E-Man is a comic-book character, a superhero created by writer Nicola Cuti and artist Joe Staton for the American company Charlton Comics in 1973.[1] Although the character's original series was short-lived, the lightly humorous hero has become a cult classic occasionally revived by different independent comics publishers. The character was originally owned by Charlton but was eventually transferred to its creators.
Cuti said that his inspirations included the Golden Age of Comics superhero Plastic Man, such that he wanted to create a similarly fun and whimsical character. Cuti also admired Albert Einstein and his formula E=mc2. He conceived a character who was caught in a factory explosion and became an energy being that could take any form of matter. When he shared this idea with artist Joe Staton, Staton felt the origin was too similar to that of Charlton's Captain Atom and the atomic-accident origins that had often been used by Marvel Comics writer-editor Stan Lee. Inspired by the works of Arthur C. Clarke, Cuti created a new origin that made E-Man a packet of sentient energy created as a star went nova.[6]
Cuti asked Staton to design the costume, requiring only that the character not wear a cape and that the formula E=mc2 be his chest emblem.[6] Staton based E-Man's face on that of actor Roger Moore, making him appear heroic but somewhat generic.[7] When Staton delivered his design to Cuti, Cuti colored it with yellows and oranges to differentiate it from the reds and blues so frequently in other superhero costumes.[6]
E-Man took a light whimsical tone to differentiate itself from super hero comics at Marvel and DC.[8] Cuti enjoyed scripting wisecracking banter between E-Man and his girlfriend, Nova Kane, inspired by movies like The Thin Man and Mr. and Mrs. North. However, he did not intend to spoof superhero comics, but present serious situations that the characters could make light of.[4] Inspired by the work of Wally Wood in MAD magazine, Staton inserted sight gags into each issue.[6]
Cuti promoted E-Man in advance of the first issue by sending letters to assorted fanzines, such as Rocket's Blast ComiCollector[9] and The Comic Reader,[10] with a photostat illustration of the titular hero. The letter announced Charlton's re-entrance into the superhero genre and promised that one-third of each issue would feature a new superhero,[9][10] an idea suggested by Wildman to try out new superhero properties.[11]
Charlton Comics
E-Man first appeared in E-Man #1,[12]cover-dated October 1973, on a bi-monthly publishing schedule. In the first issue, E-Man tangles with "the Brain from Sirius", a giant villainous pink brain in a clear Plexiglas dome who crash-lands on Earth and wants to detonate its "hate bomb".[13] The series ran for 10 issues until cover date September 1975.[14]
Cuti suggested the title "E-Mail",[15] for the series' letter column, a term not yet in common use.[6] The last four issues, along with other Charlton titles, featured painted covers after Charlton began working with a Texas company that could do painted color separations cheaper than Charlton could do hand separations.[16]
Due to a nationwide paper shortage caused by a Canadian paper-mill strike,[17] six months passed between issues #2 and #3. This gave Cuti and Staton time to push other material back and produce a story titled "The Energy Crisis",[18] a social commentary on the 1973 oil crisis. This gap in publication also gave Staton the opportunity to refine the title's art style, making it darker and moodier.[6]
E-Man was Charlton's lowest-selling title on newsstands but was the company's best-selling subscription. When Wildman told Cuti that the title was to be cancelled after issue #10, he explained that the publisher had allowed it to continue publication to that point only out of loyalty to Cuti.[3][4][8]CPL Gang publisher Bob Layton agreed to publish E-Man stories in the fanzine Charlton Bullseye,[19] but only a single story saw print, "...And Why the Sea Is Boiling Hot" in issue #4 of that title.[20]
Steve Ditko's "Killjoy", a two-issue backup feature.
