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Marvin Arthur Wolfman (born May 13, 1946) is an American comic book and novelization writer. He worked on
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Comics'' in 19 ...
's '' The Tomb of Dracula'', for which he and artist Gene Colan created the vampire-slayer Blade, and
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with their f ...
's ''
The New Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to DC ...
'' and the ''
Crisis on Infinite Earths "Crisis on Infinite Earths" is a 1985 American comic book crossover storyline published by DC Comics. The series, written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Pérez, was first serialized as a 12-issue limited series from April 1985 to ...
'' limited series with
George Pérez George Pérez (; June 9, 1954 – May 6, 2022) was an American comic book artist and writer, who worked primarily as a penciller. He came to prominence in the 1970s penciling ''Fantastic Four'' and '' The Avengers'' for Marvel Comics. In the 198 ...
. Among the many characters Wolfman created or co-created are
Cyborg A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.
, Raven, Starfire, Deathstroke, Tim Drake, Rose Wilson, Nova, Black Cat, Bullseye, Vigilante (Adrian Chase) and the Omega Men.


Early life

Marv Wolfman was born in
Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Kings County is the most populous Administrative divisions of New York (state)#County, county in the State of New York, ...
, New York City, the son of police officer Abe and housewife Fay. He has a sister, Harriet, 12 years older. When Wolfman was 13, his family moved to Flushing, Queens, in New York City, where he attended junior high school.Wolfman, ''Alter Ego'' No. 112, p. 5 He went on to New York's High School of Art and Design, in
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...
, hoping to become a cartoonist. Wolfman is
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
.


Career


1960s

Marvin Wolfman was active in fandom before he began his professional comics career at
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with their f ...
in 1968. Wolfman was one of the first to publish
Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high ...
, with "In A Half-World of Terror" in Wolfman's
horror Horror may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Genres *Horror fiction, a genre of fiction ** Japanese horror, Japanese horror fiction **Korean horror, Korean horror fiction * Horror film, a film genre *Horror comics, comic books focusing o ...
fanzine ''Stories of Suspense'' No. 2 (1965). This was a revised version of King's first published story, " I Was a Teenage Grave Robber", which had been serialized over four issues (three published and one unpublished) of the fanzine ''Comics Review'' that same year. Wolfman's first published work for DC Comics appeared in '' Blackhawk'' No. 242 (Aug.–Sept. 1968). He and longtime friend Len Wein created the character
Jonny Double Jonny is a masculine given name, and pet name, in the English language. A pet form of Jon, the natural diminutive of given name Jonathan, in some cases it can also mean a condom. A variant form of ''Jonny'' is ''Jonnie''. People with the name *J ...
in '' Showcase'' No. 78 (November 1968) scripted by Wolfman. The two co-wrote "Eye of the Beholder" in ''
Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to ...
'' No. 18 (Dec. 1968), which would be Wein's first professional comics credit.
Neal Adams Neal Adams (June 15, 1941 – April 28, 2022) was an American comic book artist. He was the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates, and was a Creator ownership, creators-rights advocate who helped secure a pension and re ...
was called upon to rewrite and redraw a ''Teen Titans'' story which had been written by Wein and Wolfman. The story, titled "Titans Fit the Battle of Jericho!", would have introduced DC's first African American superhero, but was rejected by publisher Carmine Infantino. The revised story appeared in ''Teen Titans'' No. 20 (March–April 1969). Wolfman and Gil Kane created an origin for Wonder Girl in ''Teen Titans'' No. 22 (July–Aug. 1969) which introduced the character's new costume.


