Elliot S! Maggin
Encyclopedia
Elliot S. Maggin, also spelled Elliot S! Maggin (born 1950), is an American
writer of comic books, film, television and novels. He was a main writer for DC Comics
during the Bronze and early Modern ages of comics
in the 1970s and 1980s. He is particularly associated with the character of Superman
, where he worked on both Action Comics
and Superman
.
He has also been active with the Democratic Party of the United States, twice running for the nomination of his party for the United States Congress
— once from the 2nd district of New Hampshire
in 1984 and again from the 24th district of California
in 2008.
to a boys' magazine. He attended Brandeis University
, where he wrote a term paper titled "What Can One Man Do?" for a class during his junior year. When it received a grade of B+, Maggin disagreed with the assessment, remade it as a comic book script, and sent his script to DC Comics
. It was passed around the DC offices, and Neal Adams
chose to draw the script.Though the initial grade was not amended, Maggin became a writer for DC, selling his stories to fund a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University
.
During Maggin's time at Brandeis, he also befriended the university's vice-president, meeting his family. During one of the meetings, the vice-president's stepson (and future comic book writer) Jeph Loeb
suggested a story that would eventually be called "Must There Be a Superman
?". Maggin used the idea, which became his initial foray into the Superman comic book, a title he would write from 1971 to 1986. He also wrote for Green Arrow
, where his sense of humor was allowed far more freedom in the loose dialogue of the main character.
Maggin is responsible for a number of innovations in the DC Multiverse. Two that continue to shape the worlds of DC are Superboy-Prime
(later given greater definition by Marv Wolfman
, Geoff Johns
and others) and Lexcorp
(later more fully developed by John Byrne and others).
as the punctuation of choice, Maggin routinely used it instead of a full stop
. Out of habit, he once signed his own name Elliot S! Maggin and editor Julius Schwartz
liked the distinctive rhythm of the name, insisting that Maggin's name henceforth be written that way. Explaining in an interview:
and Miracle Monday
. He also wrote the novelization of the graphic novel Kingdom Come based on the story by Mark Waid
, and a novel featuring the Marvel mutant superhero team Generation X
. He has occasionally sold scripts to non-print versions of superheroes, including Spider-Man (1994)
, X-Men (1992)
and Batman: The Animated Series
.
Besides his work in comics, he has received compensation for raising horses, skiing
instruction, teaching at various high schools and colleges, writing stories for Atari
video games, and working on websites. In addition to on-going freelance writing, he currently works as a developmental learning consultant for Kaiser Permanente
.
. The slogan "Maggin!" was used on his campaign button. However, the campaign stalled at the nomination round, and Maggin did not compete in the general election
for the seat. After the election, the campaign was the subject of a lawsuit brought by the Federal Election Commission
, in which his campaign treasurer
and the committee itself had to pay fines for failing to submit a 1984 quarterly report.
On May 21, 2007, Maggin announced that he would be running for the 2008 Democratic party nomination for California
's 24th congressional district
seat. On February 1, 2008, Maggin posted on the main page of his website that he had decided not to run after all, effectively ending his 2008 campaign. In an essay written the following day, he cited principally financial reasons for his withdrawal. It appears that at no point during this campaign did he ever officially file with the Federal Election Commission
.
. During the Bronze Age of comics, Maggin was a known resident of Earth-Prime and a major character in Justice League of America issues #123 and #124. In the Modern Age of comics, Maggin cameo
ed as Oliver Queen's campaign manager in issue 24 of DC Comics' 52
. This appearance is notable for referencing a biographical fact about Maggin. The term paper which had been awarded a B+ at Brandeis University, and was subsequently Maggin's first sale to DC, posited Green Arrow
's mayor
al campaign in Star City.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
writer of comic books, film, television and novels. He was a main writer for DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
during the Bronze and early Modern ages of comics
Modern Age of Comic Books
The Modern Age of Comic Books is an informal name for the period in the history of mainstream American comic books generally considered to last from the mid-1980s until present day...
in the 1970s and 1980s. He is particularly associated with the character of Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
, where he worked on both Action Comics
Action Comics
Action Comics is an American comic book series that introduced Superman, the first major superhero character as the term is popularly defined...
and Superman
Superman (comic book)
Superman is an ongoing comic book series featuring the DC Comics hero of the same name. The character Superman began as one of several anthology features in the National Periodical Publications comic book Action Comics #1 in June 1938...
.
He has also been active with the Democratic Party of the United States, twice running for the nomination of his party for the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
— once from the 2nd district of New Hampshire
New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district
New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district covers the western and northern parts of New Hampshire. It includes the state's second-largest city, Nashua, as well as the state capital, Concord...
in 1984 and again from the 24th district of California
California's 24th congressional district
California's 24th congressional district covers most of Ventura and inland Santa Barbara counties.The district is currently represented by Republican Elton Gallegly.-Voting:-List of representatives:-Election results:-1952:...
in 2008.
