1962 in comics


Notable events of 1962 in comics. Starting January, most companies raise their comics from 10 to 12 cents.

Publications

January

January 3: Suat Yalaz's Karaoğlan makes its debut.January 15: René Goscinny and Jean Tabary's Iznogoud makes its debut. Originally the caliph Haroun El Poussah is the title character, but Iznogoud soon becomes so popular that the series is renamed after him.January 20: The first issue of the British magazine Look and Learn is published. It will run until 1982.

February

February 6: In Le journal de Tintin, the first episode of the Michel Vaillant adventure Les Casse-cou, by Jean Graton starts its serialisation. February 8: Jean Roba's children's adventure comic series La Ribambelle debuts in Spirou.Aquaman #1 — DC Comics
  • Amazing Adult Fantasy #9 - Marvel ComicsHelp! vol. 2, #1 — Warren Publishing
  • Journey into Mystery #77 - Marvel Comics
  • Rawhide Kid #26 - Marvel Comics
  • Strange Tales #93 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales of Suspense #26 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales to Astonish #28 - Marvel Comics

March

March 1: The first episode of René Goscinny and Jean Tabary's Valentin Le Vagabond is published in Pilote. The series will run until 1973.

April

  • April 2: In the French magazine V-Magazine, the character Barbarella by Jean-Claude Forest makes her debut.April 4: Australian comic artist Len Lawson, who'd already been jailed between 1954 and 1961 for rape and assault, is sentenced again for rape, murder and holding people at ransom, this time for life.
  • April 13: Hugo Pratt's Fort Wheeling debuts in the Argentine review Misterix.
  • The final issue of the American comics magazine The Funnies is published.
  • Amazing Adult Fantasy #11 - Marvel Comics
  • Journey into Mystery #79 - Marvel Comics
  • Rawhide Kid #27 - Marvel Comics
  • Strange Tales #95 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales of Suspense #28 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales to Astonish #30 - Marvel Comics

May

June

June 21: Carmen Barbará's Mary Noticias is first published.
  • Amazing Adult Fantasy #13 - Marvel Comics
  • Rawhide Kid #28 - Marvel Comics
  • Strange Tales #97 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales of Suspense #30 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales to Astonish #32 - Marvel ComicsUncle Scrooge #38 - Dell comics; "The Unsafe Safe" by Carl Barks
  • The classic Little Archie story Caramel Has A Tale, scripted by Bob Bolling, is published.

July

July 20: Héctor Germán Oesterheld and Alberto Breccia's prologue story Ezra Winston el anticuario is first published and features the debut of Ezra Winston.
  • The final episode of Don Freeman and Jack Monk's Buck Ryan is published.
  • Amazing Adult Fantasy #14 - Marvel Comics
  • Fantastic Four #5 - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of Doctor Doom.
  • The Incredible Hulk #2 - Marvel Comics
  • Kid Colt: Outlaw #105 - Marvel Comics
  • Strange Tales #98 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales of Suspense #31 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales to Astonish #33 - Marvel Comics
  • With issue #131, Dell Comics cancels Tarzan.

August

August 17: Héctor Germán Oesterheld and Alberto Breccia's Mort Cinder makes its debut.
  • August 26: In the Disney magazine Topolino the first episode of Paperon de Paperoni visir di Papatoa by Rodolfo Cimino and Romano Scarpa is published.
  • The final issue of Classics Illustrated Junior is published.
  • Amazing Fantasy #15 renamed from Amazing Adult Fantasy - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of Spider-Man.
  • Journey into Mystery #83 - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of Thor.
  • Rawhide Kid #29 - Marvel Comics
  • Strange Tales #99 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales of Suspense #32 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales to Astonish #34 - Marvel Comics

September

September 5:
  • * The first issue of the Flemish comics magazine Pats is published. It's a weekly children's supplement of the newspapers Het Nieuwsblad, De Standaard, Het Handelsblad, De Gentenaar and De Landwacht. It will run until 27 February 1974, after which it changes its name to the Patskrant.
  • * Inside the first issue of Pats Willy Vandersteen's comics series Pats makes its debut., as well as Gommaar Timmermans' long-running children's comic Fideel de Fluwelen Ridder.September 15: The final issue of the British comics magazine Film Fun is published, which merges with Buster.
  • First issue of Gatto Felix, a licensed version of Felix the cat, by Italian authors.
  • Fantastic Four #6 - Marvel Comics
  • The Incredible Hulk #3 - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of the Ringmaster and the Circus of Crime.
  • Journey into Mystery #84 - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of Jane Foster.
  • Kid Colt: Outlaw #106 - Marvel Comics
  • Strange Tales #100 - Marvel Comics
  • Strange Tales Annual #1 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales of Suspense #33 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales to Astonish #35 - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of Hank Pym as Ant-Man.

October

October 4: The final episode of Jacques Laudy's Hassan et Kaddour runs in Tintin. October 6: The first issue of the British comics magazine Valiant is published. It will run until 16 October 1976.