1970s

He and artist Bernie Wrightson co-created
Destiny Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although oft ...
in '' Weird Mystery Tales'' No. 1 (July–Aug. 1972), a character which would later be used in the work of Neil Gaiman. In 1972, Wolfman moved to
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Comics'' in 19 ...
as a protégé of then-editor Roy Thomas. When Thomas stepped down, Wolfman eventually took over as editor, initially in charge of the publisher's black-and-white magazines, then finally the color line of comics.Cadigan, Glen "The New Teen Titans Start a Sensation" ''Titans Companion''
TwoMorrows Publishing TwoMorrows Publishing is a publisher of magazines about comic books, founded in 1994 by John and Pam Morrow out of their small advertising agency in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Its products also include books and DVDs. List of magaz ...
2005 p. 9
Online version
available at
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical ...
Wolfman said in 1981 that, "Marvel never gave tsfull commitment to" the black-and-white line. "No one wanted to commit themselves to the staff." He added, "We used to farm the books out to Harry Chester Studios icand whatever they pasted up, they pasted up. I formed the first production staff, hired the first layout people, paste-up people." Wolfman stepped down as editor-in-chief to spend more time writing. He and artist Gene Colan crafted '' The Tomb of Dracula'', a horror comic that became "one of the most acclaimed horror-themed comic books ever". During their run on this series, they created Blade, a character who would later be portrayed by actor Wesley Snipes in a film trilogy. In addition, the editorship of Marvel could not resist the opportunity to assign a writer with such a surname to contribute a few stories to their concurrent monster title, '' Werewolf by Night'', with a playful editor's comment: "At last -- WEREWOLF -- written by a WOLFMAN." Wolfman co-created Bullseye in ''
Daredevil Daredevil may refer to: * A stunt performer Arts and media Comics * Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro * Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
'' No. 131 (March 1976). He and artist John Buscema created Nova in that character's eponymous first issue. Wolfman and Gil Kane adapted Edgar Rice Burroughs' '' Barsoom'' concepts into comics in Marvel's '' John Carter, Warlord of Mars'' series. Wolfman wrote 14 issues of '' Marvel Two-in-One'' starting with issue No. 25 (March 1977). The '' Spider-Woman'' series was launched in April 1978 by Wolfman and artist Carmine Infantino. As the first regular writer on ''Spider-Woman'', he redesigned the character, giving her a human identity as Jessica Drew. Wolfman succeeded Len Wein as writer of ''
The Amazing Spider-Man ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' is an ongoing American comic book series featuring the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man as its main protagonist. Being in the Earth 616, mainstream continuity of the franchise, it began publication in 1963 as a bim ...
'' and in his first issue, No. 182 (July 1978), had Peter Parker propose marriage to
Mary Jane Watson Mary Jane "MJ" Watson is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Stan Lee and John Romita Sr., and made her first appearance in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #25 (June 1965). ...
who refused, in the following issue. Wolfman and Keith Pollard introduced the likable rogue the Black Cat (Felicia Hardy) in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' No. 194 (July 1979). In 1978, Wolfman and artist Alan Kupperberg took over the Howard the Duck syndicated newspaper comic strip. While writing the '' Fantastic Four'' (which Wolfman stated to be his favorite comic), Wolfman and John Byrne introduced a new herald for Galactus named Terrax in No. 211 (Oct. 1979). A Godzilla story by Wolfman and Steve Ditko was changed into a Dragon Lord story published in '' Marvel Spotlight'' vol. 2 No. 5 (March 1980). The creature that the Dragon Lord battled was intended to be Godzilla but since Marvel no longer had the rights to the character (which lapsed the previous year) the creature was modified to a dragon called The Wani.


1980s


''The New Teen Titans''

In 1980, Wolfman returned to DC after a dispute with Marvel. Teaming with penciller
George Pérez George Pérez (; June 9, 1954 – May 6, 2022) was an American comic book artist and writer, who worked primarily as a penciller. He came to prominence in the 1970s penciling ''Fantastic Four'' and '' The Avengers'' for Marvel Comics. In the 198 ...
, Wolfman relaunched DC's
Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to ...
in a special preview in '' DC Comics Presents'' No. 26 (October 1980). ''The New Teen Titans'' added the Wolfman-Pérez creations Raven, Starfire and
Cyborg A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.
to the old team's
Robin Robin may refer to: Animals * Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae * Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), including: **European robin (''Erithacus rubecula'') **Bush-robin **Forest rob ...
, Wonder Girl, Kid Flash, and Beast Boy (renamed Changeling). The series became DC's first new hit in years;
Christopher J. Priest Christopher James Priest (born James Christopher Owsley, June 30, 1961) is an American writer of comic books who is at times credited simply as Priest. He changed his name legally circa 1993. He was the first black writer-editor in mainstream co ...
called Deathstroke, another new character, "the first modern supervillain". Wolfman wrote a series of ''New Teen Titans'' drug awareness comic books which were published in cooperation with The President's Drug Awareness Campaign in 1983–1984. The first was pencilled by Pérez and sponsored by the Keebler Company, the second was illustrated by Ross Andru and underwritten by the American Soft Drink Industry, and the third was drawn by Adrian Gonzales and financed by IBM. In August 1984, a second series of ''The New Teen Titans'' was launched by Wolfman and Pérez. Other projects by Wolfman for DC during the early 1980s included collaborating with artist Gil Kane on a run on the Superman feature in ''
Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/ magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics Publication ...
''; a revival of '' Dial H for Hero'' with Carmine Infantino; launching ''
Night Force Night (also described as night time, unconventionally spelled as "nite") is the period of ambient darkness from sunset to sunrise during each 24-hour day, when the Sun is below the horizon. The exact time when night begins and ends depends on ...
'', a supernatural series drawn by Gene Colan; and a nearly two-year run on '' Green Lantern'' with Joe Staton. During their collaboration on that series, Wolfman and Staton created the Omega Men in ''Green Lantern'' No. 141 (June 1981). Wolfman briefly wrote ''
Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book '' Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939 ...
'' and co-created the Electrocutioner in issue No. 331 (Jan. 1981). Wolfman was one of the contributors to the '' DC Challenge'' limited series in 1986. After Pérez left ''The New Teen Titans'' in 1985, Wolfman continued for many years with other collaborators – including pencillers José Luis García-López, Eduardo Barreto and Tom Grummett. In December 1986, Wolfman was informed by Marvel writer Chris Claremont that a DC executive had approached Claremont at a holiday party and offered him the position of writer on ''The New Teen Titans''. Claremont immediately declined the offer and told Wolfman that apparently the publisher was looking to replace him on the title. When Wolfman confronted DC executives about this, he was told it was "just a joke", although Claremont reiterated that he took it to be a credible and official offer.


