Win_Mortimer
Win Mortimer
Artist
James Winslow "Win" Mortimer (May 1, 1919 – January 11, 1998)[1] was a Canadian comic book and comic strip artist best known as one of the major illustrators of the DC Comics superhero Superman. He additionally drew for Marvel Comics, Gold Key Comics, and other publishers.
| Win Mortimer | |
|---|---|
Mortimer at his drawing board | |
| Born | James Winslow Mortimer May 1, 1919 Hamilton, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | January 11, 1998(1998-01-11) (aged 78) |
| Area(s) | Penciller |
Notable works | Action Comics Adventure Comics Star-Spangled Comics The Superman Family |
He was a 2006 inductee into the Canadian comics creators Joe Shuster Hall of Fame.
Early life and career
Win Mortimer was born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.[1] Trained as an artist by his father, who worked for a lithography company, and at the Art Students League of New York, Mortimer found work as an illustrator after a short stint in the Canadian Army during World War II. Discharged in 1943, Mortimer found work designing posters.[1]
DC Comics
Mortimer began working for DC Comics in 1945,[1] and quickly became a cover artist for comics featuring Superman, Superboy and Batman.[2] His first known comics work is as the penciler and inker of the 12-page lead Batman story, "The Batman Goes Broke" by writer Don Cameron, in Detective Comics #105 (Nov. 1945); contractually credited to Bob Kane, it is also signed "Mortimer."[3] The introduction of Batman's Batboat in Detective Comics #110 (April 1946) was another Cameron/Mortimer collaboration.[4] Mortimer launched a Robin feature in Star-Spangled Comics #65 (Feb. 1947).[5]
He succeeded Wayne Boring on the Superman newspaper strip in 1949, leaving it in 1956 to create the adventure strip David Crane for the Prentice-Hall Syndicate. Following his run on that series, Mortimer produced the Larry Bannon strip for the Toronto Star beginning in 1960.[1]
During the same period, Mortimer returned to DC and worked on a large variety of comics, ranging from humor titles such as Swing with Scooter to superhero features starring the Legion of Super-Heroes and Supergirl.[3] He and writer Arnold Drake co-created Stanley and His Monster in 1965.[6]
Later life and career
By the early 1970s, Mortimer was also freelancing for other publishers. At Marvel, he drew virtually every story in the TV tie-in children's comic Spidey Super Stories, starring Spider-Man, for its entire 57-issue run (Oct. 1974 – March 1982) as well as the short-lived Night Nurse series.[7] Mortimer's work at Gold Key Comics included Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery, The Twilight Zone, and Battle Of The Planets.[3] He left comics in 1983 to do advertising and commercial art for Neal Adams' studio, Continuity Associates.[1]
Mortimer's last superhero art was the four-issue DC miniseries World of Metropolis (Aug.–Nov. 1988), plus some character drawings for the reference Who's Who in the Legion of Super-Heroes #7 (Nov. 1988). His final comics work was penciling the four page "Noble Heart" story for The Big Book of Martyrs (Aug. 1997).[3]
Mortimer is a 2006 inductee into the Canadian comics' creators Joe Shuster Hall of Fame.[8]
Comics work (interior art) includes:
DC Comics
- Action Comics (Superman) #101, 113–114, 117, 119, 129; (Legion of Super-Heroes) #378–387, 389–392; (Lori Lemaris) #475 (1946–1977)
- Adventure Comics (Superboy) #119; (Legion of Super-Heroes) #373–380; (Supergirl) #381, 383–389, 391–396, 415; (Zatanna) #421 (1947–1972)
- The Adventures of Alan Ladd #2 (1949)
- All-American Men of War #106 (1964)
- Batman #33, 176, 304 (1946–1978)
- The Best of DC #45 (1984)
- The Big Book of Martyrs #1 (1997)
- Big Town #2–6 (1951)
- Binky #73 (1970)
- Binky's Buddies #5, 7–11 (1969–1970)
- The Brave and the Bold #63–64, 69 (1965–1966)
- Captain Storm #17 (1967)
- DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-5 (1971)
- Detective Comics (Batman) #105, 107, 109–112, 114–116, 120 (1945–1947)
- Falling in Love #82, 98, 104, 112, 120 (1966–1971)
- Forbidden Tales of Dark Mansion #7, 11 (1972–1973)
- The Fox and the Crow #94–98, 100–102, 106–108 (1965–1968)
- Gang Busters #5–6, 9, 28, 47 (1948–1955)
- Ghosts #89, 91, 94 (1980)
- Girls' Romances #141 (1969)
- Heart Throbs #110 (1967)
- House of Mystery #178, 204 (1969–1972)
- Inferior Five #7–10 (1968)
- Leave It To Binky #71 (1970)
