Henry Peter Chapman (May 3, 1915 – October 18, 1973), credited in comics under both his formal name and as Hank Chapman, was an
American comic book
An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...
writer 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 ...
' two predecessors,
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 ...
and
Atlas Comics Atlas Comics may refer to:
* Atlas Comics (1950s), one of the two comic publishing companies that would be the forerunner of Marvel Comics
* Atlas/Seaboard Comics
Atlas/Seaboard Comics is a line of comic books published by the American company S ...
, and later for
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 ...
, where he specialized in
war
War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...
fiction. Though much of his Timely/Atlas work went unsigned, comics historians estimate that Chapman, a
staff writer
In journalism, a staff writer byline indicates that the author of the article is an employee of the periodical, as opposed to being an independent freelance writer. In Britain, staff writers may work in the office instead of traveling to cover a ...
, penned several hundred or more stories.
Among Chapman's works is an early
self-reflexive
Self-reference is a concept that involves referring to oneself or one's own attributes, characteristics, or actions. It can occur in language, logic, mathematics, philosophy, and other fields.
In natural or formal languages, self-reference oc ...
comic-book story, in 1951, in which he and 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 ...
appear; and the creation, with artist
Jack Abel
Jack Abel (July 15, 1927 – March 6, 1996) at the
pack animal
A pack animal, also known as a sumpter animal or beast of burden, is a working animal used to transport goods or materials by carrying them, usually on its back.
Domestic animals of many species are used in this way, among them alpacas, Bact ...
Nazis
Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
in a variety of
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 ...
stories.
Career
Chapman's earliest known credit is as one of the many
Golden Age of comic books
The Golden Age of Comic Books describes an era in the history of American comic books from 1938 to 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published and rapidly increased in popularity. The superhero archetype was created and ma ...
professionals who contributed to the epic
crossover
Crossover may refer to:
Entertainment
Music
Albums
* ''Cross Over'' (album), a 1987 album by Dan Peek, or the title song
* ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987
* ''Crossover'', an album by Intrigue
* ''Crossover'', an album by ...
Human Torch
The Human Torch (Jonathan Lowell Spencer "Johnny" Storm) is a fictional superhero character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is a founding member of the Fantastic Four. He is writer Stan Lee's and ar ...
in ''
Marvel Mystery Comics
''Marvel Mystery Comics'' (first issue titled simply ''Marvel Comics'') is an American comic book series published during the 1930s–1940s period known to fans and historians as the Golden Age of Comic Books. It was the first publication of Mar ...
'' #8–10 (June–Aug. 1940), plus an additional story in ''The Human Torch'' No. 5 (Fall 1941; due to a numbering quirk, there was a previous No. 5, cover-dated Summer 1941). His precise contributions are as lost to history as those of other writers and artists who legendarily collaborated on this hastily created confrontation. As described by historian
Jess Nevins
Jess Nevins (born 1966) is an American author and research librarian best known for annotated guides and encyclopedias covering Victoriana, comic books, genre fiction and pulp fiction.Bill Everett
William Blake Everett (; May 18, 1917 – February 27, 1973) was an American comic book writer-artist best known for creating Namor the Sub-Mariner as well as co-creating Zombie (comics), Zombie and Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), Daredevil ...
and Human Torch creator
Carl Burgos
Carl Burgos ( ; born Max Finkelstein ; April 18, 1916 – March 1984 Note: Gives only month and year of death.) was an American comic book and advertising artist best known for creating the Human Torch (android), original Human Torch in ''Marvel ...
...
By the following decade, Chapman was one of at least five staff writers (officially titled editors) under editor-in-chief Stan Lee at Marvel forerunner Atlas, along with
Paul S. Newman
Paul S. Newman (April 29, 1924 – May 30, 1999) was an American writer of comic books, comic strips, and books, whose career spanned the 1940s to the 1990s. Credited in the ''Guinness Book of World Records'' as the most prolific comic-book writ ...
,
Don Rico
Donato Francisco Rico II (; September 26, 1912 – March 27, 1985) was an American paperback novelist, screenwriter, wood engraver and comic book writer-artist, who co-created the Marvel Comics characters the Black Widow (Natasha Romanova) with p ...
