Steve Gerber 1947-2008

A modern comic book genius, Steve Gerber, 60, died from complications surrounding pulmonary fibrosis. As a stalwart of 1970s Marvel Comics, Gerber penned long runs on Daredevil, The Sub-Mariner, Omega the Unknown, Defenders, Man-Thing, and his seminal creation Howard The Duck. The zany concept of a humanoid duck trapped in a man's world was originally a throw away idea in [Adventure Into] Fear #19, but later developed into the groundbreaking satire of almost everything American in the 1970s. Howard even ran for president (unsuccessfully) in 1976.


It was his work on Man-Thing and Defenders that warped.. er.. impacted my pre-teen psyche. His combination of fantastic and topical intertwined with goofy and terrifying fascinated me like no other comics. In my 2007 review of The Essential Man-Thing Vol.1, I wrote:

[On Man-Thing Gerber] produc[ed] a spate of often goofy yet engaging stories centered around the empathic swamp creature with no personality of its own, who guards the Nexus of All Realities. Within this framework, Gerber littered these far-out adventures with an intriguing supporting cast – including the first appearance of Howard the Duck – exploring Seventies politics and alternative culture with humor and particular insight.

Gerber left Marvel in 1978 over a creative dispute centering around Howard The Duck. He later wrote some notable series such as Nevada, Sludge, and Destroyer Duck. In recent years he had made a triumphant return to Marvel with his work on an excellent Howard The Duck mini-series. (How could one not chuckle as God diagnoses Himself with a tripolar disorder?) Over at DC he created the thought-provoking Hard Time and was currently writing the Doctor Fate segments in Countdown to Mystery.


The list of characters that Gerber created or co-created reads like a who's who of the obscure and strange. A partial list (besides the ones previously mentioned):

Angar the Screamer
Doctor Bong
Foolkiller
Starhawk
Thundarr the Barbarian
Wundarr the Aquarian
Silver Samurai
Headmen
Korvac
Madrill

Steve Gerber was a singular talent with a unique world view. His humor and outlook will be sorely missed.