Created by Archie Goodwin and John Romita, Sr. "I ain't about the tights and shit..." -- Cage on why the tiara is gone, in Alias #1 A working class hero is something to be... When LUKE CAGE made his debut in Luke Cage: Hero for Hire in 1972, he was the first African-American superhero to … Continue reading Luke Cage
Tag: Comic Books
Rocky Jorden
Created by (unknown) "Things began to happen fast! Shots went off and I felt a searing pain in my left arm! Vaguely, I saw the punk collapse with a death rattle in his throat." -- typical hard-boiled prose, right from Rocky's mouth. Now here's a blast from the past! It's another short-lived attempt to bring … Continue reading Rocky Jorden
Skip McCoy
Created by Allen Bellman One of the earliest private eyes in what would become the Marvel Universe, SKIP McCOY (aka "Detective Skip McCoy") may have been, at best, a minor footnote in comic book history, but he sure got around. We know he was a detective, but he seemed to conveniently fluctuate between working for … Continue reading Skip McCoy
Leslie Lenrow (aka “The Ferret”)
Created by Irwin Hasen & Stockridge Winslow LESLIE "THE FERRET" LENROW is an early private eye character from Marvel Comics way back in 1940, in an issue of Marvel Mystery Comics. According to the comics, he's a "well-known author and private investigator" who lives in Greenwich Village. Unlike most of the other heroes (The Human Torch, Electro, The … Continue reading Leslie Lenrow (aka “The Ferret”)
Rip Kirby
Created by Alex Raymond The first modern detective? I'm not sure about that, but REMINGTON "RIP" KIRBY was certainly the most successful -- and certainly the longest-running -- attempt to bring a private eye to the comics page. Written and drawn by comics legend Alex Raymond, the same artist who had previously proven himself with, … Continue reading Rip Kirby
Crime Smashers
"Crime Can't Pay -- In Any Way!" --the Crime Smashers tagline A short-lived comic book anthology series from Trojan, Crime Smashers reprinted four of the most popular comic stories once found in the pages of parent corporation Culture Publications' pulp magazines (including Hollywood Detective and Spicy Detective), nestled between the prose short stories and novellas. … Continue reading Crime Smashers
Ms. Tree
Created by Max Allan Collins and Terry Beatty Since Mike Hammer was originally planned for comic books, it only seems fitting that Spillane defender/apologist and hard-boiled renaissance man Max Allan Collins' "female Mike Hammer," MICHAEL TREE, should appear in the appropriate medium. And who knows? Collins is probably most famous for his historical detective novels … Continue reading Ms. Tree
My Scrapbook: Darwyn Cooke’s Color Model Sheet for Slam Bradley
My Scrapbook Darwyn Cooke's Color Model Sheet for Slam Bradley (March 2001) Say what you will about Slam Bradley, arguably DC Comics' longest running detective character (first appearance: Detective Comics #1), but his revival in 2001 in a four-part backup that ran in issues #759-762 of that magazine may be the greatest and most sincere … Continue reading My Scrapbook: Darwyn Cooke’s Color Model Sheet for Slam Bradley
Cal McDonald
Created by Steve Niles  Booze and pills are the least of his demons... CAL McDONALD is another eye chasing things that go bump in the night, a sort of unlicensed private occult detective who appears in a string of novels and decidedly adult comic Criminal Macabre series by Steve Niles. With his zombie traveling companion … Continue reading Cal McDonald
Danny Danger
Created by Leonard Starr and Richard Hughes "Yep, it's like In always say! Dames and excitement -- excitement and dames!" You thought Mickey Spillane's comic book eye Mike Danger had a pretty silly monicker for a P.I.? Toss in the asiago of alliteration, and DANNY DANGER's is even sillier. Danny was a private detective who appeared regularly … Continue reading Danny Danger