| E. Nelson Bridwell | |
|---|---|
 Bridwell in 1974 | |
| Born | Edward Nelson Bridwell (1931-09-22)September 22, 1931 Sapulpa, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Died | January 23, 1987(1987-01-23) (aged 55) Kings County, New York, U.S. |
| Area(s) | Writer, editor |
Notable works | The Inferior Five |
| Awards | Bill Finger Award |
Edward Nelson Bridwell (September 22, 1931 – January 23, 1987) was an American writer forMad magazine (writing the now-famouscatchphrase, "What you mean...we?" in a 1958 parody ofThe Lone Ranger)[1] and variouscomic books published byDC Comics. One of the writers for theBatmancomic strip andSuper Friends, he also wroteTheInferior Five, among other comics. He has been called "DC's self-appointedcontinuity cop."[2]
Bridwell was born on his grand-parents' farm, Oak Hill Dairy, nearSapulpa, Oklahoma, a small city with at the time a population of a little over 10,000 people, and grew up in Oklahoma City.[3]
Bridwell's early childhood interest in mythology and folklore stayed with him throughout his professional life and permeated much of his work. He credited his fame to his third grade teacher, Ryan Samuel, for interesting him in comics. Bridwell "was one of the first 'comics fans' hired in the industry after the long, bleak 1950s".[4] Although his first published work consisted of a text page inAdventures into the Unknown #9 (Feb–March 1950) published by theAmerican Comics Group,[5] he had since he "was still a kid" created various characters who would later evolve into those used in comics such asThe Inferior Five.[4]
In 1962, while still residing inOklahoma City, Bridwell submitted to theMagazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction his first idea for aFeghoot adventure, a specific type ofshaggy dog story that ends in a humorous and unexpected play on words. His story was promptly accepted by the feature's pseudonymous author, Grendel Briarton (Reginald Bretnor), and shortly followed by yet another submission from Bridwell which was also accepted ("Dr. Jacqueline Missed Her Hide" and "Nude Rally Tea Pact", respectively.) BesidesF&SF, both stories would appear in the various Feghoot anthologies to follow.
After writing a few stories forMad and forKaty Keene, Bridwell began working forDC Comics in 1965 as an assistant to editorMort Weisinger, "on theSuperman titles, eventually becoming an editor himself (Lois Lane, and laterThe Superman Family)."[4] He wrote scripts for various Weisinger-edited series, such asSuperboy andThe Legion of Super-Heroes, as well as writing for DC anthology titles such asUnexpected, Mystery in Space andStrange Adventures.[3]Jim Shooter (who also worked with Weisinger) recalls that Weisinger did not always treat his assistant well, saying that his "assistant was Nelson Bridwell and boy, he tortured Nelson. He just was awful to Nelson."[6] Bridwell, however, recalled in 1980 an important lesson learned from Weisinger, that:
This lesson set him in good stead both when he helped DC produce three 1970s anthologies —Superman from the Thirties to the Seventies (1971),[7]Batman from the Thirties to the Seventies (1971),[8] andShazam from the Forties to the Seventies (1977)[4][9][10] — and when he wrote for the comic book series based on "one of the best rated TV shows on Saturday morning",Super Friends.[4]
Concurrent with his duties for DC, Bridwell "was submitting material as a freelancer toMad", some of which was illustrated byJoe Orlando, who Bridwell in 1965 first suggested as artist forThe Inferior Five.[11]
Recalling an early interest in comic bookcontinuity, Bridwell "remembered getting a bit perturbed at times when I was a kid by having things that didn't fit", particularly over the wide range ofMartian races in evidence in the adventures of DC'sAtom,Wonder Woman, and Superman characters.[4] Bridwell was also an early advocate of the theory that theMarvel and DC characters "exist in the same universe", citing early inter-companycrossovers such asSuperman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man and a cross-company interlocking storyline, with real-world crossover characters, betweenJustice League of America #103,Thor #207 andAmazing Adventures #16.[4]
Bridwell's love and knowledge of old comics led to his becoming editor on numerous reprint books, including digests, giant-size comics, and hardcover anthologies. He also worked as assistant editor toJulius Schwartz, keeping track of continuity between the numerousSuperman titles published. Part of his job was to manage theletter columns for all the Superman titles, and in response to constant reader questions, Bridwell standardized theKryptonian language and alphabet. Dubbed "Kryptonese", Bridwell established the 118-character alphabet, which was used by DC untilJohn Byrne's1986 "reboot" of the Superman universe.[12]
Bridwell andJoe Orlando created theInferior Five inShowcase #62 (May–June 1966).[13] Talking about the humorous super-hero series, Bridwell recalls that:
Bridwell wrote for several other DC titles, includingAction Comics,Adventure Comics,Shazam!,Superman,The Superman Family,World's Finest Comics, andTheLegion of Super-Heroes.
Bridwell and artistFrank Springer co-created theSecret Six in the first issue of the team's eponymous series in May 1968.[14] The first use of theSuper Friends name on a DC Comics publication was inLimited Collectors' Edition #C–41 (December 1975–January 1976) which reprinted stories fromJustice League of America within a new framing sequence by Bridwell and artistAlex Toth.[15][16] In 1976, Bridwell andRic Estrada launched an ongoingSuper Friends comic book series.[17]
Bridwell edited DC Comics' first comic booklimited series,The World of Krypton (July–September 1979).[18] He co-wroteSecrets of the Legion of Super-Heroes withPaul Kupperberg[19] and followed it withThe Krypton Chronicles.[20]
He co-created the Justice League membersFire andIce[21] in theSuper Friends series and introduced theGlobal Guardians inDC Comics Presents #46 (June 1982).[22]
He wroteCaptain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew!,TheOz/Wonderland War trilogy, as well as occasional stories for the black-and-white horror comicsCreepy andEerie, published byWarren Publishing. His last freelance writing work was forCracked magazine.[5]
As an editor, Bridwell compiled a number of issues ofDC 100 Page Super Spectacular, collecting out-of-print stories from the DC archive, often under new covers featuring a Bridwell-created character key.[21][23]
Following his death from lung cancer on January 23, 1987, his papers were acquired by the McFarlin Library at theUniversity of Tulsa in 1989.[24]
In 2005, Bridwell was posthumously inducted into the Oklahoma Cartoonists Hall of Fame inPauls Valley, Oklahoma, located in theToy and Action Figure Museum.[25][26] In 2019, he was recognized with theBill Finger Award.[27]
Since I can't find any other published reference to it that predates Bridwell's, I think it is fair to give him the credit.
I had illustrated some of Nelson's material; he liked my art enough that when they were looking for an artist to do "The Inferior Five" - Nelson's creation - he suggested that I do it and I was happy to oblige.
Writer E. Nelson Bridwell and artist Joe Orlando knew what was in a name when they unleashed the Inferior Five in Megalopolis.
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