All issues of E-Man except for #8 featured a backup story:
"The Knight", by Cuti and artist Tom Sutton, appeared in the first issue, starring a superspy agent of C.H.E.S.S.[21]
"The Dragon Killer", by writer Joe Gill and artist Wayne Howard, appeared in issue #3, which featured Travis, a time-travelling youngster.[22]
"Killjoy", written and illustrated by Steve Ditko, appeared in issues #2 and #4, expressing a similar tone and philosophy as another Ditko creation, Mr. A.[23] The stories featured a silent but frenetic hero battling criminals who protested that Killjoy's constant interruption of their crimes was a violation of their rights.[24][25]
In E-Man #5, "The City Swallower" featured a character based on Heidi Saha, the science-fiction and comic-book costume and cosplay legend.[26]
"Liberty Belle", by artist Joe Gill and artist Steve Ditko, was featured in issue #5.[27] The character was to be the company's "women's libber".[28] Artists Mike Vosburg and Dan Adkins worked on the character's development but were replaced by Ditko.[28]
"Rog-2000" was featured in issues #6,[29] #7,[30] #9[31] and #10,[32] written by Cuti with artist John Byrne making his professional comics debut.[11] Rog-2000 was the most popular of the back-up features[4] and Byrne had several ideas to expand the character into its own title.[33] Staton and Byrne formed a friendly rivalry during the feature's run, with each of them inserting sight gags to jab at the other.[11]
A supporting character, the grubby but right-hearted detective Michael Mauser, got his own backup series in Charlton's Vengeance Squad.[34] In 1977, six issues were reprinted under the Modern Comics label for sale as bagged sets in North American discount department stores.[3][35]
First Comics
When Staton became art director at First Comics, the publisher acquired the rights to the character from Charlton[36] and launched a series. Cuti was asked to write the title, but his obligations to DC Comics prevented him from accepting. The series was initially written by Martin Pasko, who had previously worked with Staton on Plastic Man and Metal Men. After Pasko's run, Staton[37] and Paul Kupperberg[38] wrote the series until Cuti took over as writer with issue #24.[39]
As a direct-market publisher not distributed to newsstands, the First series was not obligated to seek Comics Code Authority approval and could address more mature topics than Code-approved comics. Where the Charlton series featured broad whimsical themes, the First Comics series engaged in more specific satire[40] directed at targets including the X-Men, Steven Spielberg, and Scientology.[36]
The first 10 issues each contained a one-page parody of the Hostess snack advertisements that ran in comics through the 1970s and 1980s.[41] These parodies were written and drawn by different creators and featured characters from across the independent comics industry. These parodies included:
Issue #10 did not feature comics characters but parodied the First Comics office; it was written and drawn by Bruce Patterson.[51]
E-Man ended with issue #25. It was followed by the seven issue mini-series The Original E-Man and Michael Mauser, reprinting the Charlton series and Mauser's backup stories in Vengeance Squad.[52] Issue #7 of the miniseries featured a previously unpublished story introducing E-Man's sister Vamfire.[53]
During the mid-1980s run, Staton acquired rights to the character from First, although First Comics retained ownership of their publications. As Staton described:
The deal with E-Man was that I had an arrangement with First Comics so that they bought the rights to E-Man from Charlton, and then I was to repay First all their expense out of my royalties. The rights to E-Man were then supposed to revert to me completely. But some of us needed more lawyers than we knew, and the end result of how it stands, as I understand it, is that I have the right to do any new E-Man stories I want to, and I have the right to license any new E-Man material I want. Ken Levin, the lawyer for First, controls the rights to what First published. To keep the rights unified, Ken and I decided he would represent the whole E-Man package. ... [W]hatever I get in, Nick [Cuti] gets 50%, but so far, it's been nothing.[54]
Later publications
In 1989, Comico published an E-Man one-shot (Sept. 1989) by Cuti and Staton[55] followed by a three-issue miniseries (Jan.-March 1990).[56] After Comico's demise, Alpha Productions issued two one-shot publications, E-Man (Sept. 1993) and E-Man Returns (1994).[57][58]
E-Man appeared in the two-page story "Come and Grow Old With Me", by Cuti and Staton, published in the magazine Comic Book Artist #12 (March 2001).
In 2006, Cuti and Staton produced three one-shots released by Digital Webbing PressE-Man: Recharged (Oct. 2006); E-Man: Dolly (Sept. 2007); and E-Man: Curse of the Idol, per its cover-logo trademark, a.k.a. E-Man: The Idol, as copyrighted, per its postal indicia (Nov. 2008) abetted by co-writer Randy Buccini on the third.[59][60][61][62] The indicia for each listed E-Man as copyrighted by "Joe Staton/First Comics".
A previously unpublished E-Man story (done originally for Alpha Productions) by Cuti & Staton saw print in Charlton Spotlight #6 (2008) along with an unpublished Mike Mauser story.[63]
In 2011, E-Man appeared in War of the Independents, a (still-unfinished) crossover mini-series by Dave Ryan featuring more than 200 independent and creator-owned characters.[64]
In 2014, Charlton Neo announced that Cuti and Staton were collaborating on a new three-part E-Man story to be published in an upcoming issue of Charlton Action, a tribute comic fanzine celebrating Charlton's legacy. Staton stated that he was approaching the project as the final E-Man story.[65] The story was finally published in three issues of a rebooted Charlton Arrow in 2017 and 2018.[66]
Fictional character biography
E-Man is a sentient packet of energy thrown off by a nova. Traveling the galaxy it learned about life, how to duplicate the appearance of life, and about good and evil. Reaching Earth, it met exotic dancer/grad student Katrinka Colchnzski (who attended Xanadu University), also known as Nova Kane, and formed itself into a superhero dubbed E-Man, with a civilian identity dubbed "Alec Tronn" (electron). His emblem was the famous mass-energy equivalence formula "E=mc2", and his powers included firing energy blasts from his hands and transforming his body into anything he could envision (e.g., turning his feet into jet engines so he could fly).
