Gleason saw money in comics, and in 1939 started his own firm, releasing Daredevil and then Crime Does Not Pay, which chronicled the real-life adventures of convicted criminals. Crime Does Not Pay was soon beating out Captain Marvel and Superman, attracting readers wary of the aw-shucks wholesomeness of men in tights.

Daredevil Battles Hitler reflected Gleason’s politics. Arriving in New York in the depths of the Depression, he was stunned by the Hoovervilles in Central Park. And he became convinced that his country had an obligation to stem the rise of fascism. New Deal support for New York’s artists created a powerful anti-fascist movement that Gleason relished. He published screeds like Sabotage: The Secret War Against America, about domestic fascism, and The Incredible Tito! Man of the Hour. His business approach reflected his convictions. Although comics artists generally were paid poorly and had little control over their content, Gleason established a profit-sharing arrangement with his editorial team, giving them partnership status and substantial autonomy.

After Pearl Harbor, Gleason re-enlisted, serving stateside for two years. But postwar, as fears of domestic subversion grew, his activism and his business came under fire. By December 1945, the New York World-Telegram had labeled him a “pro-Communist fellow-traveler.” The House Un-American Activities Committee named a group he supported, formed to aid Spanish Civil War refugees, a “communist-front organization.” For refusing to name names, Gleason and fellow board members were convicted of contempt of Congress in 1947. In 1950, he felt the need to declare “I am not a Communist” in his own publications. “We are in a period of a reactionary swing in this country…which holds many of the elements of potential fascism,” he wrote. “There must be no denial of civil liberties to anyone….Any drive against the rights of one is a threat to the rights of all.” Opponents responded with voting records showing that he had registered as a Communist in the 1930s.