''Crisis on Infinite Earths''

In 1985, Wolfman and Pérez launched ''
Crisis on Infinite Earths "Crisis on Infinite Earths" is a 1985 American comic book crossover storyline published by DC Comics. The series, written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Pérez, was first serialized as a 12-issue limited series from April 1985 to ...
'', a 12-issue
limited series Limited series may refer to: *Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series *Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered * Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number ...
celebrating DC's 50th anniversary. Featuring a cast of thousands and a timeline that ranged from the beginning of the universe to the end of time, it killed scores of characters, integrated a number of heroes from other companies to DC continuity, and re-wrote 50 years of
DC universe The DC Universe (DCU) is the fictional shared universe where most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. Superheroes such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Robin, Martian Manhunter, The Flash, Green Lante ...
history to streamline it. After finishing ''Crisis'', Wolfman and Pérez produced the '' History of the DC Universe'' limited series to summarize the company's new history. Wolfman was involved in the relaunch of the Superman line as well, reinventing nemesis
Lex Luthor Alexander Joseph "Lex" Luthor () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Lex Luthor originally appeared in '' Action Comics'' #23 (cover dated: ...
and initially scripting the '' Adventures of Superman'' title with
Jerry Ordway Jeremiah Ordway (born November 28, 1957) is an American writer, penciller, inker and painter of comic books. He is known for his inking work on a wide variety of DC Comics titles, including the continuity-redefining ''Crisis on Infinite Earths ...
as the artist. During this period they introduced Bibbo Bibbowski and
Professor Emil Hamilton Professor Emil Hamilton is a fictional comic book character appearing in books published by DC Comics, usually as a supporting character in stories featuring Superman. The character was portrayed by Richard Schiff in '' Man of Steel''. Publicati ...
.


Ratings dispute

Wolfman got into a public dispute with DC over a proposed ratings system, which led to his being relieved of his editorial duties by the company. DC offered to reinstate Wolfman as an editor provided he apologize for making his criticism of the ratings system public, rather than keeping them internal to the company, but he declined to do so.


1990s

Wolfman returned to the Dark Knight for another brief run on ''Batman'' and ''Detective Comics'', writing "Batman: Year Three", creating Robin III Tim Drake as well as Abattoir and a new version of the Electrocutioner, and writing an anniversary adaptation of the first ever Batman story, which was printed along with two other adaptations and the original. He continued as ''The New Titans'' writer and revitalized the series with artist Tom Grummett. Wolfman wrote the series until the title's last issue. Wolfman's writing for comics decreased as he turned to animation and television, though he wrote the mid-1990s DC series ''
The Man Called A-X ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...
''.


Disney career

In the early-1990s, Wolfman worked at Disney Comics. He wrote scripts for a seven part '' DuckTales'' story ("
Scrooge's Quest ''Scrooge's Quest'' is a seven-part '' DuckTales'' comics story written by Marv Wolfman and published in 1990. The story was originally printed in the first seven issues of the comics series by Gladstone Publishing, and later reprinted in a graph ...
"), as well as several others – with the characters from the
Mickey Mouse universe The Mickey Mouse universe is a fictional shared universe which is the setting for stories involving Disney cartoon characters Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Goofy, and many other characters. The universe originated from the ''Mickey Mouse'' an ...
– that appeared in '' Mickey Mouse Adventures''. He was editor of the comics section on the '' Disney Adventures'' magazine for the early years of the publication.


Marvel lawsuit

In 1997, on the eve of the impending release of the ''Blade'' motion picture, Wolfman sued Marvel Characters Inc. over ownership of all characters he had created for Marvel Comics. A ruling in Marvel's favor was handed down on November 6, 2000. Wolfman's stance was that he had not signed work-for-hire contracts when he created characters including Blade and Nova. In a nonjury trial, the judge ruled that Marvel's later use of the characters was sufficiently different to protect it from Wolfman's claim of copyright ownership.


