This company is distinct from the 1970s comic-book company, also founded by Goodman, that is generally known as Atlas/Seaboard Comics.
Atlas Comics grew out of Timely Comics, the company Goodman founded in 1939 and whose star characters during the 1930s and 1940s Golden Age of comic books were the Human Torch, the Sub-Mariner, and Captain America. The post-war era, however, found superheroes falling out of fashion. Television and paperback books now also competed for readers and leisure time.
Atlas Comics grew out of Timely Comics, the company Goodman founded in 1939 and whose star characters during the 1930s and 1940s Golden Age of comic books were the Human Torch, the Sub-Mariner, and Captain America. The post-war era, however, found superheroes falling out of fashion. Television and paperback books now also competed for readers and leisure time.