New Media Publishing
|
Comic book distributor Comic book publisher |
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| Industry | Comics |
| Founded | mid-1970s |
| Founder |
Hal Shuster Irwin Shuster Jack Shuster |
| Defunct |
1982 (as distributor) 1985 (as publisher) |
| Headquarters |
Rockville, Maryland, then Largo, Florida |
New Media Distribution/Irjax Enterprises was a comic book distributor and boutique publisher active in the 1970s and early 1980s during the growth of the direct market. After the distribution arm of the company went out of business in 1982, its processing centers and warehouses formed the basis for Diamond Comics Distributors, the now-dominant comics distributor. New Media's publishing arm continued in the business until 1985.
Hal Shuster, his father, Irwin, and his brother, Jack, formed the paper distribution company Irjax Enterprises (a play on the names "Irwin" and "Jack"), based in Rockville, Maryland, in the 1970s.
After Phil Seuling established the direct market in 1972, his company Sea Gate Distributors maintained a virtual monopoly on comic book distribution, until a lawsuit brought by Irjax in 1978. Irjax sued the comic book publishers DC, Marvel, Archie, and Warren for their anti-competitive arrangement with Seagate. As a result of the lawsuit Irjax gained "a sizeable chunk of the direct-distribution market," with distribution centers in Boston and Tampa. The Boston-area division was known as Solar Spice and Liquors (named after a fictional corporation created by science fiction writer Poul Anderson).
Meanwhile, Baltimore retailer Steve Geppi had four comic book stores and was acting as a sub-distributor, "doing a little informal distributing . . . for smaller retailers." By 1981, Geppi was one of New Media/Irjax's biggest accounts. In late 1981, the company, now known as New Media Distribution, or New Media/Irjax, filed for Chapter 11. One of the "last loyal customers" when New Media began having fiscal difficulties, Geppi made a deal with Shuster: "[t]he owner was going into retail," so Geppi agreed to provide Shuster with "free books for a period of time in return for his account list."
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Wikipedia