Rock 'N' Roll Comics

Rock 'N' Roll Comics
Rock 'N' Roll Comics #1, featuring Guns N' Roses (June 1989)
Publication information
Publisher	Revolutionary Comics
Schedule	Monthly
Format	Ongoing series
Genre	Underground
Publication date	June 1989 – November 1993
No. of issues	63
Creative team
Written by	Todd Loren, Dean Hsieh, Jay Allen Sanford, Robert V. Conte, Michael K. Willis
Artist(s)	Lyndal Ferguson, Greg Fox, Stuart Immonen, Scott Jackson, Ken Landgraf, Larry Nadolsky, Blackwell, Johnny Childish, Scott E. Pentzer
Editor(s)	Todd Loren (issues #1–51) Jay Allen Sanford (issues #52–65)

Rock 'N' Roll Comics was a comic book series published by Revolutionary Comics from 1989 to 1993. Revolutionary's flagship title, the series was notable for its unauthorized and unlicensed biographies of rock stars, told in comic book form but well-researched and geared to adults, often with very adult situations (nudity, drug use, violence, etc.).

Some musicians featured in the comics, like Frank Zappa and KISS, were supportive; while others, like the New Kids on the Block, considered the comic akin to a bootleg recording and sued the publisher. Publisher Todd Loren's legal victory in the U.S. District Court established that comic book biographies were entitled to the same protections as other unauthorized biographies.

Rock 'N' Roll Comics originally contained straight biographies in comics form and Mad magazine-style parodies (all written by Loren). The parodies were dropped after about 18 issues. Early issues also featured the Loren/Larry Nadolsky character Stan Back in a series of humorous one-page strips. Loren wrote many of the early lead stories; Jay Allen Sanford took over as lead writer with issue #22.

The series sported a cover logo reading "Unauthorized and Proud of It," possibly in hopes of staving off lawsuits. Rock 'N' Roll Comics was published in a typical 6½" × 9¾" comic book format. Issues were typically 32 pages in length, printed mostly in black-and-white with a color cover. Many covers were painted by Scott Jackson. The letters page — which often featured spirited editorials by Loren — was known as "Revolutionary Comments." A total of 63 issues were released.

Revolutionary Comics publisher Todd Loren was inspired to launch Rock 'N' Roll Comics in part by the success of an unauthorized Bruce Springsteen parody one-shot comic called Hey Boss (Visionary Graphics, 1986).