November

November 1: In Il re del terrore, the first episode of Angela and Luciana Giussani's Diabolik is published.
  • November 1: In Spirou, the first chapter of the Lucky Luke story The Wagon Train by Goscinny and Morris is prepublished.November 22: The Suske en Wiske story Het Rijmende Paard by Willy Vandersteen is first published in the newspapers. Halfway the story the series' nemesis Krimson makes his debut.
  • Fantastic Four #8 - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of Puppet Master.
  • The Incredible Hulk #4 - Marvel Comics
  • Journey into Mystery #86 - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of Zarrko the Tomorrow Man.
  • Kid Colt: Outlaw #107 - Marvel Comics
  • Strange Tales #102 - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of the Wizard.
  • Tales of Suspense #35 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales to Astonish #37 - Marvel Comics
  • Two-Gun Kid #60 - Marvel Comics
  • With issue #132, Gold Key Comics begins publishing Tarzan, which it acquired from Dell Comics.

December

December 10: Willy Vandersteen's western comics series Karl May, based on the novels by Karl May, is launched and will run until 1977.December 20: The first episode of Hubuc and Jacques Devos' Victor Sébastopol is published in Spirou.December 29: The final episode of Al Capp and Bob Lubbers 's Long Sam is published.
  • Fantastic Four #9 - Marvel Comics
  • Journey into Mystery #87 - Marvel Comics
  • Rawhide Kid #31 - Marvel Comics
  • Strange Tales #103 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales of Suspense #36 - Marvel Comics
  • Tales to Astonish #38 - Marvel Comics
  • *First appearance of Egghead.

Specific date unknown

Births

February

February 20: Dwayne McDuffie, American comic book writer,.

March

March 21: Mark Waid, American comic book writer.

October

October 31: Don Asmussen, American comics artist,.

November

November 16: Darwyn Cooke, Canadian animator and comics artist,.

Deaths

January

January 13: Ernie Kovacs, American comedian and comics writer, dies at age 42 in a car accident.January 22: Jack Patton, American comics artist, dies at age 61.

February

February 12: Ding Darling, American cartoonist and comics artist, dies at age 85.February 14: James Crighton, Scottish comics artist, dies at age 70.

March

March 2: J.F. Horrabin, British comics artist, cartoonist and writer, dies at age 77.March 5: Cornelis Veth, Dutch painter, cartoonist, journalist, writer and illustrator, dies at age 82.

April

April 18: Don Wootton, American comics artist, commits suicide at age 66.April 21:
  • * Bob McCay, American comics artist, dies at age 65.
  • * Bob Wickersham, American animator and comics artist, dies at age 50.April 25: Billy Cam, American comics artist, dies at age 70.April 26: Carlos Neve, Mexican comic artist, dies at age 71–72.

May

May 12: Dick Calkins, American comics artist, dies at age 67.May 22: John H. Striebel, American comics artist, dies at age 79.May 24: Vic Forsythe, American comics artist, dies at age 76.

June

June 2: Jules Luyckx, A.K.A. Julux, Belgian animator and comic artist, dies at age 41 or 42 in an accident. June 21: Tom Webster, British cartoonist, dies at age 76.

August

August 5: John Willie, British photographer and comics artist, dies at age 59.August 7: Mikhail Cheremnykh, Russian caricaturist, painter, illustrator, poster artist and comics artist, dies at age 71.

September

September 4: Fran Striker, American radio and comics writer, dies at age 59 in a car accident.September 17: Harry L. Parkhurst, American illustrator and comics artist, dies at age 86.September 26: George Carlson, American comics artist, dies at age 84 or 85.September 28: Bernardo Marques, Portuguese painter and comics artist, dies at age 64.

October

October 26: Georges Sogny, French illustrator and comic artist, dies at age 66. Specific date unknown: Forest A. McGinn, American comics artist, dies at age 69.

November

November 2: Kurt Ludwig Schmidt, aka Becker-Kasch, German comics artist, dies at age 53.November 4: Guillermo Cifré, Spanish comics artist, dies at age 39.November 9: Emile Brumsteede, Dutch film director and comics artist, dies at age 51.November 17: Albéric Bourgeois, Canadian comics artist, dies at age 86.November 29: Karl Staudinger, Austrian graphic artist, illustrator and art teacher, dies at age 88.

December

December 12: David Bueno de Mesquita, Dutch graphic artist, illustrator and comics artist, dies at age 73.

Specific date unknown

  • Arch Dale, Scottish-Canadian cartoonist and comics artist, dies at age 79 or 80.
  • Guido Moroni-Celsi, Italian comics artist, dies at age 77.
  • Hal Rasmusson, American illustrator and comics artist, dies at age 61 or 62.
  • Robert Q. Sale, American comics artist, dies at age 37 or 38.
  • H.M. Talintyre, British comics artist, dies at age 68 or 69.

First issues by title

Help! — Warren Publishing
The Incredible Hulk
'Pep'''''

Initial appearances by character name

Marvel Comics

Ant-Man in Tales to Astonish #35 Aunt May in Amazing Fantasy #15 Balder in Journey into Mystery #85 Betty Ross in The Incredible Hulk #1 Doctor Doom in Fantastic Four #5 Egghead in Tales to Astonish #38 Hank Pym in Tales to Astonish #27 Hulk in The Incredible Hulk #1 Loki in Journey into Mystery #85 Odin in Journey into Mystery #85 Puppet Master in Fantastic Four #8 Rick Jones in The Incredible Hulk #1 Sif in Journey into Mystery #85 Spider-Man in Amazing Fantasy #15 Skrulls in Fantastic Four #2 Thor in Journey into Mystery #83 Thunderbolt Ross in The Incredible Hulk #1 Uncle Ben in Amazing Fantasy #15 Wizard in Strange Tales #102 Zarrko the Tomorrow Man in Journey into Mystery #86

DC Comics

Other publishers