Bill Schelly 1951 - 2019

Comics historian and writer Bill Schelly has died. The cause was multiple myeloma, a cancer of the blood cells. He was 67.


Bill was a comics fan and also a writer of books about comic book creators. He wrote a lot, shedding the light on the fans and the creative professionals in the comic book (and sometimes movie) business. A few of his books are:

• Sense of Wonder: A Life in Comic Fandom (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2001; revised North Atlantic Books, 2018)
• Man of Rock: A Biography of Joe Kubert (Fantagraphics, 2008)
• Harry Langdon: His Life and Films (substantially revised and appended second edition, McFarland, 2008)
• Founders of Comic Fandom: Profiles of 90 Publishers, Dealers, Collectors, Writers, Artists and Other Luminaries of the 1950s and 1960s (McFarland Books, 2010)
• American Comic Book Chronicles: The 50's (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2013)
• Harvey Kurtzman: The Man Who Created Mad and Revolutionized Humor in America (Fantagraphics, 2015)
• Otto Binder: The Life and Work of a Comic Book and Science Fiction Visionary (North Atlantic Books, 2016)
• John Stanley: Giving Life To Little Lulu (Fantagraphics, 2017)

Nick Caputo has a wonderful recap of Bill's life here. In Bill's autobiography, he recounts the moment he discovered comic books and became a fan. His high school friend in Pittsburgh, William Shields, also collected comics:

"What's This?" I asked Richard, pointing to the sheet with the Eye character. "Some kind of comic book?" "Yeah." "Where do you buy it? I've never seen this character on the racks." I wondered if there were regional comic book companies that didn't distribute their wares in Pittsburgh. "Idiot!" He said, laughing. "It's not like a regular comic book. You have to send away for it. It's probably printed like Rocket's Blast-Comiccollector." We looked through the copy of RB-CC which was duplicated by the same printing method our school teachers used for pop quizzes and worksheets. I didn't know the name of the process, but the print was purple. We were captivated by page after page of advertisements for old comic books, some dating back to the 1940s. Shields let out a long whistle. "Look at this! someone wants fifteen bucks for Captain America # 1!" "That's nuts!" I replied, shaking my head. "Who would pay that much?" "I don't know, but a lot of the other old stuff is only three or four bucks. I think I'll get some of 'em, if I can figure out which ones are the best." "That's too much for me, but here's a copy of Spider-Man # 1 for a buck-fifty. I think I'll send for that." Although the ads for much-sought-after back issues were fascinating, I was equally interested in the fanzines that promised information about comics of the past. Just the idea that you could buy a bunch of different magazines about comics fascinated me. What a momentous, mind-boggling development this was! My joy know no bounds!

This is a terrible loss and one that is sudden. I had not heard that he was battling cancer. The idea that we have lost him and the potential of more of his writing is a sad thought to contemplate. He will be missed.

Related:

Bill Schelly site

Mark Evanier