David Vern Reed
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David Vern Reed (born David Levine; 13 December 1914 – 11 August 1994), 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, p ...
writer, best known for his work on the ''
Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
''
comic book 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 ...
during the 1950s in a run that included a revamp of the
Batplane The Batplane, Batwing, Batjet or Batgyro is the fictional aircraft for the DC Comics superhero Batman. The vehicle was introduced in "Batman Versus The Vampire, I", published in ''Detective Comics'' #31 in 1939, a story which saw Batman travel to ...
in ''Batman'' #61 and the introduction of
Deadshot Deadshot is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer David Vern Reed and artist Lew Sayre Schwartz based on a concept from Bob Kane, the character first appeared in ''Batman (comic book), Batman ...
in ''Batman'' #59 (July 1950).


Biography

Born David Levine in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
in 1914, David Vern Reed grew up to become a writer, with his work appearing under several
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pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...
s, amongst them David Vern, Coram Nobis, Alexander Blade, Craig Ellis, Clyde Woodruff, and Peter Horn. In the 1940s, he wrote such
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
stories as the
novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most novelettes and short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) ...
"The Metal Monster Murders" in ''Mammoth Detective'' (vol. 3) #4 (Nov. 1944). He was hired to write comic book scripts by his friend,
Julius Schwartz Julius "Julie" Schwartz ( ; June 19, 1915 – February 8, 2004) was an American comic book editor, and a science fiction agent. He was born in The Bronx, New York. He is best known as a longtime editor at DC Comics, where at various times he ...
, an editor 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 ...
. It was at DC where Levine — who like all
Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
writers and artists of this time ghosted under
Bob Kane Robert Kane ( Kahn ; October 24, 1915 – November 3, 1998) was an American comic book writer, animator, and artist who created Batman and many early related characters for DC Comics. He was inducted into the comic book industry's Jack Kirby ...
's label — would eventually become best known to Batman fans as "David V. Reed". Reed's first story published by DC, "Ride, Bat-Hombre, Ride" in ''
Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
'' #56 (Dec. 1949–Jan. 1950) was the start of his first tenure chronicling Batman's adventures. and He and artist
Lew Schwartz Lewis Sayre Schwartz ( ; July 24, 1926 – June 18, 2011) was an American comic book artist, advertising creator and filmmaker, credited as a ghost artist for Bob Kane on DC Comics ''Batman'' from 1946-47 through 1953, and with writer David ...
created the villain
Deadshot Deadshot is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer David Vern Reed and artist Lew Sayre Schwartz based on a concept from Bob Kane, the character first appeared in ''Batman (comic book), Batman ...
in ''Batman'' #59 (July 1950). Reed wrote such key stories as "The Birth of
Batplane The Batplane, Batwing, Batjet or Batgyro is the fictional aircraft for the DC Comics superhero Batman. The vehicle was introduced in "Batman Versus The Vampire, I", published in ''Detective Comics'' #31 in 1939, a story which saw Batman travel to ...
II" in ''Batman'' #61 (Nov. 1950), " The Joker's Millions" and "
Two-Face Two-Face is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Bob Kane, and first appeared in ''Detective Comics'' #66 (August 1942). He has become one of the superhero Batman's most enduring e ...
Strikes Again", the latter two featuring the return of the original villains introduced by Kane and writer
Bill Finger Milton "Bill" Finger (February 8, 1914 – ) was an American comic book writer who co-created the DC Comics character Batman with Bob Kane. Despite making major (sometimes, signature) contributions as an innovative writer, visionary mythos/world ...
. Another story from this period, "The Joker's Utility Belt", once mistakenly believed to have been written by Finger, was eventually adapted for
Cesar Romero César Julio Romero Jr. (February 15, 1907 – January 1, 1994) was an American actor. He was active in film, radio, and television for almost 60 years. His wide range of screen roles included Latin lover (stereotype), Latin lovers, historical ...
's first appearance as the Joker on the 1960s ''Batman'' television series, broadcast as the episodes "The Joker Is Wild" and "Batman Gets Riled". Besides ''Batman'', Vern Reed wrote for
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 ...
in ''
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 ...
'', ''