E-Man's origin was expanded by retcon in Charlton issue #10 and in the First Comics series.
Nova was later caught in a nuclear explosion, gained the same powers as E-Man, and became his partner; later still, she lost her powers (in a parody of X-Men's Phoenix) and then regained them. During their early adventures they acquired a pet koala named Teddy Q, whose intelligence grew to the point where he had a job waiting tables in a café.
Stephen John Ditko was an American comic book writer best known for being the co-creator of Marvel superhero Spider-Man and creator of Doctor Strange. He also made notable contributions to the character of Iron Man, introducing the character's red and yellow design.
John Lindley Byrne is a British-born American comic book writer and artist of superhero comics. Since the mid-1970s, Byrne has worked on many major superheroes; with noted work on Marvel Comics's X-Men and Fantastic Four. Byrne also facilitated the 1986 relaunch of DC Comics's Superman franchise with the limited series The Man of Steel, the first issue of which featured the comics' first variant cover.
Charlton Comics was an American comic-book publishing company that existed from 1945 to 1986, having begun under a different name: T. W. O. Charles Company, in 1940. It was based in Derby, Connecticut. The comic-book line was a division of Charlton Publications, which published magazines, puzzle books, and briefly, books, under the imprints Monarch and Gold Star. It had its own distribution company, Capital Distribution.
Digital Webbing is an American comic book publishing company founded by Ed Dukeshire.
Rog-2000 is a fictional robot that was the first professional creation of comic book artist-writer John Byrne. Rog-2000 serves as the mascot of Byrne Robotics.
Nicola Cuti, known as Nick Cuti, was an American artist and comic book writer/editor, science-fiction novelist; he was the co-creator of E-Man and Moonchild, Captain Cosmos, and Starflake the Cosmic Sprite. He also worked as an animation background designer, magazine illustrator, and screenwriter.
Joseph P. Gill was an American magazine writer and highly prolific comic book scripter. Most of his work was for Charlton Comics, where he co-created the superheroes Captain Atom, Peacemaker, and Judomaster, among others. Comics historians consider Gill a top contender as the comic-book field's most prolific writer. Per historian and columnist Mark Evanier, Gill "wrote a staggering number of comics. There are a half-dozen guys in his category. If someone came back and said he was the most prolific ever, no one would be surprised."
George Wildman was an American cartoonist most noted for his work in the comic books industry. From 1971 until 1985, he was a top editor at Charlton Comics, where he also became the long-time regular artist on Popeye comic books.
Francis X. McLaughlin was an American comics artist who co-created the comic book character Judomaster, drew the comic strip Gil Thorp, and assisted on such strips as Brenda Starr, Reporter and The Heart of Juliet Jones. He also wrote and illustrated books about cartooning and comic art.
Wayne Wright Howard was an American comic book artist. He is best known for his 1970s work at Charlton Comics. Although many other artists had signed their cover artwork, he became American comic books' first series creator known to be credited by the publisher on covers, with the horror anthology Midnight Tales announcing "Created by Wayne Howard" on each issue — "a declaration perhaps unique in the industry at the time".
Doomsday + 1 is an American post-apocalyptic comic-book series that was published by Charlton Comics in the 1970s.
Charlton Spotlight is an American magazine that explores the history of the Charlton Comics Group. It is published by Argo Press. Its publisher/editor is Michael Ambrose. The first issue was published in fall 2000 and nine issues have come out so far, the latest (No.9) cover dated 2015.
Space Adventures is an American science-fiction anthology comic book series that was published sporadically by Charlton Comics from 1952 to 1979. Its initial iteration included some of the earliest work of industry notables Steve Ditko, Dick Giordano, and Tony Tallarico, and at least one story by EC Comics mainstay Bernard Krigstein.
Ghost Manor is a horror-suspense anthology comic book series that was published by Charlton Comics from 1968 to 1984. Volume one was "hosted" by the Old Witch, while volume two was hosted by Mr. Bones.
Haunted is a horror-suspense anthology comic book series that was published by Charlton Comics from 1971 to 1984. The book was "hosted" by Impy, a pint-sized ghost dressed in an all-white superhero costume. With issue #21, the book's host became Baron Weirwulf. From that point forward, Haunted's title was changed to Baron Weirwulf's Haunted Library.
