Sidney Greene (June 18, 1906 – October 1972)Sidney Greene
at the Social Security Death Index,

Social Security Number In the United States, a Social Security number (SSN) is a nine-digit number issued to United States nationality law, U.S. citizens, Permanent residence (United States), permanent residents, and temporary (working) residents under section 205(c)(2 ...

057-05-5691, based on 1972 death date provided by Who's Who in American Comic Books 1928-1999 and the

Lambiek Comiclopedia Galerie Lambiek is a Dutch comic book store and art gallery in Amsterdam, founded on November 8, 1968 by Kees Kousemaker (, – Bussum, ). His son Boris Kousemaker has been the owner since 2007. From 1968 to 2015, it was located in the Ke ...

. 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 ...

known for his work for a host of publishers from the 1940s to 1970s. As an

inker 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 ...

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 ...

series including ''

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 ...

'', ''

Green Lantern Green Lantern is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. They fight evil with the aid of rings that grant them a variety of extraordinary powers, all of which come from imagination, fearlessness, ...

'', ''

Justice League of America The Justice League, or Justice League of America (JLA), is a group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in '' The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). Writer Gardner Fox conceived t ...

'' and '' The Atom'', he helped to define the company's house style for its 1960s

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 ...

superheroes.

Biography

Early career

Sid Greene broke into comics during the 1930s to 1940s period fans and historians call the

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 ...

. Initially, he freelanced at Funnies, Inc., one of the early "packages" that supplied comic books on demand for publishers testing the new

medium Medium may refer to: Aircraft *Medium bomber, a class of warplane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''The Medium'' (1921 film), a German silent film * ''The Medium'' (1951 film), a film vers ...

.Sid Greene
at the

Archived
from the original on October 22, 2011. His first confirmed work, during a time when published credits were not routinely given in comics, is as

penciler 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 ...

and

of a nine-page "Spark Stevens" story in

Fox Comics Fox Feature Syndicate (also known as Fox Comics, Fox Publications, and Bruns Publications, Inc.) was a comic book publisher from early in the period known to fans and historians as the Golden Age of Comic Books. Founded by entrepreneur Victor S. ...

' '' The Green Mask'' #5 (June 1941), although Greene has been tentatively identified on stories in issues of

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 ...

's ''

Planet Comics ''Planet Comics'' was a science fiction comic book title published by Fiction House from January 1940 to Winter 1953. It was the first comic book dedicated wholly to science fiction.Benton, Mike. ''Science Fiction Comics: The Illustrated History'' ...

'' and '' Fight Comics''

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 ...

d as early as April 1940. His first signed work is as penciler-inker of a 10-page story starring 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 ...

the Patriot in '' The Human Torch'' #5 (Summer 1941), published by

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 ...

, the Golden Age forerunner of

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

.Sid Greene
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 ...

Through 1943, Greene drew the adventures of

Target and the Targeteers The Target and the Targeteers are fictional characters, a trio of superheroes who first appeared in 1940, in ''Target Comics'' (after which the characters were named) from Novelty Press. History ''Target Comics'' debuted with a premiere issue cov ...

in Novelty Press' ''Target Comics'', and penciled a small number of

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 ...

and

Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 18 and 28. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is judged on competition segments with scoring percentages: ''Priva ...

stories for Timely. During the decade, he also penciled comic-book stories for

Ace Comics ''Ace Comics'' was a comic book series published by David McKay Publications between 1937 and 1949 — starting just before the Golden Age of Comic Books. The title reprinted syndicated newspaper strips owned by King Features Syndicate, followi ...

, Eastern Color, and Hillman Periodicals. For Holyoke Publishing, he drew the features "Fangs", "Inspector Hunt", and "Speed Spaulding".

Joining DC Comics

In the 1950s, after doing at least one story for Avon Comics, Greene did anthological horror,

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

and

romance comics Romance comics are a genre of comic book, comic books that were most popular during the Golden Age of Comics. The market for comics, which had been growing rapidly throughout the 1940s, began to plummet after the end of World War II when military ...

for Atlas Comics, that decade's forerunner of Marvel Comics, and also drew romance stories for

, Orbit Publications,

Quality Comics Quality Comics was an American comic book publishing Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, ...

, and

Ziff-Davis Ziff Davis, Inc. is an American digital media and internet company. Founded in 1927 by William Bernard Ziff Sr. and Bernard George Davis, the company primarily owns technology- and health-oriented media websites, online shopping-related servic ...

. His first known story for DC, where he would become best known during the imminent

Silver Age of Comic Books The Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and widespread commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those featuring the superhero archetype. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books, the Silver A ...

, was the six-page "The Wrong Love", in '' Secret Hearts'' #18 (Nov. 1953). His first

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 ...

for DC was the eight-page "Earth Is the Target" in ''

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 ...