World's Finest Comics ''World's Finest Comics'' is 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 ...
'' and several of DC's non-superhero series. He later left comics to return to prose fiction, writing such
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
novels as ''Murder in Space'' (Green Dragon Books / Ideal Publishing, 1945), and stories for such magazines as ''
Amazing Stories ''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearance ...
'', ''
Fantastic Adventures ''Fantastic Adventures'' was an American pulp fantasy and science fiction magazine, published from 1939 to 1953 by Ziff-Davis. It was initially edited by Raymond A. Palmer, who was also the editor of ''Amazing Stories'', Ziff-Davis's other sci ...
'', and ''
Astounding Science Fiction ''Analog Science Fiction and Fact'' is an American science fiction magazine published under various titles since 1930. Originally titled ''Astounding Stories of Super-Science'', the first issue was dated January 1930, published by William C ...
''. He also wrote for glossy magazines including '' Argosy'', ''
Collier's } ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter F. Collier, Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened i ...
'', ''
Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Internationalism * World citizen, one who eschews traditional geopolitical divisions derived from national citizenship * Cosmopolitanism, the idea that all of humanity belongs to a single moral community * Cosmopolitan ...
'', ''
Good Housekeeping ''Good Housekeeping'' is an American lifestyle media brand that covers a wide range of topics from home decor and renovation, health, beauty and food, to entertainment, pets and gifts. The Good Housekeeping Institute which opened its "Experiment ...
'', and '' Mademoiselle''.Editor's comment, "Letters to the Batman", ''Batman'' #271 (Jan. 1976). Reed returned to comic books in the 1970s and to Batman in 1975. Initially ignoring the character's large
rogues gallery A rogues' gallery (or rogues gallery) is a police collection of mug shots or other images of criminal suspects kept for identification purposes. History In 1855, Allan Pinkerton, founder of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, established ...
, he engaged the superhero in a series of bizarre mysteries such as "The Daily Death of Terry Tremayne" and "The Underworld Olympics '76!"
Supervillain A supervillain, supervillainess or supercriminal is a major antagonist and variant of the villainous stock character who possesses Superpower (ability), superpowers. The character type is sometimes found in comic books and is often the primary ...
s would later appear in tales such as "Where Were You On The Night Batman Was Killed?", a four-issue storyline drawn by artist
John Calnan John Calnan (February 26, 1932 – December 27, 2016) was an American comics artist best known as the co-creator of Lucius Fox with writer Len Wein. Early life John Calnan graduated from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. One of hi ...
. Critic Chris Sims of
ComicsAlliance ComicsAlliance is an American website dedicated to covering the comic book industry as well as comic-related media, and is owned by Townsquare Media. The site has been nominated for multiple awards including a 2015 Eisner Award win in the categ ...
praised that story in 2012, noting "The price of Batman’s heroism, the guilt that he feels for being personally responsible for the victim showing up at the scene of one of his exploits, the lengths to which he’s willing to go to make sure that this person isn’t just another (literally) faceless victim, the desire to make sure he has the right killer — they’re all very modern ideas. This story may not be as well-known as anything by
Englehart Englehart (Canada 2021 Census population 1,442) is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located on the Blanche River in the Timiskaming District. Kap-Kig-Iwan Provincial Park is located near the town of Englehart. History The Tow ...
and Rogers or O’Neil and
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, but it’s just as much of a turning point in how Batman was presented." ''Batman'' #300 (June 1978) featured a story by Reed and artist
Walt Simonson Walter Simonson (born September 2, 1946) is an American comic book writer and artist, best known for a run on Marvel Comics' ''Thor'' from 1983 to 1987, during which he created the character Beta Ray Bill. He is also known for the creator-owned ...
After writing various Batman stories for three years, Reed left comics again in 1978 with his final Batman story "Hang the Batman" appearing in ''
DC Special Series ''DC Special Series'' was an umbrella title for one-shots and special issues published by DC Comics between 1977 and 1981. Each issue featured a different character and was often in a different format than the issue before it. ''DC Special Serie ...
'' #15. He died in New York in 1994 (1989 in some sources).