- Love Stories #147 (1972)
- Miss Beverly Hills of Hollywood #3–4, 7 (1949–1950)
- Mr. District Attorney #8, 18, 43 (1949–1955)
- My Greatest Adventure #8 (1956)
- Plastic Man #2–7 (1967)
- Real Fact Comics #5, 7–14, 19–20 (1946–1949)
- Secret Hearts #133, 136, 139 (1969)
- Secrets of Haunted House #8 (1977)
- Stanley and His Monster #110 (1968)
- Star Spangled Comics #65–91 (1947–1949)
- Superman #50–52, 72 (1948–1951)
- The Superman Family (Lois Lane) #185–188, 190–193; (Jimmy Olsen) #187; (Supergirl) #199–222 (1977–1982)
- Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen (Newsboy Legion) #150 (1972)
- Swing with Scooter #21, 23–24 (1969–1970)
- The Unexpected #212 (1981)
- Who's Who in the Legion of Super-Heroes #4, 6–7 (1988)
- The Witching Hour #4, 9, 22, 27 (1969–1973)
- Wonder Woman #177 (1968)
- World of Metropolis #1–4 (1988)
- World's Finest Comics #20–26, 29–30, 43–48 (1945–1950)
- Young Love #82–83, 87–88, 111, 114, 123, 126 (1970–1977)
- Young Romance #150, 162, 208 (1967–1975)
Gold Key Comics
- Battle of the Planets #1–5 (1979–1980)
- Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom #15–27 (1965–1969)
Marvel Comics
- The Amazing Spider-Man #220 (1981)
- Avengers Spotlight #37 (1990)
- Barbie #17, 21, 22, 25, 31, 32, 38, 53 (1992–1995)
- Barbie Fashion #16, 17, 45 (1992–1994)
- Dracula Lives #10–11 (1975)
- Giant-Size Chillers #1 (1975)
- Haunt of Horror #3 (1974)
- Journey into Mystery vol. 2 #4–5 (1973)
- Marvel Premiere #59 (Werewolf by Night backup story) (1981)
- Marvel Super Special #23 (Annie movie adaptation) (1982)
- Monsters Unleashed #3, 5 (1973–1974)
- My Love #19, 21 (1972–1973)
- Night Nurse #1–4 (1972–1973)
- Spidey Super Stories (Spider-Man) #1–57 (1974–1982)
- Spoof #4–5 (1973)
- Supernatural Thrillers #4 (Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde adaptation) (1973)
- Tales of the Zombie #2, 4, 7 (1973–1974)
- Vampire Tales #1, 5 (1973–1974)
- What The--?! #8, 10, 14 (1990–1991)
- "Win Mortimer". Lambiek Comiclopedia. October 3, 2008. Archived from the original on April 2, 2014. Note: The Marvel Comics 1978 Calendar merchandise lists Mortimer's birth date as June 23 and Comics Buyer's Guide lists it as May 23 per Miller, John Jackson (June 10, 2005). "Comics Industry Birthdays". Comics Buyer's Guide. Iola, Wisconsin. Archived from the original on October 29, 2010.
- "Scott's Classic Comics Corner: The Cover Art of Win Mortimer Pt. 1". Comic Book Resources. May 12, 2009. Archived from the original on January 18, 2012.
- Winslow Mortimer at the Grand Comics Database and Win Mortimer at the Grand Comics Database
- Manning, Matthew K.; Dougall, Alastair, ed. (2014). "1940s". Batman: A Visual History. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 36. ISBN 978-1465424563.
Batman and Robin christened the H.M.S Batboat during a trip to England in this story by writer Don Cameron and penciller Win Mortimer.
{{cite book}}:|first2=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Wallace, Daniel; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1940s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 54. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9.
The first solo Robin series began with what the cover promised would be 'a thrilling new series of smash adventures.' Readers seemed to agree, and Robin held this spot for five years until Star Spangled Comics published its last issue...Robin's ten-page introductory tale, 'The Teen-Age Terrors', by J. Winslow Mortimer centered on the Boy Wonder going undercover."
{{cite book}}:|first2=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Markstein, Don (2004). "Stanley and His Monster". Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on June 15, 2014.
- Markstein, Don. "Night Nurse". Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on April 13, 2012. Retrieved July 20, 2016.
- "Mortimer, Win (1919–1998)". Joe Shuster Awards. 31 December 2008. Archived from the original on December 25, 2013.
- Win Mortimer at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- "DC Profiles #68: Winslow (Win) Mortimer" at the Grand Comics Database
- Win Mortimer at Mike's Amazing World of Comics
- Win Mortimer at the Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics Creators
| Preceded by | Superman newspaper strip artist 1949–1956 |
Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | "Supergirl" feature in The Superman Family artist 1980–1982 |
Succeeded by n/a |