Ghostly Haunts is an American horror-suspense anthology comic book series that was published by Charlton Comics from 1971 to 1978. The book was "hosted" by Winnie the Witch, a "moddish" blue-skinned witch.
Scary Tales is a horror-suspense anthology comic book series that was published by Charlton Comics from 1975 to 1984. The book was "hosted" by Countess R. H. Von Bludd, an alluring female vampire in a tight-fitting dress. Artist Steve Ditko was a regular contributor to the book during its entire run.
Midnight Tales is an American horror-suspense anthology comic book series created by Wayne Howard that was published by Charlton Comics from 1972 to 1976. The book was "hosted" by Professor Coffin and his niece Arachne. The setting, Xanadu University, was a tie-in with the Charlton series E-Man.
The CPL Gang was a group of comic book enthusiasts who published a number of fanzines in the mid-1970s, including Contemporary Pictorial Literature (CPL) and Charlton Bullseye. Founded by Roger Stern and Bob Layton, the CPL Gang eventually included Roger Slifer, Duffy Vohland, Tony Isabella, Don Maitz, Michael Uslan, Steven Grant, and John Byrne, all of whom later became comics professionals.
Haunted Love is a horror-romance anthology comic book series that was published by American company Charlton Comics from 1973 to 1975. It was part of the Gothic Romance comic book mini-trend of the era, which included the short-lived DC Comics series The Dark Mansion Of Forbidden Love and The Sinister House of Secret Love, and Atlas/Seaboard Comics' one-shot magazine Gothic Romances. Haunted Love was also part of Charlton's wave of early 1970s horror-themed titles, including Ghostly Haunts, Haunted, Midnight Tales, and Scary Tales.
References
↑ Markstein, Don. "E-Man". Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
1 2 3 4 Cooke, Jon B. (March 2001). "Wildman Times at Charlton". Back Issue! (#12). Raleigh, North Carolina, United States: TwoMorrows Publishing.
1 2 3 4 Cooke, Jon B. (March 2001). "Nicola Cuti Interview: Cuti of the Cosmos". Back Issue!. Raleigh, North Carolina, United States: TwoMorrows Publishing.
1 2 3 4 5 6 Ambrose, Michael (December 2005). "Pro2Pro: Nick Cuti and Joe Staton". Back Issue!. Raleigh, North Carolina, United States: TwoMorrows Publishing.
↑ Ambrose, Michael (December 2005). "Pro2Pro: Nick Cuti and Joe Staton". Back Issue! (#12). Raleigh, North Carolina, United States: TwoMorrows Publishing. "...I realized that was the look I was looking for, just more of an Americanized version of Roger Moore. Just charming and heroic looking, but kind of generic".
1 2 Bethke, Marilyn; Koehn, Alexandre (March 1979). "Joe Staton Interview". The Comics Journal (#45). Stamford, Connecticut, United States: Fantagraphics, Inc.
1 2 The Rocket's Blast Comicollector (#100). Brooklyn, New York, United States: S.F.C.A.{{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
1 2 Levitz, Paul (April 1973). "ET AL". The Comic Reader. Brooklyn, New York, United States: TCR Publications.
↑ Cooke, Jon B. (March 2001). "Joe Staton Interview: Man of Energy!". Comic Book Artist (#12). Raleigh, North Carolina, United States: TwoMorrows Publishing.
↑ Tiefenbacher, Michael, ed. (December 1973). "ET AL: Charlton News". The Comic Reader (#102). Brooklyn, New York, United States: TCR Publications.
↑ Cuti, Nicola(w),Staton, Joe(a)."The Energy Crisis"E-Man,no.3(June 1974).Derby, Connecticut:Charlton Publications, Inc..
↑ In an interview in the Warren fanzine SPOOKY #2 (2005), writer Nick Cuti confirmed that "the female character in 'The City Swallower' was based on Heidi Saha: "I met the Sahas early in my career and found them to be charming people and great comic book fans. So, as a 'thank you' for their kindness I made Heidi and her father into characters in an issue of E-MAN".
↑ Gill, Joe(w),Ditko, Steve(a)."Liberty Belle in Freedom's Star"E-Man,no.5(November 1974).Derby, Connecticut:Charlton Publications, Inc..
1 2 Sinkovac, Jerome, ed. (May 1974). "ET AL: Charlton News". The Comic Reader (#106). Brooklyn, New York, United States: TCR Publications.
↑ Cuti, Nicola(w),Byrne, John(a)."That Was No Lady"E-Man,no.6(January 1975).Derby, Connecticut:Charlton Publications, Inc..
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