Bob Oksner (October 14, 1916 – February 18, 2007) was an American comics artist known for both adventure

comic strips A comic strip is a Comics, sequence of cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often Serial (literature), serialized, with text in Speech balloon, balloons and Glossary of comics terminology#Captio ...

and for

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

and humor

comic books A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

, primarily at

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

Biography

Oksner's early work includes creating the second version of Marvel Boy in 1943 for Timely Comics, the predecessor of

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

. He later wrote with Jerry Albert and drew the syndicated newspaper comic strip '' Miss Cairo Jones'' (1945–1947), after which DC editor Sheldon Mayer hired him as an artist on comics adapted from other media. Oksner drew a few

Justice Society of America The Justice Society of America (JSA) is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It was conceived by editor Sheldon Mayer and writer Gardner Fox during the Golden Age of Comic Books. It first appeared in '' ...

stories in '' All Star Comics'' during his early years at DC. He moved from adventure strips to teen-oriented strips such as '' Leave It to Binky'' which debuted in February 1948. Oksner's work in this field included '' The Adventures of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis'' and its successor, ''The Adventures of Jerry Lewis''; '' The Adventures of Bob Hope''; '' The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis''; '' Sgt. Bilko''; '' Pat Boone''; and '' Welcome Back, Kotter''; and, for the King Features syndicate, the newspaper comic-strip spin-off of the 1950s TV

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

'' I Love Lucy''. Other work includes drawing the original humor comics '' Angel and the Ape'' and '' Stanley and His Monster''. When the demand for humor comics fell off by the 1970s, Oksner began drawing such DC

series as ''

Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...

'', ''

Supergirl Supergirl is the name of several fictional superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The original, current, and most well known Supergirl is Supergirl (Kara Zor-El), Kara Zor-El, the cousin of superhero Superman. Th ...

'', '' Shazam!'', '' Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane'', '' Ambush Bug'', and others. Oksner's other work in comic strips included succeeding Gus Edson as writer of artist-creator Irwin Hasen's '' Dondi'' for a time beginning in 1965; and drawing and co-creating ''Soozi'' (1967), with Don Weldon. He retired from comics in 1986. Oksner was

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

Awards

Oksner won the National Cartoonists Society Division Award for Comic Books in 1960 and 1961, and in 1970 the Shazam Award for Best Pencil Artist (Humor Division) for his work on ''

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''), ...

'' and other DC titles. Oksner was a recipient of the Inkpot Award in 2002.Inkpot Award
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Bibliography

Interior pencil art (except where noted) includes:

DC Comics

* ''

Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/Comic anthology, magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as Detective Comics Inc., which later merged into National ...

'' (

) #429, 438–441, 446–449, 459 (inks over Curt Swan); #566 (inks over Howard Bender); #573 (inks over Kurt Schaffenberger); #577, 579 (inks over Keith Giffen); ( Ambush Bug) #560, 563, 565 (inks over Giffen); #572 (inks over Bender) (1973–1986) *''

'' (

) #410–411, 414 (full art); #412–413 (inks over Art Saaf); #415 (inks over Win Mortimer); #417–418 (inks over José Delbo); #421–423 (inks over

Mike Sekowsky Michael Sekowsky (; November 19, 1923 – March 30, 1989) was an American comics artist known as the penciler for DC Comics' '' Justice League of America'' during most of the 1960s, and as the regular writer and artist on ''Wonder Woman'' durin ...

); #419–420, 424 (inks over Tony DeZuniga) (1970–1972) *'' The Adventures of Bob Hope'' #6–10, 13–17, 19–21, 23–24, 28, 67–77, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92–102, 105 (1950–1967) *'' Adventures of Jerry Lewis'' #2, 4, 25, 36, 52, 73–74, 78, 83–98, 100, 105, 115, 120–122, 124 (1952–1971) *'' All-American Comics'' #102 (1948) *'' All-American Men of War'' #3 (1953) *'' All Star Comics'' (

) #38 (full art); #43–47 (inks over Irwin Hasen) (1947–1949) *'' Ambush Bug'' #1–4 (inks over Keith Giffen) (1985) *''Ambush Bug Stocking Stuffer'' #1 (inks over Keith Giffen) (1986) *'' Angel and the Ape'' #1–7 (1968–1969) *''Binky'' #73, 75 (1970) *''Buzzy'' #23–26 (1949) *'' Comic Cavalcade'' #29 (1948) *''Danger Trail'' #4–5 (1951) *'' Daring New Adventures of Supergirl'' #1–13 (inks over Carmine Infantino) (1982–1983) *'' Date With Debbi'' #13–14 (1971) *'' DC Comics Presents'' #81 (inks over Keith Giffen) (1985) *''

Detective Comics ''Detective Comics'' (later retitled as ''Batman Detective Comics'') is an American comic book series published by Detective Comics, later shortened to DC Comics. The first volume, published from 1937 to 2011 (and later continued in 2016), is ...

'' ( Batgirl) #483–484; ("Tales of Gotham City") #492 (1979–1980) *'' Elvira's House of Mystery'' #1 (inks over Ron Wagner); #2 (1986) *''Everything Happens to Harvey'' #1 (1953) *'' Flash Comics'' (Ghost Patrol) #87–92, 95, 97–100 (inks over Carmine Infantino); (

Atom Atoms are the basic particles of the chemical elements. An atom consists of a atomic nucleus, nucleus of protons and generally neutrons, surrounded by an electromagnetically bound swarm of electrons. The chemical elements are distinguished fr ...