Comics bibliography

* ''
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 ...
'' #169 (
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 ...
) (1952) * ''
All-American Men of War ''Men of War'' is the name of several American comic book series published by DC Comics. For the most part, the series was a war comics anthology featuring fictional stories about the American military during World War II. The original series, ...
'' #3–4, 6, 9–10, 13, 15, 18 (1953–1955) * ''
All-American Western ''All-American Comics'' is a comics anthology and the flagship title of comic book publisher All-American Publications, one of the forerunners of DC Comics. It ran for 102 issues from 1939 to 1948. Characters created for the title, including Gree ...
'' #116–119 (1950–1951) * ''
The Amazing World of DC Comics ''The Amazing World of DC Comics'' was DC Comics' self-produced fan magazine of the mid-1970s. Running 17 issues, the fanzine featured DC characters and their creators, and was exclusively available through mail order. Primarily text articles, wit ...
'' #10 (1976) * ''
Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
'' #56, 59, 61, 67, 70–73, 75, 78–79, 81–85, 267, 269–285, 287–294, 296–304 (1949–1954, 1975–1978) * ''
Batman Family ''Batman Family'' is an American comic book anthology series published by DC Comics which ran from 1975 to 1978, primarily featuring stories starring supporting characters to the superhero Batman. An eight-issue miniseries called ''Batman: Famil ...
'' #20 (1978) * ''
Danger Trail King Faraday is a fictional secret agent featured in DC Comics. Faraday first appeared in ''Danger Trail'' #1 (August 1950), and was created by Robert Kanigher and Carmine Infantino. Faraday's last appearance in the 1950s was in ''World's Finest C ...
'' #1–5 (1950–1951) * ''
DC Special Series ''DC Special Series'' was an umbrella title for one-shots and special issues published by DC Comics between 1977 and 1981. Each issue featured a different character and was often in a different format than the issue before it. ''DC Special Serie ...
'' #15 (
Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
) (1978) * ''
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 ...
'' #179–180, 185–186, 192, 197, 452–454, 465 (Batman) (1952–1953, 1975–1976) * ''
House of Mystery ''The House of Mystery'' is the name of several horror comics, horror, fantasy comics, fantasy, and mystery fiction, mystery comics anthology, comics anthologies published by DC Comics. It had a companion series, ''The House of Secrets (DC Comi ...
'' #236, 245, 251, 256, 258 (1975–1978) * '' House of Secrets'' #134 (1975) * ''
Plop! ''Plop!'', "The New Magazine of Weird Humor!", is a comic book anthology series published by DC Comics in the mid-1970s. It falls into the horror / humor genre. It lasted 24 issues and the series ran from Sept./Oct. 1973 to Nov./Dec. 1976. Backg ...
'' #5, 10, 12–13, 17–18, 21 (1974–1976) * ''
Star-Spangled Comics ''Star Spangled Comics'' is 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 ...
'' #92–95, 100, 103–105, 110–111, 115, 127–128, 130 (
Robin Robin most commonly refers to several species of passerine birds. Robin may also refer to: Animals * Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae * Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), inclu ...
) (1950–1952) * ''
Star Spangled War Stories ''Star Spangled War Stories'' is the title of a comics anthology published by DC Comics that featured war-themed characters and stories. Among the features published in this series were writer-editor Robert Kanigher and artist Jerry Grandenetti's ...
'' #14, 23–24, 26–27, 38, 40–41 (1953–1956) * ''
Strange Adventures ''Strange Adventures'' is a series of American comic books published by DC Comics, the first of which was August–September 1950, according to the cover date, and published continuously until November 1973. Original series ''Strange Adventure ...
'' #1–2, 4 (1950–1951) * ''
Weird War Tales ''Weird War Tales'' is a war comic book title with supernatural overtones published by DC Comics. It was published from September - October 1971 to June 1983. Publication history The original title ran for 12 years and 124 issues. It was an an ...
'' #31 (1974) * ''
World's Finest Comics ''World's Finest Comics'' is 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 ...
'' #49–54, 56–61, 66 (Batman) (1950–1953)


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, David Vern 1914 births 1994 deaths American comics writers American magazine writers American male novelists American science fiction writers DC Comics people Golden Age comics creators Pseudonymous writers Pulp fiction writers