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| Robert Kanigher | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | June 18, 1915 |
| Died | May 7, 2002 (aged 86) Fishkill, New York[1] |
| Nationality | American |
| Area(s) | Writer, Editor |
| Pseudonym(s) | Bart Regan Dion Anthony Jan Laurie Robert Starr[2] Jed Corby[3] |
| Notable works | Wonder Woman DC war comics Sgt. Rock Silver Age Flash |
Robert Kanigher (June 18, 1915 - May 7, 2002)[1] was a prolific comic book writer and editor whose career spanned five decades. He was involved with the Wonder Woman franchise for over twenty years, taking over the scripting from creator William Moulton Marston. In addition, Kanigher spent many years in charge of DC Comics' war titles, as well as creating the popular character Sgt. Rock. Kanigher also scripted what is considered the first Silver Age comic book story, "Mystery of the Human Thunderbolt!" in Showcase #4.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] Early career
Kanigher's literary influences included Dostoyevsky, Maxim Gorky, Seán O'Casey, Eugene O'Neill, François Villon, Freud, the Old Testament, James Joyce, Sophocles, and Shakespeare.[2]
Kanigher's career as a writer started early, with his short stories and poetry being published in magazines. He won The New York Times Collegiate Short Story Contest in 1932. In the late 1930s and early 1940s, Kanigher also wrote for radio, film, and authored several plays.[2]
[edit] Comics
[edit] The Golden Age
Kanigher's earliest comics work was in such titles as Fox Feature Syndicate's Blue Beetle (where he created the Bouncer), MLJ/Archie Comics's Steel Sterling and The Web, and Fawcett Comics Captain Marvel Adventures.
In 1943 Kanigher wrote How to Make Money Writing, which included a section on comics, making it one of the earliest works on the subject.[4]
Kanigher joined All-American Comics, a precursor of the future DC Comics, as a scripter in 1945, and was quickly promoted to editor. He wrote the "Justice Society of America" feature in All Star Comics, the "Hawkman" feature in Flash Comics, and Green Lantern. Kanigher edited Wonder Woman from issue #17 (May–June 1946) to issue #176 (May–June 1968).[5] When Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston died in 1947, Kanigher became the title's writer as well, beginning with issue #22 (March–April 1947). Kanigher wrote "The Black Canary", a six page Johnny Thunder story which introduced the Black Canary character in Flash Comics #86 (August 1947). This was also artist Carmine Infantino's first published work for DC.[6] Other new characters created by Kanigher during this time included Rose and Thorn and The Harlequin.
Starting in 1952, Kanigher began editing and writing the "big five" DC Comics' war titles: G.I. Combat, Our Army at War, Our Fighting Forces, All-American Men of War, and Star Spangled War Stories. His creation of Sgt. Rock with Joe Kubert is considered one of his most memorable contributions to the medium.[4]
[edit] The Silver Age
In 1956, DC editor Julius Schwartz assigned Kanigher and Infantino to the company's first attempt at reviving superheroes: an updated version of the Flash that would appear in issue #4 (Oct. 1956) of the try-out series Showcase. The eventual success of the new, science-fiction oriented Flash heralded the wholesale return of superheroes, and the beginning of what fans and historians call the Silver Age of comics.[7]
Artist Ross Andru began a nine-year run on Wonder Woman, starting with issue #98 (May 1958), where he and Kanigher reinvented the character, introducing the Silver Age version and her supporting cast.[8][9]
Kanigher and Andru had several other notable collaborations. The "Gunner and Sarge" feature introduced in All-American Men of War #67 (March 1959) was one of the first war comics to feature recurring characters.[10] Andru drew an early appearance of Kanigher's Sgt. Rock character in Our Army at War #81 (April 1959)[11] The creative team co-created the original version of the Suicide Squad in The Brave and the Bold #25 (September 1959).[12] Another innovation was the melding of war comics with science-fiction in "The War that Time Forgot", a feature created by Kanigher and Andru in Star Spangled War Stories #90 (May 1960).[13] The Kanigher-Andru pairing co-created the Metal Men in Showcase #37 (March–April 1962).[14]
Kanigher also created other popular action series features, such as Enemy Ace, The Losers, The Unknown Soldier. He and artist Russ Heath created the "Haunted Tank" feature,[15] and the Sea Devils series.[16] Several of Kanigher's characters were combined into a single feature titled "The Losers". Their first appearance as a group was with the Haunted Tank crew in G.I. Combat #138 (Oct.-Nov. 1969).[17]
In the late 1950s and 1960s, Kanigher had a hand in creating many other characters, including Viking Prince, Balloon Buster, and the Batman villain Poison Ivy. Reuniting with Andru, Kanigher co-created the "Rose & The Thorn" back up feature in Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane #105 (October 1970).[18] Kanigher returned as writer-editor of the Wonder Woman title with issue #204 (January–February 1973)[5] and restored the character's powers and traditional costume.[19] In 1974, drawing on a classic novel, he introduced Rima the Jungle Girl to the DC Universe in her own title. Kanigher and Kubert created Ragman in the first issue (Aug.-Sept. 1976) of that character's short-lived ongoing series.[20] Around 1977, Kanigher taught for a year at the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art.[2] In 1985, DC Comics named Kanigher as one of the honorees in the company's 50th anniversary publication Fifty Who Made DC Great.[21]
[edit] Posthumous tributes
Streets and buildings have been named in his honour in several of DC Comics' fictional cities, including Central City.[22] and Keystone City[23]
The hometown of Nate Banks in the comic book themed kids' series of novels, The Amazing Adventures of Nate Banks, is named Kanigher Falls.[24]
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b Social Security Death Index, social security #116-07-5117.
