distribution Pact". Archived from the original on August 2, 2017. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  14. ^ "Welcome to Diamond Comic Distributors' Retailer Services Website!". Archived from the original on June 30, 2017. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  15. ^ Miller, John. "2017 Comic Book Sales to Comics Shops". Comichron. Archived from the original on January 23, 2018. Retrieved January 23, 2018. Share of Overall Units—Marvel 38.30%, DC 33.93%; Share of Overall Dollars—Marvel 36.36%, DC 30.07%
  16. ^ "Viz Manga Sales are Destroying DC, Marvel in Comic Market". Archived from the original on October 10, 2017. Retrieved October 10, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)