- Paul Norris
imagesize = 150
caption =
birthname = Paul Leroy Norris
birthdate = birth date|1914|04|26
location =Greenville, Ohio ,United States
deathdate = death date and age|2007|11|05|1914|04|26
deathplace =
nationality = American
area = Penciller, Inker
alias =
notable works = "Aquaman", "Brick Bradford"
awards =Paul Leroy Norris (
April 26 ,1914 –November 5 ,2007 ) [ [http://www.newsfromme.com/archives/2007_11_06.html#014315 POV Online (Nov. 6, 2007): "News from Me" (column) - "Paul Norris, R.I.P.", by Mark Evanier] ] was an Americancomic book artist best known as co-creator of theDC Comics superhero Aquaman , [Co-creator with Mort Weisinger per sources including [http://www.toonopedia.com/aquaman.htm Don Markstein's Toonopedia: Aquaman] , [http://www.comics.org/details.lasso?id=1751 Grand Comics Database: "More Fun Comics" #73] , [http://www.tcj.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=236&Itemid=48 "The Comics Journal" (Oct. 6, 1999): "Ripples on the Golden Age Pond: Repercussions in Comic-Book Copyrights", by Darren Hick] , and [http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2007/10/28/365-reasons-to-love-comics-301/ "Comic Book Resources" (Oct. 28, 2007): "Comics Should Be Good" (section): "365 Reasons to Love Comics #301", by Bill Reed] . Beginning with "Aquaman" vol. 6, #7 (Aug. 2003), DC Comics began including the credit line "Aquaman created by Paul Norris". Writer Julian Darian in an undated article at [http://www.sequart.com/aquaman.htm SeqArt: Aquaman] published March 5, 2004 or later, suggests the discrepancy arose from uncertainty over the then-uncredited writer: "Paul Norris is now officially credited by DC as the character's creator, and Norris certainly drew Aquaman's first stories. Some suspect a writer's hand, however, and have pointed to Mort Weisinger, thought to be the writer of Aquaman's first tale, though we will probably never know for certain due to the scarcity of records from the period".] and for a 35-year run as artist of thenewspaper comic strip "Brick Bradford ".Biography
Early life and career
Paul Norris was born in
Greenville, Ohio . [http://www.mlc.edu/midlandlutheran.aspx?pgID=1551 Midland Lutheran College: "Paul Norris: Minister of Morality"] — biography in conjunction with art exhibition, Feb. 10-24, 2006] Beginning 1934, during theGreat Depression , he spent two years atMidland Lutheran College inFremont, Nebraska at the behest of his cousin, Dr. Emerson Beck, ajournalism professor and director of the school's news bureau. Self-described as having been "drawing pictures from the first time I could hold a pencil," Norris becameart director of "The Warrior", the collegeyearbook , and also performed in plays, served as president of the campusYMCA , and painted signs for businesses.After two years, Norris left college in an aborted attempt to pursue a career as
comic strip cartoonist. He recalled in 2006,Norris worked on his grandmother's farm before obtaining a job at an electric-motor assembly plant in
Dayton, Ohio ."Fremont Tribune" (Nebraska) (Feb. 11, 2006): "Norris gives new meaning to 'comic book hero'", by Tammy Real-McKeighan, [http://www.zoominfo.com/people/Norris_Paul_705440602.aspx via ZoomInfo.com] and (longer version) [http://www.comicbloc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20243 via ComicBlock.com] ] He also enrolled at theDayton Art Institute School, where met his wife of 61 years, Ann, whom he married in 1939. He went on to become an illustrator andcartoonist for the "Dayton Daily News ".Aquaman and Sandman
In 1940, Norris and his wife moved to
New York City ,New York , where he created the features "Futureman", "Power Nelson", and "Yank and Doodle" for thecomic-book publisherPrize Publications . [http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/northcounty/20070413-9999-lz1mc13comics.html SignOnSanDiego.com / "The San Diego Union-Tribune" (April 13, 2007): "Classic comics continue to draw a following of fans", by Linda McIntosh] ] Historians tentatively identify Norris' comic-book debut aspenciling andinking the cover of Prize Publications' "Prize Comics" #6 (Aug. 1940), with his first confirmed credit the Power Nelson story "Introducing Gene West" two issues later. [ [http://www.comics.org/search.lasso?type=credit&query=Paul+Norris&sort=chrono&Submit=Search Paul Norris] atGrand Comics Database ] Norris' first confirmed credit forDC Comics (then National Comics) is the story "The Sandman at Sea", starring DC's original Sandman, Wesley Dodds, in "Adventure Comics " #65 (Aug. 1941). Norris and writerMort Weisinger revamped that character insuperhero attire and introducedsidekick Sandy the Golden Boy in issue #69 (Dec. 1941).Norris and Weisinger introduced the undersea