) #93 (inks over Paul Reinman); #94 (full art) (1947–1948) *'' The Fox and the Crow'' #96 (1966) *'' Girls' Love Stories'' #21, 104, 108–110 (1953–1965) *'' Girls' Romances'' #100, 108, 119 (1964–1966) *'' Green Lantern'' #27 (inks over Howard Purcell) #34, 36, 38 (inks over Irwin Hasen) (1947–1949) *'' House of Mystery'' #199 (1972) *'' Leave It to Binky'' #1, 4, 7–9, 12–13, 15, 17–18, 20–21, 23–28, 32–35, 37, 39, 41, 43–45, 47, 50, 54 (1948–1956) *'' Limited Collectors' Edition'' (Angel and the Ape) #C–34 (1975) *'' The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis'' #2, 5–7, 9, 15–20, 25–26 (1960–1964) *''Miss Beverly Hills of Hollywood'' #2–4, 7 (1949–1950) *''Miss Melody Lane of Broadway'' #1–3 (1950) *'' Mystery in Space'' #3, 5–6, 8, 10–12 (1951–1953) *'' Our Army at War'' #2, 5 (1952) *'' Pat Boone'' #3 (1960) *'' Plop!'' #6 (inks over Mike Sekowsky) (1974) *''Romance Trail'' #1–2 (1949) *'' Secret Hearts'' #8, 94 (1952–1964) *'' Secret Origins'' vol. 2 ( Challengers of the Unknown) #12 (inks over Chuck Patton) (1987) *'' Sensation Comics'' #84–87, 106 (1948–1951) *''Sensation Mystery'' #113 (1953) *'' Sergeant Bilko'' #5, 9, 11, 13 (1958–1959) *''Sgt. Bilko's Pvt. Doberman'' #6 (1959) *''Shazam!'' ( Captain Marvel) #10–13, 15, 18; (

Mary Marvel Mary Marvel (also known as Lady Shazam and Mary Shazam) is a fictional character and superheroine originally published by Fawcett Comics and now owned by DC Comics. Created by Otto Binder and Marc Swayze, she first appeared in ''Captain Marvel (DC ...

) #10, 13, 16, 19 (1974–1975) *'' Showcase'' (Angel and the Ape) #77 (1968) *''Son of Ambush Bug'' #1–6 (inks over Keith Giffen) (1986) *'' Stanley and His Monster'' #109–111 (1968) *'' Strange Adventures'' #6–9, 13–14, 16, 18, 21–28 (1951–1953) *''Strange Sports Stories'' #1 (inks over Curt Swan) (1973) *'' Suicide Squad Annual'' #1 (inks over Keith Giffen) (1988) *'' Super Friends'' (The Seraph) #38, 41, 46 (1980–1981) *''Supergirl'', vol. 2, #14–20, 22–23 (inks over Carmine Infantino) (1983–1984) *''

'' (The Private Life of

Clark Kent Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...

) #267; (Superman) #268, 271, 276, 278, 280–281, 283–287, 289, 291–293, 295–300, 303–306, 399, 401–403 (inks over Curt Swan); #301–302 (inks over José Luis García-López); #404 (inks over Infantino); (Supergirl) #375 (inks over Carmine Infantino) (1973–1985) *'' The Superman Family'' ( Jimmy Olsen) #183 (inks over Kurt Schaffenberger); ( Nightwing and Flamebird) #193 (inks over Ken Landgraf); ( Lois Lane) #196–197, 202–222 (pencils) (1977–1982) *'' Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen'' #149–152 (inks over José Delbo) (1972) *'' Swing with Scooter'' #12, 17, 31 (1968–1970) *'' Welcome Back, Kotter'' #1 (inks over Jack Sparling); #3–5, 8–10 (inks over Ric Estrada) (1976–1978) *''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superheroine who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''All Star Comics'' Introducing Wonder Woman, #8, published October 21, 1941, with her first feature in ''Sensation Comic ...

'' #205 (inks over Don Heck) (1973) *'' Young Romance'' #173 (inks) (1971)

Marvel Comics

* '' All Winners Comics'' #9–11, 13 (1943–1944) * '' Captain America Comics'' #65, 67 (1948) * ''Kid Komics'' #1 (1943) * '' Marvel Mystery Comics'' #10–46, 50–57, 72–75, 91 (1940–1949) * '' Mystic Comics'' #2 (1944) * '' U.S.A. Comics'' #7 (1943)

Notes

References

External links

Atlas Comics (retailer) Presents the Top 100 Artists of American Comic Books: #98 — Bob Oksner
accessed June 28, 2006
"DC Profiles #79: Bob Oksner"
at the Grand Comics Database
Bob Oksner
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics *, The Comic Strip Project, "Who's Who of Comic Strip Producers", O. . Accessed January 16, 2011.

at Supermanartists.comics.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Oksner, Bob 1916 births 2007 deaths 20th-century American artists 21st-century American artists American comics artists American comic strip cartoonists Columbia University alumni Comics inkers DC Comics people Deaths from pneumonia in Florida Golden Age comics creators Jewish American comics artists Artists from Paterson, New Jersey Place of death missing Silver Age comics creators Inkpot Award winners