''Beast Machines''

In the late 1990s, Wolfman developed the Transformers TV series '' Beast Machines'', which aired on
Fox Kids Fox Kids (originally known as Fox Children's Network and later as the Fox Kids Network; stylized as FOX KIDS) was an American children's programming block and branding for a slate of international children's television channels. Originally a j ...
for two seasons from 1999 to 2000. The program was a direct continuation of the ''
Beast Wars Beast most often refers to: * Non-human animal * Monster Beast or Beasts may also refer to: Bible * Beast (Revelation), two beasts described in the Book of Revelation Computing and gaming * Beast (card game), English name of historical Fren ...
'' series, which itself was a continuation of the original ''Generation One'' Transformers show. ''Beast Machines'' was met with mixed reviews, as the show was praised for its story, but was criticized for its focus on spirituality. Previously, in the 1980s, Wolfman wrote the story for Optimus Prime's return in " The Return of Optimus Prime" of the third season of ''Transformers''.


2000s

A decade later, Wolfman began writing in comics again, scripting ''
Defex ''Defex'' is a comic book series printed by Aftermath (itself an imprint of Devil's Due Productions). It was first published in October 2004. Its creators are Marv Wolfman (writer), Stefano Caselli (pencils), and Sunder Raj (colors). Six issues of ...
'', the flagship title of
Devil's Due Productions Devil's Due Publishing (often abbreviated as DDP) is an independent comic book publisher in the United States. Based in Chicago, Illinois, DDP is best known for its wide selection of genres, including licensed and original creator-owned proper ...
' Aftermath line. He wrote an "Infinite Crisis" issue of DC's "Secret Files", and consulted with writer
Geoff Johns Geoffrey Johns (born January 25, 1973) is an American comic book writer, screenwriter, and film and television producer. Johns's work on the DC Comics characters Green Lantern, Aquaman, Flash and Superman, has drawn critical acclaim. He se ...
on several issues of ''The Teen Titans''. Wolfman wrote a novel based on ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'', but rather than following the original plot, he created a new story starring the Barry Allen Flash that takes place during the original Crisis story. Wolfman wrote the novelization of the film '' Superman Returns'', and worked on a
direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy wa ...
animated film, '' The Condor'', for
Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Publications which w ...
's Pow Entertainment. In 2006, Wolfman was editorial director of Impact Comics (no relation to the DC Comics imprint), publisher of educational
manga Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is use ...
-style comics for high school students. That same year, starting with issue No. 125, Wolfman began writing DC's '' Nightwing'' series. Initially scheduled for a four-issue run, Wolfman's run was expanded to 13 issues, and finished with No. 137. During the course of his run, Wolfman introduced a new Vigilante character. Following Wolfman's departure from the pages of ''Nightwing'', the Vigilante was spun off into his own short-lived title, which Wolfman wrote. He wrote a miniseries starring the Teen Titan Raven, a character he and George Pérez co-created during their run on ''The New Teen Titans'', helping to revamp and update the character. He worked with Pérez on a direct-to-DVD movie adaptation of the popular "Judas Contract" storyline from their tenure on ''Teen Titans''.


2010s

In 2011, he and Pérez completed the '' New Teen Titans: Games''
graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...
, which they had begun working on in the late 1980s. Wolfman revived his ''Night Force'' series with artist Tom Mandrake in 2012. He served as writing consultant on the video game '' Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two'', which he was nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award for Outstanding Achievement in Videogame Writing. In 2015, Wolfman wrote a novelization of the videogame '' Batman: Arkham Knight''. And in 2016 he published the novelization of the Suicide Squad film through Titan Books. He received the Hero Initiative Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017. That year also marked Wolfman's first work for Marvel since 1998: a backup story for '' Bullseye'' #1, starring the titular character that he had co-created in 1976. In 2019, DC published the oversized, 100-page comic book ''Man and Superman'', Marv Wolfman's retelling of Superman's origin story, to high acclaim.


Writing credit pioneer

Wolfman, on the panel "Marvel Comics: The Method and the Madness" at the 1974 New York City Comic Art Convention, told the audience that when he first began working for
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with their f ...
, he received DC's first writing credit on its mystery magazines. Gerry Conway, who wrote the horror-host interstitial pages between stories, wrote in one issue, '' House of Secrets'' Vol. 1 Issue 83, that the following story, "The Stuff that Dreams are Made of" was told to him by a "wandering Wolfman." The Comics Code Authority, which did not permit the mention of werewolves or wolfmen at that time, demanded it be removed. DC informed the Authority that "Wolfman" was the writer's last name, so the Authority insisted he be given a credit to show the "Wolfman" was a real person. Once Wolfman was given a credit, other writers demanded them as well. Shortly, credits were given to all writers and artists.


Personal life

Wolfman is married to
Noel Watkins Noel or Noël may refer to: Christmas * , French for Christmas * Noel is another name for a Christmas carol Places *Noel, Missouri, United States, a city *Noel, Nova Scotia, Canada, a community *1563 Noël, an asteroid *Mount Noel, British ...
. Wolfman was previously married to
Michele Wolfman Michele (), is an Italian male given name, akin to the English male name Michael (given name), Michael. Michele (pronounced ), is also an English female given name that is derived from the French Michèle. It is a variant spelling of the more c ...
, for many years a colorist in the comics industry. They have a daughter, Jessica Morgan.


