Max Hodge (February 12, 1916 – August 17, 2007)MAX HODGE (1916-2007), Social Security Death Index
/ref> was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

writer who worked on shows including '' The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.'', ''

CHiPS ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. It follows the lives of two motorcycle officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The serie ...

'' and '' Mission: Impossible'', and is perhaps best known for creating

Mr. Freeze Mr. Freeze is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Dave Wood, Sheldon Moldoff and Bob Kane, and first appeared in ''Batman'' #121 in February 1959 as the ice-based criminal Mr. Ze ...

for ''

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 Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

''. Hodge grew up in

East Moline, Illinois East Moline is a city in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The population was 21,374 at the 2020 census. East Moline is part of the Quad Cities, along with the cities of Rock Island, Illinois, Rock Island, Moline, Illinois, Moline, and ...

and

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, later graduating from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

then enlisting in the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He then attended

Pasadena Playhouse College of Theater Arts The Pasadena Playhouse is a historic performing arts venue located 39 S. El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California, United States. The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engage ...

and began his television career in the 1950s as a producer working on industrial shows for

Oldsmobile Oldsmobile or formally the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors was a brand of American automobiles, produced for most of its existence by General Motors. Originally established as "Olds Motor Vehicle Company" by Ransom E. Olds in 1897, it produ ...

. In his time at University of Michigan- Ann Arbor, Hodge was chief editor of the student magazine the Gargoyle and president of the men's dramatic union, the Mimes. His writing career spanned the 1960s through the early 1980s, with Hodge writing for ''

Dr. Kildare Dr. James Kildare is a fictional American medical doctor, originally created in the 1930s by the author Frederick Schiller Faust under the pen name Max Brand. Shortly after the character's first appearance in a magazine story, Paramount Pictur ...

'', ''

The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western, espionage, and science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 1969. Two satirical comedy television film sequels w ...

'', ''

Marcus Welby, M.D. Marcus, Markus, Márkus or Mărcuș may refer to: * Marcus (name), a masculine given name * Marcus (praenomen), a Roman personal name Places * Marcus, a main belt asteroid, also known as (369088) Marcus 2008 GG44 * Mărcuş, a village in Dobârl ...

'', '' Ironside'', ''

The Waltons ''The Waltons'' is an American historical drama television series about a family in rural Virginia during the Great Depression and World War II. It was created by Earl Hamner Jr., based on his 1961 book ''Spencer's Mountain'' and the 1963 film ...

'', ''

The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan ''The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''The Amazing Chan Clan'') is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, animated by Eric Porter Studios in Australia and broadcast on CBS from S ...

'' in addition to the aforementioned ''ChiPS'', ''Mission: Impossible'', ''The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.'' and ''Batman''. He also served as an associate producer on ''The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.'' Hodge is credited for creating Mr. Freeze for the ''Batman'' show, having taken the existing

comic character Mr. Zero which was created by

Bob Kane Robert Kane (born Robert Kahn ; October 24, 1915 – November 3, 1998) was an American comic book writer, animator and artist who co-created Batman (with Bill Finger) and most early related characters for DC comics. He was inducted into the comi ...

and modifying elements to him. Mr. Zero first appeared in ''

'' #121 in February 1959, but Hodge took the character and introduced the trademark ice suit which he needed to survive, first appearing in the ''Deep Freeze'' episode. Mr. Freeze is addressed once as "Dr. Shimel" by Batman in the episode. In the comics, Freeze's other identity became "Art Shivel" (apparently a mishearing of how he was addressed on "Batman"). His name in the comics was later changed to Victor Fries. Hodge died August 17, 2007, in Woodland Hills, California. He was 91 years old. Most of his works, scripts, and related supplemental material(including his script for "Mr.Freeze") were donated to his alma mater and can be found in the Donald Hall Collection of University of Michigan.

Filmography

Films

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hodge, Max 1916 births 2007 deaths University of Michigan alumni American television writers American male television writers People from East Moline, Illinois Screenwriters from Illinois 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American male writers United States Navy personnel of World War II