Initial employment with DC Comics
Maggin started working as a professional writer in his teens, selling historical stories about the Boer WarSecond Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
to a boys' magazine. He attended Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
, where he wrote a term paper titled "What Can One Man Do?" for a class during his junior year. When it received a grade of B+, Maggin disagreed with the assessment, remade it as a comic book script, and sent his script to DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. It was passed around the DC offices, and Neal Adams
Neal Adams
Neal Adams is an American comic book and commercial artist known for helping to create some of the definitive modern imagery of the DC Comics characters Superman, Batman, and Green Arrow; as the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates; and as a creators-rights advocate who...
chose to draw the script.Though the initial grade was not amended, Maggin became a writer for DC, selling his stories to fund a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
During Maggin's time at Brandeis, he also befriended the university's vice-president, meeting his family. During one of the meetings, the vice-president's stepson (and future comic book writer) Jeph Loeb
Jeph Loeb
Joseph "Jeph" Loeb III is an American film and television writer, producer and award-winning comic book writer. Loeb was a producer/writer on the TV series Smallville and Lost, writer for the films Commando and Teen Wolf and was a writer and Co-Executive Producer on the NBC TV show Heroes from its...
suggested a story that would eventually be called "Must There Be a Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
?". Maggin used the idea, which became his initial foray into the Superman comic book, a title he would write from 1971 to 1986. He also wrote for Green Arrow
Green Arrow
Green Arrow is a fictional superhero that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp, he first appeared in More Fun Comics #73 in November 1941. His secret identity is Oliver Queen, billionaire and former mayor of fictional Star City...
, where his sense of humor was allowed far more freedom in the loose dialogue of the main character.
Maggin is responsible for a number of innovations in the DC Multiverse. Two that continue to shape the worlds of DC are Superboy-Prime
Superboy-Prime
Superboy-Prime, also known as Superman-Prime, or simply Prime, is a DC Comics superhero turned supervillain, and one of several alternate Supermen. The character first appeared in DC Comics Presents #87 , and was created by Elliot S...
(later given greater definition by Marv Wolfman
Marv Wolfman
Marvin A. "Marv" Wolfman is an award-winning American comic book writer. He is best known for lengthy runs on The Tomb of Dracula, creating Blade for Marvel Comics, and The New Teen Titans for DC Comics.-1960s:...
, Geoff Johns
Geoff Johns
Geoff Johns is an American comic book writer, best known for his work for DC Comics, where he has been Chief Creative Officer since February 2010, in particular for characters such as Green Lantern, The Flash and Superman...
and others) and Lexcorp
LexCorp
LexCorp is the fictional company founded by Lex Luthor in the popular DC Comics Superman series. It made its first proper appearance in John Byrne's The Man of Steel miniseries, which established the post-Crisis Superman setting...
(later more fully developed by John Byrne and others).
Origin of professional name
Because comic book scripts tend to favor the exclamation markExclamation mark
The exclamation mark, exclamation point, or bang, or "dembanger" is a punctuation mark usually used after an interjection or exclamation to indicate strong feelings or high volume , and often marks the end of a sentence. Example: “Watch out!” The character is encoded in Unicode at...
as the punctuation of choice, Maggin routinely used it instead of a full stop
Full stop
A full stop is the punctuation mark commonly placed at the end of sentences. In American English, the term used for this punctuation is period. In the 21st century, it is often also called a dot by young people...
. Out of habit, he once signed his own name Elliot S! Maggin and editor Julius Schwartz
Julius Schwartz
Julius "Julie" Schwartz was a comic book and pulp magazine editor, and a science fiction agent and prominent fan. He was born in the Bronx, New York...
liked the distinctive rhythm of the name, insisting that Maggin's name henceforth be written that way. Explaining in an interview:
Beyond comic books
In addition to the hundreds of stories Maggin wrote for the DC comics universe, he has also written television scripts, stories for film, animation and journalistic pieces. Many of them have continued to show his allegiance to comic book characters. He wrote two Superman novels, Last Son of KryptonLast Son of Krypton
Superman: Last Son of Krypton is a novel written by Elliot S! Maggin and based on the DC Comics character Superman. It was published in 1978.-Plot summary:Last Son of Krypton is Elliot S! Maggin's first Superman novel...
and Miracle Monday
Miracle Monday
Miracle Monday is a novel written by Elliot S! Maggin and based on the DC Comics character Superman. It was published in 1981.Miracle Monday tells the story of Superman trying to stop an entity of pure evil from causing universal chaos. This is Elliot S! Maggin's second Superman novel and is just...
