Karen: I just heard that writer Les Daniels, who wrote a number of top-notch reference books on comics, has passed away. I have his Marvel:Five Fabulous Decades and enjoyed reading it. I'm very sorry to hear of his demise.Doug: Thanks, Karen -- I'd not heard this until I saw your post. A quick jump over to Wikipedia produced a list of the treasure trove of comic book literature Daniels produced. I've "bolded" the books I own, and must say that I am happy to have them. Indeed, he will be missed.
- Comix: A History of the Comic Book in America (1971)
- Living in Fear: A History of Horror in the Mass Media (1975)
- Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics (1991)
- DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World’s Favorite Comic Book Heroes (1995)
- Superman, the Complete History: The Life and Times of the Man of Steel (1998)
- Superman: Masterpiece Edition (1999)
- The Complete History: The Life and Times of the Dark Knight Batman (1999)
- The Complete History: Wonder Woman (2000)
- The Golden Age of the Amazon Princess: Wonder Woman (2001)
- The Golden Age of DC Comics: 365 Days (2004)
8 comments:
It's sad news indeed. Twenty years after buying it, his history of Marvel is still one of the few books in my possession that I wouldn't dream of parting with.
Can only echo Steve's sentiments, and thank you guys for letting us know. Since I'm not a D.C. guy, his Marvel book is the only one I own, but it is quite invaluable.
A shame indeed. Does anyone know what age he was, or what he died of? He didn't appear to be that old in his photos used in the books.
Kid, according to Wikipedia, he was 68. It doesn't say how he died.
His book Comix: A History of the Comic Book in America was the first book about comics I ever read. It exposed me for the first time to undergrounds, EC and many other areas of our hobby. I'm saddened to hear of his passing.
Way back at the beginning of this blog, when I was doing my "Doug's Stuff" feature, I showed my copy of Daniel's Marvel and DC coffee table books. I'd taken each of them with me to WizardWorld Chicago on several occasions. While each of those books would be welcome on anyone's book shelf, the fact that mine contain the autographs of the likes of Stan Lee, John Romita, Sal Buscema, Mart Nodell, and Murphy Anderson now make them priceless.
Doug
Like Matthew, I don’t do DC, so I only know the Marvel book that Karen pictured, but what a superb read, full of information, beautifully crafted, just enough detail about the creators but always focussed on the history. Absolutely indispensable.
Kid – he died of a heart attack.
Richard
May he rest in peace.
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