On behalf of his family, Marvel Comics has announced that legendary comic book writer Gerry Conway has died. He was 73 years old. Best known for co-creating the Punisher, and writing The Amazing Spider-Man storyline “The Night Gwen Stacy Died,” Conway also penned the introduction of Ben Reilly, the Jackal, Werewolf by Night, Marvel’s Dracula, and Carol Danvers as Ms. Marvel. For DC, he co-created the characters of Firestorm, Power Girl, Jason Todd, Killer Croc, and more. Further work included films and television shows like Batman and Spider-Man: The Animated Series.
Born in New York City on September 10, 1952, Conway was a lifelong comics fan: one of his letters even appeared in 1966’s Fantastic Four #50. He made his professional debut aged only 16, with a story in DC’s House of Secrets #81, and after a few more years of contributing short stories, he befriended Marvel editor Roy Thomas. His credits soon extended to monthly stories in Astonishing Tales (starring Ka-Zar, lord of the Savage Land), Daredevil, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, and Amazing Adventures (featuring the Inhumans and Black Widow).
1971 saw him co-create Man Thing for Savage Tales, and the following year, he helped debut Marvel’s Dracula in Tomb of Dracula, and Werewolf by Night in Marvel Spotlight. That year also saw him succeed Spider-Man co-creator