Awards

* Inkpot Award in 1979. * 1982 Eagle Award for "Best New Book" and 1984 and 1985 Eagle Awards for "Best Group Book" for ''New
Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to ...
.'' * Wolfman and artist
George Pérez George Pérez (; June 9, 1954 – May 6, 2022) was an American comic book artist and writer, who worked primarily as a penciller. He came to prominence in the 1970s penciling ''Fantastic Four'' and '' The Avengers'' for Marvel Comics. In the 198 ...
' ''
Crisis on Infinite Earths "Crisis on Infinite Earths" is a 1985 American comic book crossover storyline published by DC Comics. The series, written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Pérez, was first serialized as a 12-issue limited series from April 1985 to ...
'' won the 1985 and 1986 Jack Kirby Awards for Best Finite Series. * In 1985, DC Comics named Wolfman as one of the honorees in the company's 50th anniversary publication '' Fifty Who Made DC Great''. * 1986 Nominated for the ''Comics Buyer's Guide'' Award for Favorite Writer in 1986, and his work on the "Batman: Year Three" story arc in ''
Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book '' Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939 ...
'' #436–439 was nominated ''Comics Buyer's Guide'' Favorite Writer Award in 1990. * 2007 Scribe Award for "Adapted Speculative Fiction Novel", given by writers of novelization and tie-in fiction for his novel based on ''Superman Returns''. * 2007 National Jewish Book Award for "Children's and Young Adult Literature", for ''Homeland: The Illustrated History of the State of Israel'' * 2011 induction into the
Will Eisner Hall of Fame The following is a list of winners of the Eisner Award, sorted by category. The Eisner Awards have been presented since 1988, but there were no Eisner Awards in 1990 due to balloting mix-ups."Eisners Cancelled," ''The Comics Journal'' #137 (Sept. ...
* Hero Initiative Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017


Filmography


Screenwriting credits

(series head writer denoted in bold) *'' G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero'' (1986) *'' Jem'' (1986–1987) *'' Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future'' (1987) *'' Fraggle Rock: The Animated Series'' (1987) *'' Starcom: The U.S. Space Force'' (1987) *'' The Transformers'' (1987) (season 3 head writer) *'' Garbage Pail Kids'' (1988) *'' RoboCop'' (1988) *'' Superman'' (1988) *'' G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero'' (1991) *'' Batman: The Animated Series'' (1992) *'' My Little Pony Tales'' (1992) *'' Cadillacs and Dinosaurs'' (1993) *'' Conan the Adventurer'' (1993) *'' Monster Force'' (1994) *'' Spider-Man: The Animated Series'' (1995) *'' Tenko and the Guardians of the Magic'' (1995) *'' Beast Wars: Transformers'' (1996) *''
G.I. Joe Extreme ''G.I. Joe Extreme'' is a line of military-themed toys that was sold in retail from 1995 to 1997. The toys were produced by Kenner Products, Kenner following their acquisition by former competitor Hasbro and was intended to succeed the ''G.I. Joe ...
'' (1996) *'' Street Fighter'' (1996) * ''
ReBoot In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is phys ...
'' (1997–1999) *'' Pocket Dragon Adventures'' (1998) *'' Godzilla: The Series'' (1998) *'' Shadow Raiders'' (1998–1999) *'' Beast Machines: Transformers'' (1999) *'' Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century'' (1999) *'' The Legend of Tarzan'' (2001) *''
Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to ...
'' (2003, 2005) *'' Speed Racer: The Next Generation'' (2008) *'' Sym-Bionic Titan'' (2010) *''
Arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers ...
'' (2020)


Video games

* '' Superman Returns'' (2006)


Acting credits


Bibliography


Bongo Comics

* '' Treehouse of Horror'' #11 (2005)


Chaos Comics

* '' The Mummy: Valley of the Gods'' #1 (2001)


Dark Horse Comics

* ''The Curse of Dracula'' #1–3 (1998) * '' Michael Chabon Presents the Amazing Adventures of the Escapist'' #3 (2004)


