Ted Adams, co-founder of IDW Publishing, brings comics industry experience to SDSU classroom
Adams shares 30 years of comics knowledge with students in his spring History of Comics course.
Ted Adams understands comics. He’s been a voracious reader of books since he was a child. His introduction to comics took place in a barbershop in Grants Pass, Oregon, where the eight-year-old Adams picked up a copy of “Spider-Man” — and the rest is history. His lifelong love of the genre was piqued.
Adams is the spring 2026 Visiting Comics Professional-in-Residence for the Center for Comics Studies and teaches History of Comics (HIST157) in the College of Arts and Letters.
He is co-founder and former CEO of Idea and Design Works (IDW) Publishing, known for publishing licensed comic book adaptations of films, TV shows, video games and cartoons that cover a diverse range of titles including “Transformers,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” “Star Trek,” and more. Founded in 1999, it is known as the fifth largest comic book publisher in the U.S.
Besides being a business founder, Adams has also written several graphic novels, including adaptations of Richard Matheson’s “The Shrinking Man” and H.G. Wells’ “The Island of Dr. Moreau” and he co-created “Diablo House” with artist Santipérez. He has been an executive producer for films and TV shows, such as “30 Days of Night,” “Wynonna Earp,” and “Locke & Key.”
His latest graphic novel, “The Great Gatsby: The Essential Graphic Novel,” published in 2023, is one that fills him with pride. He notes that a lifetime of learning about comics and publishing comics was poured into his adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s magnum opus. “I worked with a really phenomenal artist Jorge Coehlo from Portugal,” Adams said, “I’m really happy with the way it turned out.”
In class, Adams often brings comic book gifts for his students. Adams and his co-founder at IDW donated the IDW Founders Collection of 20,000 comics to the SDSU Library Special Collections and University Archives in 2023, so students and the general public have access to the complete catalog of comics published by IDW. The collection houses rare and limited edition comics and even a scratch-and-sniff issue of “Strawberry Shortcake.”
“What makes Ted Adams teaching this course especially significant is his expertise within the comics publishing industry,” said Pamela Jackson, SDSU comic arts librarian in Special Collections & University Archives, and co-director of the Center for Comics Studies. “Students are not just learning from an academic perspective, but from someone who has actively shaped the medium through publishing, storytelling, and industry leadership.”
Adams’ History of Comics course covers the modern history of the comic book medium, from the mid-19th century through today. “‘Action Comics’ #1 was a pop culture phenomenon,” Adams said. “It is the first appearance of Superman and it sold millions of copies and launched the industry in 1938.” An edition of that original comic recently sold for $15 million — far surpassing its original bookstand cost in 1938 of 10¢. It is deemed the most valuable comic in existence.
He also leans into how U.S. history has informed comic publishing. He points to “Captain America” comics and the controversy surrounding a 1940 issue. “Comics are a reflection of our history and what’s going on in the world at the time,” Adams said. “In the 1960s it was ‘Green Lantern’ and ‘Green Arrow’ that addressed civil rights and in the 1970s ‘Spider-Man’ comics addressed drug abuse.”
With a wealth of information to share, Adams hopes to introduce students to comics that they may not have known before. One student said, “You gave me a lifetime reading list.”
“And that’s another goal of bringing someone with Adams’ experiences to campus to teach HIST 157, the one required course of the Certificate in Comics Studies,” said Elizabeth Pollard, professor and chair of history, co-director of the Center for Comics Studies and, advisor of the four-course certificate program.
“Students get excited about the study of comics from an academic perspective and can then pursue that interest with any of SDSU’s wide range of comics courses that are taught across the curriculum,” she added.
Adams is an inspiration to students — he demonstrates that comics is really a living, evolving industry — not a static subject.
