Eugene Jules Colan (; September 1, 1926 – June 23, 2011)Eugene Colan
at the Social Security Death Index via FamilySearch.org. Retrieved on February 22, 2013. was an American

comic book artist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comics illustrators/artists in that they produce both the literary ...

best known for his work for

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 ...

, where his signature titles include the

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 ...

series '' Daredevil'', the cult-hit satiric series ''

Howard the Duck Howard the Duck is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Steve Gerber, based very loosely on his college friend Howard Tockman, and artist Val Mayerik. Howard the Duck firs ...

'', and '' The Tomb of Dracula'', considered one of comics' classic horror series. He co-created the

Falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Some small species of falcons with long, narrow wings are called hobbies, and some that hover while hunting are called kestrels. Falcons are widely distrib ...

, the first

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

superhero in mainstream comics;

Carol Danvers Carol Susan Jane Danvers is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Gene Colan, the character first appeared as an officer in the United States Air Force and a colleagu ...

, who would become Ms. Marvel and Captain Marvel; and the non-costumed,

supernatural Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the Scientific law, laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanin ...

vampire hunter

Blade A blade is the Sharpness (cutting), sharp, cutting portion of a tool, weapon, or machine, specifically designed to puncture, chop, slice, or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they a ...

. Colan was inducted into the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2005.

Early life

Eugene Jules Colan was born September 1, 1926, to Harold Colan, an insurance salesman, and Winifred Levy Colan, an antique dealer, in

The Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

, New York City. His parents ran an antiques business on the

Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the boroughs of New York City, borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded approximately by 96th Street (Manhattan), 96th Street to the north, the East River to the e ...

. His family 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 ...

, and the family's surname had originally been " Cohen". Colan began drawing at age three. "The first thing I ever drew was a lion. I must've absolutely copied it or something. But that's what my folks tell me. And from then on, I just drew everything in sight. My grandfather was my favorite subject". Among his earliest influences, he said in 2001, were the Coulton Waugh adventure

comic strip 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 ...

'' Dickie Dare'' "in ''

The New York Sun ''The New York Sun'' is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative Online newspaper, news website and former newspaper based in Manhattan, Manhattan, New York. From 2009 to 2021, it operated as an (occasional and erratic) onlin ...

''. I was influenced by the style, or the story. Mostly the story. I took it very seriously." He moved with his family "at about age 4" to

Long Beach Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

, New York, on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

. Later, he would try to copy artist

Norman Rockwell Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of Culture of the United States, the country's culture. Roc ...

's covers to ''

The Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine published six times a year. It was published weekly from 1897 until 1963, and then every other week until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely circulated and influ ...

''. Other major art influences were comics artists Syd Shores and Milton Caniff. Colan attended George Washington High School in the Washington Heights section of

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

, and went on to study at the

Art Students League of New York The Art Students League of New York is an art school in the American Fine Arts Society in Manhattan, New York City. The Arts Students League is known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may study f ...

Career

Early career

Colan began working in comics in 1944, doing illustrations for publisher

Fiction House Fiction House was an American publisher of pulp magazines and comic books that existed from the 1920s to the 1950s. It was founded by John B. "Jack" Kelly and John W. Glenister.Saunders, David"JACK BYRNE (1902-1972),"Field Guide to Wild American P ...

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

series '' Wings Comics''. " st a summertime job before I went into the service", it gave Colan his first published work, the one-page "Wing Tips"

non-fiction Non-fiction (or nonfiction) is any document or content (media), media content that attempts, in good faith, to convey information only about the real life, real world, rather than being grounded in imagination. Non-fiction typically aims to pre ...

filler "

P-51B Mustang Over twenty variants of the North American P-51 Mustang fighter were produced from 1940, when it first flew, to after World War II, some of which were employed also in the Korean War and in several other conflicts. Allison-engined Mustangs NA- ...

" (issue #52, Dec. 1944). His first comics story was a seven-page "Clipper Kirk" feature in the following month's issue. After attempting to enlist in the

U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

but being pulled out by his father "because I was underage", Colan at "18 or 19" enlisted in the Army Air Corps. Originally scheduled for gunnery school in

Boulder In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

, plans changed with the war's sudden end. "I was going to be an aerial gunner. A bomber. But it never materialized", he recalled in 2001. After training at an Army camp near

Biloxi, Mississippi Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States. It lies on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast in southern Mississippi, bordering the city of Gulfport, Mississippi, Gulfport to its west. The adjacent cities ar ...

, he joined the U.S. forces in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. There Colan rose to the rank of

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

, drew for the ''

Manila Times ''The Manila Times'' is the oldest extant English-language newspaper in the Philippines. It is published daily by The Manila Times Publishing Corp. (formerly La Vanguardia Publishing Corporation) with editorial and administrative offices at 2/F ...

'', and won an art contest. Upon his return to civilian life in 1946, Colan went to work for

' 1940s precursor,

Timely Comics Timely Comics was the common name for the group of corporations that was the earliest comic book arm of American publisher Martin Goodman (publisher), Martin Goodman, and the entity that would evolve by the 1960s to become Marvel Comics. "Timely P ...

. He recalled in 2000, Comics historian Michael J. Vassallo identifies that first story as "Adam and Eve — Crime Incorporated" in ''Lawbreakers Always Lose'' #1 (

cover date The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unusu ...

Spring 1948), on which is written the internal job number 2401. He notes another story, "The Cop They Couldn't Stop" in ''All-True Crime'' #27 (April 1948), job number 2505, may have been published first, citing the differing cover-date nomenclature ("Spring" v. "April") for the uncertainty. Hired as "a staff penciler", Colan "started out at about $60 a week. ... Syd Shores was the

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

". Due to Colan's work going uncredited, in the manner of the times, comprehensive credits for this era are difficult if not impossible to ascertain. In 2010, he recalled his first cover art being for an issue of ''

Captain America Comics ''Captain America Comics'' is a comic book series featuring the superhero character Captain America. The series was originally published by Timely Comics from 1941 to 1950, with a brief revival by Atlas Comics (1950s), Atlas Comics in 1954. Pub ...

''; Colan drew the 12-page lead story in issue #72, the cover-artist of which is undetermined. He definitively drew the cover of the final issue, the horror comic ''Captain America's Weird Tales'' #75 (Feb. 1950), which did not include the titular superhero on either the cover or inside. After virtually all the Timely staff was let go in 1948 during an industry downturn, Colan began freelancing for National Comics, the future

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 ...

. A stickler for accuracy, he meticulously researched his countless war stories for DC's '' All-American Men at War'', ''Captain Storm'', and '' Our Army at War'', as well as for Marvel's 1950s forerunner Atlas Comics, on the series ''Battle'', ''Battle Action'', ''Battle Ground'', ''Battlefront'', ''G.I. Tales'', ''Marines in Battle'', ''Navy Combat'' and ''Navy Tales''. Colan's earliest confirmed credit during this time is penciling and inking the six-page

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professiona ...

story "Dream Of Doom", by an uncredited writer, in Atlas' ''Lawbreakers Always Lose'' #6 (Feb. 1949). By the early 1950s, he was living in

New Rochelle New Rochelle ( ; in ) is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately from Midtown Manhattan. In 2020, the city had a population of 79,726, making it the 7th-largest city and 2 ...