superhero Aquaman in the eight-page story "The Submarine Strikes" in "More Fun Comics " # 73 (Nov. 1941). That same year, Norris began drawing the adventurecomic strip "Vic Jordan " for "PM", one of the New York's daily afternoon papers. Norris said in 2007 that he had inadvertently signed an exclusive contract with "PM" and not realized this for year, after which he had to give up the "Aquaman" feature. In 1943,King Features Syndicate assigned Norris to write and draw the existing strip "Secret Agent X-9 ", on which he worked for three months before being drafted into theU.S. Army .World War II
Norris said that during his
World War II military service as a techsergeant , "I did a little [comic] strip for the ship newspaper" that came to the attention of Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr. "He saw it and made the order that I be transferred from the82nd Signal Battalion to JIC POA 10th Army", where Norris illustratedpropaganda leaflets to be dropped from aircraft overOkinawa , urging Japanese soldiers to surrender. "I worked with aprisoner of war . We wanted the translations to be authentic". Norris in 2006 recalled the POW as George Totari, formerly a reporter for anEnglish language newspaper inJapan .While Norris told one interviewer that, "The Japanese came in with these things in their hands and wanted to surrender", he told another that the leaflet, designed to look like a comic-book page, had not yet gone into print when the
atomic bomb was dropped on Japan, scuttling the project.Brick Bradford and Gold Key
Following the war, Norris was rehired by
King Features Syndicate , and in 1948 began drawing the Sunday edition ofAustin Briggs 'comic strip "Jungle Jim ". He continued to freelance forDC Comics through 1953, drawing the detective feature "Captain Compass " in most issues of "Star Spangled Comics " #106-130 (July 1950 - July 1952), and the super-speedster feature "Johnny Quick " in "Adventure Comics " #171-186 (Dec. 1951 - March 1953).In 1952, Norris succeeded artist
Clarence Gray on thescience-fiction comic strip "Brick Bradford ", continuing to draw it for 35 years until his and the strip's retirement in 1987. The final daily appeared April 25, 1987.As well in the 1950s, Norris drew issues of
Dell Comics ' "Tom Corbett, Space Cadet " and "Jungle Jim ", the latter of which he had previously drawn as anewspaper comic strip . The following decade, he drew stories ofjungle adventurerTarzan and science-fiction heroMagnus, Robot Fighter in comic books forGold Key Comics .With writer
Gaylord DuBois , Norris co-created the Gold Key jungle characters Kono and Tono in the namesake series "The Jungle Twins", which ran 17 original issues (April 1972 - Nov. 1975), followed by reprints.Norris' last known comics story is co-penciling (with
Roman Arambula andScott Shaw ) the cover and the 17-pagefunny animal feature "Now You See Them...", starringYogi Bear ,Scooby Doo , and a plethora of otherHanna-Barbera animated TV series characters, in "Marvel Comics "' "Laff-A-Lympics " #10 (Dec. 1978). His last comics work was a drawing ofAquaman inDC Comics ' multi-artist, multi-character "History of the DC Universe" poster in 1987. [ [http://vu.morrissey-solo.com/moz/perez/info/history-poster1b.htm "History of the DC Universe" poster] ]Later life
Norris was living in
Oceanside, California at the time of his death. Norris and his wife Ann, who died in 2000, had two sons, Michael and Paul Jr. (called Reed).Footnotes
References
* [http://lambiek.net/artists/n/norris_p.htm The Lambiek Comiclopedia: Paul Norris] (Note: incorrectly refers to non-existent comic strip "Secret Agent K-9")
* [http://www.erbzine.com/mag10/1014.html "ERBZine" #1014]External links
* [http://www.newsfromme.com/archives/2006_02_06.html#010947 POV Online (Feb. 6, 2006): "News from Me" (column) - "Paul Norris Honored", by Mark Evanier]
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