''Patsy Walker'' is a comic book title featuring the character Patsy Walker originally published by Timely Comics beginning in 1945, by

Atlas Comics Atlas Comics may refer to * Atlas Comics (1950s) Atlas Comics is the 1950s comic book, comic-book publishing label that evolved into Marvel Comics. Magazine and mass market paperback, paperback novel publisher Martin Goodman (publisher), Martin ...

from 1951 to 1961, and later by Marvel Comics.

Publication history

Created by writer Stuart Little and artist

Ruth Atkinson Ruth Atkinson Ford, née Ruth Atkinson and a.k.a. R. Atkinson (June 2, 1918 – June 1, 1997), Includes obituary for Ruth Atkinson Ford, giving date of death date as June 1, 1997.Date of death given as May 31, 1997 at that the Lambiek Comiclope ...

, Patsy Walker first appeared in '' Miss America Magazine'' #2 ( cover-dated November 1944), published by Marvel precursor Timely Comics. Redheaded Patsy Walker, her parents Stanley and Betty, her boyfriend Robert "Buzz" Baxter, and her raven-haired friendly rival Hedy Wolfe appeared from the 1940s through 1967 in issues of ''Miss America'', ''Teen Comics'', ''Girls' Life'', and the namesake teen-humor series ''Patsy Walker'', as well as in the spin-offs '' Patsy and Hedy'', ''Patsy and Her Pals'', and the single-issue ''A Date with Patsy''. Attesting to its quiet popularity, ''Patsy Walker'' (along with '' Millie the Model'' and '' Kid Colt, Outlaw'') was among the very few titles published continuously by Marvel from the 1940s

Golden Age of Comic Books The Golden Age of Comic Books describes an era of American comic books from 1938 to 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published and rapidly increased in popularity. The superhero archetype was created and many well-known char ...

, through Marvel's 1950s iteration as

, and into the 1960s Silver Age of Comic Books. The first issue was published in 1945, and was published by Timely Comics until issue #36 (September 1951), while Atlas Comics continued the publication from #37 (November 1951) through #94 (April 1961), and Marvel Comics continued the publication beginning with issue #95 (June 1961). Future '' Mad'' magazine

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...

and ''Mad'' Fold-in creator

Al Jaffee Allan Jaffee (born Abraham Jaffee; March 13, 1921) is an American cartoonist. He is notable for his work in the satirical magazine '' Mad'', including his trademark feature, the ''Mad'' Fold-in. Jaffee was a regular contributor to the magazine ...

wrote and drew most of the early issues of ''Patsy Walker'', several of which included ''Mad'' founding editor Harvey Kurtzman's highly stylized "Hey Look!" one-page humor strips. Jaffee was succeeded by

Al Hartley Henry Allan Hartley (October 25, 1921 – May 27, 2003)Henry A. Hartley
at the United States Social Security Dea ...

, who went to

Archie Comics Archie Comic Publications, Inc., is an American comic book publisher headquartered in Pelham, New York.Christian comic books starring Archie characters and others. The high-school series ''Patsy Walker'', co-created by Atkinson and writer Otto Binder in 1944, featured art by

Al Hartley Henry Allan Hartley (October 25, 1921 – May 27, 2003)Henry A. Hartley
at the United States Social Security Dea ...

Morris Weiss Morris S. Weiss (August 11, 1915 – May 18, 2014) was an American comic book and comic strip artist and writer. Active from the 1930s through the mid-1970s, he created the teen-comedy character "Margie" for Timely Comics, the 1940s predecessor ...

and others, and ran until 1967. As Timely segued into

, Marvel's 1950s predecessor,

Al Hartley Henry Allan Hartley (October 25, 1921 – May 27, 2003)Henry A. Hartley
at the United States Social Security Dea ...

made his mark with a more than decade-long run on the ''Patsy Walker'' teen-girl titles. With writer-editor

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 ...

, Hartley chronicled the redheaded high schooler's lightly comic adventures in her namesake series (which ran through 1964) and in its spin-offs, '' Patsy and Hedy'' (which ran through 1967) and the single-issue ''A Date with Patsy'' (Sept. 1957). Well into the Marvel era, Hartley also drew the "Special Queen Size Annual" publication ''Patsy Walker's Fashion Parade'' #1 (1966).Al Hartley
at the Grand Comics Database The last comic to bear the Atlas globe on the cover was the comic ''Dippy Duck'' #1, and the first to bear the new "Ind." distributors' mark was ''Patsy Walker'' #73, both cover-dated October 1957. ''Patsy Walker'' #95 – together with the science-fiction anthology '' Journey into Mystery'' #69 (both June 1961) – are the first modern comic books labeled "Marvel Comics", with each showing an "MC" box on its cover. Following Patsy's high-school graduation in issue #116 (Aug. 1964), the title switched from humor to become a young career-gal romantic adventure. ''Patsy Walker'' lasted through issue #124 (Dec. 1965), with ''Patsy and Hedy'' outlasting it to its own #110 (Feb. 1967). Writer Steve Englehart later introduced the concept of Walker as a superhero in the Beast feature in '' Amazing Adventures'' #13 (July 1972). Englehart recalled that Walker's cameo in ''Fantastic Four Annual'' #3 had: ''Patsy Walker'' #119 was reprinted in the collection "The Best Marvel Stories by Stan Lee" in 2022, while several issues were reprinted in the "Marvel Months" series beginning in 2021.

References

{{reflist 1945 comics debuts Atlas Comics titles Comics about women Humor comics Marvel Comics titles Romance comics Timely Comics titles