, New York.Colan interview, ''

The Comics Journal ''The Comics Journal'', often abbreviated ''TCJ'', is an American magazine of news and criticism pertaining to comic books, comic strips and graphic novels. Known for its lengthy interviews with comic creators, pointed editorials and scathing r ...

'', p
2
. Around this time he did his first work for

, then the industry leader, on the licensed series ''

Hopalong Cassidy Hopalong Cassidy is a fictional cowboy hero created in 1904 by the author Clarence E. Mulford, who wrote a series of short stories and novels based on the character. Mulford portrayed the character as rude, dangerous, and rough-talking. He wa ...

'', based on the film and TV

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

hero, drawing it from 1954 to 1957. In the 1960s, he lived in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, where his and Adrienne's children, Erik and Nanci, were raised.

Silver Age

While freelancing for DC romance comics in the 1960s, Colan did his first

work for Marvel under the pseudonym Adam Austin. Taking to the form immediately, he introduced the " Sub-Mariner" feature in ''

Tales to Astonish ''Tales to Astonish'' is the name of two American comic book series, and a One-shot (comics), one-shot comic, all published by Marvel Comics. The primary title bearing that name was published from January 1959 to March 1968. It began as a scie ...

'', and succeeded

Don Heck Donald L. HeckDonald L. Heck
at the Social Security Death Index. Retrieved on Septem ...

on "

Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, the character first appearan ...

" in ''

Tales of Suspense ''Tales of Suspense'' is the name of an American comic book anthology series, and two one-shot comics, all published by Marvel Comics. The first, which ran from 1959 to 1968, began as a science-fiction anthology that served as a showcase for s ...

''. Sometime after Colan began this pseudonymous stint, Marvel editor

Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...

made overtures to lure him from DC. Colan recalled, Under his own name, Colan became one of the premier

Silver Age The Ages of Man are the historical stages of human existence according to Greek mythology and its subsequent interpretatio romana, Roman interpretation. Both Hesiod and Ovid offered accounts of the successive ages of humanity, which tend to pr ...

Marvel artists, illustrating a host of such major characters as

Captain America Captain America is a superhero created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby who appears in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in '' Captain America Comics'' #1, published on December 20, 1940, by Timely C ...

Doctor Strange Dr. Stephen Vincent Strange is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Ditko, the character first appeared in ''Strange Tales'' #110 (cover-dated July 1963). Doctor Strange serves as ...

(both in the late-1960s and the mid-1970s series), and his signature character, Daredevil. Operating, like other company artists, on the "

Marvel Method A script is a document describing the narrative and dialogue of a comic book in detail. It is the comic book equivalent of a Television, television program teleplay or a film screenplay. In comics, a script may be preceded by a plot outline, and ...

" — in which editor-in-chief and primary writer Stan Lee "would just speak to me for a few minutes on the phone, tell me the beginning, the middle and the end f a storyand not much else, maybe four or five paragraphs, and then he'd tell me to make 20-pagestory out of it," providing artwork to which Lee would then script dialogue and captions — Colan forged his own style, different from that of artists

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (; born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comics artist, comic book artist, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He grew ...

and

Steve Ditko Stephen John Ditko. Page contains two reproductions from school yearbooks. A 1943 Garfield Junior High School yearbook excerpt lists "Stephen Ditko". A 1945 Johnstown High School yearbook excerpt lists "Stephen J. Ditko" under extracurricular ac ...

, whom Lee would point to as examples of the Marvel style: Lee and Colan introduced the

Emissaries of Evil The Emissaries of Evil is a name used by three teams of supervillains appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Publication history The first Emissaries of Evil debuted in '' Daredevil Annual'' #1 and were created by Stan Lee, ...

in ''Daredevil Annual'' #1 (1967) and the

Jester A jester, also known as joker, court jester, or fool, was a member of the household of a nobleman or a monarch kept to entertain guests at the royal court. Jesters were also travelling performers who entertained common folk at fairs and town ma ...

in ''Daredevil'' #42 (July 1968). Colan's long run on the ''Daredevil'' series encompassed all but three issues in an otherwise unbroken, 81-issue string from #20-100 (Sept. 1966 - June 1973), plus the initial ''Daredevil Annual'' (1967). He returned to draw ten issues sprinkled from 1974 to 1979, and an eight-issue run in 1997. Colan admitted relying upon

amphetamines Substituted amphetamines, or simply amphetamines, are a chemical class, class of compounds based upon the amphetamine structure; it includes all derivative (chemistry), derivative compounds which are formed by replacing, or substitution reacti ...

in order to make deadlines for illustrating the series ''Doctor Strange'', for which he would personally visit the character's real-life Manhattan neighborhood,

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village, or simply the Village, is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street (Manhattan), 14th Street to the north, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the s ...

, and shoot Polaroid photographs to use as location reference.Colan interview, ''

'', p
3
. Captain Marvel, a character created to secure the trademark on the name, debuted in '' Marvel Super-Heroes'' #12 (Dec. 1967) by Lee and Colan. The original

Guardians of the Galaxy The Guardians of the Galaxy are a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Comic book teams 1969 team The 1969 version of the Guardians of the Galaxy (1969 team), Guardians of the Galaxy were the origi ...

first appeared in ''Marvel Super-Heroes'' #18 (Jan. 1969) by writer

Arnold Drake Arnold Drake (March 1, 1924 – March 12, 2007) was an American comic book writer and screenwriter best known for co-creating the DC Comics characters Deadman and the Doom Patrol, and the Marvel Comics characters the Guardians of the Galaxy, Hav ...

and Colan. In ''Captain America'' #117 (Sept. 1969), Colan and writer-editor Stan Lee created the

,''Captain America'' #117
at the Grand Comics Database the first

superhero in mainstream comic books. The character came about, Colan recalled in 2008, Concurrent with his move to Marvel, Colan also contributed several stories to

Warren Publishing Warren Publishing was an American magazine company founded by James Warren (publisher), James Warren, who published his first magazines in 1957 and continued in the business for decades. Magazines published by Warren include ''After Hours (magazin ...

's line of black-and-white

horror comics Horror comics are comic books, graphic novels, black-and-white comics magazines, and manga focusing on horror fiction. In the US market, horror comic books reached a peak in the late 1940s through the mid-1950s, when concern over content and the ...

magazines, beginning with the six-page tale "To Pay the Piper", by writer

Larry Ivie Larry Ivie (1936–2014) was an American comics artist, writer, and Comic book collecting, collector who was active in comics fandom in the middle part of the 20th century, described by comics historian Bill Schelly as "the closest thing to an aut ...

, in ''

Eerie Eerie may refer to: * Feeling of creepiness * Eerie (magazine), ''Eerie'' (magazine), an American horror comic first published in 1966 * Eerie (Avon), ''Eerie'' (Avon), a 1947 horror comic * Eerie (film), ''Eerie'' (film), a 2018 Filipino horror fi ...