DC Comics

* '' 9–11: The World's Finest Comic Book Writers & Artists Tell Stories to Remember, Volume Two'' (2002) * ''
Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/ magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics Publication ...
'' #513–516, 525–536, 539–546, 551–554, 556, 613–618, 627–628, 778, 1000 (1980–2018) * '' Adventure Comics'' #417, 421, 424, 474, 479–487 (1972–1981) * '' Adventures of Superman'' #424–435, 591 (1987–2001) * '' Aquaman Giant'' #1 (2019) * ''
Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book '' Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939 ...
'' #328–335, 436–451 (1980–1990) * ''
Batman and the Outsiders The Outsiders are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. As their name suggests, the team consists of superheroes who do not fit the norms of the "mainstream" superhero community, i.e. the Justice League. The ...
'' #5 (1983) * '' Batman Black and White'' vol. 2 #3 (2014) * '' The Best of DC'' #18 (New Teen Titans) (1981) * '' Blackhawk'' #242 (1968) * '' The Brave and the Bold'' #167 (1980) * ''The Brave and the Bold'' vol. 3 #17–18 (2008) * '' Convergence: Adventures of Superman'' #1–2 (2015) * ''Convergence: New Teen Titans'' #1–2 (2015) * ''
Crisis on Infinite Earths "Crisis on Infinite Earths" is a 1985 American comic book crossover storyline published by DC Comics. The series, written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Pérez, was first serialized as a 12-issue limited series from April 1985 to ...
'' #1–12 (1985–1986) * ''Crisis on Infinite Earths Giant'' #1–2 (with Marc Guggenheim) (2019) * ''
Cyborg A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.
'' #10–12, 21–23 (2016–2018) * '' DC Challenge'' #11–12 (1986) * '' DC Comics Presents'' No. 26, 77–78 ''Annual'' #1 (1980–1985) * ''DC Comics Presents: Justice League of America'' #1 (2004) * ''DC Primal Age'' #1 (2019) * '' DC Retroactive: Superman – The '80s'' #1 (2011) * ''DC Special: Raven'' #1–5 (2008) * ''DC: The Doomned and the Damned'' #1 (2020) * '' DC Universe Online: Legends'' #1, 3, 5, 7, 9–11, 13, 15, 18–26 (2011–2012) * '' Deathstroke the Terminator/Deathstroke the Hunted/Deathstroke'' #1–11, 13–21, 26–39, 41–60, 0, ''Annual'' #1, 3–4 (1991–1996) * '' Detective Comics'' No. 408, 615, 625–628, 1027 (1971, 1990–1991, 2020) * '' Eight Legged Freaks'' #1 (2002) * '' Flash'' #750 (2020) * '' Green Lantern'' vol. 2 #133–153 (1980–1982) * ''Green Lantern 80-Page Giant'' #2 (1999) * ''Green Lantern/Plastic Man: Weapons of Mass Deception'' #1 (2011) * '' History of the DC Universe'' #1–2 (1987) * '' House of Mystery'' #176, 179–180, 182–183, 300 (1968–1982) * '' House of Secrets'' #82–84, 87–88, 90, 127 (1969–1975) * ''
Infinite Crisis "Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordwa ...
Secret Files and Origins'' #1 (2006) * ''Legends of the DC Universe'' #18 (1999) * ''Legends of the DC Universe 80-Page Giant'' #1 (1998) * ''Legends of the DC Universe: Crisis on Infinite Earths'' #1 (1999) * '' Legion of Super-Heroes'' vol. 2 #272 (1981) * ''
Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series '' Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation. ...
'' #218 (2014) * ''Man and Superman'' #1 (2019) * ''Man Called A-X'' vol. 2 #1–8 (1997–1998) * '' Mystery in Space'' #116 (1981) * ''
The New Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to DC ...
'' #1–40, ''Annual'' #1–2 (1980–1984) * ''The New Teen Titans'' vol. 2 #1–49, ''Annual'' #1–4 (1984–1988) * ''The New Teen Titans Drug Awareness Special'' #1–3 (1983) * ''The New Teen Titans: Games'' GN (2011) * ''The New Titans'' #50–86, 88–93, 97–130, #0, ''Annual'' #5–11 (1988–1995) * ''
Night Force Night (also described as night time, unconventionally spelled as "nite") is the period of ambient darkness from sunset to sunrise during each 24-hour day, when the Sun is below the horizon. The exact time when night begins and ends depends on ...
'' #1–14 (1982–1983) * ''Night Force'' vol. 2 #1–12 (1996–1997) * ''Night Force'' vol. 3 #1–7 (2012) * '' Nightwing'' vol. 2 #125–137 (2006–2007) * '' Omega Men'' #24 (1985) * '' Phantom Stranger'' vol. 2 #23–26 (1973) * '' Plop!'' #14 (1975) * ''Raven'' #1–6 (2016–2017) * ''Raven: Daughter of Darkness'' #1–12 (2018–2019) * ''Robin 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular'' #1 (2020) * '' Secret Origins'' vol. 2 #46 (1989) * ''Secret Origins'' vol. 3 #5 (2014) * '' Showcase'' #78 (1968) * ''Showcase '94'' #11 (1994) * '' Silver Age: Teen Titans'' #1 (2000) * '' Spirit'' #4 (2010) * '' Superboy'' vol. 5 #26–29 (2014) * '' Supergirl'' #1–2 (1972–1973) * '' Superman'' #248, 352, 422 (1972–1986) * '' Superman'' vol. 2 #169 (2001) * ''
The Superman Family ''The Superman Family'' was an American comic book series published by DC Comics from 1974 to 1982 featuring supporting characters in the ''Superman'' comics. The term "Superman Family" is often used to refer to the extended cast of characters o ...
'' #203–206, 209 (1980–1981) * ''Superman: Kal-El Returns Special'' #1 (2022) * ''Superman: Our Worlds at War Secret Files and Origins'' #1 (2001) * '' Superman: The Man of Steel'' #113 (2001) * ''Tales of the New Teen Titans'' #1–4 (1982) * ''Tales of the Teen Titans'' #41–58, ''Annual'' #3 (1984–1985) * ''
Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...
'' #207–209, 213–216 (1972–1973) * ''Team Titans'' #1–12, ''Annual'' #1 (1992–1993) * ''Teen Titans'' #18, 22 (1968–1969) * ''Teen Titans'' vol. 3 #33, 50, ''Annual'' #1 (2006–2007) * ''Teen Titans'' vol. 4 #23.1 (Trigon) (2013) * ''Teen Titans'' vol. 6 #16 (2018) * ''Teen Titans Spotlight'' #1–6 (1986–1987) * ''Titans'' #25 (2001) * ''Titans Secret Files and Origins'' #1 (1999) * ''Titans Sell-Out Special'' #1 (1992) * ''
Vigilante Vigilantism () is the act of preventing, investigating and punishing perceived offenses and crimes without legal authority. A vigilante (from Spanish, Italian and Portuguese “vigilante”, which means "sentinel" or "watcher") is a person who ...
'' #1–15, 19–20 (1983–1985) * ''Vigilante'' vol. 3 #1–12 (2009–2010) * '' Weird War Tales'' #3, 6 (1972) * '' Weird Worlds'' #1–7 (1972–1973) * '' The Witching Hour'' #13 (1971) * ''
Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byrne, are credited as being ...
'' #287, 294 (1982) * ''Wonder Woman: Agent of Peace'' #10 (digital) (2020) * '' World's Finest Comics'' #288, 300 (1983–1984)


