Mike Sekowsky
Encyclopedia
Michael Sekowsky was a Jewish American
comic book
artist
best known as the exclusive penciler for DC Comics
' Justice League of America during most of the 1960s, and as the regular writer and artist on Wonder Woman
during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
' predecessor, Timely Comics
, in New York City. There he worked as both a cartoonist
on such humor features as "Ziggy Pig and Silly Seal
", and a superhero
artist on such star characters as Captain America
and the Sub-Mariner in issues of All Winners Comics
, Daring Comics, Marvel Mystery Comics
, USA Comics, and Young Allies Comics
. Sekowsky developed a reputation as one of the fastest artist in the comics field.
During the 1940s, Sekowsky married his first wife, Joanne Latta. Concurrently, he began a complicated relationship with artist Valerie (a.k.a. Violet) Barclay
, who was working at the Manhattan
restaurant Cafe Rouge. As Barclay recalled in a 2004 interview, "I was 17, and ... was making $18 a week as a hostess. Mike said, 'I'll get you a job making $35 a week as a [staff] inker
, and you can [additionally] freelance over the weekend. I'll let you ink my stuff'. He went to editor
Stan Lee
and got me the job. I didn't know anything about inking. [Staff artist] Dave Gantz
taught me — just by watching him". Sekowsky bestowed expensive gifts on her even after his marriage to Latta, causing friction in the Timely bullpen, which she left in 1949. As she later described the office environment,
Sekowsky, one of the nascent Marvel Comics' mainstays, chose to remain and "make George's life hell". Barclay said in 2004, "I was married before I met Mike, but my husband's divorce
was not final. ... [I] had to go to court and get an annulment
. Mike paid for it and it cost $350". Sekowsky continued drawing for Timely in multiple genres through the 1940s and into the 1950s, on such Western
characters as the Apache Kid, the Black Rider
, and Kid Colt
for Marvel's 1950s iteration, Atlas Comics
. He later freelanced for other companies, drawing the TV-series spin-offs Gunsmoke
and Buffalo Bill Jr.
for Dell Comics
; romance comics (for Crestwood
, Fawcett Comics
, Nedor, Quality Comics
, and St. John Publications
); the jungle
adventure Ramar of the Jungle
for (Charlton Comics
); war
, including Ziff-Davis' G.I. Joe
, and others. He continued to draw for Dell in particular through the early 1960s.
In 1952, Sekowsky began working at DC Comics
, where he drew romance comics and science fiction
titles under the editorship of Julius Schwartz
. In 1960, Sekowsky began working on his most noted effort, Justice League of America, staying on the title for 63 issues. He would later return to pencil the 23-page flashback tale "The Future Ain't What It Used to Be" in issue #240 (July 1985), which featured the League from his era.
Sekowsky married his second wife, Josephine, called Pat, in October 1967.
In 1968, Sekowsky became the penciler of Metal Men
, taking over from Gil Kane
, who had succeeded Ross Andru
. The following year, Sekowsky also became the writer and changed the direction of the series by having the Metal Men assume human identities. The series was canceled six issues later.
At roughly the same time, Sekowsky began working on Wonder Woman with issue #178 (Sept.-Oct. 1968), first as artist and then as writer and editor, until issue #198. His run on the series included a variety of themes, from espionage to mythological adventure. He contributed a story about Wonder Woman and Batman to The Brave and the Bold
.
Sekowsky wrote and drew features for the series-tryout comic-book series Showcase during the last three years of its run, including "Jason's Quest", an adventure series about a young man on a motorcycle
searching for his family, in Showcase #88-90 (Feb.-May 1970).
vol. 2, featuring the Inhumans
; and Giant-Size Super-Villain Team-Up.
