Wednesday, December 20, 2006

B&B Seeing You--Part 3

Part III-Bob Haney
The lion’s share (103 of a total 149) of the team-ups in THE BRAVE & THE BOLD, with or without Batman, sprang forth from the imagination and typewriter of the late Bob Haney (March 15, 1926-November 24, 2004) In 1948, following military service with the Navy during the Second World War and completion of a Master’s degree in French history at New York City’s Columbia University, a cash strapped Haney sought employment in the then still young comic book industry. Publishers of comic books proliferated during the 1930’s and 40’s, the era dubbed the Golden Age of Comics, and Haney produced work for several of them, including Quality, Fawcett, Fox, Hillman, and Ziff-Davis, before landing at industry leader National Periodical Publications, as DC Comics was officially known until the mid-1970’s, in 1954. He began at the company as writer of war stories, as well as a contributor to THE BRAVE & THE BOLD during its early, high-adventure phase, working under editor Robert Kanigher.
Haney penned the initial installment of the long-running World War II set series, SGT. ROCK, and would go on to create or co-create many of the quirkier characters in DC’s Silver Age stable, including Metamorpho, B’Wana Beast, Eclipso, The Doom Patrol, and The Super-Sons, who were teenaged offspring of Superman and Batman with unnamed mothers. Among his other assignments were the Superman/Batman adventures in WORLD’S FINEST COMICS, Aquaman, Green Arrow, and The Unknown Soldier. Today, he is primarily remembered for creating and writing the original Teen Titans, and, of course, for B&B.
I find it unfortunate, however, that what appears to most remembered about Haney’s tenure on B&B is the controversy and confusion that his stories often generated among readers.

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