"Howard the Duck" Creator Steve Gerber Dies
St. Louis native Steve Gerber, creator of the "Howard the Duck" comic book series, died Feb. 11 in Las Vegas while awaiting a lung transplant. He was 60.
The wise-quacking, cigar-smoking duck first appeared in a "Man-Thing" comic in 1973. Gerber wrote 27 issues of "Howard the Duck," which became a cult hit, and my all-time favorite comic book, other than Batman. I remember being jealous of my friiend Bill back in high school. He had Howard #1, and it had quickly become a collector's item. I looked high and low but could never find a copy, until last year, when I found one on eBay for five bucks. Score.
Gerber had little involvement with George Lucas' ultra lame "Howard the Duck" feature film, but wrote for animated TV series such as "Dungeons and Dragons," "GI Joe," "Superman," and "The New Batman Adventures."
He also wrote for comics including "Daredevil," "The Phantom Zone" and "Guardians of the Galaxy" and created or co-created Destroyer Duck and Stewart the Rat. A proponent of comicbook writers rights, he sued Marvel over rights to "Howard the Duck," but the case was settled with Marvel retaining the rights.
With the loss of Gerber, the comics world has suffered a major blow. For us Howard fans, it is indeed a sad day. In the words of Howie, "Waaaaaggggh!"
Keep it Real. Keep it Southern.
Buffalo
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Comments
tuckerhead says...
bummer. I read that rag in high school myself.