'' #26 (July 1955), an anthology series in which Greene and writer

Gardner Fox Gardner Francis Cooper Fox (May 20, 1911 – December 24, 1986) was an American writer known best for creating numerous comic book characters for DC Comics. He is estimated to have written more than 4,000 comics stories, including 1,500 for DC ...

would co-create the team Star Rovers in issue #66 (March 1961). Well into the early 1960s, Greene contributed many dozens of anthological science-fiction stories to ''Mystery in Space'' and ''Strange Adventures''. He also drew all six issues of DC's ''The New Adventures of

Charlie Chan Charlie Chan is a fictional Honolulu Police Department, Honolulu police detective created by author Earl Derr Biggers for a series of mystery novels. Biggers loosely based Chan on Hawaiian detective Chang Apana. The benevolent and heroic Chan ...

'' (June 1958 - April 1959), starring the long-running fictional

Chinese-American Chinese Americans are Americans of Chinese ancestry. Chinese Americans constitute a subgroup of East Asian Americans which also constitute a subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans have ancestors from mainland China, Hong Kong ...

detective of novels and films.

Silver Age superheroes

Greene's first DC superhero work was inking

Gil Kane Gil Kane (; born Eli Katz , ; April 6, 1926 – January 31, 2000) was a Latvian-born American comics artist whose career spanned the 1940s to the 1990s and virtually every major comics company and character. Kane co-created the modern-day vers ...

on a backup

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

story in ''The Atom'' #8 (Sept. 1963). Along with

Murphy Anderson Murphy C. Anderson Jr. (July 9, 1926 – October 22, 2015) was an American comics artist, known as one of the premier inkers of his era, who worked for companies such as DC Comics for over fifty years, starting in the Golden Age of Comic Books in ...

, he became one of Kane's two regular inkers on that series, which generally featured two Atom stories each issue. Greene also soon became Kane's regular inker on ''

'', beginning with issue #29 (June 1964). As historian Daniel Herman wrote, "Finally, Kane had somebody who could keep up with his frenetic pacing and full-bodied anatomy." Greene soon became one of editor

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 ...

's most prolific inkers, one whose work helped define the DC look of the mid to late 1960s. He began inking the

Elongated Man Elongated Man (Randolph William "Ralph" Dibny) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He first appeared in ''The Flash'' #112 (February 25, 1960). The character made his live-action debut on The CW's live-actio ...

backup feature in ''

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 ...

'', over penciler

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 ...

, and

stories over, initially, penciler

Sheldon Moldoff Sheldon "Shelly" Moldoff (; April 14, 1920 – February 29, 2012) was an Americans, American comics artist best known for his early work on the DC Comics characters Hawkman and Hawkgirl, and as one of Bob Kane's primary "ghost artists" (unc ...

(ghosting for

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 ...

), beginning in ''Batman'' #169-170, 172-174 (Feb.-March 1965, May–July 1965). Greene soon became, as well, one of the regular Batman inkers in ''Detective Comics'', including on issue #359 (Jan. 1967), the debut of

Batgirl Batgirl is the name of several fictional superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, depicted as female counterparts and allies to the superhero Batman. The character Bette Kane, Betty Kane was introduced into publica ...

, with penciler Infantino — all while continuing to ink the adventures of the previous three characters mentioned. In addition to all this, Schwartz assigned Greene to succeed the retired Bernard Sachs as regular inker on the publisher's primary superhero-team series, ''

'', beginning with issue #46 (Aug. 1966). Greene "added a new crispness to

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

's pencils for three years until reenes retirement in 1969." As Herman assessed, "Although Greene had a strong personality as a penciler, as an inker, he was able to successfully submerge his style and to highlight the pencilers he was embellishing." As a gesture of appreciation toward editor Schwartz, Greene in many ''Mystery in Space'' and ''Strange Adventures'' stories would draw characters who resembled him. Late in his career, Greene also returned to

, for whose predecessor companies he had drawn in the 1940s and 1950s. Freelancing, he inked George Tuska on a 20-page story of the jungle lord Ka-Zar in '' Marvel Super-Heroes'' #19 (March 1969); and the 20-page story in the superspy series ''

Nick Fury Colonel (United States), Colonel Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury Sr. is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee, he first appeared in ''Sgt. Fury and ...

, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' #12 (May 1969), co-inking Barry Windsor-Smith (then billed as Barry Smith) in one of the future industry star's earliest professional works. After his final issue of ''Justice League'' (#73, Aug. 1969), Greene inked one last superhero story, the lead feature in ''Atom and

Hawkman Hawkman is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Dennis Neville, the original Hawkman first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1, published by All-American ...

'' #45 (Nov. 1969). He then both penciled and inked stories in two issues each of '' Our Army at War'' and the

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 ...

anthology '' The Unexpected'', plus one story each in '' The Witching Hour'' and '' House of Secrets''. His stories in ''The Unexpected'' #117 and ''House of Secrets'' #84 (both cover-dated March 1970, and drawn at least three months earlier) mark his final published works.

Biography

Early career

Joining DC Comics

Silver Age superheroes

Death

References

External links

Further reading