'' #2 (March 1966). There and in subsequent stories for that magazine and its sister publication, ''

Creepy Creepiness is the state of being creepy, or causing an unpleasant feeling of fear or unease to someone and/or something. Certain traits or hobbies may make people seem creepy to others; interest in horror or the macabre might come across as 'c ...

'', Colan would ink his own pencil work. His final original Warren story, "First Blood", appeared in ''Eerie'' #11 (Sept. 1967). The vast majority of these were written by Warren editor Archie Goodwin, with whom Colan would later collaborate on Marvel's Iron Man.

Dracula and Batman

Colan in the 1970s illustrated the complete 70-issue run of the acclaimed horror title '' The Tomb of Dracula'' as well as most issues of writer

Steve Gerber Stephen Ross Gerber (; September 20, 1947 – February 10, 2008) was an American comic book writer and creator of the satiric Marvel Comics character Howard the Duck. Other works include '' Man-Thing'', ''Omega the Unknown,'' ''Marvel Spotlight ...

's cult hit ''

''. Colan, already one of Marvel's most well-established and prominent artists, said he had lobbied for the ''Tomb of Dracula'' assignment: Colan and

Marv Wolfman Marvin Arthur Wolfman (born May 13, 1946) is an American comic book and novelization writer. He worked on Marvel Comics's ''The Tomb of Dracula'', for which he and artist Gene Colan created the vampire-slayer Blade (character), Blade, and DC Comi ...

created several supporting characters for the ''Dracula'' series. They introduced

in ''The Tomb of Dracula'' #10 (July 1973) and

Lilith Lilith (; ), also spelled Lilit, Lilitu, or Lilis, is a feminine figure in Mesopotamian and Jewish mythology, theorized to be the first wife of Adam and a primordial she-demon. Lilith is cited as having been "banished" from the Garden of Eden ...

in ''Giant-Size Chillers'' #1 (June 1974). Colan became the artist of ''Doctor Strange'' volume 2 with issue #6 (Feb. 1975) which introduced the

Gaea In Greek mythology, Gaia (; , a poetic form of ('), meaning 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea (), is the personification of Earth. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthenogenic—of all life. She is the mother of Uranus (S ...

character. A crossover between the two Colan-drawn series occurred in May 1976. In 2010, ''

Comics Bulletin Comics Bulletin is a daily website covering the comic-book industry. History Silver Bullet Comicbooks In January 2000, New Zealand-based publisher/editor Jason Brice founded then named Silver Bullet Comicbooks. During this period, the site ...

'' ranked Colan's run on ''The Tomb of Dracula'' fifth on its list of the "Top 10 1970s Marvels". His work on ''Doctor Strange'' was ranked ninth on the same list. Colan's collaboration with Steve Gerber on the ''Howard the Duck'' series saw the title character nominated by the ''All-Night Party'', a fictional political party, as their nominee in the Presidential campaign of 1976, and led to Howard the Duck receiving thousands of write-in votes in the actual election. The Gerber-Colan team created

Doctor Bong Doctor Bong (Lester Verde) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character possesses an advanced knowledge of genetic engineering, and his bell-shaped helmet can be struck to create a number of effect ...

in ''Howard the Duck'' #15 (Aug. 1977). Gerber later said to Colan: "There really was almost a telepathic connection there. I would see something in my mind, and that is what you would draw! I've never had that experience with another artist before or since." Colan returned to DC in 1981, following a professional falling out with Marvel editor-in-chief

Jim Shooter James Shooter (born September 27, 1951) is an American writer, editor, and publisher in the comics industry. Beginning his career writing for DC Comics at the age of 14, he had a successful but controversial run as editor-in-chief at Marvel Comic ...

. Colan recalled two decades later that Shooter He brought his shadowy, moody textures to

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 ...

, serving as the character's primary artist from 1981 to 1986, penciling most issues of ''

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 ...

'' and ''

'' during this time. His debut issue of the character's eponymous series was #340 (Oct. 1981). With writer

Gerry Conway Gerard Francis Conway Thomas, Roy. "Roy's Rostrum" (" Bullpen Bulletins") in '' Marvel Super-Heroes'' #43 and other Marvel Comics cover-dated May 1974. (born September 10, 1952) is an American comic book writer, comic book editor, science ficti ...

, Colan revived the

Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during wh ...

supervillains Doctor Death in ''Batman'' #345 (March 1982) and the

Monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

in ''Batman'' #350 (Aug. 1982) and introduced

Killer Croc Killer Croc (Waylon Jones) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Gerry Conway, Don Newton and Gene Colan, the character was introduced in ''Detective Comics'' #523 (February 1983). He has become on ...

in ''Detective Comics'' #523 (Feb. 1983). Killer Croc appears in the 2016 live-action movie ''

Suicide Squad The Suicide Squad is an antihero/supervillain team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the Suicide Squad debuted in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #25 (September 1959) and the second and modern version, cre ...

'', portrayed by

Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (; ; born 22 August 1967) is an English actor. He is known for his roles as Simon Adebisi in '' Oz'', Mr. Eko in '' Lost'', Lock-Nah in '' The Mummy Returns'', Nykwana Wombosi in '' The Bourne Identity'', Heavy Duty ...

. Another new character,

Nightslayer Night-Slayer (Anton Knight) is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. He first appeared in ''Detective Comics'' #529 (August 1983), and was created by Doug Moench and Gene Colan. Fictional character biography The son of millionaire lord ...

, was created by Colan and

Doug Moench Douglas Moench (; born February 23, 1948, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American writer of comics, novels, short stories, newspaper feature articles, weekly newspaper comic strips, film screenplays and teleplays. He is notable for his ''Batman'' wo ...

in ''Detective Comics'' #529 (Aug. 1983). In the insert preview in ''

DC Comics Presents ''DC Comics Presents'' is a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1978 to 1986 which ran for 97 issues and four ''Annual''s. It featured team-ups between Superman and a wide variety of other characters in the DC Universe. A recurring bac ...

'' #41 (Jan. 1982), writer

Roy Thomas Roy William Thomas Jr."Roy Thomas Checklist" ''Alter Ego'' vol. 3, #50 (July 2005) p. 16 (born November 22, 1940) is an American comic book writer and editor. He was Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics and possibly bes ...

and Colan provided

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 ...

with a stylized "WW" emblem on her bodice, replacing the traditional eagle. The "WW" emblem, unlike the eagle, could be protected as a

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a Good (economics and accounting), product or Service (economics), service f ...

and therefore had greater merchandising potential. ''Wonder Woman'' #288 (February 1982) premiered the new costume and an altered cover banner incorporating the "WW" emblem. Colan was one of several artists on ''Wonder Woman'' #300 (Feb. 1983) and stayed on the series until issue #305 wherein he and writer Dan Mishkin reintroduced the character

Circe In Greek mythology, Circe (; ) is an enchantress, sometimes considered a goddess or a nymph. In most accounts, Circe is described as the daughter of the sun god Helios and the Oceanid Perse (mythology), Perse. Circe was renowned for her vast kn ...

to the rogues gallery of Wonder Woman's adversaries. Steve Gerber and Colan reunited at DC to produce ''The

Phantom Zone The Phantom Zone is a prison-like parallel dimension appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It is mainly associated with stories featuring Superman. It first appeared in ''Adventure Comics'' #283 (April 1961), and was created b ...