For the last decade of his life, Sekowsky lived in Los Angeles, California
and worked primarily on Hanna-Barbera
animated television series, including Scooby-Doo
. After hospitalization with health problems stemming from diabetes, he began freelancing for publisher Daerrick Gross, who was developing a line of skateboard
and ninja
comics. Sekowsky died before he could complete the assignment.
for Favorite Novel ("Crisis on Earths 1 and 2" in Justice League of America #21 and #22 with Gardner Fox
) and a 1981 Inkpot Award
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
best known as the exclusive penciler 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...
' Justice League of America during most of the 1960s, and as the regular writer and artist on Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Early life and career
Mike Sekowsky began working in the comics medium in 1941, as an artist at Marvel ComicsMarvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
' predecessor, Timely Comics
Timely Comics
Timely Comics, an imprint of Timely Publications, was the earliest comic book arm of American publisher Martin Goodman, and the entity that would evolve by the 1960s to become Marvel Comics....
, in New York City. There he worked as both a cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
on such humor features as "Ziggy Pig and Silly Seal
Ziggy Pig and Silly Seal
Ziggy Pig and Silly Seal are fictional, funny-animal comic-book characters created by cartoonist Al Jaffee for Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, during the period fans and historians call the Golden Age of Comic Books....
", and a superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
artist on such star characters as Captain America
Captain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
and the Sub-Mariner in issues of All Winners Comics
All Winners Comics
All Winners Comics was the name of two American comic book series of the 1940s, both published by Marvel Comics' predecessor, Timely Comics, during the period fans and historians call the Golden Age of Comic Books. A superhero anthology comic in both cases, they variously featured such star...
, Daring Comics, Marvel Mystery Comics
Marvel Mystery Comics
Marvel Mystery 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...
, USA Comics, and Young Allies Comics
Young Allies
Young Allies is the name of three superhero teams in the .-Golden Age:The Golden Age's Young Allies were a gang of kids who fought the Axis...
. Sekowsky developed a reputation as one of the fastest artist in the comics field.
During the 1940s, Sekowsky married his first wife, Joanne Latta. Concurrently, he began a complicated relationship with artist Valerie (a.k.a. Violet) Barclay
Violet Barclay
Violet Barclay , who also worked under the name Valerie Barclay and the married name Valerie Smith, was an American illustrator best known as one of the pioneering female comic-book artists, having started in the field during the 1930s and '40s period historians and fans call the Golden Age of...
, who was working at the Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
restaurant Cafe Rouge. As Barclay recalled in a 2004 interview, "I was 17, and ... was making $18 a week as a hostess. Mike said, 'I'll get you a job making $35 a week as a [staff] inker
Inker
The inker is one of the two line artists in a traditional comic book or graphic novel. After a pencilled drawing is given to the inker, the inker uses black ink to produce refined outlines over the pencil lines...
, and you can [additionally] freelance over the weekend. I'll let you ink my stuff'. He went to editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
Stan Lee
Stan Lee
Stan Lee is an American comic book writer, editor, actor, producer, publisher, television personality, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics....
and got me the job. I didn't know anything about inking. [Staff artist] Dave Gantz
Dave Gantz
Dave Gantz was an American artist and sculptor who wrote children's books and worked as a newspaper cartoonist.Gantz penciled and inked comic books in the 1940s and 1950s, often working for Timely Comics....
taught me — just by watching him". Sekowsky bestowed expensive gifts on her even after his marriage to Latta, causing friction in the Timely bullpen, which she left in 1949. As she later described the office environment,
Sekowsky, one of the nascent Marvel Comics' mainstays, chose to remain and "make George's life hell". Barclay said in 2004, "I was married before I met Mike, but my husband's divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
was not final. ... [I] had to go to court and get an annulment
Annulment
Annulment is a legal procedure for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning almost as if it had never taken place...
. Mike paid for it and it cost $350". Sekowsky continued drawing for Timely in multiple genres through the 1940s and into the 1950s, on such Western
Western comics
Western comics is a comics genre usually depicting the American Old West frontier and typically set during the late nineteenth century...
characters as the Apache Kid, the Black Rider
Black Rider
Black Rider may refer to:* The Third Horseman of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse* Black Rider , a Marvel Comics Western character* The Black Rider, a 1990 stage musical by Tom Waits, Robert Wilson and William S...