WildStorm

* '' Farscape: War Torn'' #1–2 (2002) * '' God of War'' #1–6 (2010–2011) * ''Robo Dojo'' #1–6 (2002) * ''
The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...
'' vol. 2 #3–4 (2009)


Devil's Due Publications

* ''Defex'' #1–6 (2004–2005)


Disney Comics

* ''Disney Adventures Digest Special Edition'' (1990) * ''
Goofy Adventures ''Goofy Adventures'' is a comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that rep ...
'' #17 (1991) * '' Mickey Mouse Adventures'' #5, 9, 11, 14 (1990–1991)


Eclipse Comics

* '' Total Eclipse'' (1988)


First Comics

* ''
Sable The sable (''Martes zibellina'') is a species of marten, a small omnivorous mammal primarily inhabiting the forest environments of Russia, from the Ural Mountains throughout Siberia, and northern Mongolia. Its habitat also borders eastern Kaz ...
'' #1–7, 9–10, 12–23 (1988–1990)


Gladstone Publishing

* '' Duck Tales'' ("
Scrooge's Quest ''Scrooge's Quest'' is a seven-part '' DuckTales'' comics story written by Marv Wolfman and published in 1990. The story was originally printed in the first seven issues of the comics series by Gladstone Publishing, and later reprinted in a graph ...
") (1990)


IDW Publishing

* ''Gene Pool'' OGN (with Len Wein) (2003)


Image Comics

* ''
10th Muse ''Tenth Muse'' (also ''10th Muse'') is an independent superhero comic book series about a modern-day daughter of the Greek god Zeus. It was created in 2000 by Darren G. Davis and originally written by Marv Wolfman. Several real-life models ...
'' #1–9 (2000–2002) * ''
Brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. ...
'' #17–22 (1995)


Malibu Comics

* '' Codename: Firearm'' #0, 2, 4–5 (1995) * ''Man Called A-X'' #1–4, #0 (1994–1995) * '' Ultraforce'' #8–9 (1995) * ''Ultraforce/Spider-Man'' #1A-B (1996) * ''Witch'' #1 (1989)