'' limited series. Helping to create new characters as well, Colan collaborated in the 1980s with ''The Tomb of Dracula'' writer Marv Wolfman on the 14-issue run of '' Night Force'' featuring characters introduced in an insert preview in ''The New Teen Titans'' #21 (July 1982). He was one of the contributors to the ''

DC Challenge ''DC Challenge'' was a 12-issue comic book limited series produced by DC Comics from November 1985 to October 1986, as a round robin experiment in narrative. The series' tagline was "Can You Solve It Before We Do?" Publication history The ''DC C ...

'' limited series in 1985. Additionally, Colan worked with

Cary Bates Cary Bates (born 1948) is an American comic book, animation, television and film writer. He is best known for his work on ''The Flash'', ''Superman'', ''Superboy, the Legion of Superheroes'' and '' Captain Atom''. Bates is the longest-serving S ...

on the 12-issue run of '' Silverblade''; with

Greg Potter Gregory Paul Potter is an Americans, American comic book writer best known for co-creating the DC Comics series ''Jemm, Jemm, Son of Saturn'' with artist Gene Colan. Biography Greg Potter began writing comics stories for Warren Publishing's bla ...

on the 12-issue run of '' Jemm, Son of Saturn''; and drew the first six issues of Doug Moench's 1987 revival of ''The

Spectre Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to: Religion and spirituality * Vision (spirituality) * Apparitional experience * Ghost Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writt ...

''. Colan's style, characterized by fluid figure drawing and extensive use of shadow, was unusual among Silver Age comic artists, and became more pronounced as his career progressed. He usually worked as a

penciller A penciller (or penciler) is an artist who works on the creation of comic books, graphic novels, and similar visual art forms, with a focus on the initial pencil illustrations. In the American comic book industry, the penciller is the first step ...

, with

Frank Giacoia Frank Giacoia (July 6, 1924 – February 4, 1988) was an American comics artist known primarily as an inker. He sometimes worked under the name Frank Ray, and to a lesser extent Phil Zupa, and the single moniker Espoia, the latter used for collabo ...

and Tom Palmer as his most frequent

inkers The inker (sometimes credited as the finisher or embellisher) is one of the two line artists in traditional comic book production. After the penciller creates a drawing with pencil, the inker interprets this drawing by outlining and embellishing ...

. Colan broke from the mass-market comic book penciller/inker/

colorist In comics, a colorist is responsible for adding color to black-and-white line art. For most of the 20th century this was done using brushes and dyes which were then used as guides to produce the printing plates. Since the late 20th century it is ...

assembly-line system by creating finished drawings in

graphite Graphite () is a Crystallinity, crystalline allotrope (form) of the element carbon. It consists of many stacked Layered materials, layers of graphene, typically in excess of hundreds of layers. Graphite occurs naturally and is the most stable ...

and

watercolor Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin 'water'), is a painting metho ...

on such projects as the DC Comics

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

'' Nathaniel Dusk'' (1984) and ''Nathaniel Dusk II'' (1985–86), and the feature "Ragamuffins" in the

Eclipse Comics Eclipse Comics was an American comic book publisher, one of several independent publishers during the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1978, it published the first graphic novel intended for the newly created comic book store, comic book specialty stor ...

umbrella series ''Eclipse'' #3, 5, and 8 (1981–83), with frequent collaborator

Don McGregor Donald Francis McGregor (born June 15, 1945) is an American comic book writer best known for his work for Marvel Comics; he is the author of one of the first graphic novels. Early life Don McGregor was born in Providence, Rhode Island, where he ...

. Independent-comics work includes the Eclipse

graphic novel A graphic novel is a self-contained, book-length form of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and Anthology, anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comics sc ...

'' Detectives Inc.: A Terror Of Dying Dreams'' (1985), written by McGregor and reprinted in sepia tone as an Eclipse miniseries in 1987, and the miniseries ''Predator: Hell & Hot Water'' for

Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, manga and Artist's book, art book publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon, by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, O ...

. He contributed to

Archie Comics Archie Comic Publications, Inc. (often referred to simply as Archie Comics) is an American comic book publisher headquartered in the village of Pelham, New York. The company's many titles feature the fictional teenagers Archie Andrews, Jug ...

in the late 1980s and early 1990s, drawing and occasionally writing a number of stories. His work there included penciling the lighthearted science-fiction series '' Jughead's Time Police'' #1-6 (July 1990–May 1991), and the 1990 one-shot ''To Riverdale and Back Again'', an adaptation of the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

TV movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a terrest ...

about the Archie characters 20 years later, airing May 6, 1990;

Stan Goldberg Stan Goldberg (May 5, 1932 – August 31, 2014) was an American comic book artist, best known for his work with Archie Comics and as a Marvel Comics colorist who in the 1960s helped design the original color schemes of Spider-Man, the Fantastic F ...

drew the parts featuring the characters in flashback as teens, while Colan drew adult characters, in a less cartoony style, and Mike Esposito inking both. Back at Marvel, he collaborated again with Marv Wolfman and veteran inker Al Williamson on a new ''The Tomb of Dracula'' series, and with Don McGregor on a

Black Panther A black panther is the Melanism, melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical Rosette (zoology), rosettes are al ...

serial in the ''

Marvel Comics Presents ''Marvel Comics Presents'' is an American comic book anthology title that was published in three series by Marvel Comics: from 1988 to 1995; 2007 to 2008; and in 2019. Volume 1 The first volume was released on a bi-weekly basis and lasted for ...

'' anthology, as well as a six-issue adaptation of Clive Barker's "The Harrowers: Raiders of the Abyss."

Later life and career

Colan did some insert artwork on ''

Hellbilly Deluxe ''Hellbilly Deluxe: 13 Tales of Cadaverous Cavorting Inside the Spookshow International'' is the debut solo studio album by American musician and filmmaker Rob Zombie. The album serves as his first release outside of the band White Zombie, with ...

'' (released August 1998), the first solo album of

Rob Zombie Robert Bartleh Cummings (born January 12, 1965), known professionally as Rob Zombie, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, filmmaker, and actor. His music and lyrics are notable for their horror and sci-fi themes, and his live show ...

, credited as Gene "The Mean Machine" Colan. Unrealized projects around this time included the

Marvel Music Marvel Music was a short-lived imprint of Marvel Comics, introduced in 1994 to publish comics developed in collaboration with musicians. The concept descended from previous Marvel collaborations with Kiss (which starred in a ''Marvel Comics S ...

comic ''

Elvis Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Presley's sexuall ...

: Mystery Train'', which went on hold, he said in 1996, "when Marvel ran into problems, so everything came to a halt. Right now it's in limbo. Senator

Daniel Patrick Moynihan Daniel Patrick Moynihan (; March 16, 1927 – March 26, 2003) was an American politician, diplomat and social scientist. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he represented New York (state), New York in the ...

's son is writing it ..." In 1998, Colan and his ''Tomb of Dracula'' writing collaborator,

, reteamed on

three-issue

''The Curse of Dracula'' (July-Sept. 1998). Saying the book required "a much younger and better-looking Dracula" than in their previous series, Colan used "my lawn-boy smy model. ... I asked him to do the posing and he did."Colan interview, ''

'', p
4
. For the same company early the next decade, Colan returned to vampires with the 2001 one-shot ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. The concept is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film, also written by Whedon, a ...

