Back Issue #103 by TwoMorrows Publishing

Featuring retrospectives of ARCHIE GOODWIN and MARK GRUENWALD

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EVEN CAP CAN’T DEFEAT THE DREADED DEADLINE DOOM!

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…BUT OUR ROUNDTABLE OF ALL-STAR EDITORS CAN!!

Diana Schutz and E. Nelson Bridwell interviews • Marvel Assistant Editors’ Month, issue-by-issue • Allan Asherman • and Great Caesar’s Ghost, a Perry White history!

THE RETRO COMICS EXPERIENCE!

Edited by MICHAEL EURY, BACK ISSUE magazine celebrates comic books of the 1970s, 1980s, and today through recurring (and rotating) departments like “Pro2Pro” (dialogue between professionals), “BackStage Pass” (behind-the-scenes of comics-based media), “Greatest Stories Never Told” (spotlighting unrealized comics series or stories), and more!

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“All-Jerks Issue!” Guy Gardner, Namor in the Bronze Age, J. Jonah Jameson, Flash Thompson, DC’s Biggest Blowhards, the Heckler, Obnoxio the Clown, and Archie’s “pal” Reggie Mantle! Featuring the work of (non-jerks) RICH BUCKLER, KURT BUSIEK, JOHN BYRNE, STEVE ENGLEHART, KEITH GIFFEN, ALAN KUPPERBERG, and many more. Cover-featuring KEVIN MAGUIRE’s iconic Batman/Guy Gardner “One Punch”!

“Bronze Age Halloween!” The Swamp Thing revival of 1982, Swamp Thing in Hollywood, Phantom Stranger team-ups, KUPPERBERG & MIGNOLA’s Phantom Stranger miniseries, DC’s The Witching Hour, the Living Mummy, and an index of Marvel’s 1970s’ horror anthologies! Featuring the work of RICH BUCKLER, ANDY MANGELS, VAL MAYERIK, MARTIN PASKO, MICHAEL USLAN, TOM YEATES, and many more. Cover by YEATES.

“All-Captains Issue!” Bronze Age histories of Shazam! (Captain Marvel) and Captain Mar-Vell, Captain Carrot, Captain Storm and the Losers, Captain Universe, and Captain Victory and the Galactic Rangers. Featuring C. C. BECK, PAT BRODERICK, JACK KIRBY, ELLIOT S. MAGGIN, BILL MANTLO, DON NEWTON, BOB OKSNER, SCOTT SHAW!, JIM STARLIN, ROY THOMAS, and more. Cover painting by DAVE COCKRUM!

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BACK ISSUE #96

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BACK ISSUE #98

“Indie Super-Heroes!” NEAL ADAMS Ms. Mystic interview, Continuity Comics, BILL BLACK Captain Paragon interview, Justice Machine history, STEVEN GRANT/ NORM BREYFOGLE Whisper “Pro2Pro” interview, and the ’80s revivals of Mighty Crusaders and T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents. With BUCKLER, DEODATO, ELLIS, GRINDBERG, GUSTOVICH, ISABELLA, REINHOLD, ORDWAY, PÉREZ, & a NEAL ADAMS cover!

“Creatures of the Night!” Moon Knight’s DOUG MOENCH and BILL SIENKIEWICZ in a Pro2Pro interview, Ghost Rider, Night Nurse, Eclipso in the Bronze Age, I…Vampire, interviews with Batman writer MIKE W. BARR and Marvel’s Nightcat, JACQUELINE TAVAREZ. Featuring work by BOB BUDIANSKY, J. M. DeMATTEIS, DAVE SIMONS, ROGER STERN, TOM SUTTON, JEAN THOMAS, and more. SIENKIEWICZ and KLAUS JANSON cover!

“Marvel Fanfare Issue!” Behind the scenes of the ‘80s anthology series with AL MILGROM, interviews and art by ARTHUR ADAMS, CHRIS CLAREMONT, DAVE COCKRUM, STEVE ENGLEHART, MICHAEL GOLDEN, ROGER McKENZIE, FRANK MILLER, DOUG MOENCH, ANN NOCENTI, GEORGE PÉREZ, MARSHALL ROGERS, PAUL SMITH, KEN STEACY, CHARLES VESS, and more! Cover by SANDY PLUNKETT and GLENN WHITMORE.

“Bird People!” Hawkman in the Bronze Age, JIM STARLIN’s Superman/Hawkgirl team-up, TIM TRUMAN’s Hawkworld, Hawk & Dove, Penguin history, Blue Falcon & Dynomutt, Condorman, and CHUCK DIXON and SCOTT McDANIEL’s Nightwing. With GERRY CONWAY, STEVE ENGLEHART, GREG GULER, RICHARD HOWELL, TONY ISABELLA, KARL KESEL, ROB LIEFELD, DENNY O’NEIL, and a GEORGE PÉREZ cover.

“DC in the ‘80s!” From the experimental to the fan faves: Behind-the-scenes looks at SECRET ORIGINS, ACTION COMICS WEEKLY, DC CHALLENGE, THRILLER, ELECTRIC WARRIOR, and SUN DEVILS. Featuring JIM BAIKIE, MARK EVANIER, DAN JURGENS, DOUG MOENCH, MARTIN PASKO, TREVOR VON EEDEN, and others! Featuring a mind-numbing Nightwing cover by ROMEO TANGHAL!

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“BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES’ 25th ANNIVERSARY!” Looks back at the influential cartoon series. Plus: episode guide, Harley Quinn history, DC’s Batman Adventures and Animated Universe comic books, and tribute to artist MIKE PAROBECK. Featuring KEVIN ALTIERI, RICK BURCHETT, PAUL DINI, GERARD JONES, MARTIN PASKO, DAN RIBA, TY TEMPLETON, BRUCE TIMM, and others! BRUCE TIMM cover!

ALL-STAR EDITORS ISSUE! ROCK present ’N’ ROLL COMICS! Flash Gordon 100-PAGE SPECIAL featuring Bronze Age Past and editors reveal “How I Beat the Dreaded star SAM J. JONES interview, KISS in Fanzines and Fandom! Buyer’s Guide, Comic Deadline Plus: ARCHIE comics, Marvel’s ALICE COOPER, T. Rex’s Book Price Guide, DC’s Doom”! Comicmobile, Super GOODWIN and MARK GRUENWALD retrospectives, MARC BOLAN interviews STAN LEE, PAUL DC Con ’76, Comic Reader, FOOM, Amazing E. NELSON BRIDWELL McCARTNEY, Charlton’s Partridge Family, World of DC, Charlton Bullseye, Squainterview, Tront, DIANA interview, ALLAN ASHERMAN David Cassidy, and Bobby Sherman comics, & more! ALANSCHUTZ LIGHT, BOB OVERSTREET, revisitsBOB DC’sGREENBERGER, ’70s editorial department, Marvel’s Steeltown Rockers, Monkees comics, SCOTT EDELMAN, Marvel Assistant Editors’ Month, and a his& Comic-Con band Seduction of the Innocent. JACK C. HARRIS, TONY ISABELLA, DAVID tory ofBOB PERRY WHITE!PAUL With an unpublished With AMY CHU, JACK KIRBY, BILL MUMY, ANTHONY KRAFT, LAYTON, ZECK! 1981USLAN, Captainand America cover by MIKE ALAN WEISS, and others! LEVITZ, MICHAEL others!

MERCS AND ANTIHEROES! Deadpool’s ROB LIEFELD and FABIAN NICIEZA interviewed! Histories of Cable, Taskmaster, Deathstroke the Terminator, the Vigilante, and Wild Dog, plus… Archie meets the Punisher?? Featuring TERRY BEATTY, MAX ALLAN COLLINS, PAUL KUPPERBERG, BATTON LASH, JEPH LOEB, DAVID MICHELINIE, MARV WOLFMAN, KEITH POLLARD, and others! Deadpool vs. Cable cover by LIEFELD!

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Volume 1, Number 103 April 2018 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Michael Eury PUBLISHER John Morrow

Comics’ Bronze Age and Beyond!

DESIGNER Rich Fowlks COVER ARTIST Mike Zeck (Alternate cover art originally produced for Captain America #259. Original art scan courtesy of Heritage Comics Auctions.) COVER COLORIST Glenn Whitmore COVER DESIGNER Michael Kronenberg PROOFREADER Rob Smentek SPECIAL THANKS Richard J. Arndt Marvel Comics Allan Asherman Don McGregor Tom Brevoort Allen Milgrom Eliot R. Brown Jack Morelli Bob Budiansky J. A. Morris John Byrne Anne T. Murphy Mike Carlin Tom Palmer Bobbie Chase Rick Parker Janice Chiang John G. Pierce Howard Chaykin Carl Potts Brian Cronin Dennis O’Neil Tom DeFalco Bob Rozakis Bob DeNatale Jim Salicrup James Felder Peter Sanderson Danny Fingeroth Bob Schreck Ron Frenz Catherine Schuller Jennifer Goodwin Diana Schutz Seth Goodwin John Schwirian Grand Comics Jim Shooter Database Walter Simonson Glenn Greenberg Kevin Somers Bob Greenberger Roger Stern Larry Hama Dan Tandarich Russ Heath Frank Thorne Karl Heitmueller, Jr. Rob Tokar Fred Hembeck John Trumbull Glenn Herdling Timothy Tuohy Heritage Comics Len Wein Auctions John Wells Dan Jurgens Marv Wolfman Paul Kupperberg Gregory Wright Paul Levitz Bud Young Howard Mackie Mike Zeck Elliot S. Maggin

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BACKSEAT DRIVER: Editorial by Michael Eury . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 PRO2PRO: The Dreaded Deadline Doom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 A sextet of all-star editors share editorial horror stories—and their solutions to problems FLASHBACK: “Nice” is the Word: Archie Goodwin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Family and friends remember one of comicdom’s all-time best OFF MY CHEST: Guest Column by Allan Asherman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 From fan to pro at DC in the early ’70s—a first-person narrative INTERVIEW: E. Nelson Bridwell. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 The DC editor/writer/lorekeeper discusses the Marvel Family and more in a 1977 interview PRINCE STREET NEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Karl Heitmueller, Jr. pokes fun at questionable editorial decisions PRO2PRO: Gru the Influencer: Leaving An Indelible Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Marvel’s Mark Gruenwald, in the words of his friends and colleagues BACKSTAGE PASS: Cheap Laffs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Eliot R. Brown relives the Mark Gruenwald-conceived cable TV comedy show WHAT THE--?!: Marvel Assistant Editors’ Month . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 A creator-crammed look at the nutty idea that rocked the House of Ideas INTERVIEW: Diana Schutz. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 The award-winning editor discusses her career and her craft FLASHBACK: Making Headlines with Perry White . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 The gruff Daily Planet editor is more than just Clark Kent’s boss BACK TALK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Reader reactions

BACK ISSUE™ is published 8 times a year by TwoMorrows Publishing, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614. Michael Eury, Editor-in-Chief. John Morrow, Publisher. Editorial Office: BACK ISSUE, c/o Michael Eury, Editor-in-Chief, 118 Edgewood Avenue NE, Concord, NC 28025. Email: euryman@gmail.com. Eight-issue subscriptions: $76 Economy US, $125 International, $32 Digital. Please send subscription orders and funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial office. Cover art by Mike Zeck. Captain America TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. All characters are © their respective companies. All material © their creators unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter © 2018 Michael Eury and TwoMorrows Publishing except for Prince Street News, TM & © Karl Heitmueller, Jr.. Printed in China. FIRST PRINTING.

All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 1

by M

ichael Eury

“What does an editor do?” If those of us who work or have worked as comic-book editors had a buck for every time we heard that question, we could probably bankroll our own comic companies. A comic-book editor is a traffic manager, a product developer, a creative consultant, a cheerleader, a negotiator, a copywriter, a promoter, a talent scout, an art and story authority, a liaison between suits and T-shirts, a franchise coordinator, and a supervisor who must know when to encourage his babies to fly or slap their wrists for misbehavior. That’s a lot of hats to wear, and not everyone is cut out for the job. Editing comics can be highly stressful… there are days where unexpected problems and meetings obliterate your carefully constructed calendar, and at five o’clock you sigh, “Where did the day go?” Still, despite the hassles and headaches, the joys of the job are beyond compare. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of exhilaration after combining a writer/artist team that clicks, or putting to bed a project you know is special, or basking in the glow of reader and critical acclaim. This issue, we explore the editorial side of comic books through a treasure trove of oral histories from and stories about many of the industry’s top editors, while favoring the Bronze Age, the primary stomping grounds of this magazine. Many, many people in the business and beyond rallied forth to participate in this issue (just look at that Special Thanks listing on page 1!), and without their kind assistance this edition could not be possible. Each feature in this issue is significant and informative, but two are particularly special due to their subjects: Richard Arndt’s biography of Archie Goodwin—hands down, comics’ most beloved editor/writer—and the Catherine Schuller-gathered testimonials to the life and work of Mark Gruenwald—hands down, comics’ other most beloved editor/writer. Both Archie and Mark (yes, you may call them by their first names… they’d have wanted it that way) left this earthly plane some two decades ago. Yet, their legacies endure, through their oft-reprinted work and the countless comics pros and fans whose lives they touched. These retrospectives are among the most important pieces of comics historical journalism to ever appear in BACK ISSUE, and I’m honored to share them with you. I’d especially like to thank Catherine Schuller—Mark Gruenwald’s widow—for stepping in to do such a phenomenal job when the assigned Gru biographer, Peter Sanderson, took ill (Peter’s on the mend, by the way… get well soon, old chum!). “It went from being a sidebar to a sideshow,” Catherine laughed to me as we watched her Gru tribute mushroom, but through these narratives you’ll get a good idea why Mark Gruenwald is so deeply missed by those who knew him. For those of you who like to read about comic books, we haven’t forgotten you. There’s an in-depth look at Marvel’s wacky Assistant Editors’ Month of 1983 and a history of the most famous editor in comic books: Perry White! And while we spend most of this issue saluting editors, leave it to Karl Heitmueller, Jr.’s hilarious Prince Street News cartoon to remind us that not every editorial decision is a good one. Lastly, I close with some sad news that occurred while this issue was about to go into production: the death of legendary comics writer/editor Len Wein, who passed on September 10, 2017 at the age of 69. Len’s work has been covered in this magazine on numerous occasions, and it pains me that he won’t be able to join us for any further oral histories. Or that I won’t hear his infectious laugh again. Out of his incredible body of work, Len wrote my single favorite scene in a comic book: In Justice League of America #110 (Mar.–Apr. 1974), he incapacitates Green Lantern—one of the most powerful beings in the universe—by having Hal Jordan slip on a piece of soap in the shower, knocking himself unconscious. What a simple, yet brilliant, idea! This issue is dedicated to the memory of Len Wein.

LEN WEIN 1948–2017 2 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

Photo by Mitchell Haddad. © DC Comics.

Darkseid, Thanos, Doomsday, Dr. Doom… forget ’em. The most dangerous menace to ever plague the world of comic books is the Dreaded Deadline Doom, that devious disruptor of production schedules and fan enthusiasm. Readers who followed comics during the Bronze Age recall crushing nadirs of disenchantment when the latest installment of their four-color favorite was supplanted by an unexpected generic standalone story or a stale reprint, forced into print by the machinations of the Dreaded Deadline Doom. In more

marv wolfman

recent years, the Dreaded Deadline Doom has foisted upon us lengthy gaps between “monthly” issues. But the annals of comicdom are rife with inspirational chronicles of fearless, peerless editors who, with the blinding speed of a Colletta brush, have rallied forth, summoning their Crusty Bunkers and sharpening their wits to vanquish what seemed to be another triumph for the Dreaded Deadline Doom. These are their stories, gathered for BACK ISSUE readers in a feature that could only be called…

tom brevoort

Photo by Noel Wolfman.

bob greenberger

al milgrom © Marvel.

jim salicrup

bob schreck © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons.

as told to M i c h a e l

Eury

All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 3

by MARV WOLFMAN When I took over as editor-in-chief at Marvel, books were either shipping very late or sometimes a reprint would be published instead of the planned new story. To make matters worse, there would often be a new cover (the cover meant for that issue), but the insides were reprints, which fooled readers into thinking they were buying a new story. Marvel letters pages called it the Dreaded Deadline Doom, poking some fun at it, if you wish. But I didn’t see any humor in selling reprints under the guise of original material. I came up with a solution and it began by creating a brand-new title, which I called “Marvel Fill-In Comics.” At my insistence it was actually put on the schedule. I felt if there wasn’t an actual deadline for this book it would keep falling back and back on the schedule. Bill Mantlo was my writer of record. He was both good and fast and at that point didn’t have a lot of regular assignments. Each month John Verpoorten, Marvel’s head of production, and I would get together. John prepared a list of our very latest titles. For example, say Iron Man, Hulk, and Captain America were on the late list. Maybe Avengers was also close to being late. So we would do a large team-up featuring all those characters that could, depending on which book was the most late, be used in any of those characters’ titles or in The Avengers. One story could fill four slots. Since we did this on more than one title a month, we were setting up conditions that would soon guarantee no more reprint titles when the reader was supposed to get a new story instead. But that was a large Band-Aid. We needed to fix the problem. After we started commissioning material from Bill, I spoke with the writers who were often causing the late problems. They were all pretty much against the idea of a new story interfering with their long-range plans. I made each of them a promise and gave them all a certain amount of time to catch up. The promise was if they got on schedule by the new date, I would guarantee the fill-in story would not be used. But the onus of guaranteeing that was the writers getting on time. Many of the writers didn’t mind having a reprint used instead of their late story, but they really didn’t want to see an original one breaking into their continuity. If my memory serves, most of the writers quickly caught up and maintained their on-time schedules and very few of those stories had to be used. Because they were all done-in-one stories, we later used some of them in books like Marvel Spotlight and others, but for the most part we didn’t need to use them in place of the dreaded reprint. I thought this was an elegant solution.

TM & © DC Comics.

The Forgotten Batman Issue

by BOB GREENBERGER I was holding down the fort while Len Wein was out at the San Diego Comic-Con during the first week of August 1986 when it became clear he forgot to commission an issue of Batman. He had a two-parter from Doug Moench and Paul Gulacy all set for issues #393–394, but never commissioned a story for #392. When production started asking about the issue, the problem became evident and by then, we had ten days to write, draw, and letter a 22-page story in order to make the shopping date of approximately October 8th. I spoke with series writer Doug Moench, who could easily whip up a plot, and he got to work. Then I spoke with regular penciler Tom Mandrake, who gulped at first and later called back to say he could do it if his wife, Jan Duursema, could ink it. They’d collaborate at their home and send in the finished pages, requiring John Costanza to letter on velum overlays (letterers hated doing that). I discussed the plot with Len over the phone and then rode herd over all parties, making the entire package come together. If memory serves, Ed Hannigan designed the cover and Tom executed it first. By the time Len returned from California, there was a 22-page completed issue ready for him to proofread and send in to production. As he proofed, Adrienne Roy was furiously coloring the story, knocking it out in two or three days. 4 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

Bob Rozakis and the production department had it proofread and corrected in a single day to get it out for separations. Interestingly, this was a very well received issue by fans and was reprinted a few times over the years. I never received credit for my work on the book, but it is the best example of working with a team of professionals in as collaborative a manner as possible. And yes, the book shipped on time.

Better Call Sol

by JIM SALICRUP So, instead of working on a couple of very late Papercutz projects, I’m writing this piece for BACK ISSUE magazine! That should tell you right off that I’m not the right guy to be writing this! Though I have nothing but great respect for all the hard-working comics editors that dutifully meet their deadlines, I’d be telling a great big lie if I claimed to be one of them. But let me tell you about the time I was able to perform three miracles. It was back in 1984 and The A-Team was a surprise hit TV series. Universal, the studio producing the show created by Frank Lupo and Stephen J. Cannell and starring George Peppard, Mr. T, and Dirk Benedict, was eager to capitalize on that success with as much merchandising as possible and as quickly as possible. Marvel was to publish three issues of an A-Team comic within a month, and they would be bagged together and sold in chain stores such as Woolworth’s. Let me be clear, those A-Team comics needed to go from concept to printed comics—within a month. The entire process for creating the story and artwork for a comic and getting it printed usually took three months. Marvel’s then-editor-in-chief Jim Shooter refused to work under such a crazy deadline. Marvel’s management had gotten itself into a bit of a fix. They decided that they’d better call Sol… Sol Brodsky was VP of special projects, which covered anything that wasn’t one of the main line of Marvel Comics—stuff such as the syndicated Marvel comic strips, custom comics (such as Kool-Aid Man, etc.), pro-social comics, comic-book inserts, coloring books, and much, much more. John Romita, Sr. and Marie Severin worked as art directors, and David Anthony Kraft was a writer and editor for Sol. DAK was probably on vacation when these comics needed to be put together, so I wound up editing all three, and writing two of them. It was The A-Team, but it felt more like Mission: Impossible! In those pre-digital days, I watched one entire episode on TV and delivered my plots (for Universal’s approval) the next day. Alan Kupperberg was hired to write and draw the third issue, and got his plot in, too. I was thrilled to work with Marie Severin on one and Jim Mooney on the other. Believe it or not, we made the deadline! But it wasn’t because of me or my scheduling expertise. It was because of Sol Brodsky, who was, after all, Stan Lee’s right-hand man back in the ’60s! He just stayed on top of everyone and got ’er done! He did what he always did and devised a tight schedule, and made sure everyone got their work in on time—even me. I’d like to thank my assistants Bob Budiansky, Lance Tooks, Kurt Busiek, Adam Phillips, Dwight Jon Zimmerman, Glenn Herdling, Michael Petranek, and Jeff Whitman for all their hard work and tireless efforts over the years being my Sol Brodsky.

“If I can have three more weeks…”

by TOM BREVOORT It was the Venom Super Special for 1995 (what we were calling Annuals that year, for whatever reason). This was back during the time when color separations were done from color guides by a separations house. In this instance, somehow the color guides for the issue never made it to the separators—but they went ahead and separated the job anyway. And it was just as awful as you’d imagine, as probably very nice separators with no firsthand color experience attempted to use every color in the rainbow on every page. In the end, we wound up flying colorist Chia-Chi

The Story of Marvel Fill-In Comics

It Takes a Legion to Ruin a Deadline

by AL MILGROM It was early in my first editorial gig at DC Comics, in 1977. I had brought along several buddies from Marvel to do some work at DC, but that wasn’t enough for me. No, I was ambitious and wanted to develop new talent as well. A promising young artist came along with some very nice-looking samples. They were samples featuring Marvel characters, but that wasn’t uncommon, and I liked what I saw. The fellow’s name was Bob Budiansky. I don’t recall if he brought up samples to show me or if he had been referred to me by Vinnie Colletta, DC’s art director at the time, or by Paul Levitz—who was mixed up in everything going on up there. Whichever the case, I offered Bob a short backup in Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes. He gratefully accepted, so I gave him the script and a comfortably long deadline and sent him packing. Some weeks passed and I called Bob to see how he was progressing. He claimed it was going well. I reminded him that the deadline was beginning to loom. He acknowledged that he was aware of that fact. Another week passed. I called him again. “Bob, that job is due in about a week. How’s it coming?” Hems and haws on the line. “Bob?” I told him to bring in whatever he had done so I could see what his progress was. He brought in his pages. As I recall (and my memory is faulty here), he had perhaps two-and-a-half fairly tight pages, and the rest was in the form of very rough breakdowns or rougher page layouts. This was after several weeks of having had the script. I was not well pleased. I went to Levitz and explained the situation. In his usual unflappable way, Paul told me that we’d write off Bob’s work (I think we gave him some sort of kill fee) and suggested we get old, reliable pros George Tuska and Vinnie Colletta to do the job in quick time. I apologized for not riding herd on

Budiansky, and Paul reassuringly told me that it was part of the job and if I didn’t have at least a couple of jobs a year go wrong then I probably wasn’t doing my job right. He said the old pros would get the job done in time and while it might not be a masterpiece, it would be solid and professional. And in fact, it was. It was the story “Trial of the Legion Five” and appeared in Superboy and the Legion #235. This was my first major crisis as an editor, and with the help of two old pros and one young mentor with an old soul, I managed to weather the storm. It helped prepare me for the far worse deadline troubles I would face when I went over to Marvel where ten Deadline Dooms were something we called “Tuesday.” I wonder if it did anything for Bob’s attitude about deadlines? After all, he eventually became an editor at Marvel, too.

Mother Knows Best

by BOB SCHRECK So… I was relatively new to editing a monthly comic-book anthology titled Dark Horse Presents at Dark Horse Comics in the early 1990s. Some things for you to know before I go any further. Anthologies are loved by editors but rarely embraced by the general comics consumers. They are a hard sell. I tell you this so that you will understand the extra pressure one experiences from a publisher and their accounting departments… even the most understanding and supportive publisher like Mike Richardson. In general, a book that virtually loses money every month needs all the help it can get, and maintaining an on-time monthly shipping schedule is just one of the important factors leading to its success and keeping it from the chopping block. Another important contributor is bringing to it a diverse range of stories by a wide variety of creators and creative teams. Striking the right balance of seasoned creators, fan-favorite characters, and breaking new, exciting voices are yet other ways to stay fresh. It was with one of these new talents that I encountered one of the most challenging editorial conundrums of my career. Each issue of DHP had four stories, with many of them continuing over four to 12 issues to complete their tales. This requires many talents to bring each page to life: writer, penciler, inker, letterer for each different story. The total amount of freelancers can easily range somewhere between eight to 24 or more total per issue. With that many people involved you can see that this is a juggling act not for the squeamish! Any one of those people not hitting their monthly deadline will send the book spiraling out of control. And any editor worth his salt always has at least one or two inventory stories waiting in the wings as back up if one of the runners stumbles, but that can only save the ship for just so long. As I was negotiating with this new talent for months, he had told me that he was also thinking of starting his own publishing arm and, in doing so, was going to seek financing from his mother. Meanwhile, this opportunity in DHP was his very first professional paycheck, solid guaranteed income for a full year. Unfortunately, very early as our working relationship began, it was getting increasingly more difficult to deal with him. However, having already gained the trust of his assistant, I relied on my mole to rat him out, thereby helping me keep him honest for the first four or five months of this 12-episode story. As you would suspect, I began getting less help from my mole until they eventually went completely dark. I was screwed. No communication from either the artist or his helper. Radio silence. So I did what was the only option that was left to me. I called his mother. I had to do a little detective work, but soon found her place of business and called her there. I apologized for having to reach out to her this way, that I was aware of his plan of asking her for financing, how I felt she should be wary of this as he was not conducting himself in a professional manner, and that by his not responding to me and potentially not delivering as he’d promised, I will miss my monthly deadline which will in turn put my very job on the line. Ten minutes later… my phone rang. Never had a problem since. I know… I’m evil! All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 5

TM & © DC Comics.

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Wang overseas to try to make corrections on site over the weekend, but the final product still ended up looking like a turd. Dan Slott’s first actual Spider-Man story appeared in that issue. The other instance that comes to mind was on a project that I inherited from another editor. It was an important book, and it was running behind schedule. Not a great surprise given the talent involved, but the interesting thing was that the penciler had his work almost completed— it was the inker who was behind. I called him up but got his machine, and a day later a response was left on my office voicemail. The quote was so good that I had it hanging up on my wall for years afterwards. He said, without any hint of irony or self-awareness: “If I can have three more weeks, I can get the job done on time.” Oh! One more! There was an artist who fell behind and was ducking my calls. When I got him on the phone, he claimed that he had five of the six pages done and that he’d send them out that evening. Having heard this before, I challenged him to fax me the pages immediately (which shows you how long ago this was). A few hours later, the fax machine revved up, and out came a finished page, bits of a second page… and two pages drawn by some other, inferior artist. I called the artist back (he didn’t pick up his phone) and let him know that I wasn’t going to be accepting or paying for pages that had been done by somebody other than the person I had hired. One last one, somewhat unfortunate. It was a short eight-page story for an Annual and I had hired a talented young kid, a quasi-protégé of a very hot artist, whose style was heavily influenced by his mentor. This was the era of the Image superstar, and this kid thought that he’d already made it before he’d even drawn a line, strutting around like the next hot thing, wearing sunglasses indoors, the whole bit. He killed a three-month lead time getting a single page done, and in the end I had to fire him. And he flew into a snit, and told me that I’d regret this decision forever, that when he was a huge name in the industry, I’d curse myself for letting him go, and that he’d remember and never forgive. That was over two decades ago, and that young artist never went on to produce anything in the field that I’m aware of—and I am the only one who remembers his name. And I will never reveal it.

Archie Goodwin, circa late 1980s/early 1990s. Photo courtesy of Seth Goodwin. Comics © their respective copyright holders.

Nice. That’s the word nearly everyone who knew him has used when they described Archie Goodwin (1937–1998) to me. They always coupled that word with how firm and right his instincts as an editor were, how outstanding his scripts were, how well he understood how to construct a script, how patient he was in conveying that knowledge to new writers, how much he knew about layout, coloring, lettering, etc., but it was his niceness that made them want to strive so hard to please him. It’s no coincidence that when the Batman Adventures comic (based on the 1990s cartoon Batman: The Animated Series) created a trio of supervillains based on the DC Comics group editors of the time, Goodwin was not only included, but that his doppelganger’s name was Mr. Nice. After Goodwin’s death, the final fate of Mr. Nice in that title became one of the sweetest and most poignant send-offs of a character ever recorded in comics. Archie Goodwin was born September 8, 1937 in Kansas City, Missouri. He spent a lot of his childhood moving between small towns but eventually ended up in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a town he considered home. By his teenage years he was an avid EC Comics fan and joined the EC Fan-Addict Club. Archie carried his membership card for the fan organization in his wallet for decades. Following high school, he attended Oklahoma University for a short period, before traveling to New York to attend the Cartoonist and Illustrators School of Visual Arts. While at OU he began writing articles and illustrating cartoons and covers for the first EC fanzine—HOOHAH! When he sold his first comic script to Harvey Comics in 1958, he became one of the first of the original comics fans to become a professional in the field. Over the next decade and a half, dozens of other comic-book fans would follow him. Archie’s art style was a mix of James Thurber whimsy and 1950s advertising and poster art. After graduation from the School of Visual Arts, he worked as a cartoonist and wrote scripts and did art corrections for Leonard Starr’s Mary Perkins, On Stage comic strip as well as working a day job for Redbook magazine. In the middle of all this, Goodwin was drafted and spent the years 1960–1962 in the Army. Shortly after his discharge, that script he’d sold to Harvey four years early, “Hermit!,” finally saw print, in Alarming Adventures #1 (Oct. 1962), with art by EC artists Reed Crandall and Al Williamson. A few months earlier he’d gotten his first prose story, “Killing Mr. Killiam,” published in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine (July 1962). The editors of EQMM initially told him that he couldn’t use what they assumed was the penname of Archie Goodwin, since that name was the name of a character in the well-known Rex Stout series about Nero Wolfe. I would imagine that Archie had fun telling them that that was his real name. The magazine certainly used the anecdote in their introduction to his debut story. “Killing Mr. Killiam” is a very amusing tale that easily could and probably should be adapted for comics, giving the world one more Archie Goodwin-written tale. Following his Army stint, Archie returned to Redbook, where he met his wife-to-be, Anne T. Murphy. Anne tells BACK ISSUE that “Redbook was a woman’s magazine and Archie worked in the art department. When I first met him, he’d just returned from his stint in the Army. His family opposed Archie’s move to New York and his writing ambitions, particularly for the comics. It wasn’t very long after he got out of the Army and returned to Redbook that he began writing stories for Jim Warren.”

6 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

by R i c h a r d

J. Arndt

Little Archie (top left) Parents Marvin and Flora Shoemaker Goodwin and baby Archie, circa 1937– 1938. (top right) Archie Goodwin in 1955. Photos courtesy of Seth Goodwin. THE WARREN YEARS

During his courtship with Anne, Archie had begun writing stories for the new Warren Publications comic magazine Creepy, initially edited by Russ Jones. According to Anne, exactly how he got that gig remains something of a mystery. It’s possible that Warren and Archie met at one of the earliest comics conventions. According to his interview with Jon B. Cooke in The Warren Companion, Jim Warren himself remembered that Goodwin was one of a group of writers that he and editor Russ Jones had gathered together—with said writers apparently coming from fandom of the day. Besides Archie, early Warren writers, including Ron Parker, Larry Ivie, and, to a certain extent, Russ Jones himself had all done work for various fanzines. A few mainstream comic-book writers, chiefly Otto Binder, were also included, while the initial artists were drawn from the EC veterans as well as artists who came from much the much same artistic school of illustration. Anne Murphy remembers that either Jones or Larry Ivie had a hand in getting Archie to Warren. I asked if artist Al Williamson—who knew Ivie, was a friend of Archie, and had inked that initial Goodwin comic strip for Harvey—may have played a hand in Goodwin getting to write three of the seven stories included in Creepy #1 (Winter 1965). Williamson certainly seems to have been a main link in obtaining many of the EC artists who appeared in the early Warren titles. Anne remarks that “Al Williamson was a friend of Archie’s, long before his appearances in the Warren books. Al also seemed to know Larry Ivie and Russ Jones as well and he certainly knew all the EC artists, since he was one of them himself. Al may well have been the connection between everyone. Russ Jones was the original editor of Creepy before Archie became the editor, but I don’t think he worked out too well. Archie wrote three or four stories for the first issue of Creepy and after that he never looked back.” Seth Goodwin, Anne and Archie’s son, remarks, “I don’t think I can say that Al Williamson wasn’t the link between Archie and Jim Warren, but I never actually heard of that. It seems more to me that there was a circle of friends and EC Comics fans that got Archie connected with Jim Warren.” One of those stories in that first issue, “The Success Story,” was amusingly based on Archie’s own ghost-writing experiences on Dan Flagg, a comic strip where the credited writer/artist on the strip, Don Sherwood, purportedly at some point quit doing any of the actual work, instead farming it out to ghost writers and artists, none of whom knew initially that Sherwood himself wasn’t doing anything on the strip. Al Williamson was one of those uncredited “ghost” artists while Archie was a ghost writer. Archie, Williamson, Angelo Torres, and Al McWilliams all modeled or portrayed various characters in “The Success Story.” The quality of Goodwin’s scripts, right from the get-go, must have made an impression on Jim Warren. By the second issue, Goodwin was listed as the story editor for the title, with six out of eight stories in that issue featuring his scripts. By issue #4, Goodwin was both the full editor and the lead writer. Between the years 1964–1967, Archie provided scripts for about 80% of the contents for both Creepy and its sister magazine Eerie, while providing about 95% of the scripts for the war title Blazing Combat.

Seth Goodwin remarks that “it’s entirely possible that Archie was shopping stories around at a lot of different publications at the time. He’d already done that Ellery Queen story and, as a fan of the EC comics and a HOOHAH! contributor, it’s entirely possible that Archie just came into Warren’s offices with a batch of stories and got work right off the bat. Warren certainly recognized Archie’s talent and grabbed him for the editor’s role when Russ Jones didn’t work out.” Anne Murphy also remembers that a number of Archie’s fellow contributors to HOOHAH! would work with Archie at Warren, including Ron Parker, who’d been the HOOHAH! editor, and Larry Ivie. Seth also recalls that Paul Douglas, the renowned illustrator—his posters for the Broadway productions of Three Penny Opera and For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf are world famous—was a friend of Archie’s from Tulsa and one of the people behind HOOHAH! They attended Will Rogers High School together and both he and Archie roomed together when Archie first came to New York. In fact, Paul Davis was the best man at Archie and Anne’s marriage. It’s safe to say that Archie made his bones as an editor on the Warren books in his initial stint there from 1964– 1967. His solid storytelling, his abilities as both editor and art director, and his ability to visually “see” a story

Early Goodwin work (bottom left) The EC fanzine HOOHAH! #2, with a cover illustrated by Archie. (bottom right) No, it’s not a penname! Archie Goodwin’s first prose story, “Killing Mr. Killiam,” in the July 1962 edition of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine. Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine © 2018 Penny Publications.

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“Give and Take”

in his head and convey that “seeing” to the artist made for a superior run of stories. Russ Heath, who drew only one story for Blazing Combat— the stunning Archie-written “Give and Take” in #4 (July 1966), which Heath took six weeks to complete, while using himself as the model for every member of the squad of soldiers—remembers, “One of the things that was amazing to me was that there was a guy, Archie Goodwin, that I did a number of scripts for, at Warren mostly. One script he sent me had an extra page in the script that had miniature stick figures demonstrating how he visualized the Blazing Combat © Warren Publications. Secret Agent Corrigan © King Features Syndicate, Inc. panels. I didn’t want to be influenced by his ideas so I set it aside and did my own [thumbnails] of the story. I decided that I’d compare them when I was done and use the panels that worked the best. If his were better I’d use them, if mine were better, I’d use mine. The amazing thing was that out of 40 pictures there was only one that was different! He was such a good visualizer of story. I thought he was a genius. To have a guy who wasn’t known as an artist do that well on thumbnail sketches is enough to freak most artists out. He was so good at visualizing that you’d know exactly what the picture was supposed to show. Archie was a great storyteller and a great editor.” The artists at Warren, who included some of the best in the field at the time, were charmed by Archie’s topnotch scripts, his kindness and fairness as an editor, and his ability to tailor his scripts to a particular artist’s strengths. Reed Crandall liked 19th-Century stories? No problem! Archie sent him Edgar Allan Poe and Bram Stoker adaptations, as well as stories set in small rural towns and medieval climes. Wally Wood and Alex Toth were aerial enthusiasts? Guess what scripts they’d get sent? Angelo Torres and Joe Orlando favored stories set in swamps or jungles? Swamp and jungle stories, they’d get! Gene Colan was good at psychological stories dealing russ heath with real people, so Archie would say, “Draw me © Luigi Novi / a serial-killer story, Gene!” Wikimedia Commons. Each artist during Archie’s tenure on the Warren books seemed to be engaged in a somewhat friendly “see what I can do” one-upmanship with each other. The best artists of the mid-1960s appeared regularly in the Warren books, and Archie wrote most of those stories. It was great artwork but it was also great stories. Any aspiring comic-book writer should look at those stories closely, just to see what made them tick. Tales like “Collector’s Edition” and “Room with a View,” art on both by Steve Ditko; “Spawn of the Cat People,” art by Reed Crandall; “Ogre’s Castle,” art by Angelo Torres; “The Doorway!,” art by Dan Adkins; “Survival,” art by Alex Toth; “Witches’ Tide,” art by Gene Colan; “The Lighthouse!,” art by Al Williamson; “Landscape,” art by Joe Orlando; and “Dark Rider,” art by John Severin, are all primer lessons for aspiring writers in how to construct a taut script. Archie even dared to write a new extended ending for Edgar Allan Poe’s classic tale “The Cask of Amontillado” for Reed Crandall to draw, and one could argue he improved on the original story!

(top) Title page from the Goodwin/Heath 1966 classic, from Blazing Combat #4. (bottom) The Secret Agent Corrigan daily from November 27, 1968. Archie and artist Al Williamson enjoyed a lengthy collaboration on this celebrated strip. Original art scan courtesy of Heritage Comics Auctions (www.ha.com).

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Ghosting for Gil (left) Archie ghost-scripted this Gil Kane-conceivedand-illustrated sword-andsorcery paperback. (right) Creepy #40 (July 1971) contained Don McGregor’s tale “The FadeAway Walk.” Blackmark © Gil Kane estate. Creepy © Warren Publications.

Archie’s writing influence may stretch beyond the comic-book field IRON MAN AND BEYOND as well. I’ve always strongly suspected that famed horror writer Al In addition to his work at King Features, Goodwin also started scripting Sarrantonio’s short stories, particularly those in his collection Toybox, his first superheroes, taking over the Iron Man strip in Marvel’s Tales among which is featured the classic “Pumpkin Head,” were strongly of Suspense #98 and the Sub-Mariner strip in Tales to Astonish #101, influenced by Archie’s 1960s’ Warren tales. both cover-dated March 1968. The Sub-Mariner gig lasted only a We can’t begin to ease out of describing Archie’s groundbreaking couple of stories, but Archie would write Iron Man through 1970, work at Warren without mentioning Blazing Combat. Unlike the horror co-creating the classic supervillain the Controller in Iron Man #12 tales of Creepy or Eerie, Blazing Combat was a war title that used the (Apr. 1969), as well as one of the best good/bad girls in comics template of EC’s Two-Fisted Tales and Frontline Combat to both history with Madame Masque. In fact, this writer considers that lengthen and deepen the possibilities of war comics. Archie Madam Masque tale [Iron Man #17–19 (Sept.–Nov. 1969)] was the editor and wrote nearly every story of the title’s the single greatest Iron Man story ever. During this same time period, Archie authored two of the better Nick Fury, run. Grim, realistic, thoughtful, and often brutal, the title was graced by some of the best artists in the field Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. stories, following Jim Steranko’s at the time and featured some of the best war stories departure from the strip. He also wrote the script written in the genre. Each issue had a stunning Frank for Gil Kane’s His Name is Savage, one of the first Frazetta cover and each was some of Frazetta’s best independent graphic novellas, which appeared in 1968. work. Although its publication was cut short after only In 1971, Archie also ghost-scripted the Kanefour issues, its influence is still being felt today and this plotted-and-illustrated paperback comic Blackmark. writer would not be alone in considering it the single In 1970, Archie returned to Warren for about a year greatest war comic ever published. and a half, now listed as an associate editor as Warren The quality of the Warren titles under Goodwin’s himself had assumed the primary editorial chair. hand was so high that Warren was able to survive a Archie appears to have been operating as the story don mcgregor financial crisis and the resulting drop of quality in both editor for the company. During this time Archie wrote the magazines’ presentation and number of original © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons. and revamped Vampirella, turning her from a campy stories by liberally reprinting Goodwin-era tales to cover the quality gaps. comedy character into the familiar character most readers know today. As that financial crisis took hold at Warren in 1967, forcing pay He also introduced quite a number of writers and artists into the field, cuts for artists and writers, along with a glut of reprinted stories, including the likes of Dave Cockrum, Don McGregor, Nicola Cuti, Goodwin resigned his editorial job there and began writing scripts for Mike Ploog, and Alan Weiss, among others. He’d already introduced King Features Syndicate—including the comic strips Secret Agent X-7, Tom Sutton during his 1960s Warren stint. soon retitled Secret Agent Corrigan, with artist Al Williamson; Captain One of those writers, Don McGregor, recalls, “Archie took my Kate; and the King Features comic book Flash Gordon. While the latter very first story [“The Fade-Away Walk,” art by Tom Sutton, in Creepy two gigs were relatively short-lived, Goodwin and Williamson worked #40 (July 1971)]. Then, I guess within about four scripts I wrote “The on Secret Agent Corrigan until 1979, together making it into one of the Vampiress Stalks the Castle this Night” [Vampirella #21 (Dec. 1972)] and I have to thank Archie for saving me on that story to this very day. most interesting drama serials of the time period. One of the more interesting excursions beyond Warren’s horror and See, I had these two teenagers in the story, with the girl pregnant, war tales was a Goodwin written-and-drawn tale called “Sinner” in witzend and they’re considering getting an abortion, which goes to show you #1 (Summer 1966), which was a science-fiction tale that Archie drew in I was doing hard-to-swallow storylines for editorial right from the start. a woodcut style, alerting many of his Warren fans for the first time that I thought if I could get that subject matter in, that it would give the Goodwin was also a fine, if nontraditional, comic artist as well as a writer. story a real human impact. But then I started to second-guess myself All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 9

into believing that they’d never go for it. I ran away from the concept and wrote a really god-awful ending for the story. “I sent the script in to Archie and got a call back saying, ‘Don, if you’re going to do the story, then do it and do it right. What’s with this ending?’ He was so right. To this day, I would have been embarrassed by that original ending. I had squandered an important, delicate topic. On top of that, the ending was silly and insulting. Thank you, Archie, for saving me from putting that into print. Just thinking about it haunts me and I’m the only one that knows what the original ending was. “I thought it was always going to be that way with editors, but Archie was a very unique and special editor,” McGregor contends. “He only had your story at heart. If it made it better, that’s what he was after. It was separate from what he might do as a storyteller or as a writer himself, but it was always what was best for you and your story. He wasn’t caught up in having everything sound like him. He wanted your story. Archie was just terrific, a terrific guy and a great editor. I love him to this day for not letting that story get into print that way, and for the way he conducted himself throughout the years, whenever we worked together.” Seth Goodwin recalls, “I’m not able to shed a lot of light on that particular time. The only memory I have was Archie telling me he found it difficult to extricate himself from editorial work at Warren. I don’t know if it was because he had a hard time saying no to the work, since he really liked doing that sort of thing. It’s possible that he thought that he might be letting some of the artists or writers down if he didn’t guide their work through Warren’s editorial guidelines. It’s possible that Warren was putting pressure on Archie into doing ‘one more thing, just one more thing’ for Warren. I just remember one time Archie telling me that he had been trying to leave Warren but was having a hard time extricating himself.” In 1972, Archie followed Roy Thomas’ classic writing run on Marvel’s The Incredible Hulk and continued with a series of superb stories for the title on his own. He also co-created Luke Cage, along with artist John Romita, Sr.

DC COMICS

In late 1972, Archie moved to DC as an editor, taking over Detective Comics from Julie Schwartz and G.I. Combat, Our Fighting Forces, and Star Spangled War Stories from Joe Kubert. All of these titles took a sharp uptick in quality, even though they had largely been pretty good titles before Goodwin arrived. In particular, under Archie’s tenure, the Losers strip in Our Fighting Forces, created and written by Robert Kanigher, with art by John Severin, launched into what was likely its best storyline ever as the Losers took a year-long extended trip into North Africa during the desert war there in 1942. One of the backup stories for that title, “Burma Sky,” was written by Archie and illustrated by Alex Toth in Our Fighting Forces #146 (Jan. 1974). Even in its cramped first appearance, with a coloring and printing job that didn’t do the story any favors, the masterful tale was immediately acclaimed as a classic by both creators. You can see the reprinted story, in its full black-and-white glory, in Genius, Illustrated: The Life and Work of Alex Toth by Dean Mullaney and Bruce Canwell. Archie took over the writing for the Haunted Tank feature in G.I. Combat, with art by the great Sam Glanzman. Archie’s two-year story arc, during the course of which he killed off one longtime character and replaced him with an African-American soldier, featured the best stories the crew of the Haunted Tank

Archie At War (top) The one-time editor/writer of Warren’s Blazing Combat edited three of DC’s battle books during his brief stay at the company in the mid-1970s. Haunted Tank splash page to G.I. Combat #168 (Jan. 1974), courtesy of Heritage. (bottom) Goodwin and Simonson’s award-winning backup series Manhunter graced the pages of Detective Comics during Archie’s editorship of that title. Title page to the Manhunter’s second tale, from ’Tec #438. (inset) Batman and Manhunter joined forces in Manhunter’s double-length conclusion, in #443. Cover by Jim Aparo. TM & © DC Comics.

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ever had. This inclusion of a black character into a tank fiction artist. Not because I didn’t like science fiction, crewed by mostly Southern soldiers, flying a Confederate but because, in 1972 or 1973, there simply wasn’t flag and with a dead Confederate general haunting the enough of that type of story to make a living drawing tank, made for some rather subtle yet interesting stories, science fiction. I liked drawing them, but I was afraid of which hinted at racial divides without going headlong being pigeonholed into what was, at the time, a blind alley. “Eventually, a young writer by the name of Don Kraar into black vs. white politics. He also wrote a few Unknown Soldier stories for Star wrote a story that Archie bought called ‘Decision.’ It was Spangled War Stories, before handing over the scripting a three-page short-short about an actual event that occurred to Frank Robbins. Both the lead and backup stories in at the Alamo in 1836. A guy by the name of James Butler the war books were sturdy efforts by all concerned. Bonham escaped from the Alamo and rode through In addition to his editorial work and scripting the Mexican lines looking for reinforcements for the besieged fort. He didn’t find any. He then the Haunted Tank tales and various backup tales for the war books, Goodwin was writing rode back through the Mexican lines and the Batman stories in Detective Comics. reentered the Alamo, to tell the defenders The back of that title included a revival of there was no help coming. He died with all Manhunter, a 1940s character who’d the rest in the final battle there. The whole originally appeared in Adventure Comics. story was told in just three pages. So Manhunter was illustrated by a Archie gave me that story to draw. “I did a lot of research for that little young Walt Simonson, who established backup piece. One of the last panels his own bona fides with this feature. featured the full interior of the Alamo, with Manhunter had an impact on both the comics field and readers far beyond little dots showing the Mexican columns what a normal backup strip would in the final attack. I put a lot of work into that little story. Years later I learned that have done. It won many awards and walter simonson was considered to be, and quite frankly it was from that story that Archie decided © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons. is, a comics classic, at least in part I could draw stuff besides science fiction because it was one of the first strips to be written and and he offered me the Manhunter strip. Manhunter made drawn with a definite ending in sight. In many ways it my name professionally. When I started the strip only Archie was a precursor to the advent of the miniseries in the and Joe Orlando knew who I was. I was just a young guy 1980s. Archie and Walt’s depiction of Paul Kirk, a 1940s among a lot of other young guys trying to break into the superhero cloned into an army of assassins by a power- field. When we finished the strip a year later (the last story hungry criminal organization, is stunning, both in the was a full-length story, guest-starring Batman), the editors complex writing by Archie and the compressed story- all knew my name, both at DC and Marvel. Working with telling displayed by the artist. Archie on Manhunter, both as an editor and writer, made Walt Simonson recalls, “I started Manhunter after me an artist that was being sought after, not just another I’d been in New York only about six months. Archie guy looking for work. It was a very significant job for me.” approached me about doing the strip. See, up to that Archie Goodwin also wrote or edited some of the best point, I’d been doing various backup war stories for both Batman stories of the mid-1970s for Detective Comics. Joe Orlando (Weird War Tales) and Archie. The stories I’d His own stories featured top-notch work by such artists been doing for Archie were science-fiction war stories. as Alex Toth (Toth’s only Batman tale), Jim Aparo, and a That’s how you started out at DC at the time, doing short young Howard Chaykin. Chaykin’s first work for Archie was also Howard’s first stories for the anthology titles. “Archie was feeding me a few stories, which kind of try at one of DC’s mainstays—Batman. He remembers, kept me alive for a while,” Simonson continues. “I was “that the result was one of the worst pieces of sh*t I’ve worried, however, about being pegged as a science- ever drawn [“Judgment Day!,” Detective Comics #441

Two-Handed Brainstorms (left) Courtesy of Roger McKenzie, a 1975 cartoon by Archie revealing his secrets of comic-book scripting. (right) Just before becoming Marvel’s editor-in-chief, Goodwin wrote the Destructor comic for the short-lived Atlas/ Seaboard line. Original Larry Lieber/Frank Giacoia art to the cover of issue #2 (Apr. 1975), courtesy of Heritage. Cartoon © Archie Goodwin estate. Destructor © the respective copyright holder.

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“Judgment Day!” Emerging talent Howard Chaykin illustrated this Goodwinwritten Batman tale in Detective #441 (June–July 1974). TM & © DC Comics.

Marshall Rogers/Terry Austin stories began in 1977. The story was plotted and penciled by Amendola years earlier but had been rejected by then Batman editor Julie Schwartz and was sitting on Amendola’s shelves. It took Goodwin to recognize its quality and assign Englehart to script and Giordano to ink and thus finish the story. Neal Adams did a little inking on a few panels in the interior story as well as doing the cover for the issue. The result was another comics gemstone. Years later, in DC’s Solo, Darwyn Cooke redid the story, doing a beautiful job that complemented Amendola’s tale yet took nothing away from the high-quality story and heart-wrenching ending of the original. In mid-1974, Goodwin left DC to return to Warren, taking over the reins of both Creepy and Vampirella, but this final editorial return to Warren ended abruptly when an awkward situation arose between former editor Bill DuBay (who was still editing Eerie and had once had Archie for a boss during Archie’s second stint at Warren) and Archie as to whom was in charge. The situation was handled unsuccessfully by publisher Jim Warren and the result was that Archie left Warren’s editorial offices after only a few months as editor. As far as can be determined, he only wrote two or three stories for Warren during this period. One of them, however, was the stunning “Creeps,” in Creepy #78 (May 1976), with great artwork by John Severin and Wally Wood. Following the aborted return to Warren, Goodwin worked for a while for the short-lived Atlas line, co-creating, with Steve Ditko and Wally Wood, The Destructor. The title and character may have been considered a bit of a Spider-Man clone but the stories were decent. He also wrote some war stories for the company, including one illustrated by Alex Toth for Savage Combat Tales.

(June–July 1974)]. I was awful. I brought nothing to the table. Anything of value in that story was Archie’s. The only good thing to come out of that story was the invention of Harvey Bullock.” [Editor’s note: While a gruff cop named Lt. Bullock briefly appeared in that tale, it’s debatable as to whether or not he’s the same Harvey Bullock added to the Batman cast in 1983 by writer Doug Moench. For more on Moench’s interpretation of Bullock, see BI #91.] “That story confirmed for me that Batman was a character that I was incapable of drawing—at least at that time—and that I had no real skill set that was worthy of the material. I didn’t think I could draw Batman at all until the Batman: Black and White series from Mark Chiarello years later. Archie’s story was absolutely exemplary. He was both a great editor and a great writer. He was one of the rare men of his era that could elevate the work of an artist. “That was also the first Batman story in several years that had Robin teaming up with Batman, and that was Archie’s conscious choice to do that,” Chaykin continues. “Honestly, I knew Archie more on a personal level than a professional level. I credit Archie with weaning me away from reading science fiction and getting me to become a reader of crime fiction. That was a good thing. He introduced me to Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, the MacDonalds—both Ross and John— neither of the latter two I really care about. He introduced me to the Richard Stark novels, which were actually MARVEL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF written by Donald Westlake. I have a deep-seated Goodwin returned to Marvel in 1975 as the editor of a respect for editors and Archie was one of the best. number of their black-and-white magazines. Frank Thorne “Archie was also one of the funniest guys I’ve ever believes it was Archie Goodwin who recommended that met in my life. He was a small man but absolutely Thorne take on the illustrating of Red Sonja for Marvel fearless. Deceptively quiet but with, I suspect, a true Feature in 1976, an art assignment which Thorne blind rage going on underneath it all. Back in the believes the Marvel editorial staff at the time was howard chaykin 1970s, all the young comic-book professionals of that none too enthused about him working on. It turned era would drink. I was the only New Yorker of the © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons. out that working on Red Sonja was likely the most bunch. Most of the guys were from the Southeast or West. We would memorable assignment that Frank ever had. According to Frank, hit the bars around 2nd Avenue. One weekday, we were all walking “Archie was a great guy and editor. Everybody liked him. He drew very down the street at about 10:30 at night. We were talking about some- well himself. He was also an excellent writer. In any [comic] genre he thing or other and before anyone could stop him, Archie threw himself was a good writer, and that’s rarer than you might suppose.” on the fender of a moving car, yelling, ‘Look! Look! I’m a deer!’ It was Goodwin left the black-and-white magazines and took over as editorfantastic! He was completely fearless. I really loved that about him.” in-chief of the entire Marvel color line in 1976, replacing Gerry Conway, Sal Amendola, Steve Englehart, and Dick Giordano produced a story who’d had a very short run in the position. Goodwin intended it to be for Archie—“Night of the Stalker”—which appeared in Detective Comics a temporary gig as the top editing job at Marvel in 1976 was a really #439 (Feb.–Mar. 1974), which was based an idea by Neal Adams. It seems thankless job. Unlike DC Comics, which had a number of editors who rarely editthat around 1970 or 1971, Adams had been describing a scene he’d envisioned of Batman battling a man underwater in a river. During his ed more than ten or so books, Marvel had only one main editor for the description, Adams would physically model what the Batman’s face color comics, as well as a couple of associate editors. Talking to a number looked like as he came out of the water clutching the criminal. Sal Amendola of associate editors who worked there at that time, their time-consuming asked if he could write and pencil the story. A busy Adams said go for it. jobs generally consisted of proofreading the word balloons, selecting reprints The story that Amendola came up with would become the most acclaimed for the horror and Western reprint titles, and either doing or assigning art Batman story of that time period, at least until the classic Steve Englehart/ corrections. The editor, by himself, was responsible for everything else. 12 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

Anne T. Murphy recalls that “Archie didn’t like working as the editor-in-chief at Marvel. He was always running around, talking to various people to straighten out this problem or that, and he wasn’t working on stories as much. He didn’t like that. He much preferred being involved with the writing and the drawing. He wanted to do the part he liked—the creative part. In retrospect I think he was very good at what he did—at all levels— but he certainly preferred the creative aspect over the business and production side.“ Marvel had greatly expanded its color line in the early and mid-1970s and was publishing well over 70 color titles at the time, roughly two and a half times more titles than when Roy Thomas assumed the job in 1972. No one person could do all the creative and financial aspects of the job, and the overwhelming burden of the job often showed up in the final product. Missed deadlines were rampant at Marvel, prompting a lot of issues to feature either reprints or fill-in stories. Both editors and writers who worked at Marvel from 1972–1979 mentioned that the writers basically acted as the editors of their own titles, although Roy Thomas, Len Wein, Marv Wolfman, Gerry Conway, and Archie all read the final product and had input on the storylines. On the good side, a mini-explosion of interesting characters and concepts rippled through Marvel Comics during this time period. On the bad side were the blown deadlines, a very expensive problem for the company, as printers charged for late issues. It was certainly a problem for the readers—and it was something they noticed and actively resented. The fill-ins revealed a certain amount of self-indulgence on the part of writers and artists, along with overwork, and added to the crippling amount of work hours that the editor-in-chief had to deal with to get everything done. Unlike the editorial jobs Archie had both before and after his stint as Marvel’s EIC, there was not a sharp increase in quality in the Marvel comics during his reign, likely caused by his massive overload of work. No single editor on his own could really do more than maintain the status quo, although there were some great and not-so-great comics published during Archie’s tenure as editor-in-chief. Nonetheless, there were triumphs. Goodwin was responsible for securing the rights to do Marvel’s adaptation of Star Wars in 1977. It was Roy Thomas who brought the project to Marvel and fought for it to get published, but it was Goodwin’s work with the legal matters that allowed Thomas, Howard Chaykin, and company to do the Anne Murphy adds, “Jim Shooter liked initial adaptation under very rushed all of that editorial stuff, but what Archie circumstances and foreshadowed really wanted was the freedom of Archie’s own excellent work writing creating things. Those were his interests. the title in later years. The reprints and He never wanted to be editor-in-chief frank thorne permanently. When he left the editorial fill-ins also eased up a bit under his hand. job, he still wanted to remain there Jim Shooter recalls, “After Gerry Hey Kids Comics. Red Sonja © Red Sonja LLC. Conway’s very brief tenure, Archie Goodwin was hired as a writer. He just hated going from book to book, as editor-in-chief. Everyone knew Archie was a creative problem to problem, smoothing things over. However, genius. He was also a guy that everybody pretty much he did have a unique aspect as an editor in that he was loved. He was tough as nails, yet managed not to not only an editor but also a writer, artist, art director, offend anyone he was working with. But it was soon and so on. All of that probably helped him be able to apparent that he wasn’t much of a businessman. see the big picture and work alongside people to get He hated the administrative side of the editorial office. them to a point where they were doing their best work.” He had a superb work ethic. He’d spend all his time Even with this backbreaking editorial work, Archie in his office, working on cover design, doing all the found the time to write a few stories. He continued his creative stuff, which is what he wanted to do. Doing a work on the newspaper strip Secret Agent Corrigan; budget or something like that, his eyes just glazed co-created Spider-Woman with Marie Severin, debuting over. He hated stuff like that.” her in Marvel Spotlight #32 (Feb. 1977); and later

Archie Goodwin, Editor-in-Chief A sampling of some of Marvel’s titles produced under Goodwin’s watch. TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc., except Logan’s Run © MGM.

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“Star Duel!” (left) Archie’s layout and script for the splash page of Marvel’s Star Wars #15 (Sept. 1978). Courtesy of Seth Goodwin. (right) From the Heritage Archives, the original art to that page, as illustrated by Carmine Infantino and Terry Austin. Star Wars TM & © Lucasfilm Ltd.

that year wrote a handful of stories for The Spectacular AN EPIC CHANGE Spider-Man. He also wrote his first movie adaptation Archie resigned as Marvel’s editor-in-chief in December while at Marvel, for Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters 1977, with Jim Shooter, his assistant editor at the time, of the Third Kind. replacing him. He spent the next year and a half freelancing Seth Goodwin recalls, “in 1977 or thereabouts, there as a writer. He continued to write for Marvel and took was a big blackout in New York and Archie came home over Star Wars with #12 (June 1978), writing the book for quite a few years, most often with artists Carmine from work with this big Englishman named Paul Neary in tow. I don’t really know if he was all Infantino on pencils and Tom Palmer and Gene that big but he was big to me because I Day splitting the inking chores. He also wrote was a kid at the time. Paul was either several stories for the Star Wars newspaper interviewing for work at Marvel or was strip during this time. For Heavy Metal being introduced to staff at Marvel Communications, he re-teamed with when the blackout happened. Anyway, Walt Simonson to adapt Ridley Scott’s they couldn’t do much at Marvel groundbreaking film Alien for comics, without power or lights so Archie as Alien: The Illustrated Story, with the brought him home. I really liked his two delivering what may well be the English accent, and he had an earring! best adapted screenplay ever produced for the medium. It’s beautifully done. [laughs] He was a real gentleman. Anyway, the next morning Paul told me He also returned to Warren, this time ‘Seth, if you ever come to England, as a writer only, delivering some of his I’ll be happy to return the favor for best standalone short stories, including jim shooter putting me up.’ So lo and behold, “The Homecoming” (art by Al Wilin 1999, I was traveling in London © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons. liamson), “Warrior’s Ritual” (art by John with nowhere to bed for a night or two. I got Paul Severin), and a concluding story for his Thane saga, which Neary’s number and he put me up for a couple of he’d begun during his 1960s stint at Warren, “The Last nights. We became friends. Archie’s niceness went out Sorcerer” (art by Alex Nino), all for Creepy #112 (Oct. 1979). to Paul and years later came back again to me.” He contributed perhaps the best story he ever wrote for Anne adds, “for one reason or another, Archie dealt a Warren with “The Night Willa Jean Gornley Went Home” lot with the British writers and artists. James Robinson, (art by Val Mayerik and Jeff Easley) for Vampirella #82 (Oct. Neil Gaiman, Cam Kennedy, Paul Neary—there were 1979). This is a quiet, beautiful, wistful story. He also reteamed a lot of them.” with Alex Toth for “The Reaper” in Creepy #114 (Jan. 1980).

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Adult Fantasy at Marvel

In November 1979, Archie Goodwin was recruited by Jim Shooter to take over Marvel’s attempt at a Heavy Metal-style magazine title—Epic Illustrated. Shooter, who was aware of the circumstances behind Archie’s abrupt departure from Warren in 1974, was worried about whether Archie would be willing to work as an editor on a Marvel title and yet have to report to an editorin-chief who only two years earlier had been Archie’s assistant. Special arrangements were made so that Archie nominally reported directly to Stan Lee, although according to Shooter, he was actually doing most of the liaison work between the mainstream Marvel comics operation and what was to become the Epic line. I would imagine much to his relief, Archie was given a surprising amount of sovereignty during his Epic days. Having inherited a fairly large amount of material from the previous magazine editor, Rick Marschall, and with the need to have the premiere issue out on sale in just a few months, I suspect that it’s likely most of the content of that first issue of Epic Illustrated, cover-dated Spring 1980 but going on sale in February of that year, was commissioned by the previous editor. However, the organization and presentation of that content was certainly Archie’s. Goodwin was in full command of the title and its content from the first issue on. The biggest complaint that one could level against Heavy Metal, at least during its first ten years, was that the art was superb but the stories themselves, or the translations of the stories, were often a bit thin. Archie, who for the first time was editing a magazine that both required and got a large enough budget to complete with Heavy Metal, must have relished the challenge of delivering both top-notch stories and art in a full-color and black-and-white magazine format. From the spring of 1980 through February 1986, 34 issues of Epic Illustrated appeared, featuring both serials and standalone stories. [Editor’s note: See BACK ISSUE #88 for an in-depth look at Epic Illustrated.] Particularly noteworthy serials appeared by the likes of Jim Starlin (Dreadstar), Dean Motter and Ken Steacy (The Sacred and the Profane), Rick Veitch’s science-fictional take on Herman Melville’s Moby Dick (Abraxas and the

Earthman), Tim Conrad (Toadswart d’Amplestone), Chris Claremont and John Bolton (Marada, the She-Wolf), and Jon Jay Muth (The Mythology of an Abandoned City). Bill DuBay and Lee Elias brought Epic a leftover Warren story dealing with the Holocaust—“Rebirth!”—that proved to be a superior horror tale. That story was also comics great Lee Elias’ last comic-book effort. Great standalone stories such as “Klutz” by Steve Perry and Steve Bissette, “Small Gifts” by Jon Jay Muth, “The Beguiling” by Barry Windor-Smith, the reprinting of Vaughn Bode’s violent yet beautiful Cobalt 60, “Little Otis’s 5-Cent Ride” by John and Val Lakey, “Love Doesn’t Last Forever” by Alan Moore and Rick Veitch, and the heartfelt “Death of a Legend”’ by Roy Thomas and Sandy Plunkett are all superior achievements. Adaptations of the works of famous science-fiction and fantasy authors such as Michael Moorcock, Harlan Ellison,

(top left) Editor Goodwin’s Epic Illustrated #1 (Spring 1980), with its astounding Frank Frazetta cover. (top right) Marvel Star Wars artists Carlos Garzon (left) and Al Williamson (center) chat while Archie takes a phone call in Goodwin’s Marvel office. Courtesy of Seth Goodwin. (bottom) The Goodwin/ Williamson/Garzon team’s Star Wars #44 (Feb. 1981). Epic Illustrated TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. Cover art © 1979 Frank Frazetta. Photo © Marvel. Star Wars TM & © Lucasfilm Ltd.

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Robert E. Howard, Samuel R. Delaney, and Elizabeth Lynn appeared as well. Some—the Ellison adaptations (by Ken Steacy) and the Elizabeth Lynn story (by Trina Robbins)—are stunning achievements. Some of the best painted covers since the heyday of Warren Publications appeared for Epic Illustrated. Contributors included Frank Frazetta, Michael Kaluta, Neal Adams, Barry Windsor-Smith, Tim Conrad, John Bolton, Jim Steranko, and many others. This writer particularly likes the Jerry Bingham’s classic fantasy cover for #32 (Oct. 1985). For his own writing for the title, Archie reprinted his self-illustrated “Sinner” tale from 1966 in #2 and wrote a handful of new stories as well, both comic and prose. His illustrated prose tale “Forest Magic,” from #3, is an understated gem. Other great Goodwin-written tales include “Relic” and “Out of Phase,” both with art by Al Williamson. Epic Illustrated was the accumulation of everything Archie learned from his editorial turns at Warren Publications, DC Comics, and Marvel Comics. While perhaps not as groundbreaking as one might suspect that both Archie and Marvel may have wanted it to be, it still delivered dozens of quality stories and serials on good paper with excellent color. It provided Marvel a road into the creator-owned world of the early 1980s and introduced many Marvel readers to the concepts of foreign comics and creators, including manga. While I consider Blazing Combat to be the best single title Archie ever worked on, Epic Illustrated is close behind.

EPIC COMICS

A New Marvel Imprint First issue covers of some of Marvel’s Epic Comics line, under Goodwin’s editorial supervision. © the respective copyright holders.

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In 1982, with Epic Illustrated a medium-level success, Jim Shooter wanted Archie to launch a creator-owned line of comics—to be called, naturally enough, Epic Comics—to both counter the new independent comic companies, which were multiplying by the day, and to give Marvel a foothold in that same independent market with creator-owned material. Neither Shooter nor Goodwin could have been too happy to see some of Epic Illustrated’s original serials, such as Elric of Melniboné, being reprinted as graphic novels by the new independent publishers. Archie at first declined the job, perhaps remembering the massive overload of titles he’d had to deal with in his days as Marvel’s editorin-chief and wary of a large group of unrelated titles being dropped unto his shoulders yet again. Shooter nearly handed off the Epic imprint to Al Milgrom and Jo Duffy before Archie finally agreed to launch the creator-driven line. The first title presented was an all-new continuation of Jim Starlin’s Dreadstar, which had debuted as a graphic “novel” called The Price at Eclipse Comics before moving to Epic Illustrated. Some of the more noteworthy Epic titles included Steve Englehart’s Coyote, which had also originally been published by Eclipse Comics; Starstruck, which was a nice adaptation of a stage play by Elaine Lee and Michael Kaluta, and which is still being published today; Black Dragon, a beautifully done fantasy from Chris Claremont and John Bolton; the amusing Groo the Wanderer from Sergio Aragonés and Mark Evanier; Jon Jay Muth’s stunning Moonshadow; the first mainstream color appearances of Wendy and Richard Pini’s Elfquest; and the delightful Timespirits by Steve Perry and Thomas Yeates. Many of the Epic Comics titles have been reprinted in recent years and nearly all of those mentioned are well worth looking up. Jennifer Goodwin, Archie and Anne’s daughter, mentions that one of the highpoints of Epic Comics was the first English translation and publication of Akira. This lengthy and influential manga book was manga writer/artist Katsuhiro Otomo’s magnum opus and marked a major steppingstone for manga’s entry into the American landscape. Some of Moebius’ (Jean Giraud) works were also reprinted in English for the first time under the aegis of Epic Comics, including Airtight Garage, The Incal, and the Western series Blueberry. Another noteworthy part of the Epic books were Archie’s frontispiece drawings—sometimes a single cartoon, sometimes a full comic page, always starring Archie himself—for his editorials in each Epic Comics issue he edited. Archie’s humor shone through here in these delightful little pieces. Most of these Goodwin-written and -illustrated pieces have not been reprinted and the only place to see them is in the back-issue bin. Jennifer Goodwin recalls, “even when Archie was suffering from his cancer, he did editorial cartoons of his bald head and, then when his hair grew back, he’d draw his short hair.” Seth Goodwin adds, “it seemed that Archie had endless rounds of chemo, in an effort to control and cure his cancer. Each time he lost

The Epic Comics Years, Back to DC

his hair to chemo, it would grow back slightly different, and that’s reflected in those Epic editorial pieces.” Archie also delivered a series of tight, taut adventure stories for Larry Hama’s Savage Tales magazine in the mid-1980s. None of those stories have been reprinted and all of them should be. One of the last major projects that Archie did for Marvel was the graphic novel Wolverine and Nick Fury: The Scorpio Connection. The book was a direct sequel to Jim Steranko’s tale “Whatever Happened to Scorpio?,” from Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #5 (Oct. 1968), and the Roy Thomas/Sal Buscema Avengers tale “Did You Hear the One About Scorpio?,” from Avengers #72 (Jan. 1970), which provided closure for Steranko’s openended story. Archie’s story, with art by Howard Chaykin, was a solid latter-day Nick Fury tale, as Fury comes out a little more interesting than Wolverine in the tale.

RETURN TO DC

In 1989, Archie left Marvel and Epic to go over to DC as a group editor—most notably for the Batman anthology title Legends of the Dark Knight, with Archie’s run beginning with #24 and running through #115. He also edited Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale’s classic runs on Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special; Batman: Haunted Knight; Batman: Madness, A Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special; and Batman: The Long Halloween, as well as such titles as Batman: Sword of Azrael, Batman: Birth of the Demon (a graphic novel that told the origin of Ra’s al Ghul, not Etrigan the Demon), Batman/Deadman: Death and Glory, Batman: Fortunate Son,

Azrael, and the Marvel/DC crossover titles Batman/Punisher: Lake of Fire and Batman/Punisher: Deadly Knights. Legends of the Dark Knight is probably the most lasting legacy of those years, as it was a series of stories, often not in DC continuity, done by the best artists and writers available at the time. Strong work appeared from Bryan Talbot, Kevin O’Neill, P. Craig Russell, and many, many more. Those 91 issues are a treasure trove of interesting stories and fantastic art. Projects edited by Archie outside the Batman titles included James Robinson’s spectacular run on Starman, as well as Hawkworld, Deadman: Exorcism, and The Golden Age, among others. Although Archie didn’t write as much during this last editorial stint, he did author some interesting Batman tales for various Annuals, and a few excellent short Batman tales for various anthologies. The most noteworthy item he wrote during that period was 1992’s Batman: Night Cries, with beautiful painted art by Scott Hampton, set just after Jim Gordon becomes police commissioner. Together Gordon and Batman track down the suspected connection between a new drug called Boost and a series of vicious murders of complete families. Archie’s script places a great deal of emphasis on Batman’s detective skills. It’s a dark and underrated, but beautifully written and illustrated story. Archie Goodwin died March 1, 1998. Although it’s usually reported that he died of the cancer that plagued him for so many years, his children tell me that he actually died of a respiratory problem that ravaged his weakened

(top left) Archie Goodwin, mid-1980s, at his desk during his Epic Comics stint. Courtesy of Seth Goodwin. (bottom left) A caricature by Archie from Black Dragon #1. (top right) Goodwinedited titles from this era include a long stint on Legends of the Dark Knight, commencing with issue #24, and writer James Robinson’s Starman (issue #1 cover signed by artist Tony Harris). (bottom right) Goodwin, circa late 1980s-early 1990s, courtesy of his son Seth. Cartoon © Marvel. Batman and Starman TM & © DC Comics.

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Family Man (top) Goodwin and wife Anne Murphy in 1971. (It’s likely this is a Marvel event, as John Verpoorten, Herb Trimpe, and John Buscema are visible in the background.) (middle) Goodwin and daughter Jennifer in the late 1990s, shortly before Archie’s death. Both photos courtesy of Seth Goodwin.

immune system, a condition that had resulted from the effects of his chemotherapy. After his death, several stories in various stages of completion were finished by others. James Robinson, who credited Archie as his “shining star” in Starman, finished Archie’s “Siege” for Legends of the Dark Knight #132–136 (Aug.–Nov. 2000). Archie wrote the first issue and plotted the rest, with Robinson providing the script for the remaining four issues and Marshall Rogers, Bob Wiacek, and John Cebolerro providing the art. The story is a sequel to the classic Englehart/Rogers/Austin tales from 1977–1978. Archie and Walt Simonson were working on a new Manhunter tale that was plotted but not yet drawn or scripted. Walt decided to draw Archie’s plot and present the story without dialogue. Both the stories just mentioned as well as Batman: Night Cries, can be found in the excellent collection Tales of the Batman: Archie Goodwin.

ARCHIE GOODWIN, FAMILY MAN

It would be wrong, I think, to do an article on Archie Goodwin and not include Seth and Jennifer Goodwin’s memories and examples of Archie’s lunch-bag cartoons. Back in the day, when the two were in school, they took their lunch each day to school in brown paper bags. Archie would often take the time in the mornings to draw a cartoon on those lunch bags. The examples that I’ve seen are quite funny and surprisingly elaborate. When I asked Seth and Jennifer about them, Jennifer told me that he didn’t just do the drawings for them but also for Julianna Jones— Louise Jones’ [now Simonson] and Jeff Jones’ daughter. “The three of us, myself, Seth, and Julianna, would sleep over at each other’s houses a lot, even during the week. When we were at our house and Anne was getting our lunches ready for school, Archie would quickly draw a doodle on each bag with our names, so we’d know whose was whose. After a while, it got to be kind of a thing. Anne would tell us to take very good care of our lunch bags and to bring them home! [laughter] Of course, some of them got lost, but most of them we were good about bringing home. I think Anne even gave Julianna Jones some of those as part of her wedding gift when she got married to Jon Jay Muth— who’s also a great artist. I think Julie liked that.” Seth adds, “Archie had a very distinctive cartoon style. It’s fun to look through them all, because you can see what movies he was watching at the time. My favorite of all of them featured General Ursus, from Planet of the Apes, saying ‘The only good lunch… is Seth’s Lunch!’” While discussing Archie with Seth, Jennifer, and Anne, I mentioned that one of the first things that most of the people I’ve interviewed remarked on where Archie was mentioned was that “he was nice”—not that he was talented, although he was famously talented, but that he was “nice.” Seth in turn concludes, “Denny O’Neil put it really well, and I’m not sure if I can do justice to his quote in that ‘It’s pretty amazing that Archie was considered nice by so many people, since one of the defining aspects of being an editor is that you can’t really be nice. An editor has got to make hard decisions—tell people where to cut things—tell them when something isn’t working—in many cases, simply tell them no, we don’t want this story.’ ” Seth continues, “It also comes out sounding like a platitude, but, particularly when Archie died, to a person, everyone came up to us and remarked how nice he was. Then they’d further remark that one of his talents was not to simply get the work out of them but encourage them in such a way that they would do their best work.” Anne Murphy adds, “It meant he was an effective manager. He was able to manage people to get the best work out of

Brown Bag Illos Four of Archie’s lunch bag cartoons, courtesy of Seth Goodwin. Darth Vader © Lucasfilm Ltd. Planet of the Apes © 20th Century Fox.

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them and, excuse the language, not be a hardass about it. He also had a great sense of humor.” Both Jennifer and Seth remember that Archie loved movies. On Sundays, they would make popcorn and watch four or five movies in a row. Seth remembers that “Archie could walk into a room, see a movie on TV, and, just from a brief glance, tell you what movie it was. It was almost a bizarre mental trick.” Jennifer remembers, “at a very early age, Archie took me to see a double feature of The Sting and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. It instilled [in me] a love for movies. As a child he introduced me to It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. I would imagine for a lot of kids, to sit through movies like that might not be so interesting for some of them, but I loved it.” Seth reflects, “That lunch bag art, I think, really reflects his love of not only comics but movies. He would do those words and drawings on the page, but he had a whole movie inside his head and the lunch bag art is just a glimpse of what was going on in there. Comics were, I think, the medium that he could use to show us glimpses of the movies in his head.”

THE GOODWIN LEGACY

If you understand baseball, Archie Goodwin was a utility player—meaning he could play any position and play it well. He was an editor of wit and understanding—always encouraging the talent and gently pushing for the best work from each writer and artist he dealt with. He was a decent cartoonist, and because of that he had a clear image in his head of how a comics page should be constructed, regardless of whether he was the artist or not. He was a superb writer, creating layered stories filled with tension and drama, regardless of how many pages he had to work with. His stories were never less than solid, were nearly always good, and often rose to the level of classic. According to Len Wein, “Archie was one of those guys that artists loved to draw for. Look at those Creepy and Eerie stories he wrote. Artists fell all over themselves to draw those. As good an editor as Archie was, he was just that good of a writer, too, as good a writer as has ever been in this business. Everybody has a style, in writing or in art, except for Archie. None of us could ever figure out what his style was, only that it was always right for the story. Archie’s stories were solid. Some writers were at the mercy of the artists. Others are stylists. I’ve gotten by on my style for 50 years now. But Archie, you could never post his style, but, dear God, did you love his stories! As much as an artist can lift up a good-but-not-great-story by a writer, Archie could lift up a good artist to greatness, just by the strength of his story. That was because nobody ever wanted to disappoint him. You just respected him so much! He was a remarkable man. Not only a brilliant writer and editor, but one of the sweetest guys I ever knew. He was a good friend—always a good friend. It broke my heart when he passed.” Artists such as Alex Toth, Angelo Torres, Al Williamson, Johnny Craig, Gray Morrow, Paul Chadwick, John Severin, Val Mayerick, Sam Glanzman, Steve Ditko, Walt Simonson, George Tuska, Russ Heath, Carmine Infantino, Howard Chaykin, Marshall Rogers, and so many, many more delivered career highs or career-making starts under the gentle guiding hand of Archie Goodwin. So did more than one writer. I’ve done a lot of interviews with comic professionals and I’ve heard over and over again that Archie Goodwin was not only the best writer and editor in the room but that he also made the people he worked with feel his equal—if not in talent then in fellowship. It’s Archie’s stories and characters, I suspect, that will stand the test of time the best. The sad fate of Willa Jean Gornley, the near-Shakespearean tragedy of the love of Madame Masque, the ending of that horrid little book collector in “Collector’s Edition,” Paul (Manhunter) Kirk’s life and deaths, the sadly inevitable crushing of the Vietnamese farmer from “‘Landscape” in Blazing Combat #2—these were characters with real emotions, real desires, real fears, and, because of that core of reality that Archie gave them, real impact. There are a lot of good writers in comics. There are a handful of great ones. Then there are the writers who stand above them all—in my mind if not, perhaps, in yours—writers including the likes of Will Eisner, Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman, and, standing just a little bit higher but not so high as to take attention away from the other three, Archie Goodwin. When Archie passed away, Kelley Puckett—a writer in the Goodwin tradition in that, like Archie, Puckett showcases no particular style, yet has written some of the best comic-book stories you will ever read— wrote the last Terrible Trio story, “The End,” for Batman: Gotham Adventures

Archie Forever (left) Goodwin—or “Mr. Nice”—was immortalized in Batman: Gotham Adventures #13 (June 1999). Cover by Rick Burchett. (right) Walter Simonson’s cover to the 2013 hardcover collection Tales of the Batman: Archie Goodwin. TM & © DC Comics.

#13 (June 1999). The story took the Archie-inspired character Mr. Nice, whom Puckett had created in Batman Adventures #10 (July 1993), on a transformation from his life as a genial supervillain who just was the sweetest of guys, to a journey that would have Mr. Nice leave our plane of existence to help the leper children of Bhang. All this much to the dismay of his cohorts in crime, Mastermind (based on Mike Carlin) and the Perfesser (based on Denny O’Neil). The cover to that comic was a homage to the cover of MAD #1, which was entirely appropriate because Archie first became familiar to comic-book readers with his work on the fanzine HOOHAH!, way back in 1956, and because HOOHAH!’s title was derived from the first story in that same issue of MAD #1, a tale written by Harvey Kurtzman and drawn by Jack Davis. Puckett’s story, rendered by Rick Burchett, takes the reader on a tender and poignant journey as well, exploring Archie’s impact on the comics field, the professionals, and the readers, ending with one of the best, tear-inducing final pages ever done in comics. It’s a sentimental gemstone that, as of this writing, has never been reprinted. Great story. Please search it out. You won’t be sorry. At the start of this trip down memory lane I described Archie as a “nice guy.” “Nice” is a descriptive word that has been steadily downgraded in recent times to often mean “mildly pleasant,” but one of its other meanings is one of extremely fine measurement. Yet another definition is something that is “showing or requiring great accuracy, precision, skill, tact, care, or delicacy.” Doing the research on this essay, talking to Archie’s family, co-workers, and students, re-reading and making a re-acquaintance with characters like Willa Jean Gornley, Madame Masque, Thane, Paul Kirk, and so many more have made me realize that Archie Goodwin was all of those particular definitions and more. Just as Archie’s “nice” was always more than just a surface impression, this assignment has become more than just an assignment. Reliving my fond memories of Archie, and writing this, has made for a nice, in fact, a damn nice day. Thanks, Archie. RICHARD ARNDT is a librarian and comics historian from Nevada. He’s written the books Horror Comics in Black and White and The Star*Reach Companion.

All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 19

by A l l a n

[Editor’s note: A familiar name to readers of Bronze Age DC Comics, Allan Asherman has worked in DC’s editorial department, as one of its “Junior Woodchucks,” and as the company’s librarian, and he shares some of his experiences with BI readers in this exclusive guest column.]

I had become a fan of the Man of Steel from watching the Adventures of Superman TV series before I read my first comic book. I knew the names of all the people in the closing credits of each episode. During a visit to a local bookshop, I saw one of those names, story editor Mort Weisinger, on the cover of a thick paperback, 1,001 Valuable Things You Can Get Free (inset), and bought it. As I looked through it later at home, one single listing in the book stood out from all the others. I could get a free, signed picture postcard of George Reeves as Superman just by requesting it from a certain address. I sent for it immediately. A few years later, after having become an avid reader and fan of DC Comics, I took that book and the George Reeves postcard with me, and took the subway from Brooklyn to Manhattan. Uninvited and unannounced, I entered the DC Comics waiting room at 575 Lexington Avenue, hoping to meet Mr. Weisinger or anyone else who worked on the TV series. The receptionist invited me to sit and wait. It was just possible, she said, that someone going in or out might have time to speak with me. About half an hour later, a man came out and told the receptionist he was going to lunch. She leaned over and whispered to him, pointing at me. He came over, smiled, and introduced himself as Nelson Bridwell, and I told him who I was and why I had come. His lunch, he said, would wait until later, and he led me inside the hallowed

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Asherman

halls and I was shaking the hand of Mort Weisinger, the man with whom he shared an office. Mort edited the Superman comic books, in addition to being the story editor for The Adventures of Superman. Before long Weisinger directed me to editor Murray Boltinoff, who introduced me, via a long distance phone call, to his friend, Whitney Ellsworth, who had produced the TV series. Ellsworth and I would later correspond in a series of letters and phone calls that ended with Whit’s death in 1980. Having graduated from Long Island University in 1969 with a B.A. degree in journalism, I had learned enough to know that I didn’t want to become a reporter. In 1972 I heard that Sol Harrison was seeking young assistants he could train to become the next generation of DC Comics staffers. Sol hired me. DC had moved to 909 Third Avenue. The waiting room there led to a corridor along which were small offices, including those of Bob Kanigher and Julie Schwartz to the left, and Denny O’Neil, Joe Kubert, Murray Boltinoff, and Sol Harrison to the right. At the end of the corridor the production room was on the left, and Carmine Infantino’s larger office was at the right. My first assignment was to mail prepared “thank you” postcards to fans who had written letters to the company. Editor Bob Kanigher, whose office was near the desk at which I was working, said hello and sometimes chatted. In addition to being one of DC’s most prolific writers, Kanigher edited Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane, Young Love, and Young Romance, and needed an assistant. Sol soon informed me that I was no longer sending out postcards. I was now Kanigher’s assistant, and would work at a desk to the rear of his office. A small adjoining room was the office of artist Vince Colletta, who was then the company’s art director. Most mornings Carmine Infantino visited Colletta to discuss the prospects of whatever horses were racing that day. Vinnie, as he preferred to be called, talked in a gravelly, low voice. He immediately made me his confidant, telling me of his out-of-the-office activities, giving me the lowdown on everyone in the company, and offering his protection if I should need it. Vinnie had a need for people to perceive him as a tough guy, but he was actually quite a complex character. Vinnie was usually assigned to ink stories that were late. He never failed to make his deadlines, but as a result he acquired the reputation of being more of a quick inker rather than a true artist. I knew better after seeing his sketchbooks, which were filled with serene landscapes and discerning studies of women, all inked with feathery strokes made with a triple-zero brush and Vinnie’s perfect control. I would later see equally precise brushwork while watching Murphy Anderson inking pages at DC. Each morning, Kanigher would announce his arrival by clearing his throat while setting down his flight bag and dark glasses with a dramatic flourish. Adjusting his white turtleneck and dark jacket, he would either ask me to get him coffee or go himself and return with a cup for each of us.

It was Kanigher who taught me what was expected of an editorial assistant who hoped to become an assistant editor. (The two titles were largely interchangeable; the same pay scale, largely the same duties, but “assistant editor” implied that assistant might someday become a full editor.) I compiled letters columns, occasionally wrote special texts and photo features based on Bob’s ideas or my own, assigned production inventory numbers to the work the editor assigned to the freelancers, and maintained the editor’s account receipt books. I also made sure the freelancers delivered their work on time. When all the original art and other material for an issue was ready I created a worksheet for the book, listing each story and supplementary feature, along with credits and page counts, and presented the completed bundle to Kanigher. After filling out the forms that accounting would use to issue checks to the creators, Kanigher checked everything again. I then submitted the book to production and immediately began working on preliminary paperwork for the next issue. Kanigher was one of the most intriguing people at DC. Everyone there was respectfully aware of his accomplishments in writing and editing for the company, but there was also talk about how difficult it could be to work with him. I ignored these stories, and while I worked for him we treated each other with respect. He was always an eager teacher, telling me proudly about his past accomplishments. Knowing I was interested in old radio serials he lent me a paperback book he had written in 1943, How to Make Money Writing for Radio, published by Cambridge House. Kanigher’s wife and his daughter Jan occasionally stopped by. I was wearing my hair long at the time, which prompted Mrs. Kanigher to begin referring to me as “the Bolshevik.” Joe Kubert’s office was across the hall. He and Kanigher conversed often, and Joe would sometimes summon Bob so they could plot a new Sgt. Rock or Enemy Ace story. It never took long. Bob always had ideas, which he would offer while chewing on his unlit pipe. When Joe heard one he liked he asked for more details, and as Kanigher provided them with enthusiasm Kubert took notes and made his first rough character and panel sketches. Among the other newcomers to DC were Bob Rozakis, Carl Gafford, and Anthony Tollin, who worked in the production room under Harrison and Jack Adler. Jack Harris, Mike Uslan, and a few others joined them, and one day Sol announced that the “Junior Woodchucks,” as BobRo had named us, would write, design, and edit The Amazing World of DC Comics, a sort of in-house fan magazine that would be sold by subscription and include articles and interviews dealing with company projects, personnel, and history. It was good training, great fun, and provided opportunites to interact with company legends and write about our favorite superhero films and TV series. For us it was also a dream come true, and we did a good job. Even Sol Harrison thought so, and Sol rarely praised anyone. I don’t recall whose idea it was. The first person I heard discuss it was BobRo. To Sol it was useful in determining which Woodchucks had the best skills in various areas, as well as a means of generating additional profit for the company, and an opportunity for him to function as a big brother to all of us. [Editor’s note: See BACK ISSUE #100 for an AWODCC history.] After observing me for a few weeks, making sure that I was respectful and industrious despite my long hair, Kubert invited me to become his editorial assistant, too, and I began working on Our Army at War, Tarzan, and Korak, Son of Tarzan, shortly to be joined by Rima, the Jungle Girl; Blitzkrieg; and Ragman. My location on any given day depended upon who needed me.

Watching Joe draw was an exhilarating experience. He would start a facial closeup with the eyes and sculpt the other features quickly, apparently effortlessly, determining where the light was coming from within the panel and shadowing accordingly, giving minimal attention to the ears, which he would often just outline. DC Comics’ policy was to pay assistants $15 a page for creating letters columns, but I never got a cent for the columns I wrote for Kubert. Having entered the industry in his youth, working for some of the world’s most frugal editors and publishers, Joe had been treated as an apprentice, being paid on the basis of how much his employers felt he was contributing to each periodical. To Joe I was still an apprentice, and letters columns were necessary because of mailing requirements, but not especially creative. While we were wrapping up one issue I suggested something different, showing him a photo I had in my collection, a shot of Johnny Sheffield as “Boy” [from the Tarzan movies] reading an issue of Boy’s Life magazine. He found it

Your Demand is His Command Roving editorial Jack-of-all-trades Allan edited or assisted with a variety of DC projects during the early Bronze Age, including these titles. TM & © DC Comics.

All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 21

TM & © DC Comics.

charming, and accepted my offer to write some copy and work it into an issue as a filler page. I happily did so, understanding I would not be paid for it, but Joe’s approval was sufficient reward. (I cleared the idea with Danton Burroughs of Edward Rice Burroughs, Inc.) Joe rewarded me on another occasion as well. I sat in on one story conference between Kubert and Kanigher in 1976, while they were creating an “Enemy Ace” story for Star Spangled War Stories #200. Kanigher mentioned Hans von Hammer’s chivalry, and I asked what he would have thought about the use of rockets and jets in aerial combat. The result was “Shooting Star,” and Joe gave me credit in print for the premise. I was present on other occasions when Kubert noticed the skills of other DC comics creators. Ric Estrada, one of the most pleasant people I ever met, had come to the United States via Cuba sponsored by Ernest Hemingway, a family friend. One day Ric was drawing a Wonder Woman page in Kanigher’s office when Kubert entered and exclaimed, “Impossible!” Joe was rarely startled. He had seen Ric penciling one panel with his left hand and inking another with his right hand at the same time. “Impossible,” Kubert repeated as he returned to his office in a mild state of shock. Ric smiled and chuckled,

continuing to work on both panels at once. Ric’s artistic style matched his personality: friendly, casual, not at all fussy, and yet suited to anything from Flash Gordon (which he drew at one time) to Wonder Woman. Joe later told me how impressed he’d been not only by Ric’s artistic feat, but by the way he played it down. Another modest genius, E. Nelson Bridwell, had entered the company as Mort Weisinger’s assistant, and Weisinger, usually only impressed by his own accomplishments and potential, quickly learned that Nelson had an encyclopedic knowledge of just about everything and relied on him as a fact-checker. By 1975 Sol Harrison had introduced the oversized so-called “dollar books,” the Limited Collector’s Edition series. LCE #C-36, cover date June–July 1975, was to be “The Bible,” edited and designed by Kubert. Joe asked Nelson to attend the meeting at which the magazine’s content would be planned. When someone asked which version of the Bible would be used, Nelson launched into a list of the available choices, complete with information regarding the origins and age of each, followed by the key differences in the events covered and variations of character names. Joe was impressed as he explained we would be covering highlights from the Old Testament. With Sheldon Moldoff’s words, Joe’s layout, the beautiful artwork of Nestor Redondo (who had also illustrated Rima, the Jungle Girl) and a Kubert cover, the result was one of the most beautiful books ever produced by DC Comics, and one both Joe and Sol were especially proud of. By this time I was writing fewer articles for The Amazing World of DC Comics, as Sol had also appointed me the assistant of a third editor, Denny O’Neil, whose titles included The Shadow, Justice Inc., Beowulf, and Sherlock Holmes. Denny was keenly aware of the similarities and differences between Batman and the Shadow. Each preferred to fight his battles in the dark. Batman, however, had another identity. Fans of the Shadow knew that he sometimes impersonated the wealthy Lamont Cranston, but they were not aware of who this mysterious being was when not disguised as either the crimefighter or the playboy. For the Shadow to be a part of the night, a compact blob of darkness who could instantly straighten into an unstoppable caped gunman, the character had to remain in the past, before there were super-bright lights and modern technology. The first published drawing of DC’s Shadow was a tantalizing house ad drawn by Berni[e] Wrightson, rendered with blazing guns like an illustration from an old pulp magazine. Alas, this concept never appeared in the comic books. Mike Kaluta provided stylish art that conveyed the spirit of the property, as did the other artists assigned to the title. Only one other artist could have drawn the character as he needed to be drawn, oozing into substance from the blackness of night, but Gene Colan was busy with other assignments. It was a pleasure to work with Denny, a quiet, creative man and a great teacher. He always found the

“Impossible!”… …shouted an incredulous Joe Kubert when he witnessed artist Ric Estrada penciling with one hand while inking with the other, as Asherman relates in this article. (Here, however, Ric’s pencils for 1974’s Wonder Woman #211 were inked by Vince Colletta.) Scan courtesy of Heritage Comics Auctions (www.ha.com). TM & © DC Comics.

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It Wasn’t the Cover of the Rolling Stone… …but Allan was immortalized in editor Julie Schwartz’s Superman titles as weatherman Oscar Asherman (see sidebar), seen here in two pages from Action Comics #441 (Nov. 1974). By Cary Bates, Curt Swan, and Bob Oksner. Scans courtesy of John Wells. TM & © DC Comics.

time to speak with freelancers and staffers who wanted to discuss his writing, or were trying to better their own work. In addition to Kanigher, Kubert, and O’Neil, I was assigned to assist one other editor, newly arrived at DC Comics. Joe Simon, as in the team of Simon & Kirby, had arrived to edit The Sandman, The Green Team, Prez, and reprints of Black Magic. Considering his impressive accomplishments, I half expected him to talk about himself during our first meeting, but when he introduced himself he immediately wanted to know about me, and how I had come to be working at DC Comics. Not to be confused with the later Vertigo property, Simon’s the Sandman (with Jack Kirby) was the entity who introduced dreams into the minds of people as they slept. The stories were more closely associated with the imaginations of younger readers than with adult concepts of horror. In fact, Joe Simon’s titles were often structured for younger readers, and usually featured young people as their main characters. The Green Team was a group of very rich kids who used their financial assets to help those less fortunate than themselves, mostly victims of situations engineered by greedy adults. Prez was the first teenage President of the United States. Working with a group of teenage aides, he battled perils and villains tailored to capture the imagination of younger readers—foes that included spies, saboteurs, and an ambassador who was a werewolf in the service of Dracula. Joe Simon had a keen mind in matters of finance and was careful to make sure his money was wisely invested. He was calm and direct while discussing his business affairs. Always eager for good conversation, he would often discuss his ideas for characters or stories. As his enthusiasm grew, his voice, already somewhat high-pitched, would get higher, his eyes would become wider, and he would talk faster and faster. I soon came to understand why Joe was able to devise his steady stream of stories so skillfully directed at young readers: This creative man who had never lost his sense of wonder was in some ways still a youngster at heart. Each day working at DC Comics increased my own sense of wonder. Among these amazingly creative people, immersed in myth and helping to perpetuate it, how could it be otherwise? In addition to my job, I was always grateful for the opportunities in getting to know the people there, especially Julie Schwartz. Talking to Julie, I gradually realized that what I enjoyed seeing on television and in films and reading in books and comic books were all closely related.

OSCAR ASHERMAN CHECKLIST

by John Wells

Action Comics #441, 443, 447, 454 (behind the scenes), 482–483, 489, 497, 523 The New Adventures of Superboy #3 Superman vol. 1 #270, 290, 323, 334, 347–348, 375, 388, 397 (behind the scenes) The Superman Family #172 Superman: Last Son of Krypton (text)

Television’s Captain Video and his Video Rangers, Space Patrol, Tom Corbett Space Cadet, the short-lived Buck Rogers and Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers series, and Rocky Jones Space Ranger (the first outerspace TV series produced completely on film) had led to my becoming a reader of science-fiction books, and pulp magazines. Forrest J Ackerman had introduced me to science-fiction and “monster” movies (and later sold my first science-fiction short story) and told me of his old friend and associate Julius Schwartz. Forry had grown up in Los Angeles with two friends, Ray Bradbury and Ray Harryhausen, who loved science fiction and fantasy literature and films. Julie, a New Yorker, later became a literary agent associated with Forry, representing science-fiction and fantasy writers. Their circle of friends and clients included Ray Bradbury, Henry Kuttner, C. L. Moore, Edmund Hamilton, and Alfred Bester. For a short while one of Julie’s clients was H. P. Lovecraft. At the end of one working day, Julie entered Kubert’s office as I was packing to leave and introduced me to a visiting friend, and suddenly I found myself shaking Alfred Bester’s hand. I had recently read The Demolished Man for the first time. I stayed to talk with Bester and left work that evening with stars in my eyes. Through my growing friendship with Julie, I was becoming personally involved in this inner circle of legendary writers. Through his recollections I journeyed into the past, to the time when interest in science fiction began to flourish in this country. I learned that young Julie and Mort All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 23

had been avid readers of the magazines published by Hugo Gernsback, who told them he was receiving many more letters from science-fiction fans than he had room to print. The enterprising duo then obtained Gernsback’s permission to publish his surplus letters in a magazine they themselves assembled, designed, and published, producing what might be called the first fanzine. In 1944 Julie joined the staff of what would become National Comics. In the late 1950s, during the beginning of the Silver Age, Julie began running letters from readers. In these first DC Comics letters pages were communications from future writers, artists, editors, and filmmakers, some of the people who would help define the place of science fiction and fantasy in today’s worldwide movie, television, and publishing markets. In addition to teaching me about the links between science-fiction magazines and the development of the Silver Age superhero comic-book characters, Julie also gave me the honor of authorizing a new character in the DC Universe. I first heard about it from him when he approached me to confirm I was okay with the idea and would not try to sue DC if it happened. Elliot S! Maggin was writing a story called “The Viking from Valhalla” for Superman #270 (Dec. 1973) and wanted to introduce Oscar Asherman, the weatherman at WGBS-TV. The story would be drawn by

Not Oscar, But Allan The “real” Asherman made a cameo (with other DC personnel) in New Teen Titans vol. 2 #13 (Oct. 1985), a Crisis crossover. That’s Allan in panel 6, mentioning art returns to Cyborg. Scan courtesy of John Wells. TM & © DC Comics.

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Curt Swan and Murphy Anderson. I assured Julie not to worry, that I was deeply touched, and thanked him profusely. Soon after that discussion there was a knock on the door to Kubert’s office and Curt Swan came in. He stayed for about 20 minutes sketching me for Oscar’s introduction. Oscar Asherman appeared in approximately 20 stories over a ten-year period. In most of them he was announced by Clark Kent. In one he was psychic, in others he helped Superman handle various problems, and in all the stories he appeared as a flattering approximation of me, complete with unruly hair and thin moustache. During that first time I worked at DC I was fortunate to meet many others whose names were familiar and whose work I enjoyed. Curt Swan knew he had a fan following but never acted like it. An even-tempered, pleasant man, he was always happy to meet someone who appreciated his art. He would usually complete his work at home, but on rare occasions he could be found in the DC bullpen area finishing last-minute touchups. Murphy Anderson and I quickly became friends and shared dozens of terrible puns which elicited groans from our colleagues, particularly BobRo and Nelson Bridwell. Murphy, who had illustrated many pulp stories and had drawn the Buck Rogers newspaper strips, had a vast knowledge of science-fiction artwork and vintage films. His wife, Helen, and son, Murphy, Jr., sometimes stopped by. Sam Glanzman had served on the Fletcher-class destroyer U.S.S. Stevens during World War II, and created a series of stories about his experiences on the ship that ran in war comics edited by Joe Kubert. A gentle man who loved to talk, he was well-versed in military equipment designs and drew dozens of “tabletop dioramas” and “battle albums,” provided the correct colorings, and was always punctual, riding his motorcycle from his home in upstate New York to deliver his finished stories. I’ve already mentioned Ric Estrada. Ric related the story of one visit to his bank near DC’s offices to deposit a check and withdraw some cash. The teller asked how much he wanted to withdraw, adding that Ric had more than one million dollars in his account. Ric assured the teller he did not have that much on deposit, and that it was most likely a mistake. I used the same bank, and for the next few days I heard references to the comic-book artist who had so quickly alerted the bank about their million-dollar error. Ross Andru noticed one day that I liked chocolate. One candy company had recently begun selling a rather fancy bar. Ross gave me one and after I’d eaten it asked me if I liked it. I thanked him again and told him that I had. For the next few weeks others appeared on my desk, and I knew that Ross was visiting and would soon stop by to say hello. According to Kurt Schaffenberger, I was one of the first DC employees who admitted to being a fan of his work. This surprised him, as he had previously worked at Fawcett Comics drawing Captain Marvel, and had been told by at least one DC executive that his Superman looked too much like the Big Red Cheese. When I recognized his work in the magazines of another publisher, signed with a pseudonym for business reasons, Kurt was surprised when I mentioned his style was so distinctive that most fans probably recognized it immediately. Remember those drawings of Lois Lane looking surprised or upset? Kurt always asked his wife Dorothy to pose for those panels. John Rosenberger was another great guy, and a much underrated artist who specialized in drawing beautiful and intelligent women, also posed by his wife, who had been an in-between animator at Disney while Bambi was in production. Before she left she had been given a large number of old, unwanted cels. A few years later, preparing a short animated film of her own, she had painstakingly washed each of those cels and reused them. John often wondered how much they would have been worth to collectors. I had edited some reprints of The Legion of Super-Heroes, The Doom Patrol, and Metal Men, and was looking forward to starting editorial duties on new issues when I learned that some of the Junior Woodchucks were about to lose their jobs. I was one of them. Neither Sol nor Carmine admitted to having been the one who decided I was to be let go. I knew they had their reasons and was actually glad that neither of them wanted credit for the decision. We all remained friendly, and I was welcomed by them both whenever I visited the offices. I would later return to work at DC Comics again in various capacities. It was always exciting to be back, but it was never quite the same as that first time around, when the entire company consisted of fewer than 50 employees and everyone knew everybody else, and being part of The Amazing World of DC Comics was an almost magical experience for all the Junior Woodchucks.

by J o h n

G. Pierce

TM & © DC Comics.

As in any industry, the field of comics contains numerous unsung heroes, those whose work is mainly behind the scenes, but without whose support the “stars” couldn’t do their jobs. And then there are those people such as E. Nelson Bridwell, who, though he was a long-time writer and editor, never quite got the recognition he deserved. It is perhaps no wonder, as he lived and operated in the shadows of two powerful editors, Mort Weisinger and Julius Schwartz. Yet this amazing man from Oklahoma, afflicted with a physical handicap which produced strange tics that seemed to emanate from deep inside his body, may well have been the glue which held together much of the DC line for many years. Certainly, if any DC staffer had a question about some arcane point of comics lore, Nelson was the go-to guy for information. He possessed eidetic imagery, commonly known as a photographic memory. When he first arrived in New York City, he looked at a map of the streets and subway system for a few minutes, and instantly knew his way around. So it is no wonder that he had memorized several Shakespearean plays, and was an expert on many subjects, both in and out of comics. Thus, when a DC staffer asked him “How many moons did Krypton have?,” he responded with, “You mean originally, or when it exploded?” Not many comics people can be experts on the history of Krypton as well as the Dead Sea Scrolls and many other areas in between—but Nelson was. Of greatest interest to me personally was Nelson’s work on and relationship to the Fawcett characters; therefore, that is where the focus of most of the following will be. But before we get to by-mail questions and answers from 1977, I’d like to quote extensively from Nelson’s letter to me from March 9, of that year: “The real trouble with the early SHAZAMs was that we were doing as lead stories what should have been backups at best. And I never felt we did Mr. Tawny right. I hope to correct that in #32, when he decides to go in for professional sports with the Detroit Tigers. I’ve got Mr. Mind and some of his minions in it, too. “We had planned to ask Otto Binder if he’d like to do some SHAZAM stories, but he anticipated us with a firm no. By the way, [back in the Golden Age,] Beck certainly [had done] a number of Marvel Family stories, and Kurt Schaffenberger assured me that it was Beck who designed the new Mary Marvel costume. The Mary Marvel origin looks like he may have had a hand in it, while he probably drew much of the Captain Marvel, Jr. origin—though it was [Mac] Raboy who drew Junior and Captain Nazi. The mixture of styles is curious. Also the cover, which gives not the slightest hint that a new member of the Marvel Family is being introduced! (DC could be just as stupid—there was no mention of Superboy on the cover of the MORE FUN feature in which he debuted!)”[The Mary Marvel origin story, from Captain Marvel Adventures #18, was actually the work of Marc Swayze.] Nelson also clued me in to a comic book “which is so rare few people know of its existence”: Mary Marvel #1, March 19, 1943. What? Mary Marvel #1 was dated December 1945. “The one that reached the newsstands was— but the earlier one never got that far. It was probably the fault of the wartime paper shortage. It only exists in a few sets of proofs (black and white), which were among those sent us by Fawcett. I don’t even know what the cover was supposed to look like, though it may have been the one used in ’45—Mary looks more like the ’43 version on that cover. Two of the stories done for the first #1 were eventually used in Marvel Family #51—but greatly cut. It’s possible the others were used earlier in Wow, but as Mary had dropped out of it well before the Marvel Family issue appeared, this seems unlikely. And this is one comic which I can confidently state is in no collection!” And now, the interviews. – John G. Pierce JOHN G. PIERCE: About how old were you when you first discovered Captain Marvel comics? E. NELSON BRIDWELL: Probably about ten—around the time the [Adventures of Captain Marvel] serial hit the theatres. [Interviewer’s note: Nelson was born in 1931.] PIERCE: Did you like the serial? BRIDWELL: I loved it as a kid—except for removing his powers at the end. PIERCE: When and how did you discover fandom? BRIDWELL: During the EC days. Don’t recall exact details after more than 20 years. PIERCE: How were you hired at DC? BRIDWELL: I’d been trying to break in (I’d been writing for MAD), and I read, got back issues, wrote letters. Still, living in Oklahoma, prospects did All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 25

Who Ya Gonna Call? Crimebusters! (top) Watchmen’s Captain Metropolis was inspired by Nelson Bridwell and Gardner Fox. (bottom) While Nelson admitted in this interview that he preferred writing to editing and that editing reprints had become “a bit of a job,” his selection of oldies educated a generation about DC lore. Covers to Wanted #1 and 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-14 by Murphy Anderson and Nick Cardy, respectively.

not look bright. Then, in December 1963, I got a letter from Weisinger, offering me a job as his assistant. PIERCE: Who are some of your favorite artists (contemporary or otherwise)? BRIDWELL: Swan, Adams, Giordano, Schaffenberger, Williamson, Mayer, Davis, Drucker, Krigstein, Eisner, Cole, Evans, [Joe] Kubert, Beck, Severin, Wood, Crandall, Frazetta, Kirby, Oksner, Caniff—I could go on and on! PIERCE: Do you like funny animal comics? How about Carl Barks? BRIDWELL: Yes! I love Barks’ stuff. I still cherish the original edition of “Christmas on Bear Mountain” I bought when it first came out—the mag that introduced Scrooge! PIERCE: You are definitely a well-informed individual, being considered an expert in mythology, history, literature, and, I recall, that DC’s Bible tabloid book listed you as “Resident Biblical Expert.” Would you care to comment on your academic background? BRIDWELL: I never went to college. But I read a lot! PIERCE: Okay, so who are some of your favorite authors? BRIDWELL: My literary tastes are very broad. A few of my many favorites: Shakespeare, Lewis Carroll, Gilbert and Sullivan, H. Rider Haggard, Poe, Twain, Baum, Ogden

TM & © DC Comics.

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Nash, Kipling, Damon Runyon, Bradbury, Stevenson, and on and on… PIERCE: What was your working relationship with Weisinger? BRIDWELL: You can’t tell it in a few words—and it changed over the years. [Interviewer’s note: Jim Shooter later alleged that Weisinger “tortured Nelson. He was just awful” to his assistant.] PIERCE: Whose artistic version of Superman is your favorite? BRIDWELL: Swan—when he’s at his best. PIERCE: What is your opinion of the work of Otto Binder on Captain Marvel? BRIDWELL: Fantastic! (I recall liking his Jon Jarl texts, too.) PIERCE: Did you ever work directly with Otto while he was at DC? BRIDWELL: A great deal! I even completed two stories he started when he was having personal troubles and couldn’t finish them. PIERCE: Would you care to comment on the works of Gardner Fox, John Broome, and France Herron? BRIDWELL: All top men in their day. Gardner was one of my boyhood heroes, and later became a good friend. [Interviewer’s note: In Watchmen, Captain Metropolis was named “Nelson Gardner” as a tribute to Nelson and Gardner. Another homage to ENB was in Astro City #5, which introduced a “Mr. Bridwell,” an alias for a shape-shifting extraterrestrial and undercover advance scout for the invading “Enelsians,” in the process compiling an encyclopedic database of Earth’s superheroes—in other words, emulating the real-life Bridwell! Finally, in the early ’80s, an episode of the animated Shazam! television series had newsboy Freddy Freeman greeting a “Mr. Beck” and a “Mr. Birdwell” (sic).] PIERCE: If you could work with any character—DC, Marvel, other, old, new, alive, defunct—other than those you already have worked with, who would it be, and why? BRIDWELL: Well, I dropped the names of a couple in Super Friends #5—Larry Davis (Funnyman) and Linda Turner (Black Cat). I just liked ’em. [Interviewer’s note: Another character who appeared there was Tony Stark. Nelson used this story as “proof” of his theory that the DC’s Earth-One characters and those of the Marvel line inhabited the same Earth. However, he was challenged on this by late fan and researcher Rich Morrissey, who protested, “But you wrote that story yourself!” Nelson seemed unperturbed by this accusation. As he told me in correspondence, SF #5 was “the name-droppingest issue yet. Superman meets Larry Davis! Batman talks with Tony Stark! I went absolutely mad!”] PIERCE: Who were some of your other favorites during your childhood, other than those from Fawcett and DC? BRIDWELL: Kid Eternity, Black Cat, Sheena, Popeye, Dick Tracy, Flash Gordon, Tarzan, Buck Rogers, and, later, Funnyman. PIERCE: Is Captain Marvel your all-time favorite? If not, how does he rank among your favorites? BRIDWELL: I can’t rank them first, second, etc.—but he’s right up there with Superman, Batman, etc. PIERCE: When did you first learn that you would be working on Captain Marvel, and what was your immediate reaction? BRIDWELL: When Julie [Schwartz] got the word he was to edit, he told me I’d be helping on it. I was delighted! Ecstatic! PIERCE: Did anyone besides Murphy Anderson, Bob Oksner, and Beck submit art samples for Captain Marvel when DC acquired the rights? (It would, I think, be very interesting to see how a more realistic artist such as Murphy would have handled Captain Marvel.) BRIDWELL: I don’t recall any others. PIERCE: What is your working relationship with Julius Schwartz? Specifically, how did it affect Shazam! as opposed to, say, Superman or JLA?

BRIDWELL: I hardly know how to answer that one. It’s the writer/editor or editor/writer association. It works about the same on any feature. PIERCE: But other than answering letters and writing an occasional story, what was your specific function on Shazam! while Julie was the editor? BRIDWELL: Editing and trying to keep the stories consistent with the Golden Age. PIERCE: Whose stories do you prefer, [Elliot] Maggin’s or [Denny] O’Neil’s? BRIDWELL: On Shazam!, certainly Denny’s. PIERCE: What was it about Denny’s stories that made them superior to Elliot’s? BRIDWELL: He tried for a light touch, [while] Elliot went for out-and-out farce. EM’s best was the Maxwell Zodiac tale [Shazam! #20], but even there, judicious editing was required. The Salad-Men and Cape-Man [#10 and 11, respectively] were written cold, with no story conferences. [Interviewer’s note: These were the scripts that Shazam! artist C. C. Beck refused to illustrate, leading to his departure as artist from the feature. The stories were then given to Bob Oksner and Kurt Schaffenberger, respectively.] PIERCE: When Beck was working on Shazam!, were any changes ever made after the artwork had been completed? BRIDWELL: Very few if any in the art. But sometimes he’d change the copy in a way we disliked, so we changed ’em back. This didn’t happen often, however. PIERCE: What changes, if any, did Beck make on either of the two scripts you did which he drew? BRIDWELL: He simplified a couple of gimmicks and made a few minor dialogue changes. That’s all. PIERCE: Whose idea was Suspendium? [Editor’s note: As revealed in DC’s Shazam! #1, Suspendium was an invention of Dr. Sivana’s which held the Marvel Family and friends in suspended animation for decades, to explain away the characters’ absences between the end of the Fawcett run and the DC revival.] BRIDWELL: Denny O’Neil’s. PIERCE: When a story was written which you didn’t like, did you ever mention it to Schwartz? BRIDWELL: If it was already written, then the problem, to me, was, “How do we salvage it?” Of course, I sometimes kept quiet if I had reservations but the story seemed to work. PIERCE: Did [Carmine] Infantino design all the DC covers during his tenure as publisher? BRIDWELL: Not all, but a majority. PIERCE: And since Infantino’s departure? BRIDWELL: Usually [Joe] Orlando or Schaffenberger. Sometimes I sit in on the discussions. PIERCE: Which task do you prefer—writing stories, editing, selecting reprints, writing special text pages, or doing letters columns? BRIDWELL: Writing. PIERCE: When did you first meet C. C. Beck? BRIDWELL: He stopped here on his way to a Minnesota vacation to pencil the Shazam! #1 cover—he’d mailed one already, but it seemed lost—until he had the second half-finished! [Interviewer’s note: Elsewhere it has been reported that the cover really wasn’t lost, but rather that Schwartz feigned that it was, just to make Beck do extra work, because he allegedly despised Beck so much.] PIERCE: Do you still have contact with Beck today? BRIDWELL: Haven’t heard from him for a while, but we’re still friends. [Interviewer’s note: For a while, Beck was sending Nelson copies of his fanzine, FCA/SOB—standing for Fawcett Collectors of America/Some Opinionated Bastards [see BI #100—ed.]— but eventually stopped because, he once told me, he figured that, although “Nelson might agree with our ideas, he couldn’t say so, not in that place,” i.e., the DC offices.] PIERCE: What is your opinion of Beck?

Something Funny’s Going On Here (top) From Bridwell’s Super Friends #5 (June 1977), the meeting of Larry “Funnyman” Davis and Superman, plus Nelson’s nod to their “mutual friends” Siegel and Shuster. Also, in the final panel, Batman talks to a generous Tony Stark! Scan courtesy of John Wells. (bottom) Siegel and Shuster’s Funnyman #1, from 1948. Super Friends TM & © DC Comics. Funnyman © the respective copyright holder.

All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 27

BRIDWELL: Nice guy. Artistically, his passion for simplicity seems to be a bit extreme. But he’s good. PIERCE: Any thoughts on Beck’s Golden Age collaborator, Pete Costanza? BRIDWELL: Costanza did Cap well. I suspect—in fact, I had it from Beck—that sometimes Costanza did everything in a story except Cap, which Beck did. PIERCE: Beck highly praised one of your stories, “What’s in a Name?— Doomsday!” [from Shazam! #7]. [It’s] my own personal favorite among the new stories, too. By any chance, was your inspiration for this tale the legal difficulties caused by the name “Captain Marvel”? BRIDWELL: Absolutely! PIERCE: What is the legal relationship between DC to Fawcett regarding the Fawcett characters? Does DC have to pay Fawcett every time you use a character’s name? What about DC and Marvel regarding the name of “Captain Marvel”? Did the name disappear from the Shazam! covers in order to save money? BRIDWELL: I don’t know full details of the Fawcett agreement. The one with Marvel says we don’t use the name on covers or in ads. [Editor’s note: Originally, DC licensed the Marvel Family from Fawcett before ultimately buying the characters decades later. The covers of DC’s Shazam! #1–14 bore the subtitle “The Original Captain Marvel,” but due to Marvel Comics’ claim to that name, Shazam!’s subtitle became “The World’s Mightiest Mortal” beginning with issue #15.] PIERCE: Whose idea was the Captain Marvel vs. Superman letterscolumn rivalry? BRIDWELL: Julie Schwartz’s. PIERCE: Who sold producers on the idea of a Shazam! TV show? BRIDWELL: I have no idea. PIERCE: What, if anything, did you contribute to the show?

BRIDWELL: I went over the early scripts, and occasionally a line of mine found its way into a script. PIERCE: Were you assigned to write the Mary Marvel and Captain Marvel, Jr. tales, or did you request to do them? BRIDWELL: Originally Maggin had the assignment, but Mary was one he couldn’t get started on. So I was asked to do it. Later, I dreamed the Paper Armor story [Shazam! #15], so when Elliot dropped Junior, I was there to take that over. PIERCE: Have you ever dreamed any stories other than that one? And doesn’t this bring back echoes of Gardner Fox in “Flash of Two Worlds”? BRIDWELL: None. That’s the only time I lived Fox’s fantasy! PIERCE: Can you give an opinion of the work of Kurt Schaffenberger, in general, and on Shazam! in particular? BRIDWELL: There’s no one else quite like him. A unique style—and one of the best for Shazam! [Interviewer’s note: Kurt Schaffenberger once told me that Nelson’s scripts could be hard to draw, due to his insistence on dragging remote characters from the distant past into scripts. Kurt found it challenging to try to make these characters fit into a then-current setting.] PIERCE: Which of the Captain Marvel supporting characters is your favorite, and why? BRIDWELL: Hard to say. I like Shazam [the wizard] and [the talking tiger Mr. Tawky] Tawny—for totally different reasons. And Beautia [Sivana], for still another reason! PIERCE: What do you think of the Marvel Comics style of writing and editing? Do you think you could ever work by such a system? Do you have any opinions on the way DC has tried to copy Marvel’s use of characterization, continuity, etc.? BRIDWELL: I’ve tried doing a panel-by-panel breakdown, then dialoguing the pencils—worked fine. But having the artist break down a brief plotline could bring headaches—though some are doing it successfully. Trying to imitate Marvel had to be disastrous, but development of characters in a natural manner works when you don’t try to copy! (Marvel’s attempts to copy Marvel haven’t always worked.) PIERCE: Who originally conceived the Superman story “Make Way for Captain Thunder” [Superman #276 (June 1974)]? BRIDWELL: Julie—when told we couldn’t team the two heroes at that time. [Editor’s note: “Make Way for Captain Thunder” chronicled Superman’s encounter with a Captain Marvel analogue, before DC published any of its many Superman/Captain Marvel crossovers. Its aborted sequel was the subject of a “Greatest Stories Never Told” article in BACK ISSUE #30.] PIERCE: Now that reprints have virtually been eliminated from DC’s regular lineup, do you miss your task of selecting them? BRIDWELL: Not particularly. I did it for so many years, it did become a bit of a job. PIERCE: What is your own all-time favorite Captain Marvel story? BRIDWELL: That is very tough! There are so many gems. Probably “The Plot Against the Universe” [Captain Marvel Adventures #100] and “The Mistake of Father Time” [The Marvel Family #20] would be near the top. “The Monster Society [of Evil],” [CMA #22, 26–46], too. PIERCE: Of all the features you have written, which one is the easiest to write? BRIDWELL: Probably Captain Marvel. PIERCE: In Shazam! #30’s story, you had the Marvel Family singing songs. It’d be nice to have them set to music. BRIDWELL: I have composed music for the songs, but I can’t write ’em down. The lines of the Marvel song are in Marvel Family #1 and 2.

More Namedropping E.N.B.’s lettercols were always a joy for the DC fan, but this one, kindly scanned by John Wells from Super Friends #8, offers insight into the cameos from issue #5… starting with a thank-you letter from Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel! TM & © DC Comics.

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Updating the Marvel Family After a long stint writing Shazam!, E.N.B., under editor Jack C. Harris, began a more serious treatment of Captain Marvel and family in issue #34 and (top left) 35, the series’ last two issues. That tone continued, with Nelson and penciler Don Newton, once the Shazam! feature moved to the anthology World’s Finest Comics. (top right) The Cap title splash from WFC #254 (Jan. 1979). (bottom) Among Bridwell’s many contributions to the DC Universe: populating the pages of Super Friends with international heroes like Green Fury (a.k.a. Fire). Original cover art to SF #47 (Aug. 1981) by Ramona Fradon and Bob Smith; courtesy of Heritage.

PIERCE: Once the TV show syndrome has run its course, what will you do with Shazam!? BRIDWELL: I don’t know yet—but it’ll be fun deciding. [Interviewer’s note: We know, of course, that what followed was Shazam!’s “New Look,” as explored in BI #93, with a dramatic approach under editor Jack C. Harris, who had taken over Shazam! as of issue #32. Shazam! #34, featuring a battle against Captain Nazi, featured pseudo-realistic art by Alan Weiss and Joe Rubinstein. With the next, and final, issue, Don Newton took over the penciling chores, with Kurt Schaffenberger inking. About the use of use of Weiss, in later correspondence Nelson told me, “Weiss was a good choice for the Captain Nazi story. As I wrote it, I was wishing for an artist with the realistic approach of a Raboy. Nazi and Junior cried for it.”] PIERCE: Is merchandising really keeping Shazam! alive? Why isn’t more of the merchandise advertised in comics? BRIDWELL: These things are not in my sphere. Sorry! PIERCE: Do you feel that the idea of a boy changing into a superhero is perhaps a bit too simplistic for today’s readers, and perhaps this is part of the reason for the failure to capture a large following? BRIDWELL: No—we started off on the wrong foot. We didn’t make him heroic enough. Sales are picking up now. PIERCE: Comics are shrinking in size, increasing in price, and decreasing in circulation. Aren’t you a bit pessimistic about their future? BRIDWELL: No. I think we need new ideas, new “packaging”—but we’ll get it! True fans must admire Nelson’s dedication to the field and to his employer. Alas, much of his efforts to maintain continuity were washed away when Crisis on Infinite Earths changed everything in the DC Universe in 1985–1986. It is perhaps fitting, although quite sad, that Edward Nelson Bridwell himself, now relegated to being somewhat of a relic of a bygone era, passed away the following year from lung cancer. He left a vacancy that has never been filled.

TM & © DC Comics.

JOHN G. PIERCE is a retired public school teacher and former adjunct college professor who now substitute-teaches in a Christian school. His roots go all the way back to the beginning of comics fandom, with Alter Ego #1 in 1961. As a writer, his first appearance in print was in Steve Gerber’s early fanzine, Headline. John, who speaks four languages, has written for numerous publications in the USA, Great Britain, and Brazil. As a comics historian, he specializes in the Marvel Family and Brazilian comics. He and his wife Karen reside in Galloway, Ohio.

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All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 31

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by C

atherine Schuller (and friends)

That’s Gru for You David Banegas produced this painting of Mark Gruenwald and some of the Captain America issues he wrote for a June 14, 2016 auction in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of Mark’s passing. Courtesy of Catherine Schuller. Captain America TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

“Comics have never been just a hobby to me, nor even just my favorite form of entertainment. Comics relate to everything I do and have done. They are the single unifying strand in the ordered confusion of my life. Personal Entropy is my testament to comics, fear of entropy, and my attempts at being worthwhile. I believe many things are worth the effort of doing and doing right, even though ultimately what difference it will make is nil. To sum it all up, my feeling of personal entropy in one line: everything gets worse and progress only speeds it up. Even though it seems ironic, I am still functionally optimistic. In the time I have allotted me, I must find a way to carve out a significant life.” Mark Gruenwald on Mark Gruenwald

When the task of writing the definitive article on Mark Gruenwald’s (1953–1996) editing contribution to the comic-book industry fell on me, I panicked slightly, but then realized that this was very reminiscent of everything about my relationship with Mark. And as his widow, that whole “till death do us part” clause in the marriage vows doesn’t really pertain to Mark with me. It started with my having to be the executor of his will and arrange for his outrageous wish to have his ashes stirred into the ink of Squadron Supreme, his bestselling graphic novel. I have a real relationship with a dead guy, and I’m busier with him now in comics than I ever was when he was alive! Perhaps I’d go to the Marvel parties, distributors’ retreat, or the San Diego Comic-Con every year. Over the past two decades, All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 33

“What would Cap do?” Original art to the title splash of Captain America #333 (Sept. 1987), a title that boasted Mark Gruenwald as its writer for a lengthy run. Courtesy of Heritage Comics Auctions (www.ha.com). TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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I’ve been convinced it is my destiny to polish his star, keep his formidable legacy alive, and his memory relevant and going strong. Mark was one of those rare individuals whose passions were transparent at all times. He kept continuity and community going in every aspect of his existence. He was solid as a rock and true blue. He was like an actor studying for a role, immersing himself in the day-to-day credos and life of the character. When he wrote Captain America for ten years straight, he embodied the essence of Cap and made decisions based on the question: “What would Cap do?” He was a superhero in his mind and in his life he taught us what a hero could be. Over the past 22 years since his untimely passing, hearing the stories and accounts about him have made me realize his “rare gem” status, not only in our marriage, but in the world of comics. He truly deserves the titles of “Heart and Soul of Marvel Comics” and “Patron Saint of Marveldom.” Mark didn’t know the word “can’t,” nor did he believe in luck. “You make your own luck,” he would say. It was all about constantly doing, doing, doing. He said his creativity was a compulsion. He was absolutely compulsive and driven. He said he felt “compelled” to write and create stories. The genius of Mark was that he loved the process as much as the end result. He wasn’t all about the dream without hard work behind it. His drive was unceasing. He often said that the comics world doesn’t owe anyone a career in the business. He was a hard worker and loved being viewed as indispensable and devoted. And if you loved your career choice as much as Mark did, that was a 24/7 compulsion. Peter Sanderson, Mark’s comic-book scholar/archivist mentee, originally chosen to write this article, had fallen and fractured his hip in April of 2017 and wound up in the hospital with complications and unable to give his proper concentration to the endeavor. I can’t believe I suggested to Michael Eury that I do the article on Mark’s influence! What was I signing up for? I realized, however, that I may actually be the right person to do it because it wasn’t going to be an article on analysis of story- and plotlines, of issues and numbered volumes. All that anyone can find on Wikipedia! From 1978 when Jim Shooter hired Mark to be his assistant editor, Mark rose up the ranks and in 1982 became an editor in charge of The Avengers, Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Spider-Woman, and What If? He was everywhere from that time on whether creating D.P. 7, Quasar, “Mark’s Remarks,” or even having characters named after him to continue his legacy. Who can forget his immortalization in the pages of Thor by Walt Simonson, who made him the director of the multiverse monitoring agency, Time Variance Authority, as a tribute to his status as Marvel’s resident continuity custodian? Everyone knows he has garnered innumerable fans, legions of admirers, and friends, and a body of work that is among the industry’s most impressive list. I wanted to do something on what made the man tick. Why he was such a great editor. What it was like to be his wife and watch him work. I must admit, it was the most fun marriage you can imagine. I watched him continually carve out our life and allow it to evolve. It was a truly organic experience. I never had one argument with him except when I was offered a chance to go to Bahrain and start the plus-size industry there due to my status as an icon in the full-figured women market. He said it was too risky, that kidnappings were happening regularly there, and it wasn’t worth going over there to work when it would take me away from our new marriage. In hindsight, seeing as I was only married to him for three years and ten months, I am very thankful I had every moment with him that I did. I knew he was idealistic and a romantic and he proved it with that request. We were both living out our childhood fantasies, mine as a fashion icon and him as a creative suit at a comic-book company. He imagined and dreamed of what it was like to work at Marvel when he was a kid. We were both supportive of each other’s dreams and passions, and together in a relationship we supported and played off each other’s ambitions in the playing field of life. With Mark, you needed to realize that his life was one giant interchangeable equation: creativity = work = play. His life was his work and his passion. I got swept up in his contagious notion of inclusivity and engagement. If you were in love with anyone or anything,

that was the motivating factor. He made you reach further, try harder, and never look back. He taught you to trust your instincts and to act on them. I wound up attempting things I never would have thought I could do in a million years. He always made me dream and scheme, plan and execute elaborate projects, appointing me the entertainment director and event producer of our personal lives. He was guiding and steering, supporting, encouraging, advising, never once making me think I didn’t have what it took to make the task at hand manifest. Once I fully committed to him and proclaimed my love, he felt comfortable, accepted, and validated. He needed to have that trust and soulful knowing to be free to be his full self. He was the locomotive and I was the track. It was prophetic that we were married on Columbus Day in October of 1992. I focused on the buzz word “discovery” as the theme for my wedding speech, hinting at the metaphor of our love as a newfound land of wonder and exploration. He, on the other hand, opened his speech by joking that he had “washed up on these shores before and hadn’t fared so well at the hands of the natives.” Everyone chuckled as they knew he had never had a woman in his corner who “got him” and didn’t fight him on the complete package that was the inimitable Mark Gruenwald. It was a reference to his past failed marriage, but also to the bright future, infinite potential, and hope that he had for the institution of this marital union now with the “girl of his dreams” by his side. He was always willing to be optimistic. A Gruenwald family aphorism was: “Hope for the best, but don’t forget to plan for the worst.” He enjoyed being a good provider. He constantly referred to all of life’s scenarios as reflective of “good casting.” Characters in the play of life (or any great scenario) have chemistry, are perfectly cast to play the role assigned to them based on their onscreen talent and off-screen image. Even though I was cast as his wife and soulmate, I was constantly working out of my comfort zone, yet never feeling as if I wasn’t somehow the only one who could rise to the occasion and deliver on his wishes. That’s what he did for everyone who worked with him in the comic-book world, too. He would learn your strengths and weaknesses and always assume that you would do the very best job you could. He was always there to go to for guidance or direction, or inspiration. He believed in giving everyone with talent

Wedding Photo Note the star-spangled heroes atop the cake. Courtesy of Catherine Schuller. Photo by Henry O.

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The Gru Crew (top and middle) Catherine and Mark’s honeymoon. (bottom) Mark’s daughter Sara, Catherine (with Mark’s cat, Townsend), and Gru. Courtesy of Catherine Schuller. 36 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

(or an inkling of talent) a new opportunity to perform and succeed. He taught me to not stop the bad ideas in the chaotic brainstorming/ brain dump process, either. Out of those are the kernels of new directions. He was constantly striving to reinvent the medium he loved so much. Once I committed to being in his life in February of 1991, the tone was set for full immersion. He warned me that he was prone to obsessive rationalization, but he found humor in his relentless quest for detail, continuity, and reinvention. I had never encountered his brand of artistic honesty. I remember being swept up in his passion for Marvel, his love of his daughter, Sara, and his need to shape her young mind. He once said that children have to learn how to break the rules in a safe and acceptable way. He would ask her if he was a “daring Dad” or a “dufus Dad.” She’d giggle and exclaim, “Daring!” He always reminded her to be brave and confident, reminding her that girls can do anything. And he meant it. Once when we were all in the car together, on many of our trips back and forth to our country home in Pawling, where he would make us learn Morse Code (in case we were ever captured and had to tap out message to each other), or memorize the entire lyrics to R.E.M.’s song “It’s the End of the World as We Know It.” And those long car rides where he would play tapes that featured all the old radio shows, (e.g., The Shadow) with those fabulous storylines and even more amazing sound effects. Our car rides were a perfect backdrop for his audience captivity exercises. But Sara and I loved them! We still harken back to his relentless game-playing and sense of humor. To this day, Sara, an artist, signs her paintings with her name in Morse Code dots and dashes! Not only did he love the thousands of characters he worked with in the Marvel Universe, he loved his fellow workers in his immediate universe of the Marvel work environment. And it was mutual. He was the cool boss, the one who blurred the lines between friend and supervisor. I was so honored when he added me to his wall of 50 or more 8 x 10s of friends/ colleagues/associates and Marvel staffers and freelancers. Who has a wall of coworkers as part of their surroundings? I knew when I first laid eyes on this shrine to his Gru crew that he was indeed a rare breed. I was profoundly touched when he almost immediately found a place on the wall for me and hung my picture there. There we all were, staring at him while he toiled every night on storylines and plot twists at his desk in his studio apartment on West End Avenue. Surrounded by reference books and photos of his beloved comic folk, the current cast of players in the drama of his life as fan-turned-pro, writer, editor, chief prankster in the great House of Ideas. Living his dream job. On staff by day, freelancer by night. I admit, it made me swoon to think that I was part of this significance. He once said that he was destined to work at Marvel. “My initials are MEG, Mark Eugene Gruenwald, and Marvel’s initials stand for Marvel Entertainment Group,” he happily pointed out. Once I got to know each and every one of those people on the wall personally, I realized why they were truly worthy of his exaltation. He simply loved them and they loved him back. His approach to including me so readily and inclusively was a refreshing change from the men I had dated who were self-centered, one sided, and shallow. With no hidden agendas, I let myself get wrapped up in our budding relationship early on. And it was all encompassing on every level. It was important that he know what I found humorous, what type of music I liked, cultural influences, what exercises I preferred, what movies, celebrities, TV shows, food, fashion, cultural, career events, or art styles I enjoyed. It was a natural and organic evolution as he was the most transparent, dedicated, honest, and enthusiastic companion I had ever met in New York to date. And I had been here since 1974, I might add! I came here from Pittsburgh, as Mark had come from Oshkosh, seeking our places in our beloved professions. I rose up through the various scenes in those early days in NYC. From my early days of CBGB’s with my then-boyfriend being the drummer for Blondie, to my stint as a Cosmos soccer team cheerleader, to one of the first plus-size models in the fashion industry, to my acting and comedy experience with my own comedy group, the Nerve!, New York became a lifelong, nonstop learning and growing playground. Mark and I hit it off on so many levels, but he seemed even more focused in his career, having done nothing else (except a brief stint working at Citibank) but comics since he moved to New York in the late ’70s. He was senior executive editor of Marvel Comics when I first started dating him in January 1991. He never struck me as one of those egotistical executives who was just in his career for the mere status or monetary gain. I got the impression that he was doing his passion,

Throwing Himself into His Work (left) The first printing of the Squadron Supreme trade paperback contained Mark’s ashes in its ink. (right) Gru’s self-published Omniverse fanzine so impressed Marvel’s Jim Shooter that he hired Mark in 1978 as his first assistant editor. Cover art by Peter Poplaski. Scan courtesy of Eliot R. Brown.

his life’s work, destiny, with challenges and obstacles, but none that he wasn’t more than capable of tackling with an indefatigable drive. He won over my heart, mind, and soul and I became completely ensconced in his approach to life, his personal zeitgeist, without ever wanting it any other way. I wanted to see how far being truly in love and on someone’s side would lead me. It’s hard to believe that I was engaged to him for two years, married to him for only four years. But the man and the myth lives on—and what did I expect from a man who would remind me that everything was just matter and anti-matter. He dealt in parallel universes, alternate realities, time-travel continuums, energy that is different? We never really discussed death or afterlife. I’m sure he had his theories, but it was all too religious affiliated, so we never really gave it much credence nor made any reference to it. Death was always a thematic overtone in comics, but that was fantasy. Reality was something to be toyed with, hence his reason for having the will instruct me to have him cremated upon his death and his ashes mixed into a comic book. When we wrote our wills as part of our marriage preparation, he read that he was putting in a clause that he wanted that ash-in-the-comic-book thing done as part of his final wish. He giggled, almost morbidly, and I went along with it, never thinking I’d ever have to actually do it! (Marvel complied and they released the Squadron Supreme graphic novel with a new cover created by Alex Ross himself.) I can attest to the fact that he was in the ink of the first printing of 5,000 copies. I know because I stirred him into the ink myself, pulling out bone chips because they would jam the printing presses!! I had a momentary flash of brilliance when I was trying to think of the structure for this article. I had read a book on George Plympton called George Being George, and everyone who knew him wrote a paragraph or two about him and it made me think that it would be a great way for me to give homage to Mark and cover myriad thoughts and opinions about his contributions and legacy. Doing it this way would present all the various ways he affected people in their various roles as they passed through his portal. Thus it would represent a much more thorough and anecdotal account with a more fair and balanced overview of his role as the “heart and soul of Marvel Comics” and what that actually meant. I’ve read some articles over the years, and especially one by Chris Roberson in July of 2007, more than a decade after Mark’s passing, claiming that he was the “father of the modern superhero comic.” As the ultimate fanboy-made-good success story, he was constantly writing heady treatises on fictional reality, logically depicting the Omniverse, or the sum total of all the Universes. He was always seeking to systematize

parallel dimensions and time travel and tackle weighty topics like the dividing line between Earth-One and Earth-Two in which all of the stories fit nicely into either world, or perhaps a parallel of Earth with a primary system of its own. He was the comic equivalent to Buckminster Fuller. He was hired by Jim Shooter because of his self-published fanzine, Omniverse, which was a precursor to The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe. He had a ruthless attention to detail and desire for rationalization that were hallmarks of his personality and professional work. He truly felt that comic books were the modern equivalent of mythology and that all the characters operating within could be codified and described in the minutest of detail, with front, back, and side views and descriptive texts of characteristics. He was proud of his geekdom and nerdiness and even bragged that Barry Dutter, in his cartoon novella with Rick Parker (All I Know I Learned from Television), cited the truism that when all is said and done, the nerds attract all the babes in the end. He showed me this page in their book and smiled saying he didn’t mind me being the glamorous one and him being the “ug bug.” I laughed uproariously. This was after we had been dating for over a year, though, and he was feeling confident in our relationship. So here, dear readers, are a wide variety of colleagues, friends, current and former industry pros, even some fans who owe a great deal to Mark and what he communicated and inspired them to do, both in and out of the comic-book world. Seems as though what they learned from their time with good ol’ Gru seemed to pay off in myriad ways, whether they are still working in the business or not! Like me, even though I was never in the comic-book profession per se, I gained a tremendous amount about leadership and creating an atmosphere where creativity can flourish. We both wanted to interact closely with likeminded people who were inspired to use their talents, tap into their sense of fun and frivolity, and contribute their personal best to their chosen line of work. Some were written by the folks themselves, others were interviews, some summations of extractions and compilations of reunions, with the sole purpose of having them recount their remembrances of Mark. Here’s what they said in their own words. – Catherine Schuller Dedicated to the memory of Joan Lee, the ultimate comic-book wife.

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Photo by Marcus Isaac.

Squadron Supreme TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. Superman and Batman TM & © DC Comics.

PETER SANDERSON

Everyone who knew Mark had their own particular relationship with him. Our relationship was scholarly and academically inclined. Mark’s early writing was a Treatise on Comic Reality that he had written with his father. In actuality, it could have been a college paper on physics, instead it was on time-travel principles featuring DC and Marvel Comics. The principle is that time cannot be changed. But the possibilities of many outcomes of the same event exist and the repercussions of that is called divergence. We would discuss heady concepts together. I think Mark saw that I was someone who appreciated the scholarly approach. We were both devoted to comics and Mark especially was devoted to the Silver Age of Comics. Several of his major creator heroes were Julie Schwartz and Gardner Fox. One can see the influence of DC books in Mark’s works. Mark loved Marvel, though, and especially because it was based on a shared fictional universe. Mark was drawn to Marvel’s treatment of characterization. Marvel brought in characters with dilemmas and issues and flaws and allowed those to develop in storylines. He also wanted to draw from the past and bring it to the present, to reward readers who had been into the books for years and give them a sense of nostalgia as well as attracting new readers simply with a great story. That was in essence why he was such a great continuity cop. He didn’t believe in ignoring the Marvel Universe history and its rich past. When I was first hired by Mark, I was working on semi-scholarly projects such as The Amazing World of DC Comics, cataloguing all the Justice League of America characters. Mark also hired me to read through the entire library to take notes that led to The History of the DC Universe, Crisis on Infinite Earths, and Who’s Who. After that, my next project was helping to create The Official Handbook of Marvel Universe, which was Mark’s answer to Jim Shooter’s request to create something like baseball cards with players’ stats. OHOTMU wrote to a high level of engrossing detail, recounting the minutest aspects of all the characters, and treated them as “real people with real lives.” Writing this became too much for him to do, so he invited me to write an appendix where I did secondary characters. I was doing full-page entries eventually by the end, doing the deluxe editions, I writing as much as Mark. My writing was so close to his that we were writing in the same voice. After that, Mark created an actual job for me as the Marvel archivist. I was in charge of the entire library and Mark saw to it that I was given the job of assistant continuity cop for two years. Mark grew up reading Marvel and grew up reading Stan’s Bullpen Bulletins and about how comics were created. (Even though it really wasn’t like that, because most were working at home; Mark wanted Marvel to be one big, happy family and community working together!) The antithesis of his scholarly treatment of comics was all the fun, merry mischief, and game shows he would do with the fans at Comic-Con. The fans loved his irreverent, nerdy yet highly interactive approach. Fans got to see their creators as buffoons, real people who would humiliate themselves to Mark’s glee. He wanted to simultaneously exonerate comics and denigrate their preciousness. Bobbing for Comics, Tapeheads, Marvel Overboard, and Planet of the Fans (with John Byrne as the Pope!) all capitalized on dethroning (read: mutilating) the exalted place of comic books in the hearts and minds of the fans. Staffers, execs, fans, freelancers, Marvel Universe characters—all were fodder for Mark’s sense of hilarity and community. It was a part of his lifestyle, and engaging everyone in the adventure of comics on every level was his collaborative dream. Ah, but I digress… Simply put: It was a joy to come to work at Marvel in those days.

GLENN GREENBERG

I was in Mark’s assistant editor classes for at least a year. I kept going until he stopped giving them. But here’s what I remember most from his classes: As Marvel’s self-appointed “schoolmarm,” Grueny led a weekly assistant editors’ workshop. And it was through this workshop that I started to get to know him a little

Hero Handbook (center) The first three issues of The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and (opposite page top) American Eagle’s entry (courtesy of Eliot R. Brown), from issue #1 (Jan. 1983). TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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better. Each week, he would teach the art of writing and editing comics to the group that he referred to as the “future editors of America.” Mark had put together an entire course curriculum, one that would get us through an entire year. Each session began with him announcing, “Media shower,” which was a call for us to spend the next few minutes going around the room discussing movies or TV shows we’d seen, or books or comics or magazine articles that we’d read since the previous week. The idea was to discuss what could be learned from these other forms of media in terms of storytelling or communicating ideas. It was a very useful exercise, one that I’m not sure we all appreciated at the time. I remember one session in which Mark enthusiastically praised radio personality Howard Stern for his ability to effectively recap past events related to the radio show. Grueny started off by asking, “Ever listen to the Howard Stern show from beginning to end?” Being a longtime Stern fan, my answer was an unequivocal “Yes.” Grueny then asked: “Ever notice how if Howard makes reference in the 9 o’clock hour to something that happened in, say, the 6 o’clock hour, he’ll go out of his way to give a full recap?” Again, my answer was “Yes.” Grueny went on to ask, “Ever wonder why he does that?” To be honest, I’d never really given it any thought. Mark then said, “The recap is not particularly useful for someone who’s been listening to the show since 6 o’clock, but what about the people just tuning in at 9? They’d be lost if Howard only made vague references to something that they completely missed. Howard is very adept at filling in listeners on what they might have missed, while still moving the show forward.” (This was many years before Stern’s move to satellite radio. Nowadays, Stern is most likely to tell his listeners, “Listen to the replay if you missed it.”) Mark connected Stern’s approach back to comics: He pointed out that every issue of a comic is some reader’s first issue, and while there’s nothing wrong with extended storylines, you have to play fair with new readers. You have to give them enough of a recap so that they can pick up on what’s been going on—but do it in a way that’s not frustrating to the regular readers. I took that lesson to heart, and always kept it in mind whenever I edited or wrote a comic book. I also came to understand Howard Stern’s show even better than before. There were so many other lessons I learned from Mark about writing and editing, too many to recount in one sitting. He took his role as a “shaper of young minds” very seriously, and it was a pleasure—and an honor—to be one of his many “disciples.” Those lessons have stayed with me to this day, and I’m grateful to Mark for being such an effective teacher.

TIMOTHY J. TUOHY

It was 1992 and I had officially joined the staff of Marvel Comics. I went from editorial intern, also known as “gofer,” to assistant editor. I had made it! I even got my own business cards. I had real responsibilities and I was going to make sure that I was the best assistant in the biz! John Romita, Jr. eventually said I was on the poster he autographed for me! But aside from the responsibilities that went along with my new title, I had obligations. One of those obligations was attending the weekly assistant editors class led by a man who would make a life-long impression on me—Mark Gruenwald.

The Beginning: I walked into Marvel’s offices with some knowledge of the people with whom I’d be working with. I knew of Mark and his vast Curriculum Vitae, but nothing, nothing could have prepared me for the impact he would have on me. Mark was kind and giving of his time to me as an intern. Never too much and never too little. The transient nature of the intern program might have been the cause of that for when I became an actual employee, the floodgates of his knowledge burst open. His eagerness to share anything and everything comic book–related was never-ending and infectious. (I’d like to think that is why I was a favorite among the interns when I became an editor!) Admittedly, at that time, I was not the best student in college. I had difficulties with some of my professors—their lack of understanding of my Marvel aspirations was a key factor. But my classes with Mark were an entirely different matter altogether. The Middle: Once a week, Mark assembled all the assistant editors into the lavish 10th floor conference room. It was someone’s job to refresh the monthly Marvel comics inside the wall-length display case behind our four-color taskmaster. Mark was a seeming encyclopedia of comics knowledge and techniques: plot, MacGuffin, red herring, subplot, deus ex machina, complex vs. complicated, voice, and the two subjects that resonated with and have stayed with me to this very day—art must work both in black and white and in color, and every issue, no matter how complex, the plotting must have a Beginning a Middle and an End. To somebody who was pursuing a degree in Communication and Design Technology, Mark was something to behold. Week after week we sat there trying to absorb whatever we could. Sometimes there were concepts presented that were very basic and other times there concepts so subtle that we all smacked our heads in amazement. No subject in the process was off limits—writing, penciling, inking, lettering, coloring, and even how to have a good letters page was covered. All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 39

One class I found to be particularly useful was far and away in the subtle category—Balloon Placement. Some writers did it, some gave suggestions, others left it up to the editing team. I actually enjoyed it. The End: The end came in many different forms and in many different emotional levels. The first end came with my promotion to associate editor. In effect, I had graduated. I no longer needed to attend Mark’s classes. Humorously it would take another eight years before I would graduate from college! Instead, I was now able to go to editorial retreats and the like, surrounded by people whose books I had read and pored over time and again. It was at one of those retreats that Mark pulled one of the greatest practical jokes that I have ever been a witness or victim of. So great was it, that I gave Mark the honor of cutting off my own ponytail in the legendary Marvel Bullpen. (Mark had had a ponytail for many years himself…) That, however, is a story for another time. The end came again when I was laid off. I was rehired four months later with the title of “editor,” but things in the offices were different. If I recall, there were no more assistant editor classes. The end came again when Mark passed. The end finally came when I was let go again. This time for good. For almost ten years, Mark Gruenwald was a part of my life. He managed to be idol, mentor, colleague, and friend. Looking back on the bosses I had, I tried to do my best job for them. For Mark, I wanted to make him proud. I wanted him to know that I didn’t just hear what he said—I listened.

KEVIN SOMERS

I was sort of a special case because I was a misfit and a bit of a thorn in Mark’s side at first. I came into his assistant editors class and I wasn’t hanging on his every word. I knew who he was, that he was in the background of everything, always at Marvel. He was a fixture, but that didn’t mean that I was going to try and be a “yes man.” I challenged him and always put up an intellectual argument and confronted him at every turn. To my surprise, he loved it! He would smile at me and he wasn’t a bit defensive about my attacks. I think I questioned everything and resisted him at every turn. He was happy to have me as that antagonistic element in class. At least I was thinking. He constantly reminded us how fun this comic-book medium could be. But, if you had a goofy character, it still had to be written well. Once I realized that he wanted my antagonistic approach, and actually encouraged it, and didn’t want to have “kiss asses” around him, I totally respected him and loved him. I enjoyed his inclusive approach so much. He wasn’t just lecturing, he wanted engagement. If I made a valid point, he would listen and pay attention. There was no ego about the creative process as far as he was concerned. He encouraged us to think up ten bad ideas, keep thinking up ideas and discussing them. He gave advice to everyone and wanted to help people

Hawkeyed Creator (top) Mark, in ’83, surveying the NYC subway for reference for his (bottom) Hawkeye miniseries, which he wrote and penciled. Art scan courtesy of Heritage. (opposite) Gru at Marvel in his patented “deadpan overpose.” Hawkeye TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. Photos courtesy of and © Eliot R. Brown.

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get closer to where they wanted to be. And when things got really bad and ugly around 1995–1996, the worse it got, the more he showed up with enthusiasm and kept trying to cheer people up. He had such strength and an emotional capacity. I think he was a great leader because of all these reasons. He taught me so much on so many levels. There are some things that I use to this day. For instance, his characterwheel analysis… I was so blown away by that and I’ve actually used it and analyzed my life using that to place everyone in my life on my own personal character wheel. It’s amazing and it totally works. He had a “relate-ability” with everyone that allowed him to find common ground and work well with everyone.

CARL POTTS

For 13 years I was fortunate enough to experience working and playing with Mark on Marvel’s editorial staff. For Mark, work and play at Marvel were integrated. He loved working in comics and playing in (and sometimes outside) the Marvel Universe sandbox. Mark also loved interacting with the Marvel staffers and freelance creators. He took his job and responsibilities seriously and was compelled to do them to the best of his ability. His professional responsibilities came first, but wherever possible, play was part of work. Though somewhat of an introvert by nature, Mark’s enthusiasm for all things related to comics and pop culture made him the driving force behind Marvel’s office parties, fun/silly games as well as inventive and hilarious practical jokes. He was also the force behind Marvel’s convention activities with the fans. All of this helped to generate and perpetuate what was the best office/corporate culture I’ve ever encountered. For the most part, the editorial office culture was casual, dedicated, friendly, highly creative, collaborative, and professional. It was also a lot of fun. Mark personified those traits and led by example. Despite their slight initial discomfort, Mark prodded many of his more introverted and reserved Marvel comrades to take part in public events, activities, and fun mayhem. To our delight and everlasting gratitude, Mark prompted us to do things outside of our comfort zones that we would not have otherwise experienced. His example gave those with ideas for their own creative hijinks to execute them instead of just filing them in the wastebasket. All of this was in the service of turning out great comics and making Marvel the best if could be and a super-creative place to work. Research has shown that creativity is often tied to “play.” Mark knew this intuitively before he was shown the research. Creative and editorial brainstorming with Mark was always fun and productive. He knew the wonders and history of the Marvel Universe better than anyone. Mark reveled in cooking up new stories and concepts. The assistant editor training course Mark and Tom DeFalco devised helped give a generation of Marvel editors a well-rounded foundation in all aspects of the job. Mark’s own creative work on projects like Captain America and Squadron Supreme also inspired industry pros and fans. I feel sorry for those who were not fortunate enough to experience what it was like to work and play with Mark.

given issue, I’d consult on which figure would be given prominence (although in virtually every case, an obvious choice had already been determined when the lineup for that particular issue had been laid out). I also worked with Mark on the Amalgam Comics week that was a part of the larger Marvel vs. DC project. The specific title I edited, Spider-Boy, was ostensibly under the umbrella of my regular boss, the head of the Spider-Man unit, Bob Budiansky. But because of its connection to the larger project, and the need to coordinate the various amalgamated characters across not simply six Marvel editorial offices but six DC offices as well, Mark was also involved as a consulting editor. The specific event that I remember about Mark as an editor was in conjunction with this project. Because Spider-Boy was considered an important part of the Amalgam launch, we got our cover artwork done early for promotional purposes and the promotions department wound up coloring it using bluelines (a process by which an acetate copy of the line art was generated and then the image was fully painted behind it, as opposed to the more-limited process color available to us during this period). I thought it looked great and wanted to use it on the cover of the final book. But Bob Budiansky disagreed. He felt (probably rightly) that Spider-Boy didn’t pop well enough against the deep blue background, and he wanted to have it redone with a bright yellow background against which the character would really jump. I thought that would look garish and awful, and so I took my concerns to Mark—and he hatched a plan. We waited until a day when Bob was going to be out of the office for something—some vacation or scheduled thing. And on that day, Mark signed off on the cover as executive editor and we ran it around and got it sent off to press. The idea being that, if Bob came back and was unhappy about this, Mark could feign ignorance, that he didn’t realize that Bob hadn’t seen it or wanted changes. As it turned out,

TOM BREVOORT

I didn’t work directly with Mark Gruenwald on very much. For most of my editorial career up to that time, I was in either the special projects area or the Spider-Man group, whereas Mark presided over the Marvel Heroes group. But he was the executive editor, the number-two man in the editorial chain of command, and so I attended his weekly editor school classes where he’d try to impart the wisdom of those who came before on the latest crop of young would-be editors. And I was aware of him both as a writer and as an editor from his Mark’s Remarks columns and assorted other pieces from his fan days. I directly worked with Mark on two projects. Firstly, I was his final assistant editor on The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition, the not-well-beloved three-ring binder version. Mark by this point had the machinery of the Handbook pretty well oiled, so my duties tended to be more mechanical than anything—getting text typeset and speced up, and so forth. He did make me write the text page that was included in each shrink-wrapped edition—he believed that every assistant editor should be writing at least one letters page as a way of honing their skills and connecting with the audience. And because the cover sheets were composited together from the interior artwork on any All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 41

it wasn’t a big deal for Bob either way, so no explosion ever happened as a result. But the printed cover is the version that I had wanted. I don’t know whether or not Mark agreed with me that the version we sent to press looked better than the other version would have, but he backed my judgment as the editor and even gamed the system a little bit in order to allow me to have my way. That was true of Mark as executive editor in general: While the job often called for being an adherent to whatever policy Marvel might be putting forward at the moment, Mark’s own anarchic nature caused him to surreptitiously act on behalf of the work, and on behalf of the creators who made the work.

LARRY HAMA

Mark once told me that my scripts were very “old fashioned.” When I asked him what that meant, he said, “The characters are likable and the stories make sense.” I think that best describes his own editing style, in that those were the things he was looking for in the books he edited. He was also a traditionalist, who felt responsible for the custodianship of the characters he was entrusted with. He fought to keep the characters true to their fundamental core at a time when there was tremendous pressure to “come up with big events,” or “bring them up to date with modern times.”

HOWARD MACKIE

I was lucky enough to have Mark Gruenwald as my first comic-book boss, mentor, and friend at the very beginning of my career. My work before becoming Mark’s assistant could not have been more different (Import/Export) from the madcap creative environment that I walked into back in the ’80s. I spent a little over two years sharing an office slightly larger than a walk-in closet, and quite a bit smaller than the typical studio apartment that an assistant editor could afford in NYC at the time. In such close proximity, you had to like the guy you were sitting next to, and you had no choice but to learn. Later in his career, executive editor Mark went on to conduct assistant editors’ school for all staff assistants. There one learned the craft needed in editing comics, character development, and storytelling.

I’m pretty sure that Mike Carlin (Mark’s first assistant) and I were the first recipients of all those lessons. Though, I think the greatest lessons were learned through osmosis. You can’t sit next to a guy for eight to ten or 12 or more hours a day and not absorb his editorial styles. Yes, I learned catch phrases when copy editing like “when in doubt, take it out,” or how to place balloons so that the eye flowed across a comic-book page, and many other practical skills. But… the more important lessons were in watching Mark deal with the countless freelance writers, artists, colorists, letterers, and staff members. I learned to value the contributions of each person who helped in the creation of the comics we produced. I learned to pick up the phone and call each creator upon receipt of their art, their coloring, lettering, etc. I learned to find one thing on each page to compliment them on the work they’d done. I learned to create relationships with each person involved in the production of the books, so that more often than not they were helping out Mark and Howard rather than Marvel. I learned many other lessons from Mark. Lessons about life, relationships, and yes… about writing… but I would go on for a few more pages to convey them all. I started writing up all those lessons, but know that I’m already running long, so… when in doubt, take it out! I think about Mark almost every day, and miss him more than I can ever put into words.

JANICE CHAING

Mark Gruenwald was foremost a mentor, someone who led by example and words of encouragement. The camaraderie among my male colleagues was strong and a situation I didn’t participate in. Our relationship was about our collaborative effort on series such as Captain America, D.P. 7, Squadron Supreme, and Quasar. I really got to know Mark through his writings. Mark was always a gentleman and gentle soul. Every time I’m hand-lettering and it looks like the right side is going to be tight, I think, “Mark knows I can get this word in the space.” I letter the Spider-Man dailies every week and the full Sunday page bimonthly. So, yes, Mark is here with me.

Handbook Hysteria (left) Gru’s poster concept design for the interlocking OHOTMU covers, courtesy of Eliot R. Brown. (right) You can almost hear Three Stooges–like snoring in this Handbook sleepover photo featuring Eliot Brown, Mike Carlin, and Mark Gruenwald. Eliot, who kindly contributed the photo, took it himself on “an old mechanical camera, my doughty Nikon FM,” on its five-second shutter mode. “I was sprightly enough to dash from the ‘trip’ position, jump over Mike, and assume a fetching pose.” OHOTMU TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. Photo © Eliot R. Brown.

42 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

GLENN HERDLING

More on the assistant editor classes Mark created at Marvel: The class was usually held first thing on Monday mornings. Mark would always begin with movie reviews. We would deconstruct some of the new releases from a storytelling aspect. To this day, I always set up my weekly status meetings with my staff on Monday mornings, and I began the meeting with who saw what the past weekend. I vividly remember one class where Tom [DeFalco] was in attendance. The topic of the class was the conclusion to your story. I think Mark and Tom were trying to make the argument that you can’t have a good story without a good ending. I chimed in and said I thought that Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home was a great movie, but the ending with the whales totally sucked. Mark and Tom reluctantly agreed, as did most of the class. Then I said that The Wizard of Oz was a phenomenal movie but the ending sucked, too. That sparked debate. I said that Glinda the Good Witch of the North was a total bitch because she could have told Dorothy how to get home the moment she gave her the slippers, but instead sent her on a life-threatening quest to do her bidding. Mark said he had never thought about it that way before. We also discussed how it was a cop-out to say the whole thing was a dream. This was shortly after it was revealed that an entire season of the TV drama Dallas had been a dream.

ROB TOKAR

When someone is gone, especially before their time, it’s tempting to portray them to be better than they were. Mark Gruenwald would be the first person to acknowledge that he was not perfect. Like everyone, he had off-days and frustrations, and I can clearly remember times when he was miserable or angry. But those times are vastly outnumbered by the days when he recognized how lucky all of us were to do what we did. I started at Marvel as a college intern and when I was hired as an assistant editor, Marvel became my first “real” job. I had nothing with which to compare it at the time, so I didn’t realize how special it really was. I was fortunate enough to work with Mark in several different respects and the older I get, the more I appreciate how good he was at the many roles he played: Mark the Executive: As Marvel’s executive editor, Mark had to find the balance between representing the editor-in-chief to the editorial staff and vice-versa. From my admittedly limited view, it seemed like he did it well. I felt like I had an advocate if/when I needed one, but Mark was not afraid to take responsibility for his own decisions. There were times he denied my requests and he didn’t take the easy way out by putting the blame for the denial on his bosses. Mark the Manager/Supervisor: As a manager, Mark was positive, upbeat, courteous, and professional and his groan-inducing sense of humor helped reduce the many stresses of monthly publishing. He openly loved working for Marvel but could still acknowledge the company’s flaws. Mark was encouraging and truly open to suggestions for improving any aspect of our department. When I had ideas, I wrote them to him in memos (for anyone under 40, it’s how we communicated in writing before email, texts, Facebook, Twitter, etc.), and he actually read and considered them. So when the office manager said

we couldn’t recycle office paper, Mark approved my request to do it myself. He asked me what I needed, made sure I got it, and then checked in periodically to see how it was going and to share some feedback. That was my experience with his managerial style in general, and I liked it. Mark was slow to anger and on the occasions when I came to him full of frustrated rage, he didn’t rise to my heightened emotional state—he stayed calm and I cooled down to match him. He often shared his own experiences as an editor (good and bad) as a way of helping to solve problems and to show some empathy for whatever was going wrong. Mark’s feedback was delivered constructively and he didn’t micro-manage. I appreciated Mark’s efforts to make our new project review process fairer by taking creators’ names off of pitches and setting up diverse committees to review them. It didn’t mean that the review process was easy—just that it gave all of the material a chance to be judged on its own merits. I’ve known some bosses who feel threatened by their employees, especially the ones with new ideas and lots of passion. Those managers let their insecurities scare them into keeping down or getting rid of their critics. All of my managers at Marvel (Mark included) seemed to recognize that criticism can be constructive and it can show that someone truly cares and wants to make improvements. Mark the Educator: Each editorial office was its own state with its own set of rules laid down by the editor. Some editors got their assistants involved in all aspects of the editorial and production process, while others wouldn’t let their assistants open the FedEx deliveries without them being present. Mark recognized these disparities and he ran the weekly assistant editor meeting/ assistant editor school to help assistants with any gaps in their knowledge and to groom the next round of editors. As an assistant, I appreciated that management actually seemed to care about my future. When I became a manager, I realized how smart it was to have a reserve of trained, talented people to draw from when needed. When I became an editor, Mark was the one who introduced me to a series of videos called The Unorganised Manager (they’re British, hence the spelling). They were funny and insightful and very painful to watch because I saw so much of myself in them. Mark wasn’t the shaming type, though—he didn’t just point out my obvious flaws, he gave me the tools I needed to work on them. Even 20+ years later, I still value the lessons I learned from these videos. Marvel subsidized classes and paid 100% of classes that related to our jobs. I got to take drawing classes at the School of Visual Arts and learn Photoshop all on the company’s dime. Mark encouraged us to use these perks and it was another win-win: I was spending evenings improving job-related skills and Mark was getting a more knowledgeable employee. Mark the Inspirer/Community Builder: I’ve known some managers who think an adversarial, competitive atmosphere gets the best results, but

Marking Time Courtesy of Eliot R. Brown, one of Gruenwald’s daily priority lists. All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 43

MIKE CARLIN

[Catherine’s note: Perhaps the relationship that would be labeled a “bromance” by today’s nomenclature is the one Mark had with Mike Carlin. Even though Mike left and went to DC—and has been there for over 25 years at this writing—he loves to harken back to those first years when Mark taught him the “ropes.”]

Attention to Detail Gru proofs the Professor X entry from The Official Handbook to the Marvel Universe #8 (Aug. 1983). Photo courtesy of and © Eliot R. Brown.

Mark seemed to believe that happy people who like each other will work together more effectively than unhappy people who dislike each other. To that end, Mark would MC most (if not all) of the parties we had, including ridiculous party games designed to get people to relax, laugh, and have a good time. I don’t recall using the terms “bonding” or “teambuilding” back then, but Mark made both happen on a regular basis. As in his other roles, Mark set the tone here, too: positive, upbeat, inclusive, friendly, caring, respectful, and fun. I don’t remember him ever making jokes at others’ expense or letting anyone feel like they were being abused for the amusement of the crowd. He created what some might call a “safe space” to have fun so that even the shy folks could join in. Mark honored me by allowing me to be his “second banana” and round people up to join in the activities and it was important to him that these gatherings went well. People from other departments would attend and for an hour or two, we’d all build some good memories together. I could clearly see that these activities helped my working relationships with other departments. Mark also organized a group of us to help generate some original programming for conventions. To inspire us, Mark took us to see the Blue Man Group (which was new at the time) to show us just how much could be possible. It was cheap (we wrote and performed it all and we were going to be at the cons anyway) and we tried to use them to amuse the fans while promoting new releases with our own “commercials” thrown in. Some of our material was okay, some was terrible, and a few bits were actually pretty good. When we did them, we ended up with a bigger crowd at the end than the beginning so I think it accomplished what Mark wanted. None of us received any extra pay or reward for being a part of it—we did it because it Mark was giving us a chance to be creative, do something different and to have fun. In an attempt to counter the effects of our sedentary jobs, Mark also organized our company’s participation in a 5K run called the Corporate Challenge. Most of us who joined in were not runners (unless someone was chasing us), but it was never truly about the running—it was a chance to gather folks together, dress in matching shirts, and have some fun together. And after the run was over, we’d go out somewhere and have a great time undoing all of the health benefits that came with the run. So, what was it like working for Mark? It was absolutely great. Every job has its stressors, BS, and headaches, but not every job comes with a manager who loves what he does and is willing to share that passion in so many positive ways. Though Mark is physically gone, the lessons he taught and the example he set live on in all of us who had the pleasure of working with him. 44 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

CATHERINE SCHULLER: You were Mark’s first assistant editor. Something about that must have been monumental for him and you. Why was it such a moment in time that I sensed he cherished so much? MIKE CARLIN: It never occurred to me to be an editor of any kind, and when Mark was promoted to full editor, Larry Hama (editor of Marvel’s Crazy Magazine, which I was writing and drawing features for) suggested to Mark that he interview me. As you know, Mark had a wicked sense of the absurd besides his sense of humor, and we clearly spoke the same language. Mark was fun and funny and I was funny and fun. I don’t know who else Mark interviewed, but after he took his chance on me we hit it off instantly literally and honestly becoming best friends and partners in crime from day one. The day he picked me was monumental for me because I was getting paid to work on comic books, which is all I ever wanted to do (I wanted to draw them, but wasn’t good enough for the actionadventure stuff, and again, being an editor never crossed my mind). Who gets to do what they wanted to do when they were eight years old? I can’t speak for why Mark valued my help and friendship except to say that he always liked a good, cheap laugh, and they didn’t come much cheaper than me. SCHULLER: You once told me that you considered Mark your best friend, but you didn’t know if you were his. Why? CARLIN: I can’t decide who someone else’s best friend in life would be; I can only decide my own. There are periods in your life where your best friend changes (I had a different best friend in grammar school than I did in high school… folks flow in and out). But even when I stopped working for Mark and then left Marvel, making new friends at DC Comics, Mark was always there. Dinners. Movies (nobody else wanted to see Weird Al’s UHF! Or the time we had to sit separately in a packed theater for Buckaroo Banzai on opening day, where our two loud laughs were the only ones heard for some of that movie’s most oddball lines). Comic-cons (where I’d crash his Marvel panels and get some plugs in for DC stuff). We always gravitated back together. I also know that Mark had a lot of friends from his childhood from his fanzine days from his years at Marvel before I swooped in, and again after I left. I’d never presume to make the “best friend” call for him. SCHULLER: What three words would you use to describe Mark as an editor? CARLIN: Meticulous. Trustworthy. And Right. SCHULLER: What made him unique in his editing abilities? CARLIN: Well, obviously, his near-encyclopedic knowledge of comicbook history—and not just Marvel’s, but DC’s as well. This knowledge informed what stories he’d write and/or shape as an editor. Knowing what has come before means you can build on stuff, or sometimes, more importantly not duplicate material done before. Mark was also very generous. He didn’t hoard what he thought were good ideas. He’d give bits and premises to all the writers he worked with. And he also knew to never be precious regarding any idea. He was always confident that if one idea didn’t fly, there’d be ten others right behind it in his brain. SCHULLER: What was the best project you did together? CARLIN: Best comic project ever was Marvel vs. DC/Amalgam Comics. This was another case of Mark coming back into my life as a friend and collaborator even while we both worked for competing companies. Marvel’s Terry Stewart and DC’s Paul Levitz were at some kind of meeting where the idea of an event between the two companies came up, and those two fellows wisely said “Hey! Mike’s the head editor for the DC Universe and Mark’s a head editor for the Marvel Universe and they’re friends! No-brainer.” Then they stepped back and let us play coming up with the melded “Amalgams” of characters between America’s two favorite Universes (“Super-Soldier,” “Spider-Boy,” “X-Patrol,” etc. Too bad we never got to do “Alfred Jarvis: Giant-Size Man-Servant”) was literally a hoot! We had so much fun doing this project, and it literally was the last thing I’d get to do with Mark.

Outside of comics Mark, myself, and third stooge Eliot R. Brown actually wrote and performed our own eight-episode cable TV “comedy” show for Manhattan Cable around 1984. We enlisted the help of other Marvel editors and freelancers and shot the show in my apartment in Brooklyn. Is it good/funny? I dunno, but, man, it was the most fun to do with my friends! SCHULLER: What was the best and worst thing about working with Mark? CARLIN: The best thing was that Mark was a great audience, and the worst thing is that he never wanted the “show” to end. His stamina for the work (we actually slept over weekends in the Marvel offices to get The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe out every month) and his stamina for goofing around, sometimes meant there was no other time left for anything at all. SCHULLER: Did you two ever have a disagreement? What was it over? CARLIN: Nope. Never a problem, ever, not once. It’s part of how I know he is my best friend. SCHULLER: What was his philosophy on storytelling and editing? CARLIN: Mark’s philosophy on storytelling was all about being clear and truthful to the characters themselves. His philosophy regarding editing was similar. It was his job to make sure that what the writers and artists were doing was coming across clearly and in being true to the characters. Beyond that, Mark’s bedside manner was all about being honest with the talent he was working with. There are times when hard news must be delivered, a scene’s not working or an artist’s style isn’t gelling, things like that, and many editors avoid leveling with a writer or artist— but not Mark. He’d do the job part of the editing job, and having shared an office with him it’s one of the things that I hope I have learned and perpetuate when I edit stories. SCHULLER: His editing classes were epic. Did you take them as well?

CARLIN: Sadly, the classes mostly started after I was at DC, but, as I said, I shared an office with Mark and there is no better way to learn anything than by osmosis. I saw how Mark talked on the phone, how he’d ask for changes, and how he’d solve problems. I think what I had with Mark was better than classes. I said this at his memorial in 1996—I knew that my five years at Marvel Comics in the early ’80s were the “good old days” while I was living them. They were then, they are now, because Gru made sure they would be.

GREGORY WRIGHT

Mark Gruenwald was not your typical comic-book editor. His office was spartan. Nothing was allowed on the desk. No files were to be labeled, and all comic books were in magazine boxes, turned so you could only see the unlabeled back of the box. Desks were on an elevated platform, with art files underneath. There was a secret compartment in the platform one might hide away in. There was a large bulletin board that covered up the windows that looked out onto the Bullpen. This was covered by meticulous updated pages from The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe. From his desk, Mark could always see the progress of each issue at a glance. Despite this seemingly OCD and uptight outward manner, Mark was the heart of Marvel and generally the center of all pranks and fun. All of us who had the privilege of working with him were touched by him forever, because of his generosity of creativity and spirit. It’s easy to say that Mark’s meticulous attention to detail rubbed off on me in my comic work as a writer and color artist. We frequently collaborated to correct so-called mistakes other creators made in comics by coming up with new stories to explain those mistakes. He taught me to use mistakes as a starting point for something new and better. He taught me to open my mind to ideas that were not my own, and that I may have rejected.

Clash of the Titans (left) Gruenwald and Carlin, at Marvel. (top right) Hamming it up in a Marvel vs. DC publicity photo. (bottom right) The big event! Left photo © Eliot R. Brown. Right photo courtesy of Catherine Schuller. Marvel characters TM & © Marvel. DC characters TM & © DC Comics.

All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 45

All Together Now! Four examples of the DC/Marvel hybrid line, Amalgam Comics. (opposite) Gru at his Marvel desk. Courtesy of Eliot R. Brown. Comics TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. and DC Comics. Photo © Eliot R. Brown.

Today, I work with children with special needs. Mark’s unique patience and ability to accept and celebrate those things that are different about everyone stay with me. It has helped me to find ways to teach those children who don’t learn the same way as everyone else. We always thought that Mark would have made an incredible teacher. Of course, he always was, especially by example.

JAMES FELDER

When I think of Mark, I think about the love of structure and systems replication. His philosophy was, “Leave the sandbox better than you found it.” The fact that the Marvel Universe is the largest fictional backdrop ever created, with over 3,500 characters, was a massive task for Mark to take over as custodian. He loved implementing systems and keeping them up and running, and passing on the torch to those new editors coming up through the ranks was his way of doing that. He wanted to provide in-house training that would benefit the system of comic-book creation. The up-and-coming new talent was rotating quickly in those days so that the

lifespan of an assistant editor was short because they were being promoted in rapid-fire succession. But Grueny came up with a tri-semester format where he discussed a new topic and analyzed it every Monday. He created a course syllabus and I use it today in my teachings at NYU. Best blueprint ever. It was a practical approach with a massive perspective. He looked at the classic Marvel method, advantages of following and breaking the rules, character wheels, what was selling and why, flavor of the month, fake comics, knowing the Marvel history, flow of events, teaching concepts like “top copy” (that line above the splash page). Grueny would place all the covers up on a wall and ask us to see overall patterns and trends in them. One time I remember that every cover that had a tombstone on it was canceled thereafter! Grueny loved chaos because he loved being able to fix things. He showed us John Cleese’s management videos that had an ironic, Monty Python approach. He was serious and silly at all times. He certainly believed in laughter and learning as inter-connectedly linked. He made countless flow charts, organizing and categorizing everything. I remember asking Flo Steinberg (Stan Lee’s first assistant) what happened when they had a bad issue that didn’t sell in the ’40s/’50s/’60s: “Oh, honey, we didn’t think about it that much… we had lives in those days.”

RICK PARKER

I don’t often remember 99% of my dreams, but I remember the dreams I have had about Mark. And I’ve had many dreams with him in them, over 50 or more since he passed away. I remember thinking that he was dead in the dream, but that he looked pretty good! They were always nice dreams. He looked happy and having fun. To know Mark was to know that he was a truly decent person. I think one of his best attributes that anyone can say about him is that he changed people’s lives. He certainly changed mine. I know I’m not the same person I would have been had I not known him. I don’t think anyone worked harder or enjoyed what he did more than Mark. And he loved passing the torch. I don’t think you can do that unless you have some life experience. And in his short life, he crammed a lot into his 42 years on this Earth. He was everywhere. He had interests in every artistic medium. He played guitar. He sang and he wrote lyrics and music. He drew, he painted. He built things. He knew who he was and what made him unique. So many people are trying to conform. He discovered what he liked and was lucky to work for a company that thrived on creativity. It changed a lot at the end of his life. Probably a reason for his unbearable stress was that [Marvel] went from funloving to forlorn and the most depressing place after the bankruptcy. Visiting there was like a morgue. But he was the first person to pull people out of their dark hole. He was trying to cheer them up, to be a leader. I saw that and I was so impressed with him as a human being. He refused to give in to the evil forces. He didn’t want others to suffer, succumb, or give up either. He was everywhere—he didn’t just stay in his office. He was here and there, popping up at lunch, and after work you could tag along if you wanted to continue the good vibes. There was a lot of freedom and creative spirit he fostered. He was fearless. He rode a bike backwards. He rode a unicycle. He would do the most dangerous stunts and simply say that he “forgot to fall.” When he died, that was gone. The whole feeling of the company changed. I believe he is inside each of us, though, inside all of those people whose lives he touched. We are not the same people we would have been had we not met him, worked in his presence, and witnessed his greatness. He’s inside you and he’s inside me. I will always be grateful. 46 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

Mark was always seen as an organization freak. And to a large extent he was, but in some ways we were organizationally opposite. His exterior, like the outside of his desk, would look immaculate. But inside, it was chaos. Me, the exterior was chaos, but inside was perfect order! I think the fact that both of us were born in June and we shared that yin/yang Gemini thing. [Catherine’s note: Yes, Mark was a Gemini (June 18), although he didn’t believe in sun signs or horoscopes. Astronomy, yes; astrology, no! He thought it was all a bunch of hogwash. He said that the astrology charts that everyone reads from now are a result of the Earth’s axis having a “wobble” and that over thousands of years the recessive equinox has caused those original charts to become inaccurate.]

BUD YOUNG

I feel as though I am a different person. We do not go through the steps of life as we do without him in us somehow. We can separate it out. He was like a rock and when you throw it into the pond, the ripples just keep going outward. His work is still out there, too. We read him and he surrounds us and his love and tremendous energy lives on. We can’t take anything for granted. You have to make yourself happy and make a difference in someone else’s life. I know I will take that lesson with me. His work will be rediscovered and continue on and on and he’ll be a bigger legend than he already is. He changed the way people think and he is still so vital. He’s moved from his own body, mind, and heart into ours. And he’s welcome to stay as long as he wants.

JIM SALICRUP

In terms of Mark’s editing, I don’t think I talked much about his editing, rather his writing. I had great respect and admiration for Mark on many levels. But all creative stuff is subjective and we didn’t always see eye to eye. We both came from a love of the comic-book medium and we both were fans-turned-pros. Our childhoods were shaped by the comics we read. It’s interesting that a comic book is often the first thing a little kid buys with his own money. Our passion shaped our career paths and became a lifelong interest, and we both knew that was our foundation and connective link. I think because I had joined Marvel in 1972, almost six years before Mark, I actually worked with Stan Lee, who was the biggest success junkie and master of the hyperbole. Mark had only imagined the Bullpen that Stan had written about, when in reality it was a few guys in a dingy room, not the creative sandbox Mark imagined. He tried to turn his fantasy of Stan’s energetic Bullpen accounts into reality when he joined Marvel. I remember one time I had an exchange with Mark and there was an idea he had that I didn’t particularly like (and thinking back I may have been wrong), and Mark argued that the reason it had explorative merit was “it had never been done before.” And I flippantly said, “Sometimes there are good reasons!” Everything is about content in the end, and Mark actually may have been doing something I wasn’t ready to fully appreciate back then. I used to be very hard-nosed in those days and very straightforward—I sort of gave the impression of being opinionated and unbending. I’ve learned to lighten up and be less definitive; I’ve softened my approach in my later years. When asked the inevitable question, “What exactly does an editor do?”, my standard answer in recent years has been—to provide an environment conductive to creativity. Mark literally did that. I remember once when we were filming that Toxic Avenger stuff at Troma and Mark gave me total freedom. I’m very thankful to him for that opportunity to just do what I thought best. We may not have seen eye to eye on everything, but he knew I had my reasons and rationale if I was arguing with him. In actuality, I think he enjoyed the antagonistic approach I often had… Mark believed there are no “bad” ideas. Don’t stifle those because everything needs to come out and be examined, analyzed, and filtered. For many co-called Marvel creators, there was not an abundance of creativity, but I think Mark was actually better at expressing himself live and in person than on paper. As an editor working with Mark and his writings, Mark was like trying to housebreak a puppy—trying always to get him to do it on the paper!

I started collecting comics in 1985 when I was 14 years old. I had read comics and was a fan but never got bit by the collecting bug until I read Avengers #246 that summer. I quickly branched into Captain America, Iron Man, and the soon-to-be-launched West Coast Avengers. I was hooked. It was not lost on that young fan that the constant on those books was Mark Gruenwald. I loved his writing on Captain America, as he retooled the Serpent Society and introduced Flagsmasher. I followed him onto Squadron Supreme, which, in my opinion, was the highlight of his writing career and deserves a place on the shelf with Miller’s Dark Knight Returns and Moore’s Watchmen, books that stretched storytelling in comics and changed the way heroes are perceived. But editing is where he made his “mark” at Marvel Comics. And I’m saying this from a fan perspective. Walt Simonson’s run on Thor wouldn’t have happened if Grueny hadn’t hired him. We wouldn’t have gotten Stern/ Buscema/Palmer on Avengers. The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, a veritable encyclopedia and a true labor of love from Mark, provided me with days of poring through the various entries, giving me an early education into characters and stories that I was dying to know more about. I was a rabid reader of “Mark’s Remarks,” a column that ran in the letters columns of all the books he was editor on. This was not a job requirement but rather something he did to better communicate with and educate the fans. The topics he wrote about were always entertaining and informative, giving us readers an inside look into how to (and how not to) break into comics, what makes a good story, the history of the No-Prize, and just what the heck does an editor do anyway? Among other things. Through Mark I had a window inside the comics industry in a time where not every detail of the business was plastered across the Internet. If you wanted to talk to a creator you had to mail Marvel or show up at a convention. Social media has made it easy for fan interaction, but Mark was social before it was cool. I remember hearing about Mark’s passing in 1996 in the letters column of one of my books (I’m sure it was Avengers or something else he had edited). I thought of columns he had written, about the passing of Gardner Fox and Jack Kirby, and wondered who would write praise for him. There was plenty written of course, and several books dedicated to him, including the Marvel/DC crossover Amalgam. Later I heard of his wishes for his cremains to be mixed into a graphic novel printing of Squadron Supreme and thought how impossible a story that was. But it was true. Imagine loving your job so much that you want to become one with it at your life’s end. Over the years comics have changed. There’s not a “Five-Year Plan” in place anymore like there was when Tom DeFalco and Grueny used to meet for weekly universe-building sessions. Marvel doesn’t have the “continuity cop” to keep them in line anymore. But, as a fan, I like to think the Patron Saint of Marveldom is looking down, smiling at the success Captain America and the Avengers are enjoying, the properties he had such a huge hand in guiding for so many years. Bud Young is host of the No-Prize Podcast and Undercover Capes Podcast Network.

DAN TANDARICH

Mark Gruenwald was my Stan Lee. When my eyes finally started glancing from the comic art and words to the credit boxes and letters pages, there was one name that kept popping up over and over again. Mark Gruenwald was everywhere when I was reading comic books in the ’80s. The Avengers, Captain America, Squadron Supreme, Spider-Woman, Contest of Champions featuring Shamrock, Sabra, and the Arabian Knight… from the sublime to the ridiculous, Mark was there creating, commenting, remarking. All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 47

So many of my favorite comic-book stories and memories have Mark somewhere behind the scenes. When that realization hit me, it was like that moment from The Wizard of Oz when the curtain gets pulled back, only this time there was a real wizard behind the scenes and his name was Mark. From having Marvel’s first miniseries, The Contest of Champions, in my front bike basket ready to read on a grassy hill; to staring at Spider-Woman #50 and seeing that bizarre photo cover; from my first subscription to The Avengers which, coincidentally, was Mark’s first issue as editor; to loving Captain America not so much for Cap but for the supporting cast and new characters like the Serpent Society and Diamondback; that just kept me coming back for more. Cap was okay too, though. To moving to New York City at the same time that the Squadron Supreme collection came out with Mark “in” the pages and Catherine’s touching tribute. Mark has always just been there for me, even though I have never met the man. But for me he was the wizard behind the curtain, my Stan Lee. We all have our favorite creators, and Mark Gruenwald was mine.

TOM PALMER

It was 1985 and I had just finished an adaptation of the film 2010 for Marvel Super Special magazine when I received a call from editor Mark Gruenwald offering work on an issue of The Avengers with John Buscema. I couldn’t pass that up; it was always an honor working with John. I went to Marvel’s office to discuss the book with Mark and his assistant editor Howard Mackie. Howard met me at the front desk and escorted me to Mark’s office. I opened the door expecting a typical Marvel office but instead found a closet with a shirt and jacket on hangers. With a surprised look on my face, I turned to Howard and he told me to push the back wall of the closet. The false wall opened to a large room with Mark sitting at a judge’s courtroom desk on a platform that raised his desk above my eye level. There was Mark, gavel in hand, greeting me and enjoying the speechless response on my face! This was only my first time experiencing a Mark Gruenwald prank. That same courtroom, once it lost its shock value, was transformed a few weeks later into a warehouse with empty cardboard boxes piled to the ceiling and only a small corridor leading to Mark’s desk. While I was visiting Mark’s office another time, a freelancer who shall remain nameless entered the “warehouse” to see Mark, and before he reached his desk a column of boxes came raining down, burying the freelancer in cardboard. I had not noticed that Mark opened one of his desk drawers as the freelancer came deeper into the room; there was a hidden string that ran from the desk to some key boxes on the other side of the office that brought the whole pile down when Mark pulled the drawer open! Mark was inspired, and his creative genius and sense of humor made comics fun to create and no doubt read. I still miss the laughs. And that one issue that Mark asked me to work on turned into a monthly gig; I had so much fun that I ended up staying on The Avengers for ten years!

Divergence Courtesy of Eliot R. Brown, Gruenwald’s DC vs. Marvel System Chart, tracking the respective companies’ differing timelines. © Mark Gruenwald estate.

48 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

JACK MORELLI

It was the spring of 1978 that Marvel Comics began its Pygmalion–esque experiment to see if a ragged little dock rat off the piers of south Brooklyn might learn to conduct himself properly in professionally creative circles on Madison Avenue. The success of said venture remains in question. Is Pygmalion even the proper analogy? Perhaps Flowers for Algernon will prove more apt. Whatever the case, it would take a faculty full of Henry Higginses, and an entire brigade of Col. Pickerings, to dare the attempt. I was profoundly lucky that one of them was Mark Gruenwald. My first recollection of Mark outside work-a-day life was when he first invited me along on the daily lunchtime trips into Central Park to play volleyball. Members of the editorial and production departments would change and hurry to the park on nice days, set up a net, and get in two quick games before rushing back to meet deadlines. Mark, in his ’70s-style gym shorts, striped socks, and jogging sneakers, leapt into action to return service, and with a windmill flail, spiked the ball hard into his own side of the net. He then came down with a flat-footed slap in a broad karate pose and hollered “Zatoichi!” I figured, this character’s a few sardines short of a tin. But I was wrong. I would learn that like the ebullient Ebenezer who shocks his housekeeper with his unfettered frivolity on Christmas morning, this was someone who “hadn’t lost his senses, but come to them.” Unlike anyone I had met before, Mark had the ability to not only embrace, but celebrate his own ridiculousness. For a grown man to fully accept and execute all of his many daily responsibilities, and yet retain the silly, joyful spirit of a child, was beforehand unknown to me. An average response to something that tickled him (usually scatological in nature) was to bark out “HeeHee-Hee-Haw-Haw!” while stamping one foot and pumping out underarm flatulence. Now sometimes, when some highly anticipated something did not come off as hoped, Mark could be that same little boy, who expecting a BB gun on his birthday rushed downstairs to find only galoshes. He could fall famously sullen, but it was not his default position. He could only stay crestfallen for so long before the next scheme would absorb him completely, and have him vibrating in anticipation anew. He had always told me that I reminded him of the Sub-Mariner. More than any physical resemblance, I fear it was the faint (or not) scent of stale bait lingering from my previous employment. But one Halloween he decided that I was going to cartoonist Bob Camp’s costume gala as Subby, and bought all the necessaries himself at a theatrical supply. That night, in the small kitchen of his prewar apartment off upper Broadway he went to work. He took as much pleasure in his exacting transformation of me as he did getting himself, Mike Carlin, and Eliot Brown done up as the original Ghostbusters. We rode the subway downtown to Bob’s loft on that final chilly night of October, me wearing little more than a green, scale-covered Speedo and an embarrassed grin. The guy could talk me into anything.

At the dawn of cable television, Manhattan Cable offered free late night air time to anyone who could provide content. Mark immediately signed up and began work on Cheap Laffs, a comedy skit show à la Saturday Night Live. His co-stars and writing partners were Mike and Eliot, but there was also a parade of comics luminaries making guest appearances and cameos. Most of my duties were those of the names you see roll by at Mach 5 at the end of any credits. But Mark wrote me into several sketches as well, one of which was called “A Riddle for the Sphinx.” I was to put my face through a hole in a painted broadside of the Great Sphinx of Giza. A tiny figure on a popsicle stick danced wildly below, shrieking questions. I was then to respond in an exaggeration of my genuine accent, the result being Egypt’s answer to Ed Norton. A correct reply awarded me a “Mummy Pellet,” which was actually a cough drop fired at high velocity into my undefended kisser. The guy could talk me into anything. We all worked together everyday in what could at times be a frustrating deadline-fueled pressure cooker. Yet we were a family, too, and for the most part honestly loved each other. There was a core of people that stayed late whether they had to or not, talking, joking, just hanging out. Eight hours wasn’t enough. We’d go to the movies and dinner every Friday night. Editor and writer Ralph Macchio would generously open his house and pool to us on half-day summer Fridays, and Mark, the heart of the hijinks, would devise aquatic games and the whole gang would comply. His favorite was something he dubbed the “Butt-Dive”: You’d spring as high and far off the diving board as possible, and aim to land fanny-first into an inner tube he’d fling from poolside. Once accomplishing this became commonplace, twists, flips, and even backflips were attempted. On weekends Mark would organize outings en masse to places like Six Flags, and we’d ride all the rides twice. Otherwise he would find some small theater in town featuring obscure foreign films or vintage animation festivals, and always include me. I was broadening my tastes and learning constantly, and even came to know who the hell Zatoichi was. You could not tell Mark he could not do something. One day a memorandum came down from corporate that the age of the venerated Marvel all-nighter was over. Everyone would have to vacate the premises with the last of the cleaning crew at 11 p.m. High-powered motion detectors that could spot an escaped silverfish from the statroom slop sink were being installed. Mark had been the uncrowned champ of working sleepovers since the days of his brainchild, The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe. Along with Mike Carlin, Eliot Brown, and myself tagging along to do production, we’d stayed day and night and over weekends getting that massive undertaking completed. We’d stayed through blizzards when not only the office, but the entire city was shut down, sleeping on couches in Spidey sleeping bags. Now the gauntlet had been thrown down. Mark, and his assistant/ co-conspirator Howard Mackie, toddled off to the hardware store and returned with lumber and tools. Along with Eliot, they began construction of a stage that took up half of their already-cramped quarters. Once their desks were mounted atop, delinquent freelancers took on the look of Salem Witches dragged before the bar for an appeal to pity. The boys lacked only powdered wigs to complete the effect. And an added bonus to this new elevation was that it now negated the towering Jim Shooter’s altitudinous advantage when it was his turn to lay down the law. But mainly, it provided a way to defeat the aforementioned edict. There was a trap door hidden by a rug remnant, which provided access to the crawlspace containing a foam mattress, a mighty stack of reading material, including Mark’s college collection of Playboys, and a portable TV. When you snaked the antenna out of the cracked window, you even got some snowy local broadcast reception. All that was left was the test flight. Mark was married with a baby daughter, Sara, and was needed at home. Howard was busy romancing Deb Highley from the floor above, and still is today. Eliot might have gotten down inside, but would have had to be extricated with a careful amount of dynamite. So, after evacuating my

That Sinking Feeling Gru makes up Jack Morelli as—no, not Spock, but Namor. Photo courtesy of and © Eliot R. Brown.

internals, I descended into the crate with the fanfare of a man on a Gemini mission. Once the cleaners had quit the building, one was free to pop up like a Faustian stage devil and roam about, as long as you didn’t open the door and venture into the hall. I lettered several Captain America pages that Mark had written, and thus the unbeatable curfew was bested. The guy could talk me into anything. On the morning Mark died, I had just sat down to the drafting table and set my pens in the ink. The phone rang. I could barely tell it was Eliot, his voice so uncharacteristically small and broken. “Mark’s dead.” At least that’s what I thought I heard, and then a silence so long, I thought we’d been disconnected. I hung up to dial back, but the instant the receiver hit the hook the phone rang again. It was editor Nel Yomtov, and the tragedy was confirmed. Then the phone rang all day. Going to the service at the Ethical Culture Society, I was driving on the Thruway with my wife Christie, Eliot, and his wife Arlene. Suddenly, my heart was racing and I was having trouble seeing clearly. I began to perspire and felt a terrible chill, although the day was brutally hot. It was the first of what the previously, naively bulletproof me would come to recognize as a panic attack. Arlene drove the rest of the way into the city while I lay across the third seat in the back of our van. A decade earlier, we had lost two truly venerable Bullpen characters beloved by our generation, Morrie Kuramoto and Danny Crespi. But they, especially to me, were older men. They were older than my father. Grieving, you could still wrap your mind around it. But Mark? In his prime, and with such creative exuberance? Without warning, his youthful heart just burst? Unthinkable. Once at the service, I almost immediately ran into Archie Goodwin, a man of monumental talent and integrity that we all looked up to. He possessed a wonderfully dry sense of humor, huge carefree laugh, and was an absolute terror on the softball field. I knew he’d been given a tough diagnosis, but had not seen him in a few months as I’d gone freelance and moved Upstate. He had grown visibly thin and lost most of his hair from chemo. He was wearing a germ mask where his signature thick mustache had been. Most things crack easiest from a sharp blow once frozen. But the heart is different. It must first be thoroughly warmed to break. These were among the people who had taken me in and treated me as if I’d always been there, as if I belonged in the most natural way when I’d felt so unnaturally out of place. Mine shattered. Sitting down alongside, as I had each day for years in the Bullpen, my great compadre Rick Parker, I can’t remember saying anything. I don’t think I could. This was the day I settled into a long depression from which I would only somewhat eventually emerge, as an adult, and as artist John Wellington assured me, “…sadder but wiser.” In the years before his passing, Mark had achieved a position through his executive editorship at Marvel and his freelance-writing success that enabled he and his wonderful wife Catherine to purchase a unique weekend house just outside of the city. It was a sort of Moderne-meets -Swingin’ Sixties affair. The kicker was a large sunken living room in back that hung out over a ravine. It was glass on three sides and had a hooded indoor fire pit and low couches. It was the kind of place you expected to see Dean Martin adjusting his shoulder holster as not to have it interfere with his canoodling of Ann-Margret. From this perch you could glimpse the adultsized jungle gym Mark had built, complete with its enormous teeter-totter. Beyond that was the property line, and Mark decided that what was needed was a stone wall as a boundary. He organized a weekend work party, and I was to come down with my pickup to haul rock. But it rained for three days before the event and the forecast looking forward was terrible. By morning, everyone had begged off. Mark called, and I could hear that familiar drop All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 49

Courtesy of and © Eliot R. Brown.

Courtesy of Catherine Schuller.

in his voice. Couldn’t I make it there and give it a go? We’ll just get as far as we can get. I put my foul-weather gear in the truck and headed down. The guy could talk me into anything. Upon arrival, the crew consisted of Mark, myself, and a neighbor who had but to slip through a hole in the hedge to access the site. The location for the wall was a lovely spot for a summer stroll, but after three days of rain it was a bog. Fully loaded with stone, my little rearwheel-drive Ranger made it into the quagmire fairly well, but backing out unladen it protested mulishly in the gray mud. By noon, with progress pitiful and the climate worse, Mark called a break for lunch. He announced a stack of PB&Js, root beer, and a big bowl of M&Ms for dessert. The neighbor started as if he’d seen an alligator and slipped back through the hole in the hedge. After lunch we stood in the Matt Helm room and looked out. What had been a mere downpour was now biblical. “That’s it, I guess,” he said. “We’ll reschedule for next month.” But there was not to be a next month. Adjusting for the angle of the driveway, I tipped the rearview mirror to see Mark through back window as I rolled away. He was standing at the edge of the road with his arm raised, in his yellow slicker, green rain cap, and galoshes. Raising my hand in return, I could have never imagined just exactly how much I was waving goodbye to for the last time.

PAUL LEVITZ

Catherine, Mark’s widow, said at his memorial how Mark felt that he never made it to the mountain top, that he hadn’t achieved anything noteworthy in his career at Marvel. He was that humble kind of guy who may have felt as though his contributions hadn’t reached the peak, but he definitely built the mountain for others to climb on….

BOBBIE CHASE

Mark Gruenwald was a great teacher of the comic-book arts. He liked to talk about it, liked to carefully craft his own editing and writing, and liked to pass on what he knew to others. He developed the assistant editors’ school program, created the curriculum, taught the assistants himself, had them take notes in the class so that the info would stick in their minds, and then enlisted the rest of us editors in the office to teach alongside him. I had always resisted the idea of teaching—no doubt because both of my parents were teachers—and then discovered, thanks to Mark, that I actually liked doing it. Sharing knowledge was very important to him. There’s very little doubt in my mind that my career now in developing teaching programs for the comics arts has everything to do with Mark. I’ve got a complete copy of Mark’s teaching curriculum, which I still use today. Mixed in here and there are copies of drawings by his daughter Sara, who had a small desk in his office. When she was little, she’d sit at her desk and draw characters for her dad while he edited or wrote. Learning was serious fun in the Gru office. Mark felt that being a fan, and having pre-conceived notions of what stories comic books should be telling, shouldn’t be a prerequisite for getting a job in comics. There are editors now who interview prospective assistants with tests on the editing process. In order to 50 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

pass, the test-taker needs to know a lot about comic-book characters, stories, and history. People like me, who didn’t start in the industry as fans, would have never gotten into comics based on these tests. But Mark taught us back in the day that understanding classical and non-classical storytelling, the framework of good storytelling, was a more important start than knowing character and story history. The fan part developed over time, with a ton of extra reading. Random things I learned from Mark: 1. Comic-book structure. He knew it like the back of his hand, to the point that he could have fun breaking all the rules. 2. Comedy comes in threes. Comedy comes in threes. Comedy comes in threes. 3. Celebrate a character’s flaws and let them make mistakes. Let them be people first, heroes second. 4. Conflict – climax – resolution. In every issue. Character-driven comics as opposed to story-driven comics. Internal conflict that leads to external conflict. 5. The Character Wheel. It’s not a hard and fast rule, but it sure is a fun tool. Mark was without a doubt the funniest person I knew, and also one of the most genuine. He, like my husband, was one of those super-friendly (Wisconsin) Midwesterners who could eviscerate people behind their backs. To this day there are people who talk about what good friends they were of Mark’s and I laugh when I think back on things he said about them. But it was just his way of venting about people’s quirkiness. He knew I would never carry tales ’cause it wasn’t at all mean-spirited nor affected how he treated them. He just knew what made them tick and sometimes it ticked him off, too! Mark could make you do pretty much anything he wanted you to do, and you would roll your eyes and go along with it and have fun, damn it. And if it involved some serious silliness about a body function, it was not beneath him to have the most juvenile giggle over the all-important “fart.” Get those Marvel guys going in a group, with Mark as the ringleader, and it was like the “bean scene” from Blazing Saddles!! There were even whoopee cushions at his wedding in 1992. Everyone sat on them in unison at the beginning of the reception! A “21 Bun Salute,” he called it. Flatulence was hysterical to him and he celebrated that basic body function with pit pumps and juvenile jokes at every turn. Being in a group and orchestrating group activities with his work friends was where he truly shone as a leader. And the group just intensified the fun, so if you were there he’d recruit you for a task. No questions asked. Like building a tree house in his back yard. Or a platform in his office with a trap door. Or going clothes shopping for an important date. A lot of “friends” might kick you out of a lifeboat if it meant their survival. Mark wouldn’t. Random facts had special meaning for him and, as with all things, he made us all feel they were just as special to us. Numbers, anniversaries, and minute attention to detail were important. He made us celebrate how many days we’d been on the planet. I celebrated my 10,000th day with Mark. As of this writing, Mark has been dead 7,630 days. 183,120 hours. I still miss him. Time to go eat a can of baked beans in his honor.

by E l i o t

R. Brown

Not Ready for Primetime Players Gru’s childhood friend Dave Lofler visits the set of Cheap Laffs, June 1984. (seated, left to right) Mike Carlin, Mark Gruenwald, and Eliot R. Brown. (standing) Dave Lofler. Photo courtesy of Eliot R. Brown. Photo © Dave Lofler.

The Federal Communications Commission decided that part of the deal with getting cable TV all over the place in NYC in the mid-1980s was that service providers had to serve the public good. How, you ask? By letting clowns like us have “public access” to these public channels. That’s all Mark Gruenwald needed to know! Truly a Judy Garland/ Mickey Rooney moment: “I’ve a TV camera… I’ve got a room… I’ve got some lights… let’s put on a show!” Yep, anybody could walk in with a “show” of some kind and they would put it on the air… er, cable. Even >shhh!< risqué sexy stuff! Only a couple of shows made any money in return, which were sex-oriented shows. Anyone alive at that time in NYC might remember Robin Byrd. The rest of it was a mind-boggling clutch of weird and awful “talk shows,” memory-lane stuff, I remember a psychic… and soon, there was to be the brief meteoric rise (and fall) of Cheap Laffs! Mark was making money writing a couple of books per month. It’s hard to describe the influence on one’s life that freelance money could have. That’s probably a philosophical exercise that I’ll not pursue here. But Mark was making money. We went across Park Avenue South to an electronics house and Mike Carlin and Mark and I figured out which “camcorder” to buy. I know… “you kids,” with your full-feature phones [feebly shaking fist in air…]. This was a monstrosity by any measure. The power supply and channel-tuner side was the same size as the VHS tape recorder/playback unit. Then there was the camera—quite separate and only the size of small dog. About as easy to hold up, too. As I recall, this camcorder setup was about $2400 in late ’83 dollars! We needed to edit. In the pre-anything-easy time of the last century, we all three took a video shooting and editing course. Just a few blocks

south of Marvel was legendary musician, Moogy Klingman, who offered an audio/video workshop and class. Moogy was a super-accomplished session man who I had heard of because of his work with Todd Rundgren (even bigger legendary musician guy!). Plus, a name that contains “Moog” from legendary Robert Moog electronic music pioneer is not one I’d forget. Moogy had a bunch of beat-up ¾-inch tape U-Matic format machines that we all three learned to edit with. Sadly, the ½-inch VHS tapes we shot on had to be copied “up” and edited in that ¾-inch size and then copied back “down” to ½-inch for delivery to the local Manhattan Cable office (which I think was down on 14 Street—all very convenient). Each transfer rendered up a generational loss, which accounts for the truly crappy version of what can be seen on YouTube. We rented time to edit all eight shows. Mike Carlin was the bachelor of the three of us. His apartment was far-off in Brooklyn (a borough of New York City) and made the ideal production facility. Of course, he took the subway in day to day, but we generally took Mark’s Dodge Dart—that’s a whole ’nother story—or Jack Morelli’s Buick Riviera, because we usually shot our sketches on weekends. Mike’s place had a wacky painted plaid wall finish that he did not paint over and did well for us. We built a “set” (see photo). Lettering stalwart Jack Morelli designed and executed the logo you see. Jack was really a fourth, but he had an even greater trip to get home and couldn’t join us every time. Who did what? Mark and Mike did most of the writing—there was an advantage to having an office full of typewriters. Jack and I had ideas but didn’t really get them down in any timely fashion. Jack was a natural actor, ranging from light comedy to stunt work. I was the only one with any—strictly amateur—stage experience at all. I mostly did All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 51

all the techie stuff. I made a—noisy, buzzy—mixer for the microphones, contributed all my “hot bulb” photographic lighting, and wired up the whole set each time. It was in Mike’s bedroom—if we turned the camera only a few feet, there would be Mike’s Superman bedspread! We took very few chances with memorizing script and dialog, and Mike and Mark wrote up cue cards for every bit. Mark as an actor… when addressing the camera as a commentator, he mostly did a dead-perfect imitation of comedian Martin Mull. Mr. Mull was a pseudo–talk show host on a very funny sendup of all talk shows called Fernwood Tonight. (I recommend you check it out.) When Mark was himself, he was his usual loose-jointed comedic self. Mike Carlin already sounds exactly like Orson Bean. (I know… might as well say someone who recorded on Edison cylinders. But look him up, listen to the guy, and you’ll hear who I mean.) Mike was already one of the driest funnymen I’ve ever met. Getting him to “act” was not really necessary. His normal delivery was pretty funny. Mike was a natural comic actor with that rarest of “perfect timing” senses. Jack Morelli, aside from still being one of my closest friends, is a comedic genius. I use the word “genius” because he doesn’t seem to know it. He was game to do all sorts of dumb things and he made them all work without trying. For example, the sketch where Jack is playing a kid whose mom warns him not to watch the violent Three Stooges, and when he sneaks a look, she whacks him like a rag doll. That was done with upstairs executive and lovely person Nancy Golden as the mom and Mike Carlin doing Stooge soundtrack and “punch” noises—both off-camera. We just see Nancy’s arm as she beats her child. Jack is on his knees, playing a child. All he is doing is reacting—all done in one take, all done with minimal scripting. Also, Mike could generate entire Three Stooges sound effects and random dialog at will, perfectly. He still can. If you manage to find one of the chunks of Cheap Laffs on YouTube, the bit where Mike applies Shave-O to his face and begins to shave gets me helplessly laughing to this day. Where Mark is literally pulling a nosehair-as-a-tarantula out of his nose is shot in Marvel’s 387 Park Avenue Men’s Room! During the opening credits, the three main guys are making cutesy faces over the floral display that was part of Marvel’s reception area. I bit and pulled up some plants—we all hated the idea that money was being spent on maintaining those things—but I carefully put it back later. Cheap Laffs is a narrow glimpse into Marvel Comics’ people at the time. Editorial members Danny Fingeroth, Bob Budiansky, Howard Mackie, Bob Harras, Annie Nocenti, Nancy “No Relation” Brown (a standard Gru disclaimer, also applied to Lia Brown), Don Daley, and Mike Higgins put up with indignities second only to dealing with freelancers. (For the record, Jack and I were not in editorial, we were part of the Bullpen production staff—like Paul Becton, who jumped in to play a security guard.) On occasion,

Assistant Editor Gru Mark at his desk in late 1979. The production cover in the left background is of Fantastic Four #215 (cover-dated Feb. 1980), from editor Marv Wolfman and assistant editor Mark Gruenwald. Photo courtesy of and © Eliot R. Brown.

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we hoodwinked other staffers to join in—upstairs executive-suite “babes” like Nancy Golden and Deb Highly were very good sports. Other comic pros were lured in by the siren call of obscurity and no financial compensation, such as… John Byrne—best described here as a serious hambone actor. I don’t mean to overpraise John just because I like him, but he managed to breathe life into a very silly character. Peter Sanderson, who only had to read material out loud to make it funny (okay, another name from the misty past: Alistaire Cooke, whom America came to know as the host of PBS’s Masterpiece Theater in the ’70s. Peter sounds just like him). Then there were our very own, very dear wives and fiancées who made the ultimate sacrifice and appeared on camera. Belinda, Mark’s first wife, made a couple of appearances displaying a good sportsmanlike side no matter how degrading the scene; Arlene Puentes, my own dear one, affianced and who married me despite this horrendous embarrassment; and Pat Powers, who was Mike’s fiancée and who had real theatrical experience, displayed professionalism under fire but who decided not to marry Mike anyway. Jack was not affianced to freelancer Lisa Hachadoorian, but she was a big part of the backstage crew. “Dr. Dread’s Laughter House”: (If you never get to see the show online, the visual gag is “Slaughter House.”) The gauntlet of all the shows. A couple of years prior, Mark had made a joke video to his pal, Dave Lofler. The gag was, I was dressed up in a ridiculous outfit, covered from head to toe in black, with a cape and a full-head cold-weather mask (did I ever mention Mark had a large box full of random costume parts… ?). Mark would supply the off-camera voice and I would pantomime, speaking and react with whatever was on the desk in front of me. At the end, I pulled off the outfit to reveal a completely different person than was expected. I know… not exactly a knee-slapper. But it put together this crazy character that Mark had in his mind. When we did a spoof of a low-budget kids’ show, we had the costume all ready. I built the set out of 1”-thick cardboard, a specialty architectural model-making material from Charrette (an artists’ supply house I loved that had a store near 387). I painted up all the rocky texture in the background. It was a big job considering we built the set and shot on the set within a couple of days. Two worst parts: It was hot. This was June or July down in Brooklyn. I don’t know if Mike even had an air conditioner—which we couldn’t have run anyway for the noise. The other was that I could not properly wear one of the Lavalier-type microphones. We had to use the mic that was mounted on the camera and I “raised my voice.” Now, why I felt the character needed such a raucous crow-squawk of a voice is now beyond me. At the time, it seemed that as the character had to wear his full-body suit to help with his terrible itching, that it might affect his voice… I know, kinda weak thinking. Especially because it made those scenes—hard-fought for and barely won—hard to understand.

The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant Madcap antics at Marvel! Carwald, the legendary Carlin/Gruenwald hybrid, invades the Marvel Bullpen and editor-in-chief Jim Shooter’s office. Photos courtesy of and © Eliot R. Brown.

We later thought we should run a whole new soundtrack in over the video. As time went on, Mark considered subtitles. But… three of those miserable takes taught us that “editing is our friend.” For no known reason, we had convinced ourselves that we could get this scene in one take. Turns out we could not! Of that Dr. Dread material, there’s lots of clever Gruenwaldian material that still gets a chuckle out of me. “Mrs. Grue, the Mortician’s Beautician” was based on Mark’s own mother! Well, we often called Mark every diminutive of “Gruenwald” that can be imagined, and “Gruesome” and “Grue” was obvious. But his mom was a beautician who would apply more “natural” makeup to the deceased at a local funeral home. In the show, Mrs. Grue was brought in to help Zeke the Zombie, ably played by the extra-thin and rubber-limbed Mike. Mrs. Grue herself was played by Nancy Golden—who bravely came out to Brooklyn to be a part of that sweltering hot set. The segment of the Dr. Dread show that I can see over and over and laugh just as hard each time is when the doctor goes to ask a question of the Sphinx. Jack seemed like the perfect choice to play the Sphinx himself. Jack and I gathered in the Mike/Mark office during lunch. The night before, I had quickly sketched up an angle on the Sphinx on a piece of foam core I had and used an office watercolor set to finish it off. I crudely measured Jack’s head and chopped out a hole that came pretty close. Mark had given me a Darth Vader figure (original!!!) and I quickly wired it to a stick and figured out a gimmick to move its arm up and down. I set up the angle in camera, stuffed the picture over Jack’s head, and we got it in one take. The idea was to ask the Sphinx a big, mysterious question and to offer a bribe of a “Mummy Pellet,” which in this case was a cough drop. When I flipped it at Jack’s head he jumped but recovered quickly. I just cannot watch without laughing. Stick with the online appearance till you find the scene and see if you find it funny. As we edited that whole “show,” we discovered that we could run the soundtrack backwards. This made the closing credits of Dr. Dread’s show run backwards along with the music! That was a delight to us all as it sounded almost scary. Mark found a sound effects record from Halloween, which had a moaning wind which sounded great for the theme music and the Sphinx scene. It also had some yowling cat noises which I thought added to the daffiness. Speaking of music, Mark wrote the Cheap Laffs theme song, which all three of us recorded in Mike’s apartment. Oddly, Mark didn’t want us to join him in three-part harmony. I say oddly because when we three tried it, we were perfect together. I would not have thought Carlin had such a good ear—me, I had an okay voice but was never certain of pitch. For some reason, Mark’s music was in all our ranges and Mike and I could follow his phrasing as tightly as a mambo band. Together we sounded great. But Mark thought otherwise. Mike and I just rolled our eyes at each other and moved on. Mark recorded the Dr. Dread theme back in his apartment with Belinda supplying screams as musical counterpoints. It should be noted that Belinda trained as an opera singer. Other “public domain” music was suggested and found by long-standing office comrade and writer Roger Stern. One weekend during Cheap Laffs, I had to go off to see an old friend get married. I rented a tuxedo. I came in on a Friday and said, “Guys, I’m going to have this tux until Tuesday… come up with a bit!” What happened was me reading “poems.” The poems were lyrics from TV show songs (Gilligan’s Island, F-Troop, etc.). It was Roger who produced the texts on demand! Of note during that other hot and demanding shoot was that at the very end of shooting perhaps a dozen takes, I began coughing. It seemed that could be made funnier. It was then I realized I wanted a prop, a cigarette. I didn’t smoke, but anything for the camera… We re-shot them all, and that’s what was chopped up and dropped in through the series. When we started doing Cheap Laffs, we wondered, how hard could it be? Mike, Mark, and I had put together an entire edition of Omniverse

(the third edition of Mark’s comic reality magazine) right in the middle of the office moving downtown. All done after-hours and me with my almost-new position as typesetter. Then immediately after that, we started producing Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe in earnest. For the next 15 months we three, for the most part, labored mightily, putting together the entire first volume. (Now, sure, other people were involved; finely talented inker Joe Rubinstein inked all the figures, polygon Peter Sanderson contributed a huge amount of research and text. But it was us three, with our day jobs and who remained in the office, who did the physical labor of assembling version after version until it was right for all that time.) After that, we reasoned, doing something like a TV show would be a stroll in the park. Not quite. Cheap Laffs was different from Omniverse or OHOTMU because all of the creatives had a desire to say something. Then we realized that our effort was organized along the lines of (the highly influential) Monty Python’s Flying Circus, the idea of everyone getting equal credit regardless of input. You were on the team, period. Finally… how cheap was Cheap Laffs? Mark reckoned it wound up costing about $800 bucks per show. Coda: For Mark’s bachelor party for his second marriage, we put together a Cheap Laffs reunion of sorts. We videoed the whole thing, doing silly and decidedly non-traditional bachelor-party stuff. No dancing girls, no alcohol as such, just a bunch of us doing silly things. For high hilarity we called it Cheap Laffs III—of course, there was no “II.” Plus, this was some time after the show—Marvel had grown a lot, changed a lot. Many new people were involved and were good friends. So, visible and doing ad-lib antics are Don Hudson, Kevin Tang, Rob Tokar, Mike Higgins, David Wohl, and Karl Bollers, in addition to Jack Morelli, Mike, and myself. I ran across the tape a few years ago and could not get further than three minutes in. Considering how happy Mark and Catherine would be, were, and had been, it was far too much for me. I suppose I should transfer it to DVD if only for posterity’s sake. All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 53

WHERE EVERYTHING OLD IS COOL AGAIN!

NEW MAGAZINE FROM TWOMORROWS BLASTING OFF SUMMER 2018

by J o h n

Tr u m b u l l

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

In 1983, before Civil War, before The Infinity Gauntlet, and wouldn’t it be funny if the books that came out even before Secret Wars, Marvel Comics had the company- the month that they were traveling to San Diego wide event to end all company-wide events. An event reflected the fact that the editors were gone. so outrageous it featured pages with no That, to him, meant that the books wouldn’t be quite normal. [laughs]” artwork, Galactus gorging himself on Former Marvel editor Denny O’Neil Twinkies, and David Letterman. It was says today, “I’m pretty sure it must’ve Marvel’s Assistant Editors’ Month, and been Jim’s idea. It kind of seems like a comics haven’t seen anything like it before or since. Jim idea. And I had reservations, as I’ve Assistant Editors’ Month was the had about a lot of things that are inside brainchild of Marvel editor-in-chief jokes. This is just a guess on my part, Jim Shooter, inspired by an unusual but anything like that that seems so source: Macy’s department store. “inside baseball” might scare off new readAs Mike Carlin related in a Pro2Pro ers. But [Assistant Editors’ Month] almost interview with Danny Fingeroth in had to have been Jim’s idea because BACK ISSUE #19, “Macy’s would have nobody else on the editorial side sales where their assistant buyers would’ve had enough clout, I don’t bob budiansky would be in charge of buying all the think.” Fellow editor Bob Budiansky © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons. stuff that they’d sell. So the idea was shares some of O’Neil’s concerns: “I that Jim was going to be taking all the editors out to thought it was a cute idea, although I questioned—to the Comic-Con in San Diego—all the main editors myself—how much it would mean to our readers since I were going to be out of the office at the same time— doubted many of them knew what an assistant editor was.

Blame Them Caricatures of the guilty parties—uh, we mean, assistant editors—from Marvel’s notorious 1983 stunt. Scan courtesy of John Trumbull. TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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(below) Editor-inchief Jim Shooter’s 1983 Bullpen Bulletins column announcing the forthcoming Assistant Editors’ Month. Scan courtesy of John Trumbull. TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

MIKE CARLIN

As the unofficial ringleader of the assistant editors, Mike Carlin was in charge of reporting on the contents of the AEM books to Jim Shooter, in addition to supervising Mark Gruenwald’s books for the month. “I did a few little things that nobody else did to make mine unique,” Carlin recalled in BI #19. “I put the old DC ‘Go-Go Checks’ on my Marvel covers. I also put a takeoff on the old National Periodicals DC Bullet, using M and C instead of D and C. (I told the bosses it stood for Marvel Comics—but it really stood for Mike Carlin.) I even had my corner symbol figures drawn facing the wrong way. So instead of Captain America jumping toward you, he was jumping away. [laughs] He was trying to get away from the issue.”

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TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Beware…

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

tom defalco © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons.

Probably many of them didn’t even understand what an editor was. But it didn’t really matter how much our readers understood the bureaucratic structure of a publishing company… it was still a cute idea.” Although Assistant Editors’ Month was presented to the readership as the assistants running amok, the truth was quite different. In reality, the AEM books were produced long before the summer convention season, with many of the regular editorial teams in their usual roles. Mike Carlin stated in BI #19, “Everything was run past, obviously, the editors and Jim Shooter before we even started the project, and based on where any given series was at the time, you had a little more leeway or a little less leeway.” Editor Tom DeFalco explains, “The way the books were produced depended on the individual editorial office. Some editors took an active role. Others stayed back and let their assistants take the lead. I remember a lot of assistants seeing AEM as a chance to prove their skills.” Assistant editor Bob DeNatale recalls, “I got into a little trouble with Danny for taking the myth of Assistant Editors’ Month too seriously when I approved a pretty bad cover for that month’s Ka-Zar while Danny and the other editors were away at the convention.” What follows is a rundown of the various Assistant Editors’ Month books, along with the memories of their creative teams. All books were cover-dated January 1984 and hit the stands in September 1983.

Captain America #289: “Tomorrow, the World?” “Bernie America, Sentinel of Liberty” After a lead story wrapping up a time-travel adventure with Deathlok, Captain America #289 features a five-page backup entitled “Bernie America, Sentinel of Liberty,” where Steve Rogers’ girlfriend Bernie Rosenthal is struggling with being in a relationship with Captain America. She tries to put herself in Steve’s shoes, imagining “if I was the one rushing off at the stop of a hat to save the world.” Of course, some details of Steve’s superhero life get a little muddled in translation, as Bernie America and her fellow Avengers fight the Mo-Skull, a hybrid of the Red Skull and MODOK, who dreams of conquering the galaxy and opening a chain of Pizza Hut restaurants across the Milky Way. It was a fun change of pace from the regular Cap team of J. M. DeMatteis, Mike Zeck, and John Beatty. Thor #339: “Something Old, Something New…” As Thor writer/artist Walter Simonson was just three issues into his run, it was decided not to disrupt his storylines with an Assistant Editors’ Month stunt. The status quo is still shaken up, though, as Odin grants the alien Beta Ray Bill Stormbringer, an enchanted hammer that enables him to transform back and forth to his superpowered form. The lone AEM representation comes in the form of “Carlin & Simonson’s Page O’ Thor Stuff,” a humorous cartoon by Mike Carlin that replaces the letters page. Iron Man #178: “Once an Avenger, Always an Avenger!” “Struggle!” As Assistant Editors’ Month rolled around, Iron Man was embroiled in a long-range plot where Tony Stark had lost his company, Stark International, and relapsed into alcoholism. Interim Iron Man James Rhodes does not appear in issue #178, which features two stories, one humorous and one dramatic, along with another Mike Carlin Page O’ Stuff. “Once an Avenger, Always an Avenger!” by Bob Harras and Luke McDonnell features a group of kids who dress up in homemade costumes as Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, protecting Brooklyn from the petty crimes of Blackie Donovan. Seeking to emulate their heroes in every way, the Kid Avengers ask their Iron Man, Mikey, to leave the group when they learn that the real-life Iron Man has left the Avengers. Finding his nemesis’ discarded stew-pot helmet, Blackie Donovan begins menacing the neighborhood by impersonating the Golden Avenger. Thankfully, Mikey is shaken out of drowning his sorrows in sugary sodas, defeats the imposter, and clears his good name, rejoining the ranks of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Sadly, the real Iron Man is not so lucky. “Struggle!” by Denny O’Neil and Luke McDonnell finds Tony Stark at his lowest point: destitute, wandering the streets, without friends, and desperate for his next drink. In spite of all this, Stark still refuses to admit his alcoholism. Recognizing Stark’s problem, a policeman challenges him to stay sober until midnight, promising

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all this is that Mark stood up for me, and I didn’t him $50 if he succeeds. Desperate for cash, know that until years later. According to his Stark agrees, and struggles to not take a drink assistants, once a month, the Big Cheese for the next 12 hours. By the end of the night, Tony Stark finally admits he has would come into [Mark’s] office and a drinking problem. complain about me. I was also doing Daredevil at the time, and the Daredevil The plotline was a personal one for regular Iron Man writer Denny editor just folded, and just said, ‘Well, O’Neil, who’d experienced his own you’re not doing Daredevil any more, struggles with drinking years before. so-and-so doesn’t like [it].’ With Mark, Not everyone at Marvel supported he let me write my story, and I didn’t know that it wasn’t hunky-dory with his story, however. O’Neil tells BACK ISSUE, “I was working with an editor everyone. And I think he was putting who was a dream, Mark Gruenwald. his own job on the line. I don’t know I later found out from Mike Carlin, if you ever saw a lot of that in editors, Mark’s assistant at the time, that our but I think it’s really rare now, where dennis o’neil big boss hated what I was doing. an editor is willing to go to bat for I think he was of the old school that © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons. his people.” said, ‘Well, this alcohol business, just slap yourself on the face say, Oh, come on! I don’t have to do this! It’s just Avengers #239: “Late Night of the Super-Stars!” a matter of willpower!’ People who are conservative politically tend to put a lot of faith in willpower. And I In the grand tradition of comedian have lived through that. I just finished writing an Don Rickles appearing in Jimmy autobiographical book [The Perils of Captain Mighty Olsen and the original Not-Readyand the Redemption of Danny the Kid, available on for-Prime-Time Players of Saturday Amazon.com], and my brother Dave read the book. Night Live teaming up with He told me the stuff I didn’t remember about my ten Spider-Man in Marvel Team-Up, years of degenerate alcoholism, and my God! Anything I The Avengers #239 featured Earth’s put into Iron Man didn’t come close! Mightiest Heroes guest-starring on NBC’s Late Night with David “But by the time we did Iron Man, yeah, that stuff Letterman. was history. And there was opposition. The point of

Home Alone (left) Shooter’s assistant, Lynn Cohen, took over his column during AEM. (right) Danny Crespi’s AEM Bulletins page featured an interview with longtime Marvel letterer and production artist Morrie Kuramoto. TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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No Laughing Matter Carl Potts’ original cover art to one of AEM’s marginal participants, Moon Knight #35 (Jan. 1984), featuring the menace of the Fly (a.k.a. Human Fly). Courtesy of Heritage Comics Auctions (www.ha.com). TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

The issue opens with Hawkeye, fresh from eloping Avengers story. Mike did all of the legwork, contacting at the end of his miniseries, carrying his new bride Letterman’s staff, and getting all of the permissions Mockingbird over the threshold at Avengers necessary to proceed. I think Dave liked the Mansion. After introductions are made to story… at least, I hoped he liked it. The readers the Vision, the heroes receive a call from seemed to like it… well, except for a few reserve member Wonder Man. Wonder British readers, who had no idea who Man’s agent, hoping to revive his client’s Letterman was.” acting career, has booked him on the As Mike Carlin related in BACK ISSUE Letterman show with a promise to #19, “David Letterman was pretty hip bring the Avengers along with him. and happening at the time. He had just With the regular team out on the West moved from his morning show to his late night slot a year or two before that Coast, the Vision enlists the Black Panther, and it was pretty popular. Roger Stern, the Beast, and the Black Widow to join Hawkeye and Wonder Man on the who was writing Avengers at the time, show. Chaos ensues as inventor and also loved Letterman. I called up wannabe supervillain Fabian Stankowicz Letterman’s agent and they said, roger stern attacks the team from the studio ‘Sure.’ It was that simple. We sent a audience, but the day is saved when letter, they signed it, and in the indicia Dave knocks out Stankowicz with a giant doorknob. we just had to say, ‘all the characters in this book are Writer Roger Stern recalls, “Mike Carlin suggested copyright Marvel Comics except David Letterman and that we use the Letterman show as the backdrop for an Paul Shaffer.’ ”

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

LINDA GRANT

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Alpha Flight #6: “Snowblind” One of the more infamous Assistant Editors’ Month stunts appeared in the pages of John Byrne’s Alpha Flight: The Great Beast Kolomaq, the living embodiment of winter, summons a blizzard to defeat Alpha Flight member Snowbird, resulting in five and a half pages of all-white artwork, with the story carried only by panel shapes, sound effects, thought balloons, and captions. The issue was inspired by both an all-white gag panel in the humorous What If? #34 (“What if the Silver Surfer, White Tiger, Night Rider, Iceman, and Moon Knight fought Wendigo in a snowstorm?”) and a Frank Miller idea to do an issue of Daredevil from Matt Murdock’s point of view (i.e., all black panels). According to John Byrne in a 2007 post on his forum ByrneRobotics.com, “I did do layouts of the action in the panels. Just to be sure it all worked.” When asked if Byrne ran this idea by editorial first or just sent his pages in with blank panels, Alpha Flight editor Denny O’Neil laughs and says, “John was not real big on collaborating! John was his own man, and generally that was a very good thing, because he was as reliable as the tides. In a million years, the editor in me would not have approved of that for commercial reasons, because unless you are a real Marvel maniac, there is nothing in that stunt that would make you want to read the next issue. Having said that, I think it was a pretty cool stunt.” And if you’re curious, True Believers, according to the FAQs on Byrne Robotics, Byrne was paid his full page rate for the blank pages, as editor-in-chief Jim Shooter said they were “an artistic decision.” Power Man and Iron Fist #101: “Slipaway!” Luke Cage and Danny Rand are incapacitated early in this issue, putting the spotlight on Daughters of the Dragon Misty Knight and Colleen Wing as they race against time to solve the mystery of the Heroes for Hire’s poisoning.

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #19: “Joe Triumphs!” Assistant editor Linda Grant is caricatured in the corner box, surrounded by explosions. Grant also runs an “unauthorized” classified file on Snake Eyes.

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Moon Knight #35: “Second Wind” In a double-sized issue distributed on newsstands as well as the direct market, Moon Knight is soundly defeated by Spider-Man foe the Human Fly. Moon Knight slowly recovers and combats the Soviet mutant Bora, who has the ability to summon freezing winds. The X-Men and the Fantastic Four guest star. Assistant editor Linda Grant writes a short text piece explaining Denny O’Neil’s absence, promising “a new creative team and a startling new direction” for the next issue.

The Saga of Crystar: Crystal Warrior #5: “The Story They Said Couldn’t Be Done!” This issue opens with a five-page sequence of Crystar discussing his troubles with the creative team of assistant editor Bob Harras, writer Jo Duffy, penciler Ricardo Villamonte, and inker Dave Simons, with the Marvel staffers less concerned about Crystar’s problems than how they can use them as story material. In the main story, Harras and Duffy indulge themselves with a tale of Crystar’s castle and Moltar’s magma caverns as next-door neighbors.

Delusions of Grandeur Bob Harras—long before his days as Marvel’s X-Men editor and DC’s editor-in-chief—rallies together his fellow assistant editors on this final page of Dazzler #30. Written by Ken McDonald, penciled by Frank Springer, inked by Vince Colletta. Courtesy of Heritage.

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

BOB HARRAS

Dazzler #30: “The Debt!” Fed up with the shenanigans of her wannabe love interest Roman Nekoboh, Dazzler Alison Blaire impulsively hitches a ride with Marvel Comics editor Ralph Macchio, on his way to the San Diego Comic-Con. Targeted by a covert military group hunting mutants, the Dazzler ends up combating a giant, purple, mutated lizard-man on the SDCC floor. Amusingly, the military group is also being led by an assistant, as their regular general is having meetings at the Pentagon. Members of the group are named after Marvel staffers Ron Zalme and Danny Crespi. Meanwhile, at Marvel Bullpen, assistant editor Bob Harras stages a coup, until he’s brought back down to Earth by a phone call from Macchio. The cover corner box features a caricature of Ralph Macchio in Dazzler’s silver disco outfit. ROM #50: “The Extraterrestrials!” ROM #50 features a straight story for its anniversary issue, as the Spaceknight fights off an invasion of the Skrulls and the Dire Wraiths. In the back is “Life with ROM and Brandy,” a gag page by writer/penciler Bob Harras and inker Terry Austin, presenting ROM and Brandy in wedded bliss, with ROM’s head making toast on demand. (ROM’s newspaper also contains in-joke references to the goings-on in Dazzler #30.) Micronauts #56: “The Conquest of Kaliklak!” Micronauts #56 contains two gag pages for Assistant Editors’ Month: One a fumetti feature with Bob Harras accidentally vaporizing himself while trying to split the atom, and the other a page by artist Butch Guice talking about bumping off the widely disliked Nanotron.

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ELIOT R. BROWN

Eliot R. Brown inherited Louise Jones’ books for the month, but found his options limited on licensed material like The Further Adventures of Indiana Jones and Star Wars. As he related to J. A. Morris at assistanteditorsmonth.blogspot.com in 2011, “I could not interject myself into an Indiana Jones adventure or a Star Wars episode. Even comics has rules about time, space, and realities… well, you know! It was probably Louise Jones, an unsung genius of comic craft—who was also my boss at the time—who suggested I tell an associated story. And that worked out very well for Indy, Star Wars, and even the X-Men—which was right in the middle of some galactic space opera.” The Further Adventures of Indiana Jones #13: “Deadly Rock!” “Massachusetts Brown: Raiders of the Late Book” “Massachusetts Brown: Raiders of the Late Book,” a one-page story written by Brown and drawn by Brown and Mike Carlin, features Brown dressed as Indy, navigating the assistant editors’ gauntlet to deliver a one-week-late issue of Indiana Jones to Marvel traffic manager Virginia Romita. Star Wars #79: “The Big Con” In a story taking place shortly before Return of the Jedi, Lando Calrissian and Chewbacca search for the frozen Han Solo, with Lando in disguise as the Captain Harlock-lookalike Captain Drebble. Eliot R. Brown contributes a gag page on making a homemade Darth Vader costume, before he is stopped by an irate George Lucas.

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TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Uncanny X-Men #177: “Sanction” Mystique prepares to rescue her protégé Rogue from Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters as the X-Men face off against the remaining Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Another gag page by Eliot R. Brown shows him in the X-Men’s hangar, measuring the Blackbird for The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, until an impatient Professor X literally kicks him out. New Mutants #11: “Magma” The New Mutants continue an adventure in Nova Roma with new member Magma. The cover features assistant Eliot R. Brown’s head along with the New Mutants in the corner box, complete with purple antlers. A gag page starring Brown announces a contest to win his “Marvel Universe Slipper-Socks.”

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Conan the King #20: “The Prince is Dead!” In a landmark issue of the series, King Conan receives word of the death of his son Conn, prompting flashbacks as to how Conan assumed the throne. On the letters page, Jim Owsley offers up a sincere tribute to Larry Hama: “There’s a guy here at Marvel who took a chance on a teenaged kid who had trouble sharpening pencils, and spent the next four years teaching him the ropes. This issue marks the fourth anniversary of the forming of what some Marvel insiders have called ‘The Team Supreme.’ This issue is also to date, the single piece of work of which I am most proud. That’s why it seems most appropriate that for Assistant Editors’ Month, I respectfully dedicate this issue to Larry Hama, CONAN THE KING’s Senior Editor and my boss.”

Uncanny X-Men Annual #7: “Scavenger Hunt” The Impossible Man comes to Earth collecting objects from around the Marvel Universe, with the X-Men chasing him along the way. The scavenger hunt ultimately ends up at the Marvel Comics offices, with the Impossible Man trying to get his hands on Stan Lee. The Chris Claremont/Michael Golden story features cameos by numerous Marvel staffers, including Eliot R. Brown, Mark Gruenwald, Larry Hama, Michael Golden, Jim Shooter, Michael Hobson, Lynn Cohen, Chris Claremont, Paul Smith, Louise Simonson, Ann Nocenti, and Virginia Romita. Brown makes another cameo at the end of the story to share the title and the credits.

ANN NOCENTI

Taking over for Carl Potts, the corner boxes of assistant editor Ann Nocenti’s AEM issues all feature Marvel characters caricatured as Nocenti— including the Angel, the Hulk, and the Thing! On the cover of Marvel Fanfare, Nocenti shoves Al Milgrom out of his own corner box.

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Conan the Barbarian #154: “The Man-Bats of Ur-Xanarrh!” Assistant editor J. Christopher Owsley’s text piece “Caesar’s Commentaries on the Gallic Wars” quickly degenerates into a negative review of the movie Jaws III. Although the story is a typical Conan tale, the title is an in-joke reference to the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh, a character introduced in Batman #113 (Aug. 1958). The cover features the go-go checks and “MC” logo seen on the Mike Carlin-edited AEM books.

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

JAMES OWSLEY (CHRISTOPHER PRIEST)

Defenders #127: “Cloud Hidden!” “Dreams of Glory!” Nocenti teams up with Marie Severin for a short story entitled “Dreams of Glory!” featuring Nocenti declaring herself Marvel’s “Super-Editor.” In her new identity, Nocenti clears out deadwood characters, doubles all rates, and bears down on late freelancers’ excuses, until the mundane concerns brought to her by production manager Danny Crespi bring her back down to Earth. The Thing #7: “Two-Fisted Feet!” “What Th’?!” Aunt Petunia’s favorite nephew goes up against the Swedish supervillain Goody Two-Shoes. As their battle rages across Manhattan, Goody’s Atomic Boots give Ben Grimm the toughest fight of his life. …Or so the Marvel Comics version tells it. As the John Byrne-drawn backup story “What Th’?!” reveals, the Thing’s actual encounter with Goody Two-Shoes was much more one-sided, with our rocky hero defeating the villain with a single flick of his finger. After reading the melodramatic Marvel Comics version, an enraged Ben Grimm storms the Marvel offices to give Ron Wilson, Ann Nocenti, and John Byrne a piece of his mind. The sheepish creators admit to

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

sometimes exaggerating the Thing’s real-life adventures for his comic, but Byrne’s oversized ego results in them getting more excitement than they bargained for. (In an amusing in-joke, “John Byrne’s” Marvel studio is drawn to resemble the Sub-Mariner’s Hollywood office from Fantastic Four #9.) Thankfully, visiting freelancer Roger Stern escapes the wrath of Grimm. Marvel Fanfare #12: “Editori-Gal” “Marvel Annfare” The misadventures of Roger Stern continue in Marvel Fanfare, where Ann Nocenti convinces Stern to dress up in Captain America’s uniform as inspiration for writing a Cap story in Fanfare. The hapless Stern tries to live up to the role, despite cutting a less-than-impressive figure in Cap’s suit. Although he can’t duplicate Cap’s physical feats, Stern inspires local graffiti artists to clean up their neighborhood rather than vandalize it. Feeling energized, Stern is finally ready to write his Cap story… until Al Milgrom sends him a pile of Avengers pages to dialogue. On the inside front cover, Ann Nocenti turns Fanfare editor Al Milgrom’s regular “Editorial-Al” page into “Editori-Gal,” approving every half-baked idea the freelancers come in with. The Incredible Hulk #291: “Old Soldiers Never Die!” The issue opens with Bruce Banner visiting the Marvel Comics offices, hoping to have a heart-to-heart with Hulk writer Bill Mantlo and artist Sal Buscema. Finding only assistant Ann Nocenti burning the midnight oil, Banner asks her if he should reveal his old enemy General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross’ treasonous alliance with MODOK and the Abomination. The rest of the issue presents the previously unrevealed life story of Thunderbolt Ross, as he struggles to reconcile his lifetime in the military with betraying his country to destroy the Hulk. Although his actions aren’t publically known, Ross’ shame is so great he nearly commits suicide, before finally concluding, “I’ve never run from defeat in my life! And I won’t start now—even if learning to live with my disgrace is the toughest war this old soldier will ever have to fight!” It was a harrowing look at a longtime supporting character, giving him a depth not previously seen.

MIKE HIGGINS

TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Over on the Fantastic Four and Daredevil, assistant editor Michael Higgins took the reins from regular editor Bob Budiansky. As Budiansky recalls, “My assistant editor, Mike Higgins, and I worked together with our books’ creative teams on coming up with goofy ideas that would be appropriate for AE Month, although I let Mike take the lead. I know John Byrne, who at the time was writing and drawing Fantastic Four for me, embraced the idea by writing a note about not letting Mike do anything too weird, which we printed in the cover corner box, and including him in the story. I was happy that John was so open to going along with what Marvel was trying to do for Assistant Editors’ Month. He was a team player.” Fantastic Four #262: “The Trial of Reed Richards” John Byrne’s Fantastic Four #262 had a more contentious origin than most other AEM stories. Back in Fantastic Four #243– 244 (June–July 1982), Byrne had Reed Richards persuade the FF and the Avengers to save the life of a mortally wounded Galactus. Detecting a double standard in the planet-devouring Galactus living while the star-consuming Dark Phoenix was

forced to die, Byrne’s former X-Men collaborator Chris Claremont inserted a scene into Uncanny X-Men #167 (Mar. 1983) where Princess Lilandra of the Shi’ar condemns the FF for their actions, promising retribution if Galactus consumes another inhabited world. Upset over this unauthorized appearance of the FF in another book, Byrne, at the urging of Jim Shooter, devised a story to respond to his former partner’s criticisms. In Fantastic Four #257 (Aug. 1983), Lilandra’s prediction comes true as Galactus consumes the Skrull homeworld. Soon after, Reed Richards is abducted by mysterious alien forces. The storyline comes to a climax in FF #262. In the tradition of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s occasional cameos in FF stories, the issue opens with John Byrne on the phone with FF assistant editor Mike Higgins, expressing his frustration at not being able to contact the Fantastic Four to get story material for the next issue, stating, “I’m not about to risk making up a story. You know how the FF hate it when we do that… especially the Thing!” But Byrne gets the story of a lifetime when the Watcher sweeps him away from his Evanston, Illinois, home to a cosmic courtroom to witness the trial of Reed Richards, where Lilandra holds

It’s Clobberin’ Time! Goody Two-Shoes does a not-sosoftshoe routine atop Bashful Benjy Grimm on John Byrne’s cover art to The Thing #7. Courtesy of Heritage (www.ha.com). TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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Daredevil #202: “Savages” “A Life in the Day!” After a straight lead story introducing new recurring villain Micah Synn, Daredevil #202 features “A Life in the Day!,” a six-page backup by Mike Carlin and Luke McDonnell with Crazy character Dirk McGirk giving a grade school report as “Daringdevil, the Man Without Ears.” As his teacher Miss Speld grows increasingly frustrated at McGirk’s fact-challenged report of Daringdevil’s fights with Elektra, the Bowel, Gradiator, Wilt the Stiltman, Birdseye, as well as his romances with the Blank Widow and Electro, the class is suddenly interrupted by the real Daredevil hurling small-time crook Turk through the classroom window. McGirk gets an “F” for his report, but becomes a hero to his classmates as school is canceled for the rest of the day.

BOB DeNATALE

Assistant Editors’ Month actually spanned two editorial regimes on the Spider-Man books. The AEM issues of Amazing and Spectacular were initially planned by Tom DeFalco and assistant Eliot R. Brown, but when they were reassigned, new editor Danny Fingeroth and his assistant Bob DeNatale saw them through, along with Marvel Team-Up and the reprint title Marvel Tales. Amazing Spider-Man #248: “And He Strikes Like a Thunderball” “The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man!” Amazing Spider-Man #248 featured two stories, the first a straightforward action piece with SpiderMan fighting against Thunderball from the Wrecking Crew. The second story was “The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man!,” a classic routinely named as one of the best Spider-Man stories of all time. The deceptively simple tale features Spidey making a midnight visit to his biggest fan, nine-year-old Timothy Harrison. As the two talk through the night, their conversation is interspersed with excerpts from the Daily Bugle’s article about Tim. And when we learn the reason for Spider-Man’s visit on the final page, there isn’t a dry eye in the house. Writer Roger Stern explains, “ ‘The Kid’ was a story that just came to me one morning, earlier that year. And at first, I wasn’t sure what to do with it. In my mind, it felt like a short story—not a full issue or a subplot within a larger story. I had told Tom DeFalco about it, and figured that I might try to eventually write it as a special feature for a Spider-Man Annual or something. “So, when Assistant Editors’ Month was proposed, Tom mentioned the story to Eliot Brown, and Eliot immediately asked me to write it for his issue. And that’s how it became the second half of ASM #248.” According to Danny Fingeroth, the split issue had a more practical reason behind it, too. “It was probably done as a way to give regular penciler John Romita, Jr. a way to gain some time on the schedule by having him do only half an issue (and the cover) that month,” Fingeroth says. The penciler for “Kid” was one Ron Frenz, turning his first Spider-Man story for Amazing, with Terry Austin inking. As Frenz recalls, the Steve Ditko-influenced style he used caused some consternation in Marvel offices. “The decision to homage Mr. Ditko was mine,” Frenz says. “In fact, there was some editorial concern at the time that the Ditko touches like 62 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

the ‘reverse’ webbing on Spider-Man’s costume were too ‘off model’ for the post-Romita age.” Roger Stern’s one disappointment with “Kid” concerned the credits. “Since there were two stories in issue #248, I decided to put the credits on the letters page,” Stern explains. “I had written credits that recognized both Eliot—who had solicited the stories—and Bob DeNatale who, as Danny’s assistant, was supposed to be the script editor of that issue. I’m still perturbed that the credits I wrote for Amazing Spider-Man #248 were rewritten, taking them out of my voice, and deleting ron frenz any reference to Eliot’s contribution. If not for Eliot Brown, ‘The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man’ wouldn’t have seen print in that issue.” Danny Fingeroth says, “‘The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man’ is one of the best things to come out of AEM. Years later, I wrote a semi-sequel for a Marvel holiday special [‘A Spider-Man Carol’ for Marvel Holiday Special #1 (1991)], so the story clearly stayed with me.”

Richards responsible for the deaths of seven billion Skrulls. Despite no less than the Norse god Odin appearing as a witness, the court remains unconvinced that Galactus is truly beyond good and evil. Ultimately, the Watcher and Galactus summon Eternity himself to appear before the court, who briefly opens the minds of everyone present to show them that Galactus does indeed serve a greater purpose in the universe. After Byrne returns to Earth and calls in his story to Mike Higgins, the Watcher assures him, “Galactus will go on. The testing will continue, until that distant day he finds a world with power enough to stop him, to end for all time his cosmic hunger. On that day shall Galactus perish. On that day let the universe mourn.” All this, plus a Charlie Brown cameo on the cover, add up to one of the more memorable issues of John Byrne’s FF run.

Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #86: “Bugs!” Enraged that his fly characteristics are increasing to the point where he’s eating garbage, the Human Fly attacks J. Jonah Jameson at the Daily Bugle offices. Meanwhile, Spider-Man has decided to tell his girlfriend the Black Cat everything about his civilian life, starting with where he works. It all leads to a knockdown, drag-out fight through the Bugle offices, as drawn by none other than… humor cartoonist Fred Hembeck? It’s an issue of Spectacular Spider-Man unlike any other, complete with a framing sequence of regular artist Al Milgrom demanding to why Bob DeNatale was rejecting his pages. Fred Hembeck explains how the odd assignment came about: “It had to do with me being connected with Bill Mantlo. He was the first person who really gave me a shot.” Peter Parker writer Mantlo had published one of Hembeck’s cartoon letters in Iron Man #112 (July 1978) years before, jump-starting Hembeck’s comics career. As Hembeck recalls, the Peter Parker story “put a little bit of a strain on our relationship. [Bill] gave me a one-page plot, typed up, and there was one section where the instructions were, ‘Then they fight.’ Now, one thing I wasn’t fred hembeck skilled in was big-time action scenes. I can draw some comics, but I’d never © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons. drawn fight scenes. Especially in a printing plant. So I turned in some pages that were not acceptable. And Bill got the brunt of this apparently, from the people in charge. I got a call from Bill. He sounded a little perturbed that he would have to rewrite those pages with more explicit directions. And I was like, ‘Well, I’m sorry, Bill, but it’s not something that’s second nature to me.’ ‘Yeah, all right.’ And then I did those pages over again, and what you see is what got published. Not like we had a big argument or anything, but it was just like he seemed a little annoyed that he had to do the extra work, because Bill was writing, like, six books a month or something, and I guess he was used to doing these really skeleton thin plots.” Editor Danny Fingeroth recalls, “Bill was used to working with regular penciler Al Milgrom, who didn’t need much direction to choreograph fight scenes, so it makes sense that he might have been a bit annoyed that he was having to do extra work because of a publicity stunt. Who wouldn’t be?” The story actually led up to a major event in Spider-Man continuity, as Spidey revealed his identity to the Black Cat in the very next issue. Today, Hembeck says, “I always thought, ‘Wow! That’s a pretty pivotal

Weirdest Team-Up Ever? Could be! Greg LaRocque’s cosmically kooky cover art to Marvel Team-Up #137, courtesy of Heritage. TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

thing in Spider-Man’s life! How come I’m drawing it?’ [laughs] On one hand, I’m like, ‘Whoa! This is kind of an honor!’ And on the other, I’m thinking, ‘This is kinda nuts!’ I mean, maybe they could’ve waited an issue to do this? But, yeah, I’m in the middle of continuity there. Back when it was important. [laughs]” Regarding the Hawaiian shirt he sports in the Al Milgrom-drawn pages of Spectacular #86, Danny Fingeroth jokes, “I only wear clothes designed by Al. I get them free for promoting his men’s fashion line.” Marvel Team-Up #137: “Twinkle, Twinkle” When it came to sheer ridiculousness, though, Marvel Team-Up #137 might take the cake. When Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four are called away to an emergency in San Diego, Aunt May is pressed into service as Franklin Richards’ babysitter. When Galactus comes to Earth and tries to make Franklin his new herald, Aunt May intercepts his blast of cosmic power and becomes Golden Oldie. When Franklin suggests that TwinklesTM snack cakes might sate Galactus’ cosmic hunger, Aunt May scours the universe for more of the light sponge cake with the creamy white filling. As the cover proclaims, “Not a Hoax! Not a What If! Not an Imaginary Story!” Bob DeNatale recalls, “This was the one comic in Assistant Editors’ Month that really was my brainchild. For years before I worked for Marvel, I had always wanted to do a parody of those old Hostess ads where a villain is somehow defeated by the hero using Hostess cakes. It was my idea to take the most powerful villain in the Marvel Universe and have him defeated by the least likely of teams, Aunt May and Franklin Richards, using Twinkies. The Marvel Team-Up for Assistant Editors’ Month was the one issue that wasn’t in development yet when I was hired [in the spring of 1983], so I pitched the idea to Danny and he loved it. “My only regret was that I was not able to write the story, as Marvel at that time had a policy that no one could write a comic if they were on the editorial staff for that comic. So I turned the writing over to Mike Carlin, who did a great job of fleshing out my idea into a full story.” As Danny Fingeroth reminds us, “Mike had been a regular writer and artist for Crazy magazine, so humor and satire was natural territory for him.” Marvel Tales #159 (reprinting “Where Flies the Beetle” from Amazing Spider-Man #21) Marvel Tales #159 is a straightforward reprinting of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s Amazing Spider-Man #21, featuring Spider-Man fighting the Human Torch before they team up to defeat the Beetle. At the time, the Spider-Man reprints in Marvel Tales would update 1960s cultural references for its early ’80s readership. Thus, a mention of Tony Curtis would become Tom Selleck, or Aunt May would be upset about missing The Dukes of Hazzard instead of The Beverly Hillbillies. On the letters pages of Marvel Tales #159, assistant editor Bob DeNatale parodied this practice by showing a retouched “modernized” portion of Amazing Spider-Man #19 with Aunt May as a jogger, and Flash Thompson and Liz Allan as punk rockers. DeNatale wrote at the time, “I like the stories the way they were. They have a unique magic, an irresistible charm, and I think even the minor updating we do—on references to contemporary celebrities, politicians, and other infamous personalities—is disruptive to the stories. […] So, while [Danny]’s away, I decided to not do any

updating on the main story in this very issue. You’re getting unaltered, undeleted Lee/Ditko magic.” Marvel Tales stopped updating and altering its reprints after this issue hit the stands. Today, DeNatale says, “I always hated the updating of cultural references in the reprints. When I was hired, Danny basically put me in charge of the Marvel Tales reprints so he could spend his time and energy on the new stories, so I stopped making any changes to the original script.” As Danny Fingeroth recalls, he wasn’t exactly opposed to the change: “I’m thinking that policy was probably going to be implemented anyway, and then it was decided (by me? Tom? Shooter? Forbush-Man?) to have it start as part of Assistant Editors’ Month.”

CONCLUSION

All in all, the creators of Marvel’s Assistant Editors’ Month regard it as an artistic, if not necessarily a commercial, success. It was a chance to cut loose and have a little fun. As Mike Carlin stated in 2006, “Depending on who you talk to, it was a lot of fun or a giant fiasco. The legend I had always heard, after it came out, people looked back and said it was Marvel’s worst-selling month ever! Hyperbole, I’m sure… but I never checked—as I didn’t want to know the awful truth.” JOHN TRUMBULL thanks Bob Budiansky, Tom DeFalco, Bob DeNatale, Ron Frenz, Fred Hembeck, Danny Fingeroth, Dennis O’Neil, and Roger Stern for sharing their memories with BACK ISSUE. Thanks also to Brian Cronin of CBR.com and J. A. Morris of assistanteditorsmonth. blogspot.com, whose research on AEM proved invaluable in writing this piece.

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by M i c h a e l

Eury

conducted by email in June 2017

Hall of Fame In 2009, Diana Schutz was the first woman to be inducted into the Joe Shuster Canadian Comic Book Creators Hall of Fame. Illustration by Faith Erin Hicks.

Ask the elite of comicdom to name their dream editor, and they’ll probably answer Diana Schutz. Is it any wonder? After breaking into the business by editing a comic shop newsletter, the Canadian-born Schutz, along with thenhusband Bob Schreck, rose to acclaim in the mid-to-late ’80s at Comico the Comic Company, producing a high-quality, eclectic line including Grendel, Jonny Quest, The Elementals, and The Rocketeer Adventure Magazine. She later spent 25 years editing at Dark Horse Comics, working with cuttingedge newcomers as well as superstars including Frank Miller, Harlan Ellison, Will Eisner, Michael Chabon, Harvey Pekar, Stan Sakai, Matt Wagner, and Neil Gaiman. A staunch advocate for creators’ rights, Diana excels at nurturing creative visions and teaching young editors (I should know— she was my first mentor in comics, at Comico)… never missing a deadline in the process! In this exclusive interview, she looks back at her long career and provides insights into the craft of editing comic books and graphic novels. – Michael Eury

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MICHAEL EURY: What traits make a good comic-book editor? DIANA SCHUTZ: Attention to detail and strong organizational abilities, to start. Social skills, because, y’know, you have to actually talk to your creators! A thorough grounding in story, language, and art, a sense of comics history as well as an awareness of the contemporary players, and an understanding of at least some of the business aspects of publishing. Oh dear, I’ve really narrowed the field, haven’t I? Well, you did ask for the traits of a “good” comic-book editor, not a description of the current crop—obvious exceptions notwithstanding. Your knowledge that commas and periods always go inside quotations was a mark of excellence, Michael. And you were indeed an excellent comic-book editor. EURY: Thanks! SCHUTZ: Since no one seems to know what the hell a comics editor does (the Eisner Committee nixed the Best Editor award altogether, arguing exactly that), let me

add that editors are both project managers and quality control officers, thus expected to ensure that the work is both on time and good. Though the roles aren’t quite this circumscribed: editors represent the business interests of the publishing company to the creator, and they (should) represent the aesthetic interests of the creator to the publishing company. I’ve always advocated more strongly for the latter, but let’s face it, the editor spends her working life stuck pretty squarely between a rock and a hard place! EURY: Who are comics’ all-time best editors, and why? SCHUTZ: Archie Goodwin, because he understood what makes a first-rate comics story, and he edited a goodly amount of same. As an experienced writer and artist himself, Archie already had the requisite background knowledge for the job, and he was a vocal champion of creators’ rights at a time when that was an unpopular position for a staff editor to take. He also put his money where his mouth was by establishing the Epic imprint for Marvel’s very first creator-owned publications. He took the time to explain his editorial decisions, giving his freelancers advice and criticism. He was truthful and unpretentious and funny. And most importantly, he was a kind soul. I’m not sure Ruth Hermann or Dorothy Woolfolk would make the cut since they were both working at a time when no one considered comics worth anything more than trash (Will Eisner being the perennial exception), but as pioneer female editors in an otherwise overwhelmingly male industry, they deserve a nod, at least. There are some living comics editors who might eventually join Archie on this list, but since they’re friends, I’ll just leave this question here. EURY: Supergirl was your favorite childhood superheroine. Why the Girl of Steel instead of Wonder Woman? After all, you and Wonder Woman have the same name… SCHUTZ: Simple. Despite the shared name, Wonder Woman was a woman, whereas Supergirl was a girl. I was five. Of course I’d identify with the girl! She was in school like me, she had homework like me, she lived with a family like me, she could fly like me… oh, wait. And WW’s shorts sucked. I was all about the skirt.

EURY: You had outgrown comics by the time you started college. What drew you back to them? SCHUTZ: Steve Gerber’s Howard the Duck. In that bland mid-’70s marketplace full of spandex heroes, a wisequacking duck was like nothing else on the stands! Steve Gerber’s writing on Howard was fearless in its satire and mordantly funny. By then I was down to reading comics only once in a blue moon… until I saw Howard on a corner store spinrack in 1974 or ’75. I’ve never looked back. EURY: You dropped out of grad school in 1978 to work in a comics shop in Canada. Tell me about that decision. SCHUTZ: At 23, I was painfully shy, having spent my life to-date in the ivory tower—where I was also suffering from impostor syndrome (a term I didn’t even know at the time; it was coined that same year). Finding the Comicshop in Vancouver, British Columbia, in the still-early days of the direct market, was like finding my tribe! Among other things, working there taught me the social skills I’d never learned in academia. And owners Ken Witcher and the late Ron Norton taught me everything else! I did return to grad school, by the way—in 1990, when Mike Richardson moved Bob Schreck and me to Portland—and completed my Master’s degree in a then virtually unknown field: Comics Studies! EURY: How did fandom and the comic-shop scene differ in Canada from what US readers might recognize? SCHUTZ: Canada’s a much smaller country in terms of population, so we had fewer cartoonists hanging around the shop, fewer signings, fewer conventions, and Canadian Customs made it tough for us to maintain a healthy stock of underground comix. But otherwise: the same obsessive nerds, the same fanboys afraid to speak to the girl behind the counter. EURY: Tell me when and why you moved to the US.

Letter-Hackin’ Commando (left) Cover of The Telegraph Wire #4 (1982), by Bruce Simon. According to Diana Schutz, “As you can see (through the paper), the Wire was just a xerox-zine at first.” (top right) Diana Schutz’s (center) first meeting with fellow Canadians Dave and Deni Sim, at Comics & Comix, October 1982, during their “First American Tour.” Diana points out, “See all those back-issue boxes behind us? Bagged, tagged, graded, priced, organized, and filed by yours truly: lettering by me and a big-ass Magic Marker.” (bottom right) Diana’s first meeting with Dave Stevens, at Comics & Comix, March 1983, during Dave’s promotion of Pacific Presents: The Rocketeer #1, published by Pacific Comics. Photos courtesy of Diana Schutz. The Telegraph Wire © 1982 Comics & Comix.

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Old Chums (top) A very young Arthur Adams and Mike Mignola in a 1984 convention photo from the Schutz archives.

SCHUTZ: In a word: California! My first-ever trip to the San Francisco Bay area was in spring 1978, ostensibly for an academic conference, but Philosophy took a back seat to sunshine, music, People’s Park, and the chance discovery of Comics & Comix. Mecca! To quote Lynda Barry: as of the Summer of Love, “something like San Francisco was expanding inside of me and I didn’t want it to stop.” In September 1981, I finally made that a reality. I’d been at loose ends with my life that year: age 26 and trying to figure out what was next. I’d spent the summer back in Montreal with my family, mailing letters of comment to Cerebus and Daredevil. I also mailed my résumé to Bud Plant, co-owner of the C&C chain of Northern California comics stores, never dreaming for a minute that anything would come of it. Bud forwarded my letter to his partner, the late John Barrett, who then hired me over the phone, so I loaded up my 1968 VW Beetle and drove 3000 miles hell-bent to Berkeley! EURY: Was your comics newsletter, The Telegraph Wire, the first publication you edited? SCHUTZ: Yes. The first seven issues were co-edited with Tim Wallace, another Comics & Comix employee who’d come to the job by way of Detroit-based Big Rapids Distribution, where he’d worked with Jim Friel. Those first issues were photocopied, stapled sheets of paper. But with issue #8, The Telegraph Wire became an actual bimonthly magazine published on newsprint, and I became the sole editor—and the sole ad manager, print buyer, designer, production boss, interviewer, typist, and (at first) the sole writer. So, yeah, I learned on the job… with a great deal of help from Tom Orzechowski, who designed the logo and taught me about production and paste-up. Remember, this was in the pre-digital era. EURY: Describe what a reader might find in an average issue of The Telegraph Wire. SCHUTZ: An amateur version of the 1980s Comics Journal, with far fewer pages. Each issue was built around an interview, with cover art contributed (free!) by the interviewee: Dave Stevens, Jim Valentino, Sergio Aragonés, Scott McCloud, the Hernandez Brothers, and Matt Wagner, to name a few. Art Adams and Mike Mignola, who were Comics & Comix customers before they became professional artists, worked together on a jam cover featuring Longshot and Rocket Raccoon. The industry was much smaller and gentler back then; women working in the field were a novelty; and selling publisher ads in the Wire or going after creator news and interviews made for many enduring friendships—with Dean Mullaney, Denis Kitchen, and Larry Marder, to name a few. EURY: After The Telegraph Wire, working the convention circuit, and freelance writing for the fan press, you received a fan’s dream job, being hired as an assistant editor at Marvel in January 1985. How did that come about? SCHUTZ: Through the ample kindness of Ann Nocenti, theneditor of the wildly popular X-titles, and the gracious recommendations of Christopher Claremont, Frank Miller, Carol Kalish, and Peter Sanderson. All of whose generosity I repaid by quitting four days later, leaving Ann in the lurch. Callow youth! EURY: What was your first impression of Marvel on day one? SCHUTZ: Cold fear! Intimidation. This was everything I’d dreamed of, the pie in the sky, but it took only that first day for me to realize that Marvel Comics was, above all, a midtown Manhattan corporation—something I just wasn’t cut out for.

Longshot and Rocket (middle) Arthur and Mike’s jam cover for The Telegraph Wire. (bottom) Mignola’s header for Diana’s editorial from a 1983 TTW; the title was a nod to “Fit to Print,” Catherine Yronwode’s Comics Buyer’s Guide column. Longshot and Rocket Raccoon TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. Telegraph Wire © Comics & Comix.

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EURY: What were your editorial duties? SCHUTZ: I remember some proofreading, making photocopies, running stuff from one office to another. An untrained assistant editor doesn’t do a whole lot else. EURY: You were only there four days. What went wrong? SCHUTZ: Day five was to mark my Indoctrination Lecture with Jim Shooter. Honest to god, that’s what they called it! Jim met with all the new editorial hires to give them the lay of the land, so to speak. I was terrified, and I already knew in my gut that working there was not for me. I called Ann first thing that morning and quit. (Sorry, Ann!) EURY: What positive takeaways did you gain from your Marvel stint? SCHUTZ: Virginia Romita, John Senior’s wife, was Marvel’s production coordinator in those days: she drafted all the individual book schedules and creator deadlines, a process she took the time to explain to me—which later proved invaluable, both at Comico and at Dark Horse. EURY: How and when did you land in the editor’s chair at Comico? SCHUTZ: Not long after the Marvel Kerfuffle. I started with Mage #6, containing the first color Grendel backup, published in March 1985. Bob Schreck and I moved to the Pennsylvania burbs, where Comico was located, in May 1985. How did I get that job? On Bob Schreck’s considerable coattails! Bob had already begun working for Comico in late 1984 from his home in Levittown, New York— as the company’s entire marketing department. With Comico’s move to color comics in early 1985, owners Phil Lasorda and Gerry Giovinco wanted him in-house on a daily basis, and Bob must have talked those guys into hiring me as part of the deal.

EURY: Why was Comico’s work environment more attractive to you than Marvel’s? SCHUTZ: The seven-minute commute! And it was a comfortably small company: five or six people working out of the top floors of a creaky old house in Norristown, Pennsylvania. More importantly, Comico was an early publisher of creator-owned comics, a still-new idea in those days and a political position that Bob and I supported. People forget, now, just how hard many of us fought for creators’ rights in the early 1980s. EURY: What do you think you brought to Comico that the company lacked earlier? SCHUTZ: Production schedules. Organization. A work ethic! EURY: Were there any projects you wanted to do at Comico that didn’t pan out, and if so, what were they and what happened? SCHUTZ: There were many, but the one that really stands out is Concrete. Paul Chadwick’s seminal project was initially offered to several companies, and I really wanted to publish it at Comico, but I was overruled. Of course, Concrete would end up at Dark Horse… where I eventually became Paul’s editor! EURY: When did it become obvious that your time at Comico was drawing to a close? SCHUTZ: When the silent partner, Phil Lasorda’s brother Dennis, finally revealed the extent of the company’s debt. In order to properly budget new projects, I’d already tried to get a handle on the finances… and had been roundly rebuffed: threatened in writing with loss of my job. A year later, by 1989, Comico’s titles were being solicited and distributed through DC Comics, a move intended to keep the company afloat. I’ll never forget sitting in a meeting at DC when Paul Levitz requested P&L projections,

Off the Wire (left) Original Scott McCloud Zot! cover art for The Telegraph Wire #17, an issue containing Scott’s very first interview, which Diana conducted. (right) Original Mage blueline color cover art by Matt Wagner and Sam Kieth for the special “conflictof-interest issue” of The Telegraph Wire #22, Diana’s last issue, freelanceedited while she was at Comico. Zot! TM & © Scott McCloud. Mage TM & © Matt Wagner. Telegraph Wire © Comics & Comix.

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Comico Flashbacks (top) Ken Steacy, a fellow Joe Shuster Canadian Comic Book Creators Hall of Fame inductee, drew himself, Diana, and Bob Schreck as students in Comico’s Jonny Quest #8 (Jan. 1987). (inset) One of “Auntie Dydie’s” favorite Comico books: Bernie Mireault’s The Jam Special #1 (May 1988). (bottom) It’s the bound photocopies, not Diana, that’s “For Display Only” in this shot from Wondercon 1987. Jonny Quest TM & © Hanna-Barbera Productions. The Jam TM & © Bernie E. Mireault.

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and the Lasordas didn’t even know what that meant! When I explained, “Profit and loss, boys,” Dennis finally opened up the books to me: to draft all those P&Ls for the coming year. One look at the untenable debt they’d racked up, and I told Bob Schreck we had to go. In the hope of protecting the artists, we offered to stay long enough to help the Lasordas declare bankruptcy and dissolve the company, but Dennis was convinced he could pull Comico out from under. Of course, they were forced to declare bankruptcy a year later, in 1990. Numbers don’t lie. The remaining owners [Phil Lasorda passed away in 2008] would no doubt tell this story differently. I was young and earnest and an intolerable bitch in those days—as many of my former assistants can attest! EURY: How and when did you transition to editing at Dark Horse? Did you consider taking an editorial job elsewhere? SCHUTZ: In early 1990 Dark Horse offered Bob Schreck a job running the marketing department, and I rode in on his coattails there, too! Mike Richardson and Randy Stradley knew Bob from the convention circuit, but I was just “the wife.” At the same time, Paul Levitz also offered us both positions at DC, and for considerably more money. But Mike flew us to Portland, wined and dined and charmed us, and Bob fell in love with this town. I’d already lived in the Pacific Northwest and thought Dark Horse would be another good four-year pit stop. Who knew? As a company of only ten people in 1990, Dark Horse certainly offered a more comfortable atmosphere so far as I was concerned, and again, though I pretty quickly got saddled with editing Aliens and Predators and Terminators, Dark Horse’s commitment to publishing creator-owned books was a major draw. The day Bob and I began work, we were greeted with a round of applause. A welcome I’ll never forget. EURY: How did editing at Dark Horse differ from editing at Comico? SCHUTZ: Mike Richardson was and is a much savvier businessman. And with Dark Horse, there was a feeling that we were building something worthwhile and that we were all in it together. Maybe something like the 1960s Marvel office? But without ripping off the artists! Editorial work was essentially the same, though as Dark Horse evolved, the company took control of production work that would ordinarily get shopped to outside vendors—like color separation and film prep, for example—so editorial control extended further than at other companies. As a control freak, that suited me just fine! EURY: At times at Dark Horse you found yourself booted “upstairs” into editorial management, but you never seemed quite satisfied with that role. Why? SCHUTZ: I make a sh*tty boss, Michael. You should know that, having suffered me twice! Also: meetings, memos, marketing = migraines! I prefer getting down and dirty, working with creators to make the comics and to make them shine. I hated being a paper-shuffler, which seems to me the essence of middle management. Bleh! EURY: In 1999 you consolidated many of Dark Horse’s creator-owned series under a single imprint, Maverick. What was the rationale behind branding this diverse band under a shared umbrella? SCHUTZ: In short, Frank Miller was unhappy. He felt his creator-owned books were getting lost in a sea of Star Wars titles. I wanted to keep Frank at Dark Horse, and I wanted to keep him happy; he and I had been friends for almost 20 years at that point, long predating our professional relationship, and I was and am in tremendous awe of his talent. Legend, Dark Horse’s previous creator-owned imprint, had been Frank’s idea, and it was Frank who gave Maverick its name. As Dark Horse had grown, it had begun to reflect the tastes of all its various editors—not just Mike and Randy, as in the company’s earliest days. Publishing was, and is, all across the board there, which can be a great strength, but can also confuse the consumer. Much to its credit, Dark Horse resists being pigeonholed, and why shouldn’t the company (then) publishing Star Wars also publish Harvey Pekar’s American Splendor? What the hell is wrong with that? But it’s tough to market diversity, and imprints help with that. At least, that was part of the thinking. But as you point out, creatorowned works are almost by definition highly individualistic, so our attempt to consolidate all those very different books under one brand didn’t really take. Scott Allie had much more success marketing his line of horror comics, and that wasn’t even an official imprint! EURY: In this age of short attention spans, you enjoyed long runs on several series, most notably Usagi Yojimbo, American Splendor, and the

Personal Connections (top left) A 1998 note from Stan Sakai, accompanying an issue of Usagi Yojimbo. (top right) A hand-painted Christmas card from Teddy Kristiansen. Usagi Yojimbo © Stan Sakai. Grendel © Matt Wagner; art © Teddy Kristiansen.

various iterations of Grendel. What’s your secret about keeping a fresh perspective on a familiar project? SCHUTZ: Is there a secret? I loved working with Stan Sakai and Harvey Pekar and Matt Wagner, maybe in the same way that Stan loves working with Usagi, Harvey loved working with his own avatar, and Matt loves working with each incarnation of Grendel. Editor-creator relationships can be intense and exciting and familiar— in the sense of family. In Matt’s case, of course, I mean that literally! [Editor’s note: Matt Wagner is married to Diana’s sister Barbara.] But if you admire and respect your colleagues’ talent, then each new issue of their work has the potential to excite your interest as an editor, even in a long-running series. And each new issue has its own particular challenges from an editorial perspective. Sure, a job is a job is a job, but if you love the work and you love the people you work with… well, maybe that is the secret, after all. EURY: You spent 25 years editing at Dark Horse, retiring in March 2015. What was it about the company that kept you grounded there for so long? SCHUTZ: Mike Richardson. Which is not to say he and I never butted heads. We did, all the time. Even Mike will admit to that. But look, when there’s a human with a conscience at the head of a company, as opposed to a faceless board of directors and/or group of shareholders, then that company has a fighting chance of behaving responsibly in the cutthroat world of business. And having been hired by Mike when Dark Horse was still very small, I had direct access to him and didn’t shy away from using it… much to his dismay! I can be a royal pain in the ass when I’m on a crusade! And Dark Horse—that is to say, Mike—allowed me the kind of freedom I need to give the work my utmost. I never could stomach a 9-to-5 robot routine. Mike understood that; in fact, I’d say he’s similar in that respect. EURY: You’ve consistently worked with A-list talent during your editorial career. Were there any missed opportunities… creators with whom you wanted to work but didn’t? SCHUTZ: I would have liked to work with Aline KominskyCrumb, whose comics are brutally frank, crude yet decorative, heartbreaking and hilarious. I’d hoped to include her in my Sexy Chix anthology of female cartoonists, but was just too damn shy to ask. EURY: You witnessed technological advancements during your years as an editor, having started in the era of typewriters, typesetter-generated text galleys, and paste-ups. How did the job of comic-book editor change with the advent of the digital age? SCHUTZ: First, there was the obvious learning curve, as film proofing became file proofing, as color possibilities exploded, as the traditional assembly-line process now allowed for some consolidation, if necessary, of lettering and coloring stages. Certainly, lettering—or any mistakes in the art—became much easier to fix, and not only were those fixes undetectable, but the actual art boards could remain untouched after scanning. So the production “bullpen”—with its drawing tables, blue pencils, brushes, jars of ink and opaque white paint—would eventually vanish, replaced by banks of more and more sophisticated

computers, and designers stopped sketching in favor of learning newer and newer software. Creators’ production schedules became much easier to draft, thanks to Excel, and many editors elected to work entirely digitally, rather than deal with any hard-copy proofing. A mistake, I think, but I’m admittedly old-school. One huge change, and not for the better, was electronic mail’s hostile takeover of all business communications! Apart from the utter absurdity of lengthy emails to adjacent offices (and yes, I received plenty of those), just responding to the daily barrage could eat up a whole morning. And in terms of creator communications, email was never as effective as simple conversation. When it comes to deadlines, emails are too easy to dodge. But more importantly, building a personal relationship with one’s creative partners is a critical aspect of the editor’s job, and email’s a big fail in that regard. It’s useful as an adjunct to the telephone, but not as a replacement. And by the early aughts, we’d bred an entire generation of junior editors who either refused or were no longer able to speak to their creators! EURY: Is there anything about the way you edited back in the good ol’ days that you miss or prefer? SCHUTZ: Well, I miss hand-lettering and letterers like Tom Orzechowski and Todd Klein, who are accomplished artists

More Personal Connections (bottom left) Diana’s blurry but beloved last photo with Will Eisner, at San Diego Comic-Con 2004, just before the Eisner Award ceremonies. Photo by Will’s wife Ann Eisner. (bottom right) Eisner sent Schutz this handpainted Spirit sketch to thank her for a birthday card. The Spirit © Will Eisner.

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One Big Happy (left) Diana, as caricatured by Matt Wagner, from Wagner’s second Mage series, Mage: The Hero Defined #3. (right) Says Diana, “The last project I edited for Dark Horse, How to Talk to Girls at Parties, was written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá, my Brazilian twins. They sent me this piece, which reflected an editorial discussion we’d had at the pencils stage.” Mage TM & © Matt Wagner. Cartoon © Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá.

versed in the history of that art form and who treat it accordingly! Thank goodness some artists—like Chris Ware, Dan Clowes, Lynda Barry, Joe Sacco, and Farel Dalrymple, for example—keep the tradition alive and thriving, beautifully, in their own work. I miss word balloons on the original art. Hell, I miss original art! EURY: You were courted by DC to edit there but declined. Did your experience at Marvel sour you from working for a large publisher? SCHUTZ: No, not at all, though Joe Quesada also approached me, many years later, about returning there. At DC, Denny O’Neil offered me his job as Batman group editor when he made the decision, in 1999, to retire a year later. But Paul Levitz, whom I’ve known since my days at Comics & Comix, had also made it clear that I should call him first if ever I had second thoughts about Dark Horse. Paul has always been a kind advisor and friend, and seems to think much too highly of me! In any case, this incredible vote of confidence from all three meant the world, but my heart lives on the west coast, and work-for-hire superhero comics are not my first choice. But… had DC moved to the L.A. area 20 years sooner, who knows what might have happened?! EURY: Today you’re teaching comics-related courses at Portland State University. Do you ever miss editing comics? SCHUTZ: Nope, not so far. After almost 35 years of editorial work, with 25 of those years at Dark Horse, I was ready to “retire,” so to speak. I’d turned 60, and there comes a point when you realize you have

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more life behind you than ahead, so you’d better get to that bucket list! Portland State University’s postbaccalaureate Comics Studies program had just been inaugurated, thanks to the efforts of Dr. Susan Kirtley, and after 15 years of teaching comics courses at the local community college, it’s been a welcome change to teach within the context of a specialized university program. In addition to Susan, my PSU colleagues include Brian Michael Bendis, David Walker, Shannon Wheeler, and Douglas Wolk, to name a few, so I’m in excellent company there, and teaching one course a year is a good fit for me. But the bulk of my so-called “retirement” has been spent translating European comics into English: work I adore! People who speak only one language seldom realize just how much writing is involved in literary translation, and comics translation presents its own particular challenges. I’ve been blessed, so far, to translate some seriously great work: Moebius, Manara, Muñoz & Sampayo, and more. After all those years as an editor, it’s exhilarating to be on the other side of that desk! That said, I was talked back into one last editing job by Matt Wagner—as consulting editor on Mage: The Hero Denied, the long-awaited final arc of the trilogy, to be published by Image. [Editor’s note: The new Mage premiered in July 2017.] Matt’s my brother-in-law, first of all, and as I’ve noted elsewhere, there’s also a certain magic to coming full circle and winding up my comics editing career exactly where it began.

by J

ohn Schwirian

It is hard to imagine Superman comics without the Daily Planet or Perry White, but in 1971, that almost happened. When editor Julius Schwartz was assigned Superman following the retirement of longtime editor Mort Weisinger, Schwartz wanted to shake things up, including updating Clark Kent’s job. Schwartz felt that young readers preferred television to newspapers and the comic series should reflect that. Thus, Schwartz brought in Morgan Edge, CEO of WGBS (Global Broadcasting Systems), and used him to “modernize” Kent’s professional life. Edge moved Kent from an investigative reporter for the Daily Planet to anchorman for the evening news on WGBS. The supporting cast was shuffled around, with new characters introduced and old ones taking on new roles. Unfortunately, when the dust settled, there was no reason to keep Perry White around. Like many elements of the Superman mythos, Perry’s origins were not in the comic. He was created for the Adventures of Superman radio serial, first appearing in the second episode on February 14, 1940. Perry quickly became an integral part of the broadcasts, but did not appear in the comics until Superman #7 (Nov.–Dec. 1940). It was not long before Perry White became a vital element in the series, where he often sent Kent on an assignment that led to danger and the need for Superman. He was also often used for exposition purposes, summing up facts or providing details necessary for the reader and to speed up the action. More importantly, Perry White evolved into a mentor, and even a father figure, to both Clark and Superman. According to longtime Superman scripter Elliot S! Maggin, “Of all the characters I worked with in comics, I think Superman was the one whom I most aspired to, rather than identified with. All the other lead characters felt like they were of my own age and level of life elliot s! maggin experience. Not Superman. With a character of Superman’s capabilities Elliot S. Maggin / and history it is difficult to find someone Facebook.

Great Caesar’s Smokes! Perry soars to the rescue on this kooky Nick Cardy cover to Action Comics #436 (June 1974). TM & © DC Comics.

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All Puffed Up (top) Ignore the secondhand smoke: Perry’s the best grandpa a kid could want! Title page from “The Toughest Newsboy in Town!,” from Action #461 (July 1976). (bottom) Young Perry snoops around, from that same story. TM & © DC Comics.

to fill the role of mentor—even in the course of a single story. That’s why a character like Perry White is a crucial one.” With the dawn of the Bronze Age in 1970, Perry White should have faded away, but the writers saw him as an institution. So they found ways to work him into their scripts rather than let him slip into obscurity. “It was easy to keep Perry in the picture when Clark changed jobs to become a talking head,” Maggin explains, “mostly because Perry remained Clark’s friend. It made sense to me that he would be.” Not only did Perry remain an active element in the various Superman titles, but one could argue that this was a dynamic time for him—an era filled with individual adventures and exploration of his past and private life.

THE AMAZING EXPLOITS OF PERRY WHITE – INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER

Often, writers would look to the past and give the readers a glimpse of Perry’s life before he became the head honcho of the Daily Planet. Some of the more memorable tales not only provided insight into Perry’s history, but also filled in gaps in Superman’s origins as well. One such tale appeared in Action Comics #461 (July 1976), featuring Perry entertaining his grandchildren with the story of how he went from being “The Toughest Newsboy in Town!” to earning a job as a reporter at the Daily Planet. He starts by explaining that it was the Great Depression, and the only work he could find was selling newspapers on a street corner. Writer Elliot S! Maggin cleverly clues the reader to the specific date of August 4, 1934 by having young Perry call out the headlines “Hindenberg Dies! Hitler Takes Full Power in Germany!” Paperboy Perry gets suspicious when a man in a bad toupee pays a quarter for a two-cent newspaper, and he follows the man only to find out that he had kidnapped physicist Dr. Norton in an effort to steal the scientist’s plans for an atomic bomb. Leaping to the rescue, Perry fought with and knocked out the kidnapper. Unfortunately, during the tussle, Larsen, the kidnapper, died of a heart attack. While waiting for the police, Perry wrote up the story and later tried to sell it to the news editor of the Daily Planet, who rejected it on the premise that no one would believe that a tiny atom could destroy an entire city. However, impressed by Perry’s instincts and persistence, he hired Perry on the spot. In DC Comics Presents #69 (May 1984), writer Mark Evanier took us “Back to World War II” to tell of the night war correspondent Perry White flew with the Blackhawks and helped break up a Nazi spy ring. Perhaps most impressive of the flashback stories was the series of tales that revealed the connection between Perry White and Superboy, and how Perry won two Pulitzer awards. It all started in The New Adventures of Superboy #12 (Dec. 1980), where E. Nelson Bridwell related how Perry gets the inside scoop on Superboy’s alien origins. “The Day of the Alien Scoop” starts with young Clark watching television with Ma and Pa Kent, who are dismayed at all the random and bizarre speculations about whom, or what, Superboy really is. Later, on routine patrol, Superboy bumps into reporter Perry White while saving a policeman’s life. Perry interviews Superboy, taking great pains to get the facts right and avoid saying anything that could hurt the Boy of Steel. Superboy feels like he can trust this reporter and tells him the secrets of his Kryptonian origins. The article not only earns Perry his first Pulitzer, but also results in a televised reception at the White House celebrating Congress’ granting Superboy a special citizenship. Bob Rozakis quickly picked up on this plot thread for “Superman: The In-Between Years”—a backup feature in Superman focusing on Clark Kent’s college days. Running through Superman #362, 365, and 366 (Aug., Nov., and Dec. 1981), Rozakis showed Clark Kent settling into life at Metropolis University. Trouble follows, as it is wont to do with superheroes, and Superboy finds ways of resolving the problem without drawing attention to his presence in the big city. Meanwhile, speculation is running rampant about 72 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

where Superboy has relocated following his well-documented departure from Smallville. Reporter Perry White is convinced that Superboy is there and soon has another Superboy scoop, proving that the hero now resides in Metropolis. “ ‘The In-Between Years’ arc about Perry discovering that Superboy had come to Metropolis,” scripter Bob Rozakis elaborates, “seemed a natural thing to happen in the course of the Boy of Steel’s move to the big city. There was no big media event for his arrival; Clark wanted to keep it secret so people did not tie his enrollment in college to the appearance of Superboy. It was more than enough that Supes was apparently a graduate of that year’s high school class and left town shortly thereafter. Perry White was the logical choice to be the reporter to figure it out. There’d been a Superboy story a few years earlier by Nelson Bridwell that established a tie between them.” Rozakis extended this idea into the 1985 miniseries Superman: The Secret Years, where he used Perry to help show how Superboy grew into Superman and how Perry won the editor position at the Daily Planet.

and those just marginally familiar with the character already identified, and (2) it potentially minimized Clark’s contact with long-established characters. Positively, it (1) gave us a fresh new playground to play in, [and] (2) allowed us to include an armload of new recurring characters—like Edge, Josh Coyle, [Lola Barnett,] Steve Lombard, and—interestingly—[a revitalized] Lana Lang, whom we dropped into a career similar to Clark’s. “So where did that leave Perry?” Maggin continues. “Down on the sixth floor in the Planet’s city room. Conveniently, that’s where all of the people with whom Clark generally hung out worked. The primary reason I made a point of keeping him in the foreground of recurring characters is that he was a major character in the ‘50s television show which, in the ‘70s, was the most widely syndicated television show in the country. I even involved Inspector Henderson in some comics stories for that same reason. So I did a super-cigars story, had Perry arguing with his new boss all the time, even made him an on-camera presence on Clark’s broadcast once in a while. It seems to me that you always need a mentor figure in an adventure story, bob rozakis and Perry always fit that role.” HOW TO HANDLE A SMILING COBRA When Morgan Edge bought the Daily Planet and Photo by Sammi Rozakis. As Maggin indicates, the writers soon found a new shuffled the supporting cast around in Superman #233 (Jan. 1971), use for the loveable curmudgeon—as a foil for the “smiling cobra” poor old Perry vanished, not making even a cameo in Action or Morgan Edge. Classic verbal battles occurred often between the two, Superman for over a year. However, the writers felt that Perry filled a with Perry inevitably coming out on top. A perfect example can be necessary role and looked for ways to include him in their scripts. seen in Bob Rozakis’ “The Man Who Created Villains!” in DC Comics “When Julie changed Clark’s job,” Elliot S! Maggin clarifies, “we had Presents #44 (Apr. 1982), where Perry adeptly maneuvers Edge into Morgan Edge storm into the Daily Planet newsroom and pluck him sending Clark Kent on assignment in New England. Edge looked for ways to remove Perry with little luck—that is, up. As I recall, Perry said something like, ‘Now see here, Edge! I need Kent!’ Edge ignored Perry, put Clark in front of a camera, and Clark until the “Private Life of Clark Kent” in Superman #280 (Oct. 1974) took to the new job as if he had been doing it all his life. What this deprived Clark of, from a storyteller’s point of view, was the mentor figure—a role Perry had often filled. The change in jobs did a number of things for the character from my point of view: Negatively, (1) it took Clark away from an environment with which longtime readers

White Gets the Edge (left) Perry outfoxes the “smiling cobra” Morgan Edge in this sequence from DC Comics Presents #44 (Apr. 1982), a Superman/Dial “H” for Hero team-up written by Bob Rozakis and drawn by Irv Novick and Frank McLaughlin. (right) Editor White is put out to pasture—briefly —in Superman #280 (Oct. 1974). TM & © DC Comics.

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when he tried to force Perry into retirement on his 65th birthday (he was born in 1909?). In “The Last Headline!” by Martin Pasko, Edge has Perry cornered with a corporate policy that stated that all employees must retire at age 65. However, Perry plans to end his career by proving his age has not hindered his ability to report a great story. With Clark Kent filming from a distance, Perry discovers the hideout of the Dawson gang and singlehandedly brings the bank robbers to justice. Anchorman Kent saves the day by ending his broadcast with an unauthorized commentary on the unfairness of this policy as well as a signed petition by the majority of the GBS staff who threaten to quit if Perry is forced out. In the face of bad publicity, Edge reinstates Perry. In that same vein, Superman #338 (Aug. 1979), written by Len Wein, provides a two-page spread celebrating Perry’s 40th year at the Daily Planet (which means he was hired at age 25). Marv Wolfman provided a four-issue subplot in which it looked like certain doom for the Daily Planet. In Action Comics #528 (Feb. 1982), Edge announces that the stockholders have voted to sell the unprofitable Daily Planet and the only publisher interested is Mort Waxman, who wants to turn the paper into a scandal sheet. Things look dire, and even Perry cannot find a way out—that is, until Action Comics #531 (May 1982), when the ghost of a man who worked on the first edition of the Daily Planet appears to expose Waxman’s greed. Amazingly, Edge refuses to sell the Planet, making him the hero for once. Oddly enough, as time passed, Edge fades out and Perry White starts giving assignments to both the newspaper and television staff, with one such example being Superman #388 (Oct. 1983).

IT’S BIRD! IT’S A PLANE! IT’S… PERRY WHITE?

During the Weisinger era, it was quite common for friends of the Man of Steel to gain temporary superpowers. Perry was no exception, with super-abilities originating in kryptonite, special costumes, and other sources. Under Julius Schwartz, this type of plot was virtually banned—that is, unless a writer could come up with a truly original and clever new way to accomplish the deed. Such was the case of Elliot S! Maggin’s “Super-Cigars Trilogy” in Superman #265, Action Comics #436, and Superman #376.

Prize-Winning Journalist Perry’s Pulitzer is on view on the last page of Action #436’s “The Super- Cigars of Perry White!” By Elliot S! Maggin, Curt Swan, and Vince Colletta. TM & © DC Comics.

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Maggin found a way to put Perry back in the action in Superman #265 (July 1973). “Attack by the Army of Tomorrow!” begins with a typical argument between Perry and Morgan Edge. Still fuming from their tête-à-tête, Perry spots a young couple wearing gloves on a hot summer’s day. His journalistic instincts intrigued, he approaches the pair only to be blasted by some form of energy from their hands. Further investigation leads Perry to Langer Air Force Base, which he discovers has been taken over by gloved youths. Soon, Perry uncovers the full story. In 1953, a madman named Calixto exposed everyone within a thousand square miles to a special radioactive nerve gas that caused all human babies born in that hour to undergo a special mutation— one that would not manifest for 20 years. Seemingly overnight, their little fingers transformed into thumbs which, when rubbed thumbs against their original thumbs, resulted in fantastic powers. Using hypnosis, Calixto took control of these people and turned them into his personal army. Even Superman was helpless before their might, until Perry showed the Last Son of Krypton the device maintaining Calixto’s hypnotic control. Once the device was destroyed, the thumbmutants stopped cooperating, and Calixto had to resort to more primitive weapons. Superman smashed them and Calixto died in the resulting backlash. Perry interviews the mutants, who leave Earth rather than be subjected to another’s control again. As if that wasn’t adventure enough, it turns out that “Attack by the Army of Tomorrow!” was only the first part of a trilogy by Maggin. Part two appeared a year later in Action Comics #436 (June 1974), with a fabulous Nick Cardy cover showing Perry flying out of a window past Superman and calling out “This is a job for… Perry White!” Two of Calixto’s mutants return briefly to thank Perry by leaving him a gift—a gift that will come to be known as “The SuperCigars of Perry White!” Meanwhile, Perry informs Clark Kent that he will be covering the awarding of Perry’s third Pulitzer (for his article on the army of tomorrow, no less). Of course, a series of disasters follows, each resolved when Perry smokes one of the special cigars. By the time Perry realized his powers were coming from the cigars, he only had one left! So he placed it in his wall safe where it would sit for many years to come— —to be exact, eight years, for those of us on Earth-Prime. “The Ozone-Master Comes Calling!” in Superman #376 (Oct. 1982) was the final installment in the trilogy. When Perry comes into possession of photographic evidence that could expose the plans of a new supervillain, said crook (calling himself the Ozone Master) attacks Perry in order to destroy the pictures. The assault leaves Perry near death, but when Superman visits him in the hospital, the old warhorse has a strange request. He sends Superman to retrieve the last super-cigar, and smoking it restores Perry’s health. Additionally, it gives Perry superpowers like Superman’s as well as the ability to track down the Ozone Master. Together, Superman and Super Perry defeat the Ozone Master and his gang. The priceless moment in this story has to be Perry flying through the air in a hospital gown that flaps in the breeze!!

THE PRIVATE LIFE OF PERRY WHITE

Things were not always fun and games for Perry during this era. The pressures of running a major metropolitan newspaper weigh heavy on a person, and Perry is no exception. Writer Bob Toomey gave readers a humorous look at this problem in Superman Family #183 (May–June 1977). “Whatever Happened to Perry White?” had Perry, under doctor’s orders, trying to relax with little success. Several years later, in Superman #380 (Feb. 1983), Cary Bates has Perry confess that he is depressed over the death of his dog, but that was influenced by the mental powers of the villainous Euphor. Shortly thereafter, Marv Wolfman ran a recurring subplot in Action Comics #542–545 (Apr.–July 1983), where Perry suffered from excessive stress. No explanation was given for this until Superman #384 (June 1983), where Cary Bates identified the source of the stress as marital problems between Perry and Alice, his wife of over 40 years. Over the next few months, Perry avoids taking phone calls from Alice, and ultimately seeks advice from a marriage counselor. Inspired, Perry plans to fix all his marriage problems over a dinner date, but Alice never arrives at the restaurant. Bates passed the writing baton over to Elliot Maggin with Superman #394 (Apr. 1984), by which time Perry and Alice have split up and are living separately. Paul Kupperberg picked up the thread in Action Comics #560 (Oct. 1984), showing Perry going shopping for Alice’s birthday present, still hoping to salvage his marriage. Why did this subplot jump back and forth between different writers and titles? Paul Kupperberg tries to explain: “Honestly, I don’t recall the circumstances behind those Perry subplots. The scene in Action #560 looks like something Julie [Schwartz] probably asked me to put in to tie in with what another writer was doing in other stories. I probably wasn’t aware of what Elliot was doing in his stories and if Julie didn’t ask for a bit of continuity to be included, it wouldn’t make it in. Continuity in Julie’s books at that point in time was pretty loosey-goosey anyway, and I recall it as being a case of the individual writers working their own little timelines in their stories without any major interaction with the others. And a lot of times Julie commissioned stories for inventory, just to have ready in the drawer in case someone was late or fill-ins were needed, so none of those would reflect that sort of continuity because he never knew when they might be published.” Resolution finally appeared in Action Comics #562 (Dec. 1984), when Bob Rozakis showed Perry walking and talking with Alice—and managing to apprehend a pair of pickpockets at the same time! “There seemed to me to be a prejudice against happy marriages in the Superman saying, “A very good friend… comics,” Rozakis says. “Perhaps the fact seems to be coming down with an illness that many of my compatriots didn’t have we know very little about.” Is Superman them was the reason that virtually every implying Alzheimer’s? Perry’s memory married [comic-book] couple was broken problems seem to disappear until up. I have had a happy marriage (for 43 Superman #419 (May 1986), where Perry years now), as did editor Julie Schwartz. keeps misplacing important papers. I told him I wanted to reunite Perry and This story, also by Maggin, is the last mention Alice, he concurred, and so I did.” of any potential dementia for Perry. With Perry and Alice happily reunited, Alan Moore saw to it that the Bronze paul kupperberg one would think that Perry could back Age ended happily for Perry. In the to just grouching at reporters, but no— second half of “Whatever Happened © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons. Elliot S! Maggin had other plans. to the Man of Tomorrow?” in Action “Disappearing Act” in Action Comics #568 (June 1985) Comics #583 (Sept. 1986), Superman has taken everyone tells a disturbing tale of an extremely distracted and close to him to the Fortress of Solitude for their protection. forgetful Perry White. When taking his grandchildren to In a quiet moment, Superman seeks Perry’s advice about see a magic show, he almost forgets to pick up Alice and love, once more demonstrating that Perry is more than has trouble remembering his way to the show. He loses just a mentor, he is a father figure for the twice-orphaned his car keys and even forgets how to light his cigar! On a hero. When an assault on the Fortress causes the ceiling more humorous note, when he sends Clark Kent out to to collapse, Perry pushes Alice to safety, saving her life. catch Superman’s attention, he tells Kent to “drive my They reaffirm their love for each other, leaving the car off a cliff or something.” Sadly the story ends with readers certain that they will live happily ever after.

Last Flight The conclusion of Maggin’s “Super-Cigars Trilogy” took place in Superman #376 (Oct. 1982). Cover by Rich Buckler and Frank Giacoia. TM & © DC Comics.

All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 75

WITH CRISIS COMES CHANGE

My Two Dads Perry and Alice White’s relationship takes a turn for the worse over the parentage of their son Jerry in Superman vol. 2 #50 (Dec. 1990). By Jerry Ordway, Kerry Gammill, and Dennis Janke. TM & © DC Comics.

money and power. The final blow came when Perry returned from a two-year tour in Vietnam only to find that Luthor had seduced his sweetheart Alice Spencer and was selling the Daily Planet, leaving the paper’s future dim. Perry’s love for Alice won out and they were married, followed soon by Alice’s announcement that she was pregnant. Lex suspected, but only Alice knew for certain that the baby was Luthor’s. A friend bought the Daily Planet, but only under the condition that Perry become the news editor and leave the reporting to others (World of Metropolis #1, Aug. 1988). Perry and Alice named their child Perry, Jr., and he seemed a happy enough child until puberty. As a teen, Perry, Jr. hated his father’s constant speeches of self-reliance and lectures of how the boy failed to live up to his potential. Perry, Jr. felt he could never be the man his father was. Additionally, he resented the time Perry, Sr. spent at the Daily Planet and the warm relationship he had with his staff. The boy preferred the name “Jerry,” as Perry, Jr. made him feel like a failure. As soon as he graduated high school, Jerry left home and fell into trouble. He joined a gang, dated an African-American girl in an effort to upset his dad (which did not work), and was arrested for robbing a grocery store. Jerry was the stereotypical rebel without a cause. Why was Jerry an only child when previously, Perry and Alice had a large family? According to Dan Jurgens, “It was part of the effort to humanize Perry. Adding Jerry helped give us a younger character in the book, which was an advantage. Having one child helped streamline the story a bit. Jerry was also elevated by being the only child, which made Perry’s loss that much more tragic.” Eventually, Jerry took a job at the sinister nightclub Blazes, a site for the demonic Blaze to gather, damn, and harvest souls for her nether-realm. Jerry ran errands for Blaze, which resulted in Intergang’s shooting both Jerry and Jimmy Olsen. As the two boys fought for their lives in the hospital, Luthor made an appearance, claiming that Jerry was his son (as proven by genetic evidence he’d gathered earlier), but Perry did not care and threw Luthor out. Meanwhile, Superman fought for and saved the boys’ souls in Blaze’s realm, but not before Jerry’s body died. Perry mourned the loss of his only child, the son he could never quite connect with. Unfortunately, story-wise, Jerry had to die. “I think we were all pretty much dan jurgens committed to Jerry dying,” Jurgens © Luigi Novi / adds. “In a way, it helped elevate the Wikimedia Commons. overall threat of Blaze and the idea of Hell.” But Jerry’s departure removed a distraction that allowed Perry to refocus on the primary purpose he serves in the Superman mythos. “I can’t emphasize this enough,” Jurgens continues, “and I’ve gotten some of this into the books themselves—Lois and Clark see Perry as something of a father figure. He sees them as his children. I like those aspects of their relationship. Brings them closer together.” A huge part of Perry White’s character is his love for the Daily Planet staff. They are his legacy—not super -cigars and Pulitzer prizes. They are his family.

After Crisis on Infinite Earths, Superman was the first character to undergo a major overhaul and, as a member of the Man of Steel’s supporting cast, Perry White was included in that effort. Writer John Byrne oversaw the redesign of the Superman universe and, while keeping the basic character of Perry White the same, he added an underlying sadness and element of tragedy. Previously, the reader mostly saw the professional side of Perry White. He was Clark Kent’s boss and little more. In the new grand plan, readers would get a more complicated character. “I’d say that the biggest effort was trying to humanize Perry a little more,” writer/artist Dan Jurgens explains. “We gave him a family, which showed his life outside the Daily Planet and made him more three dimensional.” This Perry grew up in Suicide Slum, an impoverished section of Metropolis. Perry had to be the man of the house since his father had been killed fighting in the war (not specified, but most likely World War II). His best friend as a boy was Lex Luthor, but their friendship suffered as they grew and Luthor became more and more obsessed with

By day, JOHN SCHWIRIAN is a mild-mannered high school English/ special ed teacher, but by night, he dons the role of comic-book historian. In addition to his passion for all things Teen Titans, he explores the sunken regions of the DC Universe in his self-published fanzine The Aquaman Chronicles.

76 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

Send your comments to: Email: euryman@gmail.com (subject: BACK ISSUE) Postal mail: Michael Eury, Editor-in-Chief • BACK ISSUE 118 Edgewood Ave. NE * Concord, NC 28025

Find BACK ISSUE on

ALAS, POOR HAWKMAN

A Bronze Age Hawkman flashback, from World’s Finest Comics #262 (Apr.–May 1980). Original art scan courtesy of Heritage. TM & © DC Comics.

When I first started reading comics back in the dim and distant past, I always enjoyed finding an issue that featured Hawkman [BI #97]. Who couldn’t love the idea of someone who has a feathered contraption strapped to his back, and yet chooses not to wear a shirt? The eyes in the mask always puzzled me though—still do, if I’m honest—because it’s obvious to anyone that they don’t match up with those on the face underneath. So how does Hawkman see? I’m not sure that’s ever been properly addressed. The article on Hawkman was as informative and as thorough as I’ve come to expect, but I guess I was hoping for a summing up of

the post–Hawkworld character, although I don’t suppose that’s the remit of BI as yet. I remember that the character disappeared for a long time, and when he came back he was closer to the old Earth-Two Hawkman—complete with Egyptian-based origin—than the Katar Hol I grew up with. Or as they’d probably say in publicity nowadays: “He’s not your father’s Hawkman.” While I am no Bridwellian, and understand the need for a medium like comics to periodically reinvent itself, acts of retconning can be counterproductive. As Chuck Dixon remarks, elsewhere in the magazine, characters “need to remain recognizable to the casual reader, who is the forgotten man in comics.” I can’t remember which editor it was who suggested that if readers didn’t like the current version of a particular hero or heroes, they could always seek refuge in their old comics, safe in the knowledge that they would never change. And while it’s true in a way, it does suggest to me that DC have a lack of respect for this particular character, and by extension, the readership. All that seems to matter is perpetuating the trademark. To jettison Thanagar, and replace it with an increasingly muddled backstory that then throws other histories into doubt, has alienated this particular reader. I find the current incarnation of Hawkman confusing and consequently unreadable. I don’t believe Hawkman and Hawkgirl/woman have been well served in the last two decades. To my mind, they have been retconned to death. I loved the article in #98 on Secret Origins, which was one of my favorite titles at the time. The behind-the-scenes politics was a particularly interesting aspect. It never occurred to me how controversial some of the featured characters were. Crimson Avenger for issue #5? Sure, why not? I was aware by 1986 that comic production was no longer the well-oiled machine it had once seemed to be—the delays on Camelot 3000 had been proof enough of that—but I think I assumed that there was an overall plan. For all its internal strife, SO set the benchmark for all subsequent origin series, and I’m not sure another one has come close. DC Challenge was a series that didn’t appeal at the time, and doesn’t now. Much as I admired the work of many of the individual creators involved, it felt too much like an exercise in ego stroking, with the creators more concerned with impressing each other than the comic-reading audience. The project has the air of something dreamed up over the course of a very long lunch, and maybe should have stayed that way. On a more prosaic note—and while I don’t wish to call Doug Moench’s memories into question—my understanding of Tommy is that the record was almost entirely the creation of Pete Townshend, while the film’s vision was masterminded by [director] Ken Russell. Roger Daltrey, while an alpha front man, was not the creative wellspring of the Who. – Simon Bullivant

A LOST STORY FOUND!

Regarding your article about DC’s Secret Origins book and the “lost” Dinosaur Island story written by James Robinson and drawn by me [in BI #98]: James and I just happened to be in the DC offices the same day and Mark Waid apparently had a job to offer, so we were teamed up. I worked with James again both on a film he directed and a story for Starman, so we did manage to get a collaboration out there. I penciled the Dinosaur Island story, and soon after Secret Origins was canceled, when it came time for them to return my pencils, [DC] claimed they had lost them and paid me again the same fee as compensation. And so I thought the matter was closed. Eventually the DC offices moved to another building, and in the process my penciled pages were found and they sent them back to me. They didn’t even ask for their money back. I have scanned the work and sent James a digital copy, but as they were drawn in a combination of blue and faint graphite pencil the scans are not as clear as an inked line so they are not very pretty. As a quick aside, I was working in the same animation studio as Russ Heath at the time and I pestered him to ink the story. At least I tried. So, I have the pages. If DC is interested in publishing the story I would be more than happy to finish the art and even throw in some neat Photoshop tricks I didn’t have at the time. – Tim Burgard All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 77

FORGOTTEN OR NEGLECTED BOOKS

Amazing Heroes #30, featuring Thriller. Cover by Trevor Von Eeden. Scan courtesy of John Trumbull. Amazing Heroes © Fantagraphics Books. Thriller TM & © DC Comics.

Loved BACK ISSUE #98, starting with that gorgeous Nightwing cover by Romeo Tanghal—what a way to begin the issue! This issue best explains why I love your magazine—the focus on forgotten or neglected books from the not-so-distant past. I only recently bought the 12-issue DC Challenge and, while I have to admit my enthusiasm for the book dampened with each issue after a stellar start by Mark Evanier, Gene Colan, and Bob Smith, I greatly appreciated the look back by Bob Greenberger. The insight provided by the various writers and artists were wonderful to read and provided a window into how DC management was at the time. Bob Rozakis’ column about the Prestige Format was also worthwhile. He provided a different angle on the process, which was quite informative. I wonder if Bob (or someone else, for that matter) might be willing to write about the Flexographic printing that DC tried for a while in the mid-’80s on series such as Crisis on Infinite Earths, [the original] Who’s Who, and Jonni Thunder, a.k.a. Thunderbolt. There is definitely a story to be told about how that coloring process was done, who came up with the idea to use it, and why it didn’t work. Speaking of which, any chance of getting Roy (and Dann) Thomas to sit down and talk about his creation of Jonni Thunder? That four-issue miniseries was a lot of fun, with snappy dialogue and fantastic art by Dick Giordano. I would love to hear if Roy would have continued to use Jonni in Infinity, Inc., if that book hadn’t ended so suddenly. I remember seeing publicity for Thriller when it was released, but living in a rural area in Ohio, the “Baxter” books weren’t available for me to buy. Ed Catto did a great job of exploring the book and the behind the scenes genesis, and I’ve already ordered the series from an online comic shop. However, I was intrigued by the writer’s

78 • BACK ISSUE • All-Star Editors Issue

heading—”DC had high hopes for this offbeat title. Why did it fail?”… and yet, he didn’t answer his own question. Especially starting out with that great anecdote about the warehouse with a room “referred to as the ‘Thriller Room’ because it was filled with unsold copies of the maxiseries,” well, I was left hanging. Why did Thriller fail, exactly? And was it meant to be an ongoing series? I was a little confused because Mr. Catto referred to it as a maxiseries, which implied it was always meant to be 12 issues. I guess I was expecting more theories as to why the series didn’t meet sales expectations. I wanted to end this letter with a big thanks to John Wells for his look at Secret Origins. I loved that book. The combination of revolving writers, artists, and characters made for an exceptionally high-quality book. My only disappointment was that there were a few things I wish Mr. Wells would have elaborated on. For example, I’ve always been curious as to that incredible cover to #1 by Jerry Ordway— eagle-eyed fans like myself can see the Huntress is there with the rest of the JSA—and I often wondered if that was a sign her death in Crisis on Infinite Earths was a last-minute decision. Also, I wondered if Dann Thomas might have contributed to that story. Lois Lane’s dialogue always rang to me of a female writer in that issue. Secret Origins #1 is the first time I actually understood why Lois was so put off by Clark’s wimpy attitude. Also, I wish Mr. Wells would have asked Roy about the Dr. Mid-Nite origin. Some fans—even many, if you go by the Internet—thought Roy implied that Dr. Mid-Nite/Charles McNider was gay, which would have added a fascinating and fresh backstory to the character without contradicting anything, something Roy was an expert at doing (remember retroactive continuity?). I am so happy to see how many professionals are willing to share stories and memories about their work with TwoMorrows Publishing. To name them all would take up way too much space, but their names are always printed in the table of contents. I know many of them are busy, but their time and contributions are very much appreciated. Hopefully they, and other professionals, will continue to speak about their experiences in comic books. – Dan Brozak Dan, I echo your shout-out to the creative folks who routinely lend their time and recollections to BACK ISSUE—without them, our articles would suffer. Jonni Thunder, a.k.a. Thunderbolt is one of the series covered in this summer’s BI #106, themed “Golden Age in Bronze.” It includes a look at the 1970s Justice Society revival in All-Star Comics, two Spectre revivals, and lots of Roy Thomas’ series: All-Star Squadron, Liberty Legion, Crimson Avenger, and Jonni! Regarding Ed Catto’s Thriller article: Here’s what Ed himself has to say in response to your letter: Thanks for reading, and I’m glad you enjoyed our article on Thriller. And I’m anxious to hear your reactions after your receive and read the comics. There are so many reasons that contributed to the “beautiful failure” of the series. I think that all the unique elements of Thriller worked against them. For example, the brisk pace at which the story was meant to be read—pushing the reader along quicker than normal with nontraditional page layouts—resulted in confusion and frustration among fans. At that time, I believe, we all had an expectation that things would become clear more quickly. From the vantage point of today, I still find the large cast of characters to be fascinating. But again, I think that level of complexity was overwhelming for readers. Retailer disappointment on the first issues certainly played a big part, and it seems as though it was impossible to recover. Midway through, all the behind-the scenes turmoil only contributed to the chaos and it all fizzled out… although, as noted, helping artist Alex Nino certainly seems like a wonderful side effect. And regarding John Wells’ Secret Origins article: I asked John if he could shed any light on your questions, and he instead referred them directly to Roy Thomas himself, who replied: Afraid I can’t help you much with your questions. I do think the killing off of the Huntress was a late decision… I think I’ve read that someplace recently, even. I doubt if Dann had anything much to do with the Superman origin in #1, though. I was just trying to make sense of Lois’ attitude toward Clark. Besides some plotting, Dann’s main contribution

GETTING BETTER ALL THE TIME

BACK ISSUE just gets better all the time. The articles are so densely packed with reference material, interviews, behind-the-scenes stories, and opinions. No other magazine on my reading list offers me so much information under one cover. Every issue inspires a trip to my collection to pull out some comics from the past so I can enjoy them again, sometimes armed with new insights on them that further enhances my enjoyment. Thank you for your efforts; BACK ISSUE truly is one of my favorite reading experiences. Some comments on the “DC in The ’80s” issue: I always like your extensive coverage, and the Secret Origins article was no exception. The concept, published in various formats over 50 years, encompasses more DC history than any other title. I loved the idea that Roy Thomas planned to present the heroes in chronological order (another bit of comics history I learned from BI). For a series that had great “hit-or-miss” potential (if you didn’t care for a character, you’d skip that issue), the Secret Origins series of the ’80s was consistently good. And I loved the covers; not even in the team-up books of the day would you find Adam Strange and Dr. Occult sharing the cover action! As a big Ambush Bug fan I’m extremely curious about the rejected origin story you referenced. For instance, why specifically was it rejected? Perhaps we’ll see it in print someday when cooler heads prevail. After all, I read somewhere that we’d never see that humorous story about Superbaby’s babysitter, and it ended up as an Elseworlds tale. Maybe this untold story of Ambush Bug will see print some day. It is ironic that DC canceled Secret Origins claiming that it was “becoming increasingly more difficult” to find worthy headlining heroes, and your article is immediately followed by “Secret Origins Never Told” listing enough worthy characters for easily another dozen issues. And that’s not even counting the villains and supporting characters they could have covered. Personally, I would have loved to see a variation on the classic Phantom Stranger “four possible origins” issue featuring the Joker. As for me, I’ll always yearn for that Neil Gaiman “Young Darkseid” issue. The mind boggles… DC Challenge was an interesting concept that just got out of control. I’m enjoying the current Kamandi Challenge series, and I hope it paves the way for future challenges. Maybe a shorter format of, say, four or six issues, served up annually and spotlighting a different character, would be a fun ongoing series. Karl Heitmueller’s “Prince Street News” cartoon hit another bull’s-eye with his cartoon on continuity. Even good old Archie Andrews has had five sometimes drastically different versions available in the last few years (Classic Archie, New Archie, Pureheart Archie [in reprints], Married Archie, and Afterlife Archie). Give the readers some credit; they can figure this stuff out. The “multiple Earths” concept never baffled me when I was a kid, Superman, Jimmy Olsen, and New Gods characters TM & © DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.

and I always just figured that the DC and Marvel characters never interacted because they lived in different parts of the country. Heitmueller’s line regarding Earth-Prime—“I’m pretty sure I would have seen it on the news”—was hilarious. I grudgingly accepted DC’s recognition of the real world in their Multiple Earths canon, but it should have remained a concept only. When it became an active player in the DCU, I realized they lost sight of what the idea was all about. Having worked in the printing industry for many years, I enjoyed reading about the nuts-and-bolts technical aspects of Prestige Format printing. Comics coloring is something that has been taken for granted for years, until you compare today’s books with ones from the ’70s; then, the jarring difference makes you realize the strides taken in this process. Action Comics Weekly was another experiment that I give DC props for trying. I’d like to see these serialized stories reprinted in their entirety in a limited series of trade paperbacks or 100-pagers. It would be nice to read, say, the Demon and Phantom Lady chapters presented under one cover. In “Back Talk,” reader Bill Broomall made an excellent point: any character, no matter how long they’ve been around, is limited only by an author’s imagination. Two of my favorite writers, Neil Gaiman and J. Michael Straczynski, tackled the ultimate challenge of reimagining Brother Power, the Geek, and produced two great stories. New takes on classic stories (Frankenstein, The Wizard of Oz, Sherlock Holmes) are done all the time. Superman and Batman should, in theory, have been deemed “old fashioned” and banished to comics limbo years ago. Green Lantern? Who even knows what a lantern is anymore? And yet they continue. That’s the challenge for new writers: to recreate the classics without losing sight of the components that made those characters classic in the first place. Sorry to go on so long; your magazine brings that out in me. Keep up the good work! – Michal Jacot

to that series was a lot of the plot and dialogue for Crimson Avenger in #15. And I never intended to portray Dr. Mid-Nite as gay, although that wouldn’t have been hard to do, since he never had any romantic interest in the feature. It’s probably not something I’d have wanted to do… but I could understand if someone else had done it. John Wells adds: I appreciate your response. Regarding the Huntress, I just looked back at an interview conducted shortly after Crisis #12 and Marv Wolfman admitted that he hadn’t wanted to kill the character. Since her origin didn’t fit the new DC continuity, Paul Levitz told him to go ahead and do so with the promise that a new Huntress unconnected to Bruce Wayne would be created later. Jerry Ordway was working on a Huntress miniseries proposal (including Charlton heroine Nightshade) and didn’t discover that the heroine was being killed until receiving one of the last Crisis scripts.

Michal, the scrapped Ambush Bug origin included some jabs at characters not owned by DC, which raised concerns with the company’s Legal Department. You’re right—the Joker was a candidate for a “four possible origins” issue! (Filmmaker Chris Nolan picked up on that in The Dark Knight, as Heath Ledger’s Oscar-winning Joker offered several different stories about how he acquired his scarred “smile.”) Next issue: “Fourth World After Kirby,” exploring the enduring legacy of JACK KIRBY’s DC characters! The Return(s) of the New Gods, Why Can’t Mister Miracle Escape Cancellation?, the Forever People miniseries, the Fourth World in Hollywood, a Darkseid villain history, and more. With an all-star lineup including KAREN BERGER, JOHN BYRNE, GERRY CONWAY, PARIS CULLINS, J. M. DeMATTEIS, STEVE ENGLEHART, MICHAEL GOLDEN, LARRY HAMA, RICK HOBERG, DAN JURGENS, KARL KESEL, MIKE MIGNOLA, JOE PHILLIPS, STEVE RUDE, WALTER SIMONSON, BRUCE TIMM, RICK VEITCH, and more! Cover by Rude, re-presenting his variant cover for 2015’s Convergence #6. Don’t ask—just BI it! See you in sixty! Your friendly neighborhood Euryman, Michael Eury, editor-in-chief All-Star Editors Issue • BACK ISSUE • 79

It’s

GROOVY, baby!

Follow-up to Mark Voger’s smash hit MONSTER MASH!

From WOODSTOCK to “THE BANANA SPLITS,” from “SGT. PEPPER” to “H.R. PUFNSTUF,” from ALTAMONT to “THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY,” GROOVY is a far-out trip to the era of lava lamps and love beads. This profusely illustrated HARDCOVER BOOK, in PSYCHEDELIC COLOR, features interviews with icons of grooviness such as PETER MAX, BRIAN WILSON, PETER FONDA, MELANIE, DAVID CASSIDY, members of the JEFFERSON AIRPLANE, CREAM, THE DOORS, THE COWSILLS and VANILLA FUDGE; and cast members of groovy TV shows like “THE MONKEES,” “LAUGH-IN” and “THE BRADY BUNCH.” GROOVY revisits the era’s ROCK FESTIVALS, MOVIES, ART—even COMICS and CARTOONS, from the 1968 ‘mod’ WONDER WOMAN to R. CRUMB. A color-saturated pop-culture history written and designed by MARK VOGER (author of the acclaimed book MONSTER MASH), GROOVY is one trip that doesn’t require dangerous chemicals!

(192-page FULL-COLOR HARDCOVER) $39.95 • ISBN: 978-1-60549-080-9 • DIGITAL EDITION: $15.95

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2018 RATES

Download an interactive PDF version of TwoMorrows’ NEW 2017-2018 CATALOG at www.twomorrows.com! Then just click on any item, and you’re taken to its ordering page online! SUBSCRIPTIONS ECONOMY US Alter Ego (Six 100-page issues) $65 Back Issue (Eight 80-page issues) $76 BrickJournal (Six 80-page issues) $60 Comic Book Creator (Four 100-page issues) $43 Jack Kirby Collector (Four 100-page issues) $46 RetroFan (Four 80-page issues) - NEW! $38

EXPEDITED US $77 $92 $72 $53 $56 $46

PREMIUM US $83 $100 $78 $57 $60 $50

TwoMorrows. The Future of Pop History.

TwoMorrows Publishing • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 USA

INTERNATIONAL $99 $125 $94 $66 $69 $63

DIGITAL ONLY $30 $32 $24 $20 $20 $16

Phone: 919-449-0344 E-mail: store@twomorrows.com Web: www.twomorrows.com Don’t miss exclusive sales, limited editions, and new releases! Sign up for our mailing list: http:// groups.yahoo.com/group/twomorrows

ALTER EGO #152

ALTER EGO #153

ALTER EGO #154

COMIC BOOK CREATOR #16

COMIC BOOK CREATOR #17

Unsung artist/writer LARRY IVIE conceived (and named!) the JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA, helped develop T.H.U.N.D.E.R. AGENTS, brought EC art greats to the world of Edgar Rice Burroughs, and more! SANDY PLUNKETT chronicles his career, with art by FRAZETTA, CRANDALL, WOOD, KRENKEL, DOOLIN, and others! Plus FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT, BILL SCHELLY, and more!

Remembering Fabulous FLO STEINBERG, Stan Lee’s gal Friday during the Marvel Age of Comics—with anecdotes and essays by pros and friends who knew and loved her! Rare Marvel art, Flo’s successor ROBIN GREEN interviewed by RICHARD ARNDT about her time at Marvel, and Robin’s 1971 article on Marvel for ROLLING STONE magazine! Plus FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT, BILL SCHELLY, and more!

ALLEN BELLMAN (1940s Timely artist) interviewed by DR. MICHAEL J. VASSALLO, with art by SHORES, BURGOS, BRODSKY, SEKOWSKY, EVERETT, & JAFFEE. Plus Marvel’s ’70s heroines: LINDA FITE & PATY COCKRUM on The Cat, CAROLE SEULING on Shanna the She-Devil, & ROY THOMAS on Night Nurse—with art by SEVERIN, FRADON, ANDRU, and more! With FCA, MR. MONSTER, BILL SCHELLY, and more!

A look at 75 years of Archie Comics’ characters and titles, from Archie and his pals ‘n gals to the mighty MLJ heroes of yesteryear and today’s “Dark Circle”! Also: Careerspanning interviews with The Fox’s DEAN HASPIEL and Kevin Keller’s cartoonist DAN PARENT, who both jam on our exclusive cover depicting a face-off between humor and heroes. Plus our usual features, including the hilarious FRED HEMBECK!

The legacy and influence of WALLACE WOOD, with a comprehensive essay about Woody’s career, extended interview with Wood assistant RALPH REESE (artist for Marvel’s horror comics, National Lampoon, and underground), a long chat with cover artist HILARY BARTA (Marvel inker, Plastic Man and America’s Best artist with ALAN MOORE), plus our usual columns, features, and the humor of HEMBECK!

(100-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $9.95 (Digital Edition) $5.95 • Ships April 2018

(100-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $9.95 (Digital Edition) $5.95 • Ships June 2018

(100-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $9.95 (Digital Edition) $5.95 • Ships August 2018

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95 • Now shipping!

(100-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $9.95 (Digital Edition) $5.95 • Spring 2018

BACK ISSUE #106

JACK KIRBY CHECKLIST: CENTENNIAL EDITION

BRICKJOURNAL #50

BACK ISSUE #104

BACK ISSUE #105

Special double-size BOOK! Photo editor GEOFF GRAY talks to JOE MENO about the beginnings of BrickJournal, TORMOD ASKILDSEN of the LEGO GROUP interviewed, how the fan community has grown in 10 years, and the best builders of the past 50 issues! Plus: Minifigure customizing with JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!

FOURTH WORLD AFTER KIRBY! Return(s) of the New Gods, Why Can’t Mister Miracle Escape Cancellation?, the Forever People, MIKE MIGNOLA’s unrealized New Gods animated movie, Fourth World in Hollywood, and an all-star lineup, including the work of JOHN BYRNE, PARIS CULLINS, J. M. DeMATTEIS, MARK EVANIER, MICHAEL GOLDEN, RICK HOBERG, WALTER SIMONSON, and more. STEVE RUDE cover!

DEADLY HANDS ISSUE! Histories of Iron Fist, Master of Kung Fu, Yang, the Bronze Tiger, Hands of the Dragon, NEAL ADAMS’ Armor, Marvel’s Deadly Hands of Kung Fu mag, & Hong Kong Phooey! Plus Muhammad Ali in toons and toys. Featuring JOHN BYRNE, CHRIS CLAREMONT, STEVE ENGLEHART, PAUL GULACY, LARRY HAMA, DOUG MOENCH, DENNY O’NEIL, JIM STARLIN, & others. Classic EARL NOREM cover!

GOLDEN AGE IN BRONZE! ’70s Justice Society revival with two Pro2Pro interviews: All-Star Squadron’s ROY THOMAS, JERRY ORDWAY, and ARVELL JONES (with a bonus RICK HOBERG interview), and The Spectre’s JOHN OSTRANDER and TOM MANDRAKE. Plus: Liberty Legion, Air Wave, Jonni Thunder, Crimson Avenger, and the Spectre revival of ’87! WOOD, COLAN, CONWAY, GIFFEN, GIORDANO, & more!

(144-page FULL-COLOR book) $17.95 (Digital Edition) $7.95 • Ships March 2018

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95 • Ships May 2018

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95 • Ships June 2018

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95 • Ships July 2018

This final, fully-updated, definitive edition clocks in at DOUBLE the length of the 2008 “Gold Edition”, in a new 256-page Limited Edition Hardcover (only 1000 copies) listing every release up to Jack’s 100th birthday! Detailed listings of all of Kirby’s published work, reprints, magazines, books, foreign editions, newspaper strips, fine art and collages, fanzines, essays, interviews, portfolios, posters, radio and TV appearances, and even Jack’s unpublished work! (256-page Ltd. Ed. Hardcover) $34.95 Ships April 2018

TwoMorrows. The Future of Comics History.

DRAW #34

DRAW #35

KIRBY COLLECTOR #73

KIRBY COLLECTOR #74

GREG HILDEBRANDT (of the Hildebrandt Brothers) reveals his working methods, BRAD WALKER (Aquaman, Guardians of the Galaxy, Birds of Prey, Legends of the Dark Knight) gives a how-to interview and demo, regular columnist JERRY ORDWAY, JAMAR NICHOLAS reviews the latest art supplies, and BRET BLEVINS and Draw! editor MIKE MANLEY’s Comic Art Bootcamp!

Fantasy/sci-fi illustrator DONATO GIANCOLA (Game of Thrones) demos his artistic process, GEORGE PRATT (Enemy Ace: War Idyll, Batman: Harvest Breed) discusses his work as comic book artist, illustrator, fine artist, and teacher, Crusty Critic JAMAR NICHOLAS, JERRY ORDWAY’S regular column, and MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS’ “Comic Art Bootcamp.” Mature Readers Only.

ONE-SHOTS! Kirby’s best (and worst) short spurts on his wildest concepts: ANIMATION IDEAS, DINGBATS, JUSTICE INC., MANHUNTER, ATLAS, PRISONER, and more! Plus MARK EVANIER and our other regular panelists, rare Kirby interview, panels from the 2017 Kirby Centennial celebration, pencil art galleries, and some one-shot surprises! BIG BARDA #1 cover finishes by MIKE ROYER!

FUTUREPAST! Kirby’s “World That Was” from Caveman days to the Wild West, and his “World That’s Here” of Jack’s visions of the future that became reality! TWO COVERS: Bullseye inked by BILL WRAY, and Jack’s unseen Tiger 21 concept art! Plus: interview with ROY THOMAS about Jack, rare Kirby interview, MARK EVANIER moderating the biggest Kirby Tribute Panel of all time, pencil art galleries, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95 • Now shipping!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95 • Summer 2018

(100-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $10.95 (Digital Edition) $5.95 • Now shipping!

(100-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $10.95 (Digital Edition) $5.95 • Ships May 2018

TwoMorrows Publishing 10407 Bedfordtown Drive Raleigh, NC 27614 USA 919-449-0344 E-mail:

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DVD & BLU-RAY DISCS

PRINTED IN CHINA

STATIC SHOCK SEASON 3 NOW ON DVD

TEEN TITANS SEASON 1 NOW ON BLU-RAY

STATIC SHOCK COMPLETE SEASONS 1 AND 2 ALSO AVAILABLE!

WB.COM/WARNERARCHIVE

THOUSANDS OF FILMS, TV MOVIES & SERIES DIRECT FROM THE STUDIO VAULTS TM