Don Heck (January 2, 1929-1995) was a comic book artist best known for co-creating the character Iron Man, and for his long run penciling The Avengers in the 1960s. Before then Heck worked on many horror and romance comics. January 2 is the second day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A comic book is a magazine or book containing the art form of comics. ... Iron Man is a Marvel Comics superhero. ... In producing a comic book, the penciller (or penciler) draws the comic based on the script created by the writer. ... The Avengers are a Marvel superhero team, consisting of many of the Marvel Universes most popular and powerful heroes and the Marvel Comics counterpart to DC Comics Justice League of America. ... The 1960s in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1960 and 1969, but the expression has taken on a wider meaning over the past twenty years. ...

In interviews Don Heck has indicated that his earliest comic work was with Harvey, starting in 1949. Apparently he also worked for Quality, Hillman and possibly Toby Press before finding his niche doing cover artwork including horror for Comic Media. There is no known checklist for this earlier work, so details are very vague.

Don Heck began working circa 1952-53 for Comic Media, which was particularly known for its horror tales. Don Heck was noted particularly for his cover art with this firm. Amongst Comic Media's titles were Danger, Death Valley, Dynamite, Horrific, Terrific, War Fury and Weird Terror. Circa 1954-55 the titles which survived the introduction of the Comics Code became part of Charlton Publications. The Comics Code Authority (CCA) is an organization founded in 1954 to act as a de facto censor for American comic books. ... Charlton Comics was a minor comic book publishing house that existed from 1946 to 1986, best known for several of its characters and some of the noteworthy creators who worked for it. ...

It is generally accepted by many knowledgable comics fans that Don Heck's earlier work was his very finest. His art for Comic Media is very dynamic and clear. The rather dark tales told in War Fury are truly haunting (tales in which the main character(s) of each story always dies in action -- most of these sober adventures take Korea as their setting), and Don's outstanding work ennobles these moving tales of fatal heroism.

Stan Lee met Don Heck circa 1954, and was impressed when he was made aware that this was the man behind Comic Media's stunning covers, and immediately hired him to work at Atlas Comics (Atlas later became Marvel Comics). Stan Lee and his most famous creation, Spider-Man. ... Marvel Comics, sometimes called by the nickname House of Ideas, is an American comic book company. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ...

Some of Don's very best work was done for Atlas Comics 1955-57. Whatever genre he turned his hand to in this era has an excellent result: western, jungle adventure, romance, military & naval, mystery/fantasy -- all are outstanding. Some of the jungle adventure tales really stand out as superior. Also many Atlas fans particularly treasure his artwork on naval and sea war adventures as being of special merit. Marvel Comics, sometimes called by the nickname House of Ideas, is an American comic book company. ...

Atlas Comics ceased to exist during the summer of 1957 when this brand-name (which began life as a distribution label) "imploded" reducing from around 70 titles down to 16. With the Atlas Implosion, the Atlas Globe disappered forever from Martin Goodman's comics. Don Heck, along with a multitude of freelancers, found himself without his major employer. Times were very hard for Don and many of those who worked for this major publisher. The sixteen titles which continued simply bore the "Ind." label (the same distrubutor who carried DC's comics). Marvel Comics, sometimes called by the nickname House of Ideas, is an American comic book company. ... Martin Goodman (born January 18, 1908, New York City; died June 6, 1992, Palm Beach, Florida) was an American publisher of pulp magazines, paperback books and comic books, launching the company that would become Marvel Comics. ...

By late 1958 Martin Goodman and Stan Lee had used up all the Atlas left-over inventory stories and were commissioning new work, and Don soon found himself again in their employ. By 1958 a tendency to use lots of "thatching" begins to be seen in Don's work, but in this late 50s era it is done exceedingly well. However, as the decade of the 60s emerged this tendency began to get more erratic and unclear. Martin Goodman (born January 18, 1908, New York City; died June 6, 1992, Palm Beach, Florida) was an American publisher of pulp magazines, paperback books and comic books, launching the company that would become Marvel Comics. ... Stan Lee and his most famous creation, Spider-Man. ...

Don Heck was a major participant in Martin Goodman & Stan Lee's short-lived space fantasy new direction in late 1958 when he drew the well known cover to Tales of Suspense #1 (cover dated January 1959). Heck also gave excellent atmospheric rendering to numerous jungle/prison escape and weird tales during the "pre-hero" or "fantasy/monster" period of Marvel Comics which grew out of the space fantasy year. Later some of these mysterious tales were reprinted in Fantasy Masterpieces (1966) and other 1970s reprint titles. Martin Goodman (born January 18, 1908, New York City; died June 6, 1992, Palm Beach, Florida) was an American publisher of pulp magazines, paperback books and comic books, launching the company that would become Marvel Comics. ... Stan Lee and his most famous creation, Spider-Man. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ...

Don Heck drew beautiful women, and these stand out in countless stories including Ind.-Marvel romance comics 1958-63. In the mid-1960s Don also drew numerous romance stories for DC.

Don Heck drew the very first Iron Man story in Tales of Suspense #39 (March 1963 cover date). Jack Kirby drew the cover, but it is Don's Iron Man which is remembered so clearly by countless comics fans. Iron Man began with a golden lumbering armor (grey in #39) for the first ten issues of Tales of Suspense before graduating to a much sleeker red-and-gold flexible armor (with minor variations in 1964-65). Don Heck also presided over the first appearance of Hawkeye, Marvel's archer supreme, in Tales of Suspense #57. The Fantastic Four, one of Kirbys most famous co-creations. ... Iron Man is a Marvel Comics superhero. ...

For many years Don Heck inked his own pencils. However, when Don was struggling to adjust to the Marvel method and Marvel's superhero expansion in general circa 1965, he was assigned the help of an inker for the first time. He successfully made this adjustment, and went on to be one of the best remembered artists on Avengers (comics)The Avengers in the mid-1960s. Eventually he returned to inking his own work in Avengers nos. 32-37.

Don continued to be active in comics in later years, drawing Justice League of America and other series for DC.

Heck died of lung cancer in 1995. The incidence of lung cancer is highly correlated with smoking. ...

External links

• Mark Evanier article on Don Heck's Career
• lambiek.net entry on Don Heck