: Tales of the Slayers'', an omnibus that included writer Doug Petrie's 16-page "Nikki Goes Down", starring a 1970s vampire slayer seen in one episode of the namesake TV series. Colan penciled the final pages of ''

'' vol. 3, #12 (Oct. 2007), the final issue of that series, drawing a flashback scene in which the character dresses in his original outfit from the 1970s series '' The Tomb of Dracula''. That same month, for the anniversary issue ''Daredevil'' vol. 2, #100 (Oct. 2007), Colan penciled pages 18–20 of the 36-page story "Without Fear, Part One"; the issue additionally reprinted the Colan-drawn ''Daredevil'' #90-91 (Aug.-Sept. 1972). In the late 1980s, Colan, in addition to his art, taught at Manhattan's

School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by Silas ...

and

Fashion Institute of Technology The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) is a public college under the State University of New York, in New York City. It focuses on art, business, design, mass communication, and technology connected to the fashion industry. It was founded in ...

, and had showings at the Bess Cutler Gallery in New York City and at the Elm Street Arts Gallery in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

. He had relocated to nearby Manchester Center, Vermont, from New York City in 1990 or 1991, and was living there as of 2001.Colan interview, ''

'', p
5
. By 2009 at the latest, they had returned to New York City, settling in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. On May 11, 2008, his family announced that Colan, who had been hospitalized for liver failure, had suffered a sharp deterioration in his health. By December, he had sufficiently recovered to travel to an in-store signing in California. He continued to produce original comics work as late as 2009, drawing the 40-page ''

'' #601 (Sept. 2009), for which he won an

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are awards for creative achievement in American comic books. They are regarded as the most prestigious and significant awards in the comic industry and often referred ...

Personal life

Gene Colan was married twice: first to Sallee Greenberg, with whom he had children Valerie and Jill before the couple divorced, and Adrienne Brickman, with whom he had children Erik and Nanci. Adrienne Colan died on June 21, 2010. Colan died in the Bronx on June 23, 2011, aged 84, following complications of cancer and liver disease. He lived in

at the time of his death.

Awards and honors

Colan's collaboration with Steve Gerber on ''

'' received the 1977 and 1978 Eagle Award for Favorite Comic Book (Humor) and was nominated for four Eagle Awards in 1978. Colan received an

Inkpot Award The Inkpot Award is an honor bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International. It is given to professionals in the fields of comic books, comic strips, animation, science fiction, and related areas of popular culture, at Comic-Con Internati ...

in 1978 as well. In 2005, Colan was inducted into the comics industry's Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame. He subsequently won the 2010

for Best Single Issue (together with writer

Ed Brubaker Ed Brubaker (; born November 17, 1966) is an American comic book writer, cartoonist and screenwriter who works primarily in the crime fiction genre. He began his career with the semi-autobiographical series '' Lowlife'' and a number of serials i ...

) for his work on ''

'' #601 (Sept. 2009). The

Cartoon Art Museum The Cartoon Art Museum (CAM) is a California art museum that specializes in the art of comics and cartoons. It is the only museum in the Western United States dedicated to the preservation and exhibition of all forms of cartoon art. The permane ...

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

presented the retrospective "Colan: Visions of a Man without Fear" from November 15, 2008, to March 15, 2009. Colan was the recipient of the 2008 Sparky Award, presented December 4, 2008 and won the

Comic Art Professional Society The Comic Art Professional Society (CAPS) is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. The organization's stated primary purposes are "to advance the ideals and standards of professional cartooning in its many forms", "to ...

's Sergio Award on October 24, 2009.

Bibliography

Archie Comics

*''

Archie's Pals 'n' Gals ''Archie's Pals 'n' Gals'' was an ongoing comic book series published by Archie Comics featuring Archie and his friends. It originally ran from 1952 to 1991. The title showcased other members of the Archie gang, such as Betty and Veronica, Ju ...

'' #186, #188, #197 (1987-88) *''

Everything's Archie This is a list of Archie Comics publications. A B C D E F G H J K L M N O P R S T V W Y Z References External links *Archie Comics
at the Big Comic Book DataBase * {{DEFAULTSORT:Archie Comi ...

'' #133, #142, 148 (1988–90) *'' Jughead'' #17 (1990) *''Jughead's Pal Hot Dog'' #3 (1990) *'' Jughead's Time Police'' #3–6 (1990–91) *''

Life with Archie ''Life with Archie'' is a comic book published by Archie comics from 1958 to 1991. It featured Archie Andrews in adventure stories that were more dramatic than the standard Archie tales. In 2010, it was revived as a magazine-sized comic devoted ...

'' #272–279, #285–286 (also writer for #273, #278) (1989–1991) *''

Pep Comics ''Pep Comics'' is an American comic book anthology series published by the Archie Comics predecessor Archie Comics, MLJ Magazines Inc. (commonly known as MLJ Comics) during the 1930s and 1940s period known as the Golden Age of Comic Books. The ti ...

'' #411 (1987) *''

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures'' is an American comic book series that was published from August 1988 to October 1995 by Archie Comics. The series, which was aimed at a younger audience than other ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' comic ...

'' #22 (1991) *'' To Riverdale and Back Again'' oneshot (1990)

Bongo Comics

*''

Treehouse of Horror ''Treehouse of Horror'' is a series of annual Halloween-themed anthology episodes of the American animated sitcom and spin-off of ''The Simpsons''. Also known as ''The Simpsons Halloween Specials'', each episode typically consists of three se ...

'' #11 (2005)

Comico

*''Bloodscent'' #1 (1988)

CrossGen Comics

*''

's Spookshow International'' #1–3 (2003–2004)

Dark Horse Comics

*'' Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Tales of the Slayers'' OGN (2002) *'' Creepy: The Limited Series'' #1 (1992) *''The Curse of Dracula'' #1–3 (1998) *''

Dark Horse Presents ''Dark Horse Presents'' was a comic book published by Dark Horse Comics from 1986 in comics, 1986. Their first published series, it was their flagship title until its September 2000 in comics, 2000 cancellation. The second incarnation was publishe ...

'' #117 ( Aliens) (1997) *''

Harlan Ellison Harlan Jay Ellison (May 27, 1934 – June 28, 2018) was an American writer, known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave science fiction, New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. His published wo ...

's Dream Corridor'' #2 (2007) *'' Hellboy: Weird Tales'' #6 (2003) *'' Michael Chabon Presents The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist'' #2, 5 (2004–2005) * '' Predator: Hell & Hot Water'' #1–3 (1997)

DC Comics

*''

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, 43, 112–113 (1953–1966) *''

'' #340, 343–345, 348–351, 373, 383 (1981–1985) *'' Batman: Gotham Knights'' ( Batman Black and White) #15 (2001) *''Captain Storm'' #4, 13, 16 (1964–1966) *''

'' #1 (1985) *''

'' #41 (Wonder Woman preview) (1982) *'' DC Science Fiction Graphic Novel'' #2 ('' Nightwings'') (1986) *''

'' #510, 512, 517, 523, 528–538, 540–546, 555–567 (1982–1986) *'' Elvira's House of Mystery'' #11 (1987) *''Falling in Love'' #68, 73, 75, 81, 84, 87 (1964-1966) *'' Fury of Firestorm'' #19, ''Annual'' #4 (1984–1986) *''

G.I. Combat ''G.I. Combat'' is an American comics anthology featuring war comics, war stories. It was published from 1952 until 1956 by Quality Comics, followed by DC Comics until its final issue in 1987. In 2012 it was briefly revived. Publication histor ...