, and Kid Colt
Kid Colt
Kid Colt is the name of two fictional characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first is a cowboy whose adventures have taken place in numerous western themed comic book series published by Marvel...
for Marvel's 1950s iteration, Atlas Comics
Atlas Comics (1950s)
Atlas Comics is the term used to describe the 1950s comic book publishing company that would evolve into Marvel Comics. Magazine and paperback novel publisher Martin Goodman, whose business strategy involved having a multitude of corporate entities, used Atlas as the umbrella name for his comic...
. He later freelanced for other companies, drawing the TV-series spin-offs Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
and Buffalo Bill Jr.
Buffalo Bill Jr.
Buffalo Bill, Jr. is an American Western television series starring Dickie Jones that aired in syndication from March 1, 1955, until September 21, 1956.-Synopsis:...
for Dell Comics
Dell Comics
Dell Comics was the comic book publishing arm of Dell Publishing, which got its start in pulp magazines. It published comics from 1929 to 1973. At its peak, it was the most prominent and successful American company in the medium...
; romance comics (for Crestwood
Crestwood
Crestwood is a common placename:In Australia:*Crestwood, New South Wales, an urban locality in the Baulkham Hills Shire region of Sydney, Australia*Crestwood, Queanbeyan, New South Wales, a suburb of Queanbeyan, New South Wales...
, Fawcett Comics
Fawcett Comics
Fawcett Comics, a division of Fawcett Publications, was one of several successful comic book publishers during the Golden Age of Comic Books in the 1940s...
, Nedor, Quality Comics
Quality Comics
Quality Comics was an American comic book publishing company that operated from 1939 to 1956 and was an influential creative force in what historians and fans call the Golden Age of comic books....
, and St. John Publications
St. John Publications
St. John Publications was an American publisher of magazines and comic books. During its short existence , St. John's comic books established several industry firsts. Founded by Archer St. John , the firm was located in Manhattan at 545 Fifth Avenue. After the St...
); the jungle
Jungle
A Jungle is an area of land in the tropics overgrown with dense vegetation.The word jungle originates from the Sanskrit word jangala which referred to uncultivated land. Although the Sanskrit word refers to "dry land", it has been suggested that an Anglo-Indian interpretation led to its...
adventure Ramar of the Jungle
Ramar of the Jungle
For a related series, see Jungle Jim , starring Johnny Weismuller, Martin Huston, and Dean Fredericks.Ramar of the Jungle was a syndicated American television series that starred Jon Hall as Dr. Tom Reynolds and Ray Montgomery as his associate. Episodes were set in Africa and India...
for (Charlton Comics
Charlton Comics
Charlton Comics was an American comic book publishing company that existed from 1946 to 1985, having begun under a different name in 1944. It was based in Derby, Connecticut...
); war
War comics
War comics is a genre of comic books that gained popularity in English-speaking countries following World War II.-American war comics:Shortly after the birth of the modern comic book in the mid- to late 1930s, comics publishers began including stories of wartime adventures in the multi-genre...
, including Ziff-Davis' G.I. Joe
G.I. Joe
G.I. Joe is a line of action figures produced by the toy company Hasbro. The initial product offering represented four of the branches of the U.S. armed forces with the Action Soldier , Action Sailor , Action Pilot , Action Marine and later on, the Action Nurse...
, and others. He continued to draw for Dell in particular through the early 1960s.
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...
, where he drew romance comics and science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
titles under the editorship of 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...
. In 1960, Sekowsky began working on his most noted effort, Justice League of America, staying on the title for 63 issues. He would later return to pencil the 23-page flashback tale "The Future Ain't What It Used to Be" in issue #240 (July 1985), which featured the League from his era.
Sekowsky married his second wife, Josephine, called Pat, in October 1967.