Marvel Comics

* '' Amazing Adventures'' #20 (1973) * ''
The Amazing Spider-Man ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' is an ongoing American comic book series featuring the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man as its main protagonist. Being in the Earth 616, mainstream continuity of the franchise, it began publication in 1963 as a bim ...
'' #182–204, ''Annual'' #13 (1978–1980) * ''
Avengers Avenger, Avengers, The Avenger, or The Avengers may refer to: Arts and entertainment In the Marvel Comics universe * Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes **Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes of ...
'' #169 (1978) * '' Bullseye'' #1 (2017) * ''
Captain America Captain America is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by cartoonists Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in '' Captain America Comics'' #1 ( cover dated March 1941) from T ...
'' #192 (1975) * '' Captain Marvel'' #23 (1972) * '' Crazy Magazine'' #2, 11 (1974–1975) * ''
Daredevil Daredevil may refer to: * A stunt performer Arts and media Comics * Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro * Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
'' #125–139, 141–143, ''Annual'' #4 (1975–1977) * '' Doctor Strange'' #19–20, 22–23, ''Annual'' #1 (1976–1977) * '' Dracula Lives'' #2–5 (1973–1974) * '' Fantastic Four'' #190, 195–215, ''Annual'' #12, 14 (1978–1980) * '' Ghost Rider'' #20 (1976) * ''Giant-Size Chillers Featuring Curse of Dracula'' #1 (1974) * ''Giant-Size Fantastic Four'' #3 (1974) * ''Giant-Size Man-Thing'' #5 (1975) * '' Howard the Duck'' #28 (1978) * '' John Carter, Warlord of Mars'' #1–15, ''Annual'' #1, 3 (1977–1979) * '' Journey into Mystery'' #520–521 (1998) * ''Legion of Monsters'' #1 (1975) * ''
Machine Man Machine Man (also known as Aaron Stack, Mister Machine and serial number Z2P45-9-X-51 or X-51 for short) is an android superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Jack Kirby for '' 2001: A ...
'' #10–14 (1979–1980) * '' Marvel Comics Presents'' #38–47 (1989–1990) * '' Marvel Fanfare'' #16–17 (1984) * ''Marvel Movie Premiere'' #1 ('' The Land That Time Forgot'' adaptation) (1975) * '' Marvel Premiere'' #39–40 (1977–1978) * '' Marvel Preview'' #1, 8, 16 (1975–1978) * '' Marvel Spotlight'' vol. 2 #5 (1980) * '' Marvel Super Special'' #15 ('' Star Trek: The Motion Picture'' adaptation) (1979) * '' Marvel Team-Up'' #98 (1980) * ''Marvel Team-Up'' vol. 2 #7 (1998) * '' Marvel Two-in-One'' #13, 25–37, 44, 59, ''Annual'' #3 (1976–1980) * '' Mission Impossible'' #1 (1996) * '' Monsters Unleashed'' #1 (1973) * '' Nova'' #1–25 (1976–1979) * ''
Power Man Power Man may refer to: * Luke Cage, a Marvel Comics superhero, originally called Power Man * Erik Josten, a Marvel supervillain later known as Smuggler, Goliath and Atlas * Victor Alvarez, the current Power Man introduced in the mini-series ''Shad ...
'' #37–46 (1976–1977) * ''Shadows & Light'' #2 (1998) * '' Skull the Slayer'' #1–3 (1975–1976) * '' The Spectacular Spider-Man'' #44 (1980) * '' Spider-Woman'' #1–8 (1978) * ''Spoof'' #2–5 (1972–1973) * ''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vario ...
'' #4 (1980) * '' Sub-Mariner'' #70–71 (1974) * '' Tales of the Zombie'' #1 (1973) * '' The Tomb of Dracula'' #7–70 (1973–1979) * ''The Tomb of Dracula'' vol. 2 #1–3 (1979–1980) * '' Tower of Shadows'' #4 (1970) * '' Two-Gun Kid'' #104 (1972) * '' Vampire Tales'' #8–9 (1974–1975) * '' Venom: Sinner Takes All'' #5 (1995) * '' Werewolf by Night'' #11–15 (1973–1974) * '' What If...?'' #5 (1979)


Epic Comics

* ''The Tomb of Dracula'' vol. 3 #1–4 (1991–1992)


Moonstone

* '' Captain Action Comics'' #2–3 (with Fabian Nicieza) (2009)


Nachshon Press

* ''Homeland'' OGN (2007)


Now Comics

* ''Mirror Walker'' #1 (1989)


Renaissance Press

* ''The Forbidden Book'' Vol. 1 (2001)


S.Q.P. Inc.

* ''Phase'' #1 (1971)


Skywald Publications

* '' Nightmare'' #2 (1971) * ''Psycho'' #2 (1971)


TSR, Inc.

* ''R.I.P.'' #1–2, 4 (1990)


Zenescope

* ''Mankind: The Story of All of Us'' Vol. 1 (2012)


References


Further reading

* * *


External links

* *
"DC Profiles #69: Marv Wolfman"
at the Grand Comics Database
Marv Wolfman
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics

at the Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics Creators
Interview at Fantastic Four Headquarters

Interview with ComicsVerse
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolfman, Marv 1946 births American comics writers American male screenwriters Comic book editors DC Comics people High School of Art and Design alumni Inkpot Award winners Jewish American artists Jewish American writers Living people Marvel Comics editors-in-chief Marvel Comics writers Writers from Brooklyn