'' #113 (1965) *''

Girls' Love Stories ''Girls' Love Stories'' was an American romance comic book magazine published by DC Comics in the United States. Started in 1949 as DC's first romance title, it ran for 180 issues, ending with the Nov-Dec 1973 issue. The stories covered such top ...

'' #113, 115, 118, 145, 165, 167, 174 (1965-1972) *''

Girls' Romances ''Girls' Romances'' is a romance comic Comics anthology, anthology published by DC Comics in the United States. Debuting with a Feb.,/Mar. 1950 cover-date, it ran for 160 issues, ending with the Oct. 1971 issue (the final issue came out on Octob ...

'' #101, 103, 106-109, 111-115, 117-119, 123 (1964-1967) *''Heart Throbs'' #87, 89, 91, 97-98, 100, 106-107 (1963-1967) *''

'' #86-122 (1954-1957) *'' House of Secrets'' #63 (1963) *'' Jemm, Son of Saturn'' #1-12 (limited series) (1984–1985) *'' Just Imagine Stan Lee With Jim Lee Creating Wonder Woman'' (backup story) (2001) *''

Legion of Super-Heroes The Legion of Super-Heroes is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Otto Binder and artist Al Plastino, the Legion is a group of superpowered beings living in the 30th and 31st centuries of t ...

'' vol. 2 #311 (1984) *''Legion of Super-Heroes'' vol. 3 #27 (1986) *''

Little Shop of Horrors Little Shop of Horrors may refer to: * '' The Little Shop of Horrors'', a 1960 American film * ''Little Shop of Horrors'' (musical), a 1982 musical based on the 1960 film * ''Little Shop of Horrors'' (1986 film), a 1986 American film based on th ...

'' movie adaptation #1 (1987) *''

My Greatest Adventure ''My Greatest Adventure'' is 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 first-person narratives. The series ...

'' #72-75, 77 (1962-1963) *''

Mystery in Space ''Mystery in Space'' is the name of two science fiction American comic book series published by DC Comics, and of a standalone Vertigo anthology released in 2012. The first series ran for 110 issues from 1951 to 1966, with a further seven issues ...

'' #13, 26 (1953-1955) *'' Nathaniel Dusk'' #1–4 (1984) *''Nathaniel Dusk II'' #1–4 (1985–1986) *''The

New Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to DC ...

'' #21 (Night Force preview) (1982) *'' Night Force'' #1–14 (1982–1983) *'' Our Army at War'' #5-19, 144, 162, 169, 173 (1952-1966) *'' Our Fighting Forces'' #86-87, 95, 100 (1964-1966) *''

'' #1–4 (1982) *'' Sea Devils'' #13 (1963) *''

Secret Hearts ''Secret Hearts'' was a romance comic anthology published by DC Comics in the United States, primarily in the 1950s and '60s. A staple of the company's romance line, it was "one of the publisher's most successful and well-known romance titles." ...

'' #92, 94, 96-107, 109-114 (1963-1966) *''

Secret Origins ''Secret Origins'' is the title of several comic book series published by DC Comics which featured the origin stories of the publisher's various characters. Publication history ''Secret Origins'' was first published as a one-shot in 1961 and c ...

'' #5 (

Crimson Avenger The Crimson Avenger is the name of three separate superheroes and supervillains in the DC Comics Universe. The character debuted in 1938 and is notable as the first masked hero in DC Comics. The first Crimson Avenger, Lee Walter Travis, first app ...

) (1986) *'' Silverblade'' #1–12 (1987–1988) *''

'' vol. 2 #1–6 (1987) *''

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 ...

'' #17-18, 20, 121, 123, 128 (1954-1966) *''

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 ...

'' #30 (1953) *''

Western Comics Western comics is a comics genre usually depicting the American Old West frontier (usually anywhere west of the Mississippi River) and typically set during the late nineteenth century. The term is generally associated with an American comic bo ...

'' #62 (1957) *'' Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe'' #2, 11, 16–17, 25 (1985–1987) *''

'' #288–305 (1982–1983) *''

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 ...

'' #274 (

Zatanna Zatanna Zatara (), known mononymously as Zatanna, is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Gardner Fox and Murphy Anderson, and first appeared in ''Hawkman (comic book), Hawkman'' #4 (N ...

); #297, 299 (Superman and Batman) (1981–1984) *'' Young Love'' #52, 56, 61, 65-66 (1965-1968) *''

Young Romance ''Young Romance'' is a romantic comic book series created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby for the Crestwood Publications imprint (trade name), imprint Prize Comics in 1947 in comics, 1947. Generally considered the first Romance comics in the United ...

'' #128, 131, 133 (1964)

Disney Comics

*'' Goofy Adventures'' #17 (1991)

Eclipse Comics

*'' Detectives Inc.: A Terror of Dying Dreams'' OGN (1985) *'' Eclipse Monthly'' #3–4 (1983–1984) *'' Eclipse Magazine'' #3, 5, 8 (Ragamuffins) (1981–1983) *''

Stewart the Rat ''Stewart the Rat'' is a graphic novel written by Steve Gerber, penciled by Gene Colan Eugene Jules Colan (; September 1, 1926 – June 23, 2011)2099 Unlimited'' #9 (1995) *''3-D Tales of the West'' #1 (1954) *''Adventure into Mystery'' #7 (1957) *''Adventures into Terror'' #3, 5, 14, 21, 24–25, 28–29 (1951–1954) *''All-True Crime'' #46 (1951) *''All-True Crime Cases'' #27, 31, 33–34 (1948–1949) *''

Amazing Adventures ''Amazing Adventures'' is the name of several anthology comic book series, all but one published by Marvel Comics. The earliest Marvel series of that name introduced the company's first superhero of the late-1950s to early-1960s period fans and h ...

'' #3–5 ( Black Widow); #26 ( Killraven) (1970–1974) *''Amazing Detective Cases'' #9 (1951) *''Amazing Mysteries'' #32–33 (1949) *''Astonishing'' #12, 20, 29, 56 (1952–1956) *''

Astonishing Tales ''Astonishing Tales'' is an American anthology comic book series originally published by Marvel Comics from 1970 to 1976. Its sister publication was ''Amazing Adventures'' (vol. 2). In 2008 and 2009, Marvel produced 11 webcomics starring differ ...

'' #7–8 (

Doctor Doom Doctor Doom is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in '' The Fantastic Four'' #5 in April 1962, and has since endured as the arch ...