In 1968, Sekowsky became the penciler of Metal Men
Metal Men
The Metal Men are fictional characters that appear in comic books published by DC Comics. The characters first appeared in Showcase #37 and were created by writer Robert Kanigher and penciller Ross Andru...
, taking over from Gil Kane
Gil Kane
Eli Katz who worked under the name Gil Kane and in one instance Scott Edward, was a comic book artist whose career spanned the 1940s to 1990s and every major comics company and character.Kane co-created the modern-day versions of the superheroes Green Lantern and the Atom for DC Comics, and...
, who had succeeded Ross Andru
Ross Andru
Ross Andru was an American comic book artist and editor. He is best known for his work on Amazing Spider-Man, Wonder Woman, Flash and Metal Men....
. The following year, Sekowsky also became the writer and changed the direction of the series by having the Metal Men assume human identities. The series was canceled six issues later.
At roughly the same time, Sekowsky began working on Wonder Woman with issue #178 (Sept.-Oct. 1968), first as artist and then as writer and editor, until issue #198. His run on the series included a variety of themes, from espionage to mythological adventure. He contributed a story about Wonder Woman and Batman to The Brave and the Bold
The Brave and the Bold
The Brave and the Bold is the title shared by many comic book series published by DC Comics. The first of these was published as an ongoing series from 1955 to 1983...
.
Sekowsky wrote and drew features for the series-tryout comic-book series Showcase during the last three years of its run, including "Jason's Quest", an adventure series about a young man on a motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
searching for his family, in Showcase #88-90 (Feb.-May 1970).
Later career
Upon leaving DC, Sekowsky returned to Marvel, where he had gotten his start in the 1940s. From 1971 to 1975, he sporadically provided penciling for stories in Amazing AdventuresAmazing Adventures
Amazing Adventures is the name of several anthology comic book series, all but one published by Marvel Comics.The earliest Marvel series of that name introduced the company's first superhero of the late-1950s to early-1960s period fans and historians call the Silver Age of Comic Books...
vol. 2, featuring the Inhumans
Inhumans
The Inhumans are a fictional race of superhumans, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. This race appears in various comic book series published by Marvel Comics and exists in that company's shared universe, known as the Marvel Universe....
; and Giant-Size Super-Villain Team-Up.
For the last decade of his life, Sekowsky lived in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
and worked primarily on Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
animated television series, including Scooby-Doo
Scooby-Doo
Scooby-Doo is an American media franchise based around several animated television series and related works produced from 1969 to the present day. The original series, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, was created for Hanna-Barbera Productions by writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears in 1969...
. After hospitalization with health problems stemming from diabetes, he began freelancing for publisher Daerrick Gross, who was developing a line of skateboard
Skateboard
A skateboard is typically a specially designed plywood board combined with a polyurethane coating used for making smoother slides and stronger durability, used primarily for the activity of skateboarding. The first skateboards to reach public notice came out of the surfing craze of the early 1960s,...
and ninja
Ninja
A or was a covert agent or mercenary of feudal Japan specializing in unorthodox arts of war. The functions of the ninja included espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination, as well as open combat in certain situations...
comics. Sekowsky died before he could complete the assignment.
Awards
Sekowsky won a 1963 Alley AwardAlley Award
The Alley Award was an American series of comic book fan awards, first presented in 1962 for comics published in 1961. Officially organized under the aegis of the Academy of Comic Book Arts and Sciences, under executive secretary Jerry Bails, and later Paul Gambaccini and David Kaler, the award...
for Favorite Novel ("Crisis on Earths 1 and 2" in Justice League of America #21 and #22 with Gardner Fox
Gardner Fox
Gardner Francis Cooper Fox was an American writer best known for creating numerous comic book characters for DC Comics. Comic-book historians estimate that he wrote over 4,000 comics stories....
) and a 1981 Inkpot Award
Inkpot Award
The Inkpot Award, bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International, is given to some of the professionals in comic book, comic strip, animation, science fiction, and related pop-culture fields, who are guests of that organization's yearly multigenre fan convention, commonly known as...
.