- ^ a b c d Bails, Jerry. Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1929–1999.
- ^ Cronin, Brian. "Test Your Comic Book Knowledge for 10/25," Comics Should be Good! Comic Book Resources (Oct. 25, 2006). Accessed May 8, 2009.
- ^ a b Mangus, Don. "In Memory of Robert Kanigher, 1915–2002," ComicArtVille Library (2002).
- ^ a b Robert Kanigher (editor, DC Comics) at the Grand Comics Database
- ^ Wallace, Daniel; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1940s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. Dorling Kindersley. pp. 55–56. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9. "Debuting as a supporting character in a six-page Johnny Thunder feature written by Robert Kanigher and penciled by Carmine Infantino, Dinah Drake [the Black Canary] was originally presented as a villain...The Black Canary's introduction in August [1947]'s Flash Comics #86 represented [Infantino's] first published work for DC."
- ^ Irvine, Alex "1950s" in Dolan, p. 80 "The arrival of the second incarnation of the Flash in [Showcase] issue #4 is considered to be the official start of the Silver Age of comics."
- ^ Irvine "1950s" in Dolan, p. 90 "Wonder Woman's origin story and character was given a Silver Age revamp, courtesy of writer Robert Kanigher and artist Ross Andru."
- ^ Wonder Woman #98 (May 1958) at the Grand Comics Database
- ^ Irvine "1950s" in Dolan, p. 93 "War comics had rarely featured recurring characters, but writer Robert Kanigher and artist Ross Andru changed that with the introduction of U.S. Marines Gunner MacKay and Sarge Clay in All-American Men of War #67."
- ^ Irvine "1950s" in Dolan, p. 93 "In "The Rock of Easy Co.!" written by Robert Kanigher and Bob Haney, with art by Ross Andru, the reader was introduced to Sgt. Frank Rock of Easy Company."
- ^ Irvine "1950s" in Dolan, p. 95 "In "The Three Waves of Doom", a story that filled The Brave and the Bold #25, writer Robert Kanigher and artist Ross Andru introduced the Suicide Squad, a band of World War II-era military misfits."
- ^ McAvennie, Michael "1960s" in Dolan, p. 100 "What was most memorable about the initial installment of "The War that Time Forgot" by writer/editor Robert Kanigher and artist Ross Andru was that it was the first cross-genre story to blend war comics with science-fiction."
- ^ McAvennie "1960s" in Dolan, p. 105 "Writer/editor Robert Kanigher and artist Ross Andru put a then-modern-day spin on robots with the exploits of comics' first "heavy metal" group, the Metal Men."
- ^ McAvennie "1960s" in Dolan, p. 103: "G.I. Combat #87 saw Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart guide Lt. Jeb Stuart and the Haunted Tank on their first adventure by scribe Robert Kanigher and artist Russ Heath."
- ^ McAvennie "1960s" in Dolan, p. 101: "Showcase #27 in August [1960] saw Dane Dorrance, Biff Bailey, Judy Walton, and Nicky Walton dive into underwater adventures as the Sea Devils, by writer Robert Kanigher and illustrator Russ Heath."
- ^ McAvennie "1960s" in Dolan, p. 135: "Scribe Robert Kanigher and artist Russ Heath turned these self-described Losers - including "Navajo Ace" Johnny Cloud of the U.S. Army Air Force, Marines Gunner Mackey and Sarge Clay, and Captain William Storm, a PT boat commander with a prosthetic leg - into a fighting force that meshed as one."
- ^ McAvennie "1970s" in Dolan, p. 141 "The second feature uncovered the roots of Rose Forrest/Thorn's identity, as told by writer Robert Kanigher and artist Ross Andru."
- ^ McAvennie "1970s" in Dolan, p. 154 "After nearly five years of Diana Prince's non-powered super-heroics, writer-editor Robert Kanigher and artist Don Heck restored Wonder Woman's. . .well, wonder."
- ^ McAvennie "1970s" in Dolan, p. 171 "Writer Robert Kanigher's origin of the frayed hero was pieced together into moody, coarse segments by Joe Kubert and Nestor, Frank, and Quico Redondo."
- ^ Marx, Barry, Cavalieri, Joey and Hill, Thomas (w), Petruccio, Steven (a), Marx, Barry (ed). "Robert Kanigher Tales of Love and War" Fifty Who Made DC Great: 30 (1985), DC Comics
- ^ The Flash #314 (October 1982)
- ^ The Flash vol. 2 #94 (September 1994)
- ^ Bell, Jake (2010). The Amazing Adventures of Nate Banks #1: Secret Identity Crisis. Scholastic Paperbacks. ISBN 0545156696.
[edit] References
- Askegren, Pierce. Science Fiction and Fantasy Writer's of America Obituary for Robert Kanigher (May 7, 2002).
- Snyder, Robin. "The Golden Gladiator Robert Kanigher," The Comics Journal #84 and #85 (1983).
- Don Markstein's Toonopedia:The Haunted Tank
- Don Markstein's Toonopedia:Sgt. Rock
- Bob Kanigher's Gallery of War
- Robert Kanigher at the Comic Book DB
[edit] External links
| Preceded by William Moulton Marston |
Wonder Woman writer 1947–1968 |
Succeeded by Dennis O'Neil |
| Preceded by N/A |
The Brave and the Bold writer 1955–1959 |
Succeeded by N/A |
| Preceded by Bob Haney |
All-American Men of War writer 1959–1966 |
Succeeded by Bob Haney |
| Preceded by Dennis O'Neil |
Justice League writer 1970 |
Succeeded by Mike Friedrich |
| Preceded by Bob Haney |
Teen Titans writer 1970 |
Succeeded by Steve Skeates |
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