) (1971) *'' The Avengers'' #63–65, 206–208, 210–211 (1969–1981) *''Battle'' #11, 16-17, 19, 24, 33–35, 38, 41, 43, 47–56, 58-59 (1952–1958) *''Battle Action'' #8, 15, 19, 21–22, 24–25, 28–30 (1953–1957) *''Battle Ground'' #3, 11–13, 16-20 (1955–1957) *''Battlefield'' #5, 11 (1952–1953) *''Battlefront'' #21–22, 24–25, 27, 3–-35, 38–40, 42–43, 45–48 (1954–1957) *''Best Love'' #36 (1950) *''Bible Tales for Young People'' #4 (1954) *'' Black Rider'' #11 (1950) *'' Blade: Crescent City Blues'' #1 (1998) *''Blade'' vol. 4 #12 (two pages) (2007) *'' Bob Marley: Tale of the Tuff Gong'' #1–2 (1994–1995) *''

'' #116–137, 256, 601, ''Annual'' #5 (1969–1971, 1981, 2009) *'' Captain America’s Weird Tales'' #75 (1950) *'' Captain Marvel'' #1–4 (1968) *''Combat'' #5, 11 (1952–1953) *''Combat Kelly'' #3 (1952) *''Commando Adventures'' #1–2 (1957) *''Complete Mystery'' #1 (1948) *''Crime Can't Win'' #1 (1950) *''Crimefighters'' #1–2 (1948) *'' Daredevil'' #20–49, 53–82, 84–98, 100, 110, 112, 116, 124, 153–154, 156–157, 363, 366–368, 370, #-1, ''Annual'' #1 (1966–1979, 1997) *''Daredevil'' vol. 2 #20 (2001) *''

'' #172–178, 180–183 (1968–1969) *''Doctor Strange'', vol. 2, #6–18, 36–45, 47 (1975–1981) *'' Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme'' #19 (1990) *''

Dracula Lives ''Dracula Lives!'' was an American black-and-white horror comics magazine published by Magazine Management, a corporate sibling of Marvel Comics. The series ran 13 issues and one '' Super Annual'' from 1973 to 1975, and starred the Marvel version ...

'' #6, 8 (1973–1974) *''Frontier Western'' #1–2, 6 (1956) *''G.I. Tales'' #5–6 (1957) *''Giant-Size Chillers'' #1 (Dracula) (1974) *'' Girl Comics'' #4 (1950) *''Gunhawk'' #16, 18 (1951) *''Gunsmoke Western'' #35-39, 42, 72, 76 (1956–1963) *''Harrowers'' #1–6 (1993–1994) *''Haunt of Horror'' #2 (1974) *''

'' #4–20, 24–27, 30–31 (1976–1979) *''Howard the Duck'' magazine #1–5, 7–9 (1979–1981) *'' Hulk!'' #11, 19, 24–27 (1978–1981) *''Ideal'' #4 (1948) *''

'' #1, 253, ''Annual'' #10, 13, 15 (1968, 1989–1994) *''

Iron Man and Sub-Mariner ''Iron Man and Sub-Mariner'' is a one-shot comic book published by Marvel Comics in 1968. It is notable for being the first Marvel title to be intentionally published for only one issue, as it existed to use up two half-length stories left over ...

'' #1 (1968) *''

Journey into Mystery ''Journey into Mystery'' is an American comic book series initially published by Atlas Comics, then by its successor, Marvel Comics. Initially a horror comics anthology, it changed to giant-monster and science fiction stories in the late 1950s ...

'' #2, 23, 40, 81-82 (1952-1962) *''Journey into Mystery'' vol. 2 #4 (1973) *''Journey Into Unknown Worlds'' #2, 6, 17, 19-20, 23, 29, 39 (1950–55) *''Justice'' #4–5, 7, 22, 32, 35–36, 46 (1948–54) *'' Kid Colt Outlaw'' #52, 79, 110, 112, 114 (1955–64) *''Lawbreakers Always Lose'' #1–2, 6 (1948–49) *''Love Adventures'' #2 (1950) *''

Love Romances ''Love Romances'' is a comic book title originally published by Atlas Comics beginning in 1948 and later by Marvel Comics until 1963. Publication history The title began publication as ''Ideal'' #1–5 (July 1948 - March 1949) until issue #6 (Ma ...

'' #101 (1962) *''Love Tales'' #62 (1955) *''Loveland'' #1 (1949) *'' Lovers'' #26 (1949) *''Man Comics'' #9, 13, 21, 23 (1951-1953) *''Marines at War'' #5-7 (1957) *''Marines in Action'' #5-6, 11-12 (1956-1957) *''Marines in Battle'' #1, 9-10, 17, 19-25 (1954-1958) *''

'' #13–37, 101–108, 112 (1989-1992) *''

Marvel Fanfare ''Marvel Fanfare'' was an anthology comic book series published by American company Marvel Comics. It was a showcase title featuring a variety of characters from the Marvel universe. Volume one ''Marvel Fanfare'' featured characters and setting ...

'' #51-52 (1990) *''

Marvel Preview ''Marvel Preview'' is a black-and-white comics magazine published by Magazine Management for fourteen issues and the affiliated Marvel Comics Group for ten issues. The final issue additionally carried the imprint Marvel Magazines Group. Publica ...

'' #8, 16, 23 (1976-1980) *''Marvel Romance Redux: But I Thought He Loved Me'' #1 (2006) *''Marvel Romance Redux: Guys & Dolls'' #1 (2006) *''Marvel Romance Redux: I Should Have Been a Blonde'' #1 (2006) *''Marvel Romance Redux: Love Is a Four-Letter Word'' #1 (2006) *''

Marvel Spotlight ''Marvel Spotlight'' is a comic book anthology series published by Marvel Comics as a try-out book. It stood out from Marvel's other try-out books in that most of the featured characters made their first appearance in the series. The series or ...

'' #18-19 (Son of Satan) (1974) *'' Marvel Super-Heroes'' #12–13 (Captain Marvel), 15 (

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; ), also called Gorgo () or the Gorgon, was one of the three Gorgons. Medusa is generally described as a woman with living snakes in place of hair; her appearance was so hideous that anyone who looked upon her wa ...

), 18 (

) (1967-1969) *''

Marvel Super Special ''Marvel Comics Super Special'' was a 41-issue series of one-shot (comics), one-shot comic-magazines published by American company Marvel Comics from 1977 to 1986. They were cover-priced $1.50 to $2.50, while regular color comics were priced 30 cen ...

'' #6 (''

Jaws 2 ''Jaws 2'' is a 1978 American horror thriller film directed by Jeannot Szwarc and co-written by Carl Gottlieb. It is the sequel to Steven Spielberg's '' Jaws'' (1975), and the second installment in the ''Jaws'' franchise. The film stars Roy ...

'' movie adaptation); 10 (

Star-Lord Star-Lord (Peter Jason Quill) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Englehart and Steve Gan, the character first appeared in '' Marvel Preview'' #4 (January 1976). The son of human Mered ...

); #14 (''

Meteor A meteor, known colloquially as a shooting star, is a glowing streak of a small body (usually meteoroid) going through Earth's atmosphere, after being heated to incandescence by collisions with air molecules in the upper atmosphere, creating a ...