Mad Magazine
''Mad'' (stylized in all caps) is an American humor magazine which was launched in 1952 and currently published by DC Comics, a unit of the DC Entertainment subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. ''Mad'' was founded by editor Harvey Kurtzman an ...
''
cartoonist
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 litera ...
Al Jaffee
Allan Jaffee (born Abraham Jaffee; March 13, 1921 – April 10, 2023) was an American cartoonist. He was notable for his work in the satire, satirical magazine ''Mad (magazine), Mad'', including his trademark feature, the Mad Fold-in, ''Mad'' F ...
. Among the titles for which Chapman wrote, beginning in early 1951, are the
horror
Horror may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Genres
*Horror fiction, a genre of fiction
**Psychological horror, a subgenre of horror fiction
**Christmas horror, a subgenre of horror fiction
**Analog horror, a subgenre of horror fiction
* ...
/fantasy series ''Adventures into Terror'', ''Adventures into Weird Worlds'', ''Astonishing'', '' Marvel Tales'', ''Mystery Tales'', ''Spellbound'', ''
Strange Tales
''Strange Tales'' is a Marvel Comics comics anthology, anthology series. The title was revived in different forms on multiple occasions. Doctor Strange and Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. (feature), Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. made their d ...
'', ''Suspense'', and '' Uncanny Tales''; the war titles ''Battle'', ''Battle Action'', ''Battlefield'', ''Battlefront'', ''Battle Brady'', ''
Combat Casey
Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict between multiple combatants with the intent to harm the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is resorted to either as a method of ...
'', ''Combat'', ''War Action'', ''War Adventures'', ''War Combat'' and ''War Comics''; the
Westerns
The Western is a genre of fiction typically set in the American frontier (commonly referred to as the "Old West" or the "Wild West") between the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the closing of the frontier in 1890, and commonly associated wit ...
''Red Warrior'' and ''The Texas Kid''; the adventure-drama series ''Girl Comics'', ''Man Comics'', ''Men's Adventures'', and ''Young Men''; the
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 ...
series ''Crime Exposed'' and ''Justice''; the
romance
Romance may refer to:
Common meanings
* Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings
** Romantic orientation, the classification of the sex or gender with which a pers ...
titles ''True Secrets'' ''
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 ...
''; and such miscellanea as ''Sports Action'', and ''Speed Carter, Spaceman''.Hank Chapman an Henry P. Chapman at the
Grand Comics Database
The Grand Comics Database (GCD) is an Internet-based project to build a database of comic book information through user contributions. The GCD project catalogues information on creator credits, story details, reprints, and other information use ...
.
Chapman's last known Atlas works were in comics cover-dated May 1954. His next known credit is a story in the DC anthology title ''
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, ...
'' No. 18 (Feb. 1955), followed by four years without recorded credits until his name surfaced in two June 1959 DC titles, ''
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 ...
'' No. 73 and ''
Our Fighting Forces
''Our Fighting Forces'' is a war comics anthology series published by DC Comics for 181 issues from 1954 to 1978.
Publication history
''Our Fighting Forces'' began with an October-November 1954 cover date. Writer-editor Robert Kanigher's work a ...
'' No. 46. These would be the first of at least 105 war stories he would write in those comics along with ''
Our Army at War
''Our Army at War'' is an American comic book anthology published by DC Comics that featured war-themed stories and featured the first appearances of Sgt. Rock and Enemy Ace. The series was published from August 1952 to February 1977, then wa ...
'', '' Sea Devils'', '' Capt. Storm'', and ''Star Spangled War Stories''.
His and artist
Jack Abel
Jack Abel (July 15, 1927 – March 6, 1996) at the
mule
The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey, and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two ...
(male) but a
hinny
A hinny is a domestic equine hybrid, the offspring of a male horse (a stallion) and a female donkey (a jenny). It is the reciprocal cross to the more common mule, which is the product of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). ...
(female) — appeared with various keepers including Private Mulvaney (''Our Army at War'' No. 149 & 160, ''Star Spangled War Stories'' #136); Private Skinner (''G.I. Combat'' #104); and Private Smith (''Our Army at War'' #117).
Chapman's last recorded credit is the story "Paper Bullets", with artist Abel, in ''Our Army at War'' No. 181 (June 1967).
