Seeing Sam & Max debut as a webcomic (it’s something of a slow start, with the first page simply setting the scene) reminded me… whatever happened to Marlowe & Company?

That publisher brought back into print several long-missing fan-favorites in 1995 and 1996, including The Collected Sam & Max: Surfin’ the Highway and Kyle Baker’s comedy classic Cowboy Wally Show (now available from Vertigo).

I was impressed by how they participated directly with fans in online venues available at the time. They also announced plans to reprint Miracleman, reportedly coming to agreement with Neil Gaiman and Mark Buckingham, although they were outbid for the rights in the later bankruptcy auction.

Now, apparently, they still exist, publishing books about “personal growth, psychology, self-help, health, and healthy cooking.” They’re part of Avalon Publishing Group, which “grew out of Publishers Group West, a distributor …, as PGW began acquiring some of the companies it distributed.”

I think they were just eight years or so ahead of their time.