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When the comic book industry created the self-policing Comics Code Authority (CCA) in 1955, horror comics were specifically targeted and vanished from the newsstands.

In 1964 James Warren decided to fill this void by appropriating the very successful publishing model that EC COMICS had perfected a decade before. Understanding that the magazine format was immune to the Comics Code rules gave Warren the freedom to publish more graphic and mature content.

WARREN PUBLISHING founded by James Warren and was based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, publishing his first magazines in 1957 with "After Hours" and, in 1958, with Forrest J Ackerman created the world's first wholly Monster movie magazine-  "Famous Monsters of Filmland"  to exploit the Monster-Mania craze that was sweeping the country when early local TV stations began to broadcast classic UNIVERSAL STUDIOS MONSTERS movies of the 1930's & 40's. Adding to the successful Famous Monsters he jumped on every fad and "trend"...Cowboy shows dominated the boob tube so he published "Wildest Westerns"...with the original Mercury Astronauts and NASA's Race for Space captivating the country "Spacemen" Magazine was launched with a mix of vintage and current "SCI-FI" movies. "Screen Thrills Illustrated" a nostalgic and loving tribute magazine devoted mostly to early adventure, classic movies and serials but would also include current interests like James Bond and The Beatles to attract younger readers.

After experimenting with adaptations of classic monster movies with what he called "Monster Comics" in "Monster World" Magazine, Warren in 1964 began a line of black and white illustrated horror-comics magazines "Creepy", "Eerie" and a bit later "Vampirella".

With remarkable success Warren moved the company in 1965 to New York City. But by 1981 with James Warren's bad health, changing consumer tastes and business problems the company suspended publishing. Warren declared bankruptcy in 1983. In August 1983, Harris Publications acquired company assets at auction but in 1998 a lawsuit by James Warren resulted in his reacquisition of the rights to Creepy and Eerie. Dark Horse Comics continues with a series of archival reprints and other publications.