Learn More About The First Gay Character In Comics – Archie’s Kevin Keller

[Comicopolis]

"In a 2002 interview with the Traditional Values Coalition's executive director Andrea Sheldon Lafferty about the latest incarnation of the comic book character of the Rawhide Kid who was now homosexual, Stan Lee said, "years ago [a comic book] that I did, Sgt Fury, ...had a gay character.

 

One member of the platoon was called, I think, Percy Pinkerton. He was gay. We didn't make a big issue of it. In this comic book that I read, the word gay wasn't even used. He's just a colorful character who follows his own different drummer. He follows a different beat. But we're not proselytizing for gayness".

 

Pinky Pinkerton

 

Ah, so you're saying that Stan Lee thinks that prissy Brits are gay, got it.

 

I don't think Stan had too much influence in what went into the comics.

 

In your quote, he takes credit for it. I thought Stan wrote most of the comics in the 60s, at least the stories and the dialogue, although he'd often change any of it whenever the artists made good suggestions. My recollection of what he called the "Marvel Method" was he'd write a rough story outline, let the artists draw and plot it, then go back and write the dialogue in. Sometimes he'd have more than one artist do the story on a new title if he felt like one of them wasn't getting his character ideas right as was the case when he originally had Kirby do the Amazing Fantasy 15 story but didn't like his take on it and asked Ditko to re-do it.

 

The more you read about the 'Marvel Method' the more you realize just how much input the artists actually had in the plotting and writing.

[shadroch]

There was a character in a Marvel B&W magazine whose name I believe was Paradox. He certainly gave the impression of being gay. They later changed his bacsktory so that it turned out he had the ability to be either male or female as he desired, but that seems to have been a retro fit.

[fantastic_four]

"In a 2002 interview with the Traditional Values Coalition's executive director Andrea Sheldon Lafferty about the latest incarnation of the comic book character of the Rawhide Kid who was now homosexual, Stan Lee said, "years ago [a comic book] that I did, Sgt Fury, ...had a gay character.

 

One member of the platoon was called, I think, Percy Pinkerton. He was gay. We didn't make a big issue of it. In this comic book that I read, the word gay wasn't even used. He's just a colorful character who follows his own different drummer. He follows a different beat. But we're not proselytizing for gayness".

 

Pinky Pinkerton

 

Ah, so you're saying that Stan Lee thinks that prissy Brits are gay, got it.

 

I don't think Stan had too much influence in what went into the comics.

 

In your quote, he takes credit for it. I thought Stan wrote most of the comics in the 60s, at least the stories and the dialogue, although he'd often change any of it whenever the artists made good suggestions. My recollection of what he called the "Marvel Method" was he'd write a rough story outline, let the artists draw and plot it, then go back and write the dialogue in. Sometimes he'd have more than one artist do the story on a new title if he felt like one of them wasn't getting his character ideas right as was the case when he originally had Kirby do the Amazing Fantasy 15 story but didn't like his take on it and asked Ditko to re-do it.

 

The more you read about the 'Marvel Method' the more you realize just how much input the artists actually had in the plotting and writing.

 

I think they did ALL the plotting, that's what Stan has said. Stan just threw the ideas out there and wrote the dialogue. Stan's plots tend to suck anyway, but his dialogue was supreme. Best I've seen since him is Bendis. Seemed like a pretty open, collaborative environment and that he'd only override something if he just thought they were missing the boat. Maybe he was more overbearing and opinionated than he has subsequently described it. I know one idea Kirby had that I wish Stan hadn't overridden is that Kirby thought it was dumb for Galactus to be a big humanoid. I tend to agree.

[Ares]

"In a 2002 interview with the Traditional Values Coalition's executive director Andrea Sheldon Lafferty about the latest incarnation of the comic book character of the Rawhide Kid who was now homosexual, Stan Lee said, "years ago [a comic book] that I did, Sgt Fury, ...had a gay character.

 

One member of the platoon was called, I think, Percy Pinkerton. He was gay. We didn't make a big issue of it. In this comic book that I read, the word gay wasn't even used. He's just a colorful character who follows his own different drummer. He follows a different beat. But we're not proselytizing for gayness".

 

Pinky Pinkerton

 

Ah, so you're saying that Stan Lee thinks that prissy Brits are gay, got it.

 

I don't think Stan had too much influence in what went into the comics.

 

In your quote, he takes credit for it. I thought Stan wrote most of the comics in the 60s, at least the stories and the dialogue, although he'd often change any of it whenever the artists made good suggestions. My recollection of what he called the "Marvel Method" was he'd write a rough story outline, let the artists draw and plot it, then go back and write the dialogue in. Sometimes he'd have more than one artist do the story on a new title if he felt like one of them wasn't getting his character ideas right as was the case when he originally had Kirby do the Amazing Fantasy 15 story but didn't like his take on it and asked Ditko to re-do it.

 

The more you read about the 'Marvel Method' the more you realize just how much input the artists actually had in the plotting and writing.

 

I think they did ALL the plotting, that's what Stan has said. Stan just threw the ideas out there and wrote the dialogue. Stan's plots tend to suck anyway, but his dialogue was supreme. Best I've seen since him is Bendis. Seemed like a pretty open, collaborative environment and that he'd only override something if he just thought they were missing the boat. Maybe he was more overbearing and opinionated than he has subsequently described it. I know one idea Kirby had that I wish Stan hadn't overridden is that Kirby thought it was dumb for Galactus to be a big humanoid. I tend to agree.

 

I have heard it described that each species sees Galactus in their own way.

Humans see him humanoid,

Skrulls see him as a Skrull ect

[fantastic_four]

I know one idea Kirby had that I wish Stan hadn't overridden is that Kirby thought it was dumb for Galactus to be a big humanoid. I tend to agree.

 

I have heard it described that each species sees Galactus in their own way.

Humans see him humanoid,

Skrulls see him as a Skrull ect

 

I had forgotten about that. Was that a retcon fix to Stan's mistake, or did Stan put that in FF 48 to 50?

[Ares]

I know one idea Kirby had that I wish Stan hadn't overridden is that Kirby thought it was dumb for Galactus to be a big humanoid. I tend to agree.

 

I have heard it described that each species sees Galactus in their own way.

Humans see him humanoid,

Skrulls see him as a Skrull ect

 

I had forgotten about that. Was that a retcon fix to Stan's mistake, or did Stan put that in FF 48 to 50?

 

No Idea. I just remember reading it some where

[Prince Namor]

"In a 2002 interview with the Traditional Values Coalition's executive director Andrea Sheldon Lafferty about the latest incarnation of the comic book character of the Rawhide Kid who was now homosexual, Stan Lee said, "years ago [a comic book] that I did, Sgt Fury, ...had a gay character.

 

One member of the platoon was called, I think, Percy Pinkerton. He was gay. We didn't make a big issue of it. In this comic book that I read, the word gay wasn't even used. He's just a colorful character who follows his own different drummer. He follows a different beat. But we're not proselytizing for gayness".

 

Pinky Pinkerton

 

Ah, so you're saying that Stan Lee thinks that prissy Brits are gay, got it.

 

I don't think Stan had too much influence in what went into the comics.

 

In your quote, he takes credit for it. I thought Stan wrote most of the comics in the 60s, at least the stories and the dialogue, although he'd often change any of it whenever the artists made good suggestions. My recollection of what he called the "Marvel Method" was he'd write a rough story outline, let the artists draw and plot it, then go back and write the dialogue in. Sometimes he'd have more than one artist do the story on a new title if he felt like one of them wasn't getting his character ideas right as was the case when he originally had Kirby do the Amazing Fantasy 15 story but didn't like his take on it and asked Ditko to re-do it.

 

The more you read about the 'Marvel Method' the more you realize just how much input the artists actually had in the plotting and writing.

 

I think they did ALL the plotting, that's what Stan has said. Stan just threw the ideas out there and wrote the dialogue. Stan's plots tend to suck anyway, but his dialogue was supreme. Best I've seen since him is Bendis. Seemed like a pretty open, collaborative environment and that he'd only override something if he just thought they were missing the boat. Maybe he was more overbearing and opinionated than he has subsequently described it. I know one idea Kirby had that I wish Stan hadn't overridden is that Kirby thought it was dumb for Galactus to be a big humanoid. I tend to agree.

 

I always point to Stan's output of material minus Kirby or Ditko.

Not very impressive.

[fantastic_four]

I always point to Stan's output of material minus Kirby or Ditko.

Not very impressive.

 

What time period are you referring to? Certainly during the 60s he worked with a number of other artists besides those two who he worked similarly with.

[dupont2005]

Um...don't you mean the first gay character in _Archie_ comics?

 

Prior ones include Alpha Flight's Northstar, Flash Villain The Pied Piper, and the original Green Lantern, Alan Scott.

There's been gay characters in comics for decades.

This isn't even the first, and this is about 33 years old

 

 

 

According to Wikipedia, the first gay character that went beyond subtext and speculation was in Zap #3 in 1968

[MusterMark]

Yes, the difference lies mainly in whether one is considering only mainstream comics or underground comics as well.

 

[Dr. Balls]

Maybe the OP meant the first gay character with his own monthly comic?

 

BTW, can't say it enough how great it is that Archie Comics is actually addressing the issue in a realistic way.

[Bronty]

 

I always point to Stan's output of material minus Kirby or Ditko.

Not very impressive.

 

Stan had to run the entire company in addition to the creative endeavors though. I don't think that's really a fair comparison.

 

I know this much - however much or little stan contributed to the comics he's a pretty special guy (still pumping marvel in his 90s, are you kidding?) and I have no doubt that he would have had a huge effect on the culture and environment that enabled everything to happen as it did. Jack and Steve were super important as well of course.

[Legion HQ]

[nocutename]

I just copied the Strand's title even though I didn't think it was accurate. I think they meant to say Archie Comics. I know that there are some NYC boardies here that may want to go. I didn't know if CG or Events is the proper forum for this sort of thing.