Officially organized under the aegis of the Academy of Comic Book Arts and Sciences,[1] the award shared close ties with the fanzine Alter Ego magazine.
[4] The Alley Award traces its origin to "a letter to Jerry dated October 25, 1961" by Roy Thomas, in which he suggested that Jerry Bails' fanzine Alter-Ego, which had debuted in March 1961, create an award for fandom's "favorite comic books in a number of categories".
[4] By the awards' third year, the number of ballots received had become so overwhelming that Bails called for a fan get-together at which votes could be tabulated by group effort.
This gathering of Midwestern fans, held in March 1964 at the Detroit-area home of Bails, was dubbed the "Alley Tally", and its success provided inspiration for the organizing of comic book fan conventions that began soon afterward.
The final three years' awards were presented at Phil Seuling's New York Comic Art Convention.