Kane, Gil
Entry updated 2 March 2026. Tagged: Author, Comics.
Working name of Latvian-born comics artist Eli Katz (1926-2000), whose family immigrated to the US in 1929; he studied at the Manhattan School of Industrial Art and was active in comics from 1941 to 1999. He created the mature incarnations of the Superheroes Green Lantern and The Atom for DC Comics, and also worked for most other major comics companies including Marvel Comics. He is of particular importance as a pioneer of the Graphic Novel, publishing the sf spy thriller His Name Is ... Savage (graph 1968 chap) and the Post-Holocaust Science Fantasy/Sword and Sorcery adventure Blackmark (graph 1971), both conceived by Kane and scripted by Archie Goodwin writing as by Robert Franklin. Kane's sequel to Blackmark, "The Mind Demons", occupied the whole of Marvel Preview #17 (Winter 1979) in slightly condensed form (62 pages) and was incorporated at full size (117 pages) into the thirtieth anniversary reissue Blackmark (graph omni 2002). With Ron Goulart writing the scripts, he published the daily space-adventure comic strip Star Hawks (1977-1981). His artistic skills were widely admired; he received many comics awards.
Kane also co-authored the Arthurian epic novel Excalibur! (1980) with John Jakes. Marking his lifetime achievement in the comics field, he entered the Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame in 1997. [DRL]
see also: Mystery in Space; Strange Adventures; Undersea Agent; Worlds Unknown.
Eli Katz
born Riga, Latvia: 6 April 1926
died Miami, Florida: 31 January 2000
works
- His Name Is ... Savage (Adventure House Press, 1968) [chap: graph: pb/Robert Foster]
- Blackmark (New York: Bantam Books, 1971) [graph: pb/Gil Kane]
- Blackmark (Seattle, Washington: Fantagraphics Books, 2002) [graph: omni of the above and its sequel The Mind Demons (Winter 1979 Marvel Preview #17): pb/Gil Kane]
- Excalibur! (New York: Dell Books, 1980) with John Jakes [pb/]
links
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