At one point in comic history, the largest company by far was Dell, which published and distributed comics that were put together by a company called Western Printing and Lithography. Western later functioned as a publisher of its own comics, mainly under the logotype of Gold Key. If you want to know more about the Dell/Western relationship, I provide a rough explanation of it Comic-Con International in San Diego next month. That's right — the con is next month. Hard to believe, I know…but it is, and as usual I'll be hosting a mess of fun panels and interviews, a list of which should be posted here shortly. In the meantime, I wanted to beat the drum for the panel on Western Printing (aka Western Publishing) and Dell Comics. I worked for that company for a few years and I collected its wares from the moment I could turn the pages of a funnybook. I do not believe in having affection or loyalty to a company, as that is a business entity. Such sentiments are more properly saved for human beings and their immediate creations. But I cannot deny that there's something about the business entities of Western and Dell that summons mostly-positive emotions, both as a long-time reader and past employee. On the panel, I and others who worked for them will attempt to explain why.