Jack Schiff (1909 – April 30, 1999) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

comic book writer and editor best known for his work editing various Batman comic book series for DC Comics from 1942 to 1964. He was the co-creator of Starman,

Tommy Tomorrow Tommy Tomorrow is a science fiction hero published by DC Comics in several of their titles from 1947 to 1963. He first appeared in '' Real Fact Comics'' #6 (January 1947). He was created by Jack Schiff, George Kashdan, Bernie Breslauer, Virgil Fi ...

, and the

Wyoming Kid Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...

Biography

Jack Schiff entered the comics industry after attending

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teac ...

. At DC Comics, he co-created the original Starman with artist Jack Burnley and editors

Whitney Ellsworth Frederick Whitney Ellsworth (November 27, 1908 – September 7, 1980) was an American comic book editor and sometime writer and artist for DC Comics during the period known to historians and fans as the Golden Age of Comic Books. He was also D ...

Murray Boltinoff Murray Boltinoff (January 3, 1911 – May 6, 1994 in Pompano Beach, Florida) was a writer and editor of comic books, who worked for DC Comics from the 1940s to the 1980s, in which role he edited over 50 different comic book series. Biograph ...

, Mort Weisinger, and Bernie Breslauer in ''

Adventure Comics ''Adventure Comics'' is an American comic book series published by DC Comics from 1938 to 1983 and revived from 2009 to 2011. In its first era, the series ran for 503 issues (472 of those after the title changed from ''New Adventure Comics''), m ...

'' #61 (April 1941). DC hired Schiff as an editor in 1942 and he oversaw the various Batman and Superman comic book titles after Weisinger was drafted into military service during World War II. He wrote the story "Case of the Costume-Clad Killers" in '' Detective Comics'' #60 (Feb. 1942) which introduced the

Bat-Signal The Bat-Signal is a distress signal device appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, as a means to summon the superhero, Batman. It is a specially modified searchlight with a stylized emblem of a bat affixed to the light, allowing ...

into the Batman mythos. In addition, he edited and wrote the '' Batman'' comic strip for the McClure Newspaper Syndicate and wrote ''

The Vigilante ''The Vigilante'' is a 1947 American Western film serial directed by Wallace Fox. The 33rd serial released by Columbia Pictures, it was based on the comic book cowboy Vigilante, who first appeared in ''Action Comics'', published by DC Comics. ...

'' (1947) and '' Batman and Robin'' (1949) serials for

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mult ...

. He developed a series of public service announcements which ran throughout DC's entire publishing line from 1949 to the mid–1960s and scripted the "Johnny Everyman" feature which had been created by

Nobel Prize laureate The Nobel Prizes ( sv, Nobelpriset, no, Nobelprisen) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make out ...

Pearl S. Buck Pearl Sydenstricker Buck (June 26, 1892 – March 6, 1973) was an American writer and novelist. She is best known for '' The Good Earth'' a bestselling novel in the United States in 1931 and 1932 and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932. In 1938, Buc ...

. He launched comic book titles which were

licensed A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

from the popular radio programs ''

A Date with Judy ''A Date with Judy'' is a comedy radio series aimed at a teenage audience which ran from 1941 to 1950. The series was co-created by Jerome Lawrence and Aleen Leslie, and based on Leslie's “One Girl Chorus” column in the Pittsburgh Press. ...

'', ''

Gang Busters ''Gang Busters'' is an American dramatic radio program heralded as "the only national program that brings you authentic police case histories." It premiered on January 15, 1936, and was broadcast over 21 years through November 27, 1957. Histo ...

'', and '' Mr. District Attorney'' and co-created new characters such as

and the Wyoming Kid. His introduction of science fiction concepts into the Batman stories met with mixed results. In 1958, he became involved in a legal dispute with artist Jack Kirby over the "

Sky Masters ''Sky Masters of the Space Force'' was an American syndicated newspaper comic strip created on September 8, 1958 by writer/penciler Jack Kirby and writer Dave Wood, featuring the adventures of an American astronaut. The strip stars the titular Ma ...

" newspaper comic strip and Schiff won the resulting lawsuit. The following year, he and Dick Dillin created

Lady Blackhawk Lady Blackhawk is an alias used by three Fictional character, fictional comic book characters appearing in American comic books. The first, Zinda Blake, was introduced in a DC Comics publication in 1959 (''Blackhawk (DC Comics), Blackhawk'' #133); ...

in '' Blackhawk'' #133 (Feb. 1959). DC's upper management removed Schiff as editor of '' Batman'' and ''Detective Comics'' due to low sales and replaced him with

Julius Schwartz Julius "Julie" Schwartz (; June 19, 1915 – February 8, 2004) was a comic book editor, and a science fiction agent and prominent fan. He was born in The Bronx, New York. He is best known as a longtime editor at DC Comics, where at various ti ...

in 1964. '' Mystery in Space'' and '' Strange Adventures'' were given to Schiff as replacements to edit. He retired from DC after 25 years with the company and his final editing credit appeared in '' Strange Adventures'' #203 (Aug. 1967).

Awards

Jack Schiff received citations and commendations from such organizations as the

Anti-Defamation League The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), formerly known as the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, is an international Jewish non-governmental organization based in the United States specializing in civil rights law. It was founded in late Septe ...

(1948), the

National Conference of Christians and Jews The National Conference for Community and Justice is an American social justice organization focused on fighting biases and promoting understanding between people of different races and cultures. The organization was founded in 1927 as the Natio ...

(1953), the

United States Office of War Information The United States Office of War Information (OWI) was a United States government agency created during World War II. The OWI operated from June 1942 until September 1945. Through radio broadcasts, newspapers, posters, photographs, films and othe ...

