Legendary comic book artist John Romita Sr., who co-created Marvel characters Wolverine, the Punisher, and Mary Jane Watson, died on Tuesday. He was 93.
Romita Sr,’s death was confirmed by son, comics artist John Romita Jr., in a post on Twitter.
Photo: Variety
“I say this with a heavy heart,” Romita Jr. wrote. “My father passed away peacefully in his sleep. He is a legend in the art world and it would be my honor to follow in his footsteps. Please keep your thoughts and condolences here out of respect for my family. He was the greatest man I ever met.”
A Storied Career
Romita Sr. was born in Brooklyn on January 24, 1930. While the comic book artist is best remembered for his work with Marvel, he also did time at DC Comics early in his career.
Photo: Also Marvel. A panel by John Romita Sr.
Romita Sr. began his career at Timely Comics in the 1940s, the studio would eventually become Marvel. In the 50s and 60s however, the famed comic book artist worked at DC.
In 1966, he took over for Steve Ditko on “The Amazing Spider-Man” series, where he worked alongside Marvel editor-in-chief Stan Lee.
Stan Lee and John Romita Sr.
While working on “Spider-Man”, Romita Sr. introduced Peter Parker’s love interest, Mary Jane Watson.
Additionally, Romita Sr. was responsible for the creation of other enduring “Spider-Man” characters including villains Kingpin, Vulture, Hammerhead, Shocker, the Hobgoblin.
A Collection of John Romita covers
During his “Spider-Man” run, Romita Sr. also worked on the “The Night Gwen Stacy Died”, which is considered to be perhaps the high water mark for the series.
Work Outside Of “Spider-Man”
Outside of “Spider-Man”, Romita Sr. also helped create Luke Cage and Daredevil villain Bullseye. His death comes the just as “Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse” continues its historic box office run.
A collection of John Romita Sr. panels. Photo: Also Marvel
Following his the news of his death, Marvel released a statement saying in part, “The Marvel family has lost one of its legends, and we mourn the loss of a creative giant. Our hearts are with his family and loved ones as we remember his legacy.”
Photo: Spiderman Animated WIkia
Romita Sr. was inducted into the Eisner Awards Hall of Fame in 2002 and the Inkwell Awards Hall of Fame in 2020. He is survived by his wife, Virginia, and sons Romita Jr. and Victor.
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