Arnold Drake
From DC Database
Contents |
Personal History
Personal History of Arnold Drake is unknown.
Professional History
Drake is notable for co-creating It Rhymes with Lust, perhaps the first American graphic novel ever published, in 1950, with Matt Baker, the first African-American comics artist to gain prominence in mainstream comics.[1]
Drake started at DC writing scripts for Batman, Showcase-Tommy Tomorrow, and My Greatest Adventure.
The first appearance of the Doom Patrol pre-dated that of the X-Men by a scant three months. The vague similarity in concept (group of misfits led by a mysterious wheel-chair bound genius, and similarly named enemies (Brotherhood of Evil and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants)) has led to speculation as to the relation between them, if any.
According to Comic Coverage: Which Came First: The Mutant or The Freak?, creator Arnold Drake felt:
- "...I’ve become more and more convinced that (Stan Lee) knowingly stole The X-Men from The Doom Patrol. Over the years I learned that an awful lot of writers and artists were working surreptitiously between (Marvel and DC). Therefore from when I first brought the idea into (DC editor) Murray Boltinoff’s office, it would’ve been easy for someone to walk over and hear that (I was) working on a story about a bunch of reluctant superheroes who are led by a man in a wheelchair. So over the years I began to feel that Stan had more lead time than I realized. He may well have had four, five or even six months."
Drake also created Stanley and His Monster, a long-running feature in the 'Fox and the Crow' magazine, which he scripted while at DC.
He also wrote issues of Marvel Comics' X-Men and Fantastic Four in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and created The Guardians of the Galaxy with artist Gene Colan.
Drake was also notable during his tenure at DC Comics for writing running story lines for the Bob Hope and Jerry Lewis humor magazines. DC Comics halted production on those titles shortly after he went to Marvel Comics in the late 1960's.
Notes
- No special notes.
Trivia
- No trivia.
See Also
Work History
Official Website
- None.
Links and References
- Wikipedia:Arnold Drake
- "DOOM PATROL" CREATOR ARNOLD DRAKE DIES at CBR
- Arnold Drake, R.I.P. at Mark Evanier's blog