'' movie adaptation) (1978-1979) *'' Marvel Tales'' #93-94, 96, 101, 105, 107, 118, 120-121, 127, 131, 140 (1949-1955) *''

Marvel Team-Up ''Marvel Team-Up'' is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series featured two or more Marvel characters in one story. The series was originally published from March 1972 through February 1985, and featured Spider-Man as ...

'' #87 (1979) *''Men's Adventures'' #13-14, 19, 26 (1952-1954) *''Menace'' #6 (1953) *''

Midnight Sons The Midnight Sons are a team of supernatural superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Including Ghost Riders Danny Ketch and Johnny Blaze, Blade, and Morbius, the original team first formed as part of the ''R ...

Unlimited'' #6 (1994) *'' Monsters Unleashed'' #1 (1973) *''My Love'' #3 (1950) *''My Love'' vol. 2 #4-6, 8-9, 13, 15-16 (1970-1972) *''

My Own Romance ''My Own Romance'' is a comic book title originally published by Timely Comics beginning in 1948 to 1951 and later by Atlas Comics from 1951 to 1961, and published by Marvel Comics until 1962. Publication history The title began publication as '' ...

'' #11, 18, 44 (1950–55) *''Mystery Tales'' #1, 3, 18, 35, 43 (1952-1956) *'' Mystic'' #3, 7, 12, 21, 37, 60 (1951-1957) *''Navy Action'' #8, 10-11, 16-18 (1955-1957) *''Navy Combat'' #4, 6, 11, 13-18 (1955-1958) *''Navy Tales'' #3-4 (1957) *''

Not Brand Echh ''Not Brand Echh'' is a satiric comic book series published by Marvel Comics that parodied its own superhero stories as well as those of other comics publishers. Running for 13 issues ( cover-dated Aug. 1967 to May 1969), it included among its ...

'' #4-5, 8-9, 13 (1967-1969) *''Our Love'' #1 (1949) *''Our Love Story'' #3-6, 8, 10 (1970-1971) *''Outlaw Fighters'' #4 (1955) *''Police Action'' #1 (1954) *''Quick-Trigger Western'' #13, 16 (1956-1957) *''Rangeland Love'' #1 (1949) *''

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'' #35, 37-38 (1963-1964) *'' Richie Rich'' #1 ( movie adaptation) (1995) *''Riot'' #1 (1954) *'' Savage Sword of Conan'' #33 (1978) *''

Savage Tales ''Savage Tales'' is the title of three American comics series. Two were black-and-white comics-magazine anthologies published by Marvel Comics, and the other a color comic book anthology published by Dynamite Entertainment. Publication history M ...

'' #1 (1971) *''Secret Story Romances'' #9 (1954) *''

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'' #1–3 ( The Watcher backup stories) (1968) *''Six-Gun Western'' #3 (1957) *''Spellbound'' #17, 28 (1953-1956) *''Sports Action'' #3 (1950) *''Spy Cases'' #1 (1950) *''Strange Stories of Suspense'' #13 (1957) *''

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'' #7-8, 11, 18, 20, 26, 53, 58-59, 97 (1952-1962); #169–173 ( Brother Voodoo) (1973-1974) *'' Sub-Mariner'' #10–11, 40, 43, 46-49 (1969-1972) *''Suspense'' #2-4, 9, 17 (1950-1952) *''Tales of Justice'' #62 (1956) *''

'' #73–99 (1966-1968) *''

Tales of the Zombie ''Tales of the Zombie'' was an American black-and-white horror comics magazine published by List of comics magazines published by Magazine Management in the 1970s, Magazine Management, a corporate sibling of Marvel Comics. The series ran 10 issues ...

'' #2, 6 (1973–1974) *''

'' (Sub-Mariner) #70–77, 79–82, 84–85, 101 (1965-1968) *''Teen-Age Romance'' #85-86 (1962) *''Tex Morgan'' #4 (1949) *'' Thunderbolts Annual '97'' (among others) (1997) *'' The Tomb of Dracula'' #1–70 (1972-1979) *''The Tomb of Dracula'' magazine #3–6 (1979-1980) *''The Tomb of Dracula'' vol. 3 #1-4 (1991-1992) *'' Tower of Shadows'' #3–4, 6 (1970) *''True Life Tales'' #1 (1949) *''True Secrets'' #38 (1956) *''True Western'' #1 (1949) *'' Two-Gun Kid'' #49 (1959) *''Two-Gun Western'' #4–5 (1956) *'' Uncanny Tales'' #11, 16-17, 45, 49, 52 (1953-1957) *''

Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction ''Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction'' was a 1970s American black-and-white, science fiction comics magazine published by Marvel Comics' parent company, Magazine Management. The anthology title featured original stories and literary adaptations ...

'' #1, 3, 5-6 (1975) *''

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is often called Earth's "twin" or "sister" planet for having almost the same size and mass, and the closest orbit to Earth's. While both are rocky planets, Venus has an atmosphere much thicker ...

'' #12 (1951) *''War Action'' #14 (1953) *''War Adventures'' #6-7 (1952) *''War Combat'' #3 (1952) *''War Comics'' #1, 4, 28, 31, 34-36, 39, 41, 44-49 (1950-1957) *''Western Gunfighters'' #20, 25-27 (1956-1957) *''Western Outlaws'' #5, 10-11, 17, 20 (1954-1957) *''

What If What If may refer to: Film * ''What If'', a 2006 TV film starring Niall Buggy * What If... (2010 film), ''What If...'' (2010 film), an American film * What If... (2012 film), ''What If...'' (2012 film), a Greek film * What If (2013 film), ''What ...

'' (

Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four, often abbreviated as FF, is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in '' The Fantastic Four'' #1 ( cover-dated November 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism i ...

) #21 (1980) *''Wild'' #4 (1954) *''Wild West'' #2 (1948) *''Wild Western'' #49 (1956) *''

Wolverine The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species, member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The w ...

'' #9, 24 (1989–1990) *''World of Fantasy'' #10 (1958) *''World of Mystery'' #6 (1957) *''Young Hearts'' #2 (1950) *''Young Men on the Battlefield'' #14–15, 20 (1952–1953)

Ziff-Davis Publishing

*''Lars of Mars'' #10–11 (1951)

References

External links

* Additional with some links disabled, archived from the original on March 20, 2011. *
"DC Profiles #89: Gene Colan"
at the Grand Comics Database
Gene Colan
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics

at the Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics Creators
Comic Geek Speak Podcast Interview (December 2005)

Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum Art Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Colan, Gene 1926 births 2011 deaths American comics artists American horror artists American science fiction artists American fantasy artists American satirists American satirical comics writers American satirical comics artists Archie Comics people Artists from New Rochelle, New York Artists from the Bronx Atlas Comics DC Comics people Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Deaths from liver disease EC Comics Fashion Institute of Technology faculty George Washington Educational Campus alumni Golden Age comics creators Inkpot Award winners Jewish American comics artists Jewish American comics writers Jewish American military personnel Marvel Comics people Military personnel from New York City Military personnel from New York (state) Pseudonymous comics artists Silver Age comics creators United States Army Air Forces non-commissioned officers United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame inductees Jews from New York (state)