Since 1928 Samuel M. Iger had drawn several newspaper comic strips, "Bobby," "Mickey and His Gang," and "Pee-Wee," so he knew how to manage a large team of artists needed to produce a daily strip. By 1936 he had become editor of WOW What a Magazine!, which was bound in a tabloid format with reprinted newspaper comics, puzzles, movie reviews, humorous stories, as well as new comic strips. One of those new strips was drawn by Will Eisner. WOW was produced by John Henle publications at 160 Fifth Avenue. As with New Fun, this publication was clearly designed to promote newspaper syndication through proven newsstand sales.
in 1936 Samuel Iger asked Will Eisner to start their own shop, which at first they called Syndicated Features Incorporated and later called Eisner & Iger Associated Features. The words "Syndicate" and "Feature" refer to editorial content sold to newspapers on lucrative annual contracts. So just as Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson named his company National Allied Newspaper Syndicate one year earlier in 1935 the intention of these early shops was to produce material that would promote success as newspaper syndicates, and not to create comic books.
The second issue of WOW What a Magazine! featured "Captain Scott Dalton" drawn by Will Eisner. This strip was an exact imitation of the popular pulp magazine super hero "Doc Savage."
WOW What a Magazine! only lasted four issues, but the Eisner-Iger Shop went on to becme one of the first packagers of comic book content sold to publishing companies, such as Jumbo for Fiction House, Wonderman for Victor Fox, and Feature Funnies for Quality Comics.
Although "Captain Scott Dalton" failed to win syndication, Eisner went on to create "The Spirit," who was based on another pulp magazine super hero "The Shadow." By 1940 Eisner had finally won a syndicated comc strip "The Spirit," at which point he had to leave Eisner-Iger to open his own art shop.
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EISNER-IGER SHOP ARTISTS from 1936 - 1939
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1936
Dick Briefer
Will Eisner
Lou Ferstadt
S. M. Iger
Bob Kane
Mort Meskin
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1937
Bernard Baily
George Brenner
Dick Briefer
Don DeConn
Will Eisner
R.L. Golden
S. M. Iger
Bob Kane
Jack Kirby
Les Marshall
Irwin Myers
Chuck Thorndike
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1938
Vince Alascia
Gerald Altman
Bernard Baily
Alex Blum
Dick Briefer
Don DeConn
Will Eisner
Lou Fine
R.L. Golden
Al Grenet
S. M. Iger
Bob Kane
Jack Kirby
Ed Loughlin
Les Marshall
Mort Meskin
Irwin Myers
Art Peddy
Art Pinajian
Bob Powell
Bill Smith
Ed Waldman
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1939
Vince Alascia
Jack Alderman
Gerald Altman
Larry Antonette
Stan Asch
Rafael Astarita
Bernard Baily
Alex Blum
Dick Briefer
Ray Burley
Nick Cardy
Art Cazeneuve
Louis Cazeneuve
Georg Chapian
Reed Crandall
Don DeConn
Will Eisner
Gene Fawcette
Lou Fine
Walter Frehm
Alex Froehlich
Frank Frollo
R.L. Golden
Al Grenet
Maurice Gutwirth
Fletcher Hanks
Lee Harris
S. M. Iger
Ken Jackson
John Lindermayer
Ed Loughlin
R.H. Livingstone
Les Marshall
Chuck Mazoujian
Mort Meskin
Irwin Myers
Charles Nicholas
Klaus Nordling
Art Peddy
Art Pinajian
Bob Powell
Pierce Rice
Coulton Riggs
Fred Schwab
Bill Smith
Charles Sultan
George Tuska
Ed Waldman
Witmer Williams
Dan Zolnerowich
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1940
Bill Bossert
John Casco
John Celardo
Will Eisner
Al Grenet [Greenberg]
S. M. Iger
Bob Lubbers
Jim Mooney
Klaus Nordling
George Tuska
Bob Webb
Witmer Williams
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