Personal life and death
Chapman was married to Bonnie Abraham, a production staffer at Atlas. The two later separated, and Bonnie married
Arnold Hano
Arnold Philip Hano (March 2, 1922 – October 24, 2021) was an American editor, novelist, biographer and journalist, best known for his non-fiction work ''A Day in the Bleachers'', a critically acclaimed eyewitness account of Game 1 of the 1954 ...
. He left comics to become a magazine writer for ''
Boys' Life
''Scout Life'' (formerly ''Boys' Life'') is the monthly magazine of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Its target readers are children between the ages of 6 and 18. The magazine‘s headquarters are in Irving, Texas.
''Scout Life'' is published ...
'', in 1964, and for travel magazines.Interview with Atlas/Marvel artist
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 ...
, ''
Alter Ego
An alter ego (Latin for "other I") means an alternate Self (psychology), self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original Personality psychology, personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other ...
'' No. 18 (Oct. 2002), p. 12
Chapman died in
Tesuque, New Mexico
Tesuque (; ) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States. It is part of the Santa Fe, New Mexico, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,094 at the 2020 census. The area is separate from but ...
on October 18, 1973, at the age of 58. He was survived by his second wife, Toni.
Known reprints
''Chronological by date of original publication''
*''
Monsters on the Prowl
A monster is a type of imaginary or fictional creature found in literature, folklore, mythology, fiction and religion. They are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive, with a strange or grotesque appearance that causes terror and fea ...
'' No. 21 (Feb. 1973)
::"The Drop of Water" (art:
Gene Colan
Eugene Jules Colan (; September 1, 1926 – June 23, 2011)Eugene Colan at the Social Security Death Index via ...
), from ''Marvel Tales'' No. 105 (Feb. 1952)
*''Crypt of Shadows'' No. 4 (July 1973)
::"Locked up!" (art:
Carmine Infantino
Carmine Infantino (; May 24, 1925 – April 4, 2013) was an American comics artist and editing, editor, primarily for DC Comics, during the late 1950s and early 1960s period known as the Silver Age of Comic Books. Among his character creations are ...
), from ''Adventures into Weird Worlds'' No. 9 (Aug. 1952)
*''
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 ...
'' No. 148 (July 1971)
::"Blind Bomber" (art:
Mort Drucker
Morris "Mort" Drucker (March 22, 1929 – April 9, 2020) was an American caricaturist and comics artist best known as a contributor for over five decades in ''Mad (magazine), Mad'', where he specialized in satires on the leading feature film ...
), from ''Star Spangled War Stories'' No. 84 (Aug. 1959)
*''DC Special Series'' No. 18 (Fall 1979)
::"Frogman Fury" (art:
Ross Andru
Ross Andru (; born Rostislav Androuchkevitch, June 15, 1927 – November 9, 1993) Part 1: Animation: We Leave the Army", p. 21.
In 1948, Andru's first professional work as a comic strip illustrator was drawing layouts for the ''Tarzan (comics), T ...
& Mike Esposito), from ''Our Army at War'' No. 102 (Jan. 1961)
*''G.I. Combat'' No. 146 (March 1972)
::"The Secret Battle Eye" (art:
Joe Kubert
Joseph Kubert (; September 18, 1926 – August 12, 2012) was a Poland, Polish-born Americans, American comic book artist, art teacher, and founder of The Kubert School. He is best known for his work on the DC Comics characters Sgt. Rock and Hawk ...
), from ''Our Fighting Forces'' No. 66 (Feb. 1962)
*''
Our Fighting Forces
''Our Fighting Forces'' is a war comics anthology series published by DC Comics for 181 issues from 1954 to 1978.
Publication history
''Our Fighting Forces'' began with an October-November 1954 cover date. Writer-editor Robert Kanigher's work a ...
'' No. 133 (Oct. 1971)
::"No Place for a
PT Boat
A PT boat (short for patrol torpedo boat) was a motor torpedo boat used by the United States Navy in World War II. It was small, fast, and inexpensive to build, and it was valued for its maneuverability and speed. However, PT boats were hampe ...
" (art: Joe Kubert), from ''Our Fighting Forces'' #76 (May 1963)
*''G.I. Combat'' #144 (Nov. 1971)
::"Straw Pilot" (art: Joe Kubert), from ''Our Army at War'' #147 (Oct. 1964)