Len Wein

DC Comics Presents #67: Superman and … Santa?

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Behold!

Bronze age Christmas

Special Christmas Edition

DC Comics Presents #67, March, 1984

Cover: José Luis García-López

“Twas the Fright Before Christmas!”

Writer: Len Wein, Co-Plotter: E. Nelson Bridwell, Penciler: Curt Swan

Inker: Murphy Anderson, Colorist: Gene D’Angelo, Letterer: Ben Oda

Editor: Julius Schwartz, Executive Editor: Dick Giordano

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From DC Wikia:

The Toyman plans to make heists and destroy Superman on Christmas Eve with the help of gimmicked toys, but Santa Claus lends the Man of Steel a hand against his old enemy, and gets a hand in return in delivering toys to Metropolis children.

More details:

Timmy Dickens sneaks into his parents’ closet to look at “Santa’s” presents. A dart gun hypnotizes Timmy into robbing a store-front Santa, until he is rescued by Superman. Superman takes Timmy to his Fortress to discover the identity of the maker of the toy. While flying Timmy home, another toy (a boat) knocks out Superman, leaving Timmy alone in the frozen north until he is rescued by …. Elves?

We discover the toy maker is … the Toyman! He infused the toys with white dwarf star material to create a gravity beam to knock Superman out! (this same material powers the Atom – does Ray Palmer know what kind of stuff he has his hands on?)

This page was scanned by Batmite -- comics@batmite.com

Superman wakes up in the workshop of … Santa Claus! As Superman is still weak and his powers fluctuating due to the gravity beam, Santa volunteers to help capture the Toyman and find his lethal pop guns throughout the country.

Santa and Superman go to Toyman’s factory (through the chimney of course). Superman, in his weakened state, has a hard time fighting off the toys sicced on him, so Santa and his elves unleash their toys to help.

Santa and Superman defeat the Toyman and find the list of all the deadly toys distributed through the country. All through Christmas Eve night the two icons swap bad toys for good.

On their way home, another of Timmy’s toys knocks out Superman, who wakes back in the arctic with Timmy. Was this adventure all a dream? Superman thinks so, until he finds a Kryptonian toy in the pocket of his cape and a Merry Christmas message from … Kris Kringle!

This page was scanned by Batmite -- comics@batmite.com

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Len Wein apparently was DC’s Christmas go-to-guy. He also wrote the Christmas story for Justice League of America #110 ten years before!

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About the author: Michael Curry is the author of the Brave & Bold: From Silent Knight to Dark Knight, The Day John F Kennedy Met the Beatles and the award-winning Abby’s Road, the Long and Winding Road to Adoption and How Facebook, Aquaman and Theodore Roosevelt Helped.  Check his website for more releases! Thanks for reading!

 

RIP Len Wein, co-creator of Wolverine and Swamp Thing

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Swamp_thing

Len Wein, the award-winning writer and editor, perhaps best known for co-creating Swamp Thing for DC Comics and Wolverine for Marvel Comics, along with editing Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ Watchmen, passed away Sunday, according to multiple industry reports including word of the news from fellow comics veteran Paul Kupperberg. He was 69 years old.

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Wein got his start in comics in 1968 working on DC’s Teen Titans #18. His first Marvel work came in Daredevil #71 in 1970. From there, he continued writing anthology stories for both publishers, along with guest-spots on such titles as Superman and The Flash.

Together with Bernie Wrightson, they created the supernatural superhero Swamp Thing in 1971’s The House of Secrets #92. Swamp Thing would go on to star in various ongoing and miniseries that continue to this day. Wein also contributed to the Man-Thing mythos over at Marvel by introducing the concept of “Whoever Knows Fear Burns at the Man-Thing’s Touch.”

During Wein’s tenure at Marvel, he teamed with artists John Romita Sr. and Herb Trimpe to create Wolverine in The Incredible Hulk #180. In 1975, Wolverine would appear as a member of a revamped X-Men team in Giant-Size X-Men #1, penned by Wein and illustrated by Dave Cockrum. The new lineup that included classic characters like Storm, Nightcrawler, and Colossus would become mainstays across multiple X-Men lineups and volumes.

Wein returned to DC in the late 1970s as a writer and editor, where as the former he created Batman supporting cast member Lucius Fox, and contributed to a rare DC/Marvel crossover in DC Special Series #27. His work as an editor included runs on New Teen Titans, Batman and the Outsiders, and All-Star Squadron, and the aforementioned Watchmen.

Word of Wein’s passing began to spread across social media, with writer Brian Michael Bendis thanking the creator for his work on the X-Men and Swamp Thing. “Len Wein, co-creator of WOLVERINE and SWAMP THING & more responsible for the x-men you love than he gets credit for. Thank you.”

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Taken from various news sources. Condolences to his family and friends. We have lost a giant.