. He also wrote the novelization of the graphic novel Kingdom Come based on the story by Mark Waid
Mark Waid
Mark Waid is an American comic book writer. He is well known for his eight-year run as writer of the DC Comics' title The Flash, as well as his scripting of the limited series Kingdom Come and Superman: Birthright, and his work on Marvel Comics' Captain America...
, and a novel featuring the Marvel mutant superhero team Generation X
Generation X (comics)
Generation X is a fictional comic book superhero team, a spin-off of the X-Men franchise published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Scott Lobdell and artist Chris Bachalo, the team formed during the 1994 "Phalanx Covenant" storyline, and appeared in their own monthly series in September 1994...
. He has occasionally sold scripts to non-print versions of superheroes, including Spider-Man (1994)
Spider-Man (1994 TV series)
Spider-Man, also known as Spider-Man: The Animated Series, is an American animated series starring the Marvel Comics superhero, Spider-Man. The show ran on Fox Kids from November 19, 1994, to January 31, 1998. The producer/story editor was John Semper, Jr. and production company was Marvel Films...
, X-Men (1992)
X-Men (TV series)
X-Men, also known as X-Men: The Animated Series, is an American animated television series which debuted on October 31, 1992, in the United States on the Fox Network as part of its Fox Kids Saturday morning lineup...
and Batman: The Animated Series
Batman: The Animated Series
Batman: The Animated Series is an American animated series based on the DC Comics character Batman. The series featured an ensemble cast of many voice-actors including Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., Arleen Sorkin, and Loren Lester. The series won four Emmy Awards and was nominated...
.
Besides his work in comics, he has received compensation for raising horses, skiing
Skiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
instruction, teaching at various high schools and colleges, writing stories for Atari
Atari
Atari is a corporate and brand name owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by Atari Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of the French publisher Atari, SA . The original Atari, Inc. was founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. It was a pioneer in...
video games, and working on websites. In addition to on-going freelance writing, he currently works as a developmental learning consultant for Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is an integrated managed care consortium, based in Oakland, California, United States, founded in 1945 by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and physician Sidney Garfield...
.
Politics
In 1984, Elliot first ran for political office as a candidate for the US House of Representatives in the New Hampshire 2nd congressional districtNew Hampshire's 2nd congressional district
New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district covers the western and northern parts of New Hampshire. It includes the state's second-largest city, Nashua, as well as the state capital, Concord...
. The slogan "Maggin!" was used on his campaign button. However, the campaign stalled at the nomination round, and Maggin did not compete in the general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
for the seat. After the election, the campaign was the subject of a lawsuit brought by the Federal Election Commission
Federal Election Commission
The Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency that was founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign finance legislation in the United States. It was created in a provision of the 1975 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act...
, in which his campaign treasurer
Treasurer
A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The adjective for a treasurer is normally "tresorial". The adjective "treasurial" normally means pertaining to a treasury, rather than the treasurer.-Government:...
and the committee itself had to pay fines for failing to submit a 1984 quarterly report.
On May 21, 2007, Maggin announced that he would be running for the 2008 Democratic party nomination for California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
's 24th congressional district
California's 24th congressional district
California's 24th congressional district covers most of Ventura and inland Santa Barbara counties.The district is currently represented by Republican Elton Gallegly.-Voting:-List of representatives:-Election results:-1952:...
seat. On February 1, 2008, Maggin posted on the main page of his website that he had decided not to run after all, effectively ending his 2008 campaign. In an essay written the following day, he cited principally financial reasons for his withdrawal. It appears that at no point during this campaign did he ever officially file with the Federal Election Commission
Federal Election Commission
The Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency that was founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign finance legislation in the United States. It was created in a provision of the 1975 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act...
.
E-publishing
He has made several works of fiction available exclusively online, including the short story Luthor's Gift and the novella Starwinds Howl, both of which take place in his Superman continuity. He is also currently presenting a novel-in-progress, Lancer, on his personal website.Comic book appearances
Maggin is himself a character in the DC UniverseDC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
. During the Bronze Age of comics, Maggin was a known resident of Earth-Prime and a major character in Justice League of America issues #123 and #124. In the Modern Age of comics, Maggin cameo
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
ed as Oliver Queen's campaign manager in issue 24 of DC Comics' 52
52 (comic book)
52 was a weekly American comic book limited series published by DC Comics that debuted on May 10, 2006, one week after the conclusion of the seven-issue Infinite Crisis. The series was written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, and Mark Waid with layouts by Keith Giffen...
. This appearance is notable for referencing a biographical fact about Maggin. The term paper which had been awarded a B+ at Brandeis University, and was subsequently Maggin's first sale to DC, posited Green Arrow
Green Arrow
Green Arrow is a fictional superhero that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp, he first appeared in More Fun Comics #73 in November 1941. His secret identity is Oliver Queen, billionaire and former mayor of fictional Star City...
's mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
al campaign in Star City.