(1945), and the United States Department of the Treasury (1945).

Bibliography

As writer

DC Comics

* '' Batman'' #10, 13, 15, 21, 26 (1942–1944) * '' Detective Comics'' #60 (1942) * ''

World's Finest Comics ''World's Finest Comics'' was an American comic book series published by DC Comics from 1941 to 1986. The series was initially titled ''World's Best Comics'' for its first issue; issue #2 (Summer 1941) switched to the more familiar name. Michael ...

'' #8, 15–26, 28, 30, 37, 39 (1942–1949)

As editor

DC Comics

* ''

Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics Publications and ...

'' #56–118 (1943–1948) * ''

'' #82–194 (1943–1953) * '' The Adventures of Alan Ladd'' #1–9 (1949–1951) * ''

Aquaman Aquaman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 (November 1941). The character is a pastiche of Namor. Initially a b ...

'' #1–4 (1962) * '' Batman'' #15–163 (1943–1964) * ''

Big Town ''Big Town'' is a popular long-running radio drama featuring a corruption-fighting newspaper editor initially played from 1937 to 1942 by Edward G. Robinson in his first radio role, with echoes of the conscience-stricken tabloid editor he had ...

'' #1–3 (1951) * '' Blackhawk'' #108–195 (1957–1964) * ''

Boy Commandos Boy Commandos is a fictional organization from DC Comics first appearing in ''Detective Comics'' #64 (June 1942) by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby. They are a combination of "kid gang" characters, an international cast of young boys fighting Nazis — ...

'' #2–36 (1943–1949) * '' The Brave and the Bold'' #31–33, 40–41 (1960–1962) * ''Buzzy'' #1–27 (1944–1949) * ''

Challengers of the Unknown The Challengers of the Unknown is a fictional group of adventurers appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The quartet of adventurers explored paranormal occurrences while facing several fantastic menaces. The characters' provenance is ...

'' #1–27 (1958–1962) * '' Dale Evans Comics'' #1–24 (1948–1952) * ''

'' #1–12 (1947–1949) * '' Detective Comics'' #71–326 (1943–1964) * ''Feature Films'' #1–4 (1950) * ''Frontier Fighters'' #1–8 (1955–1956) * ''

'' #1–67 (1947–1958) * '' House of Mystery'' #1–125, 143–169 (1951–1962, 1964–1967) * '' House of Secrets'' #1–56, 66–80 (1956–1962, 1964–1966) * ''

Leading Comics ''Leading Comics'' is a 1942–1955 comic book published by what is now DC Comics during the 1940s and early 1950s, a period known to fans and historians as the Golden Age of Comic Books. At the title's inception, DC was actually two companies, Na ...

'' #6–14 (1943–1945) * ''Legends of Daniel Boone'' #1–8 (1955–1956) * '' More Fun Comics'' #87–107 (1943–1946) * '' Mr. District Attorney'' #1–67 (1948–1959) * ''

My Greatest Adventure ''My Greatest Adventure'' was a DC Comics comic book that began in 1955 and is best known for introducing the superhero team Doom Patrol. Publication history The title was originally an anthology series with adventure stories told in the first p ...

'' #1–70 (1955–1962) * '' Mystery in Space'' #92–110 (1964–1966) * ''

Real Fact Comics ''Real Fact Comics'' is a series of educational American comic books published by three early iterations of DC Comics: World's Best Comics, Inc., Detective Comics, Inc., and National Comics Publications. The series lasted for 21 issues with cover ...

'' #1–21 (1946–1949) * ''

Rip Hunter Rip Hunter is a fictional time traveling hero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jack Miller and artist Ruben Moreira, the character first appeared in '' Showcase'' #20 (May 1959). Following three more app ...

... Time Master'' #1–9 (1961–1962) * ''

Showcase Showcase or vitrine may refer to: *Cabinet (furniture) *Display case Music * ''Showcase'' (Bill Anderson album), 1964 * ''Showcase'' (Patsy Cline album), 1961 * ''Showcase'' (Buddy Holly album), 1964 * ''Showcase'' (Philly Joe Jones album), 1959 ...

'' #5–7, 11–12, 15–16, 20–21, 25–26, 30–33 (1956–1961) * ''

Star-Spangled Comics ''Star Spangled Comics'' was a comics anthology published by DC Comics which ran for 130 issues from October 1941 to July 1952. It was then retitled '' Star Spangled War Stories'' and lasted until issue #204 (February–March 1977). Publication hi ...

'' #16–130 (1943–1952) * '' Strange Adventures'' #164–203 (1964–1967) * ''

Superboy Superboy is the name of several fictional superheroes appearing in American comicbooks published by DC Comics. These characters have been featured in several eponymous comic series, in addition to ''Adventure Comics'' and other series featuring ...

'' #1–28 (1949–1953) * '' Superman'' #20–51 (1943–1948) * '' Tales of the Unexpected'' #1–72, 83–102 (1956–1962, 1964–1967) * ''

Tomahawk A tomahawk is a type of single-handed axe used by the many Indigenous peoples and nations of North America. It traditionally resembles a hatchet with a straight shaft. In pre-colonial times the head was made of stone, bone, or antler, and Euro ...

'' #1–81 (1950–1962) * '' Western Comics'' #1–42 (1948–1953) * ''

'' #8–140 (1942–1964)

References

External links

*
Jack Schiff
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics {{DEFAULTSORT:Schiff, Jack 1909 births 1999 deaths American comics writers Comic book editors DC Comics people Cornell University alumni Golden Age comics creators Silver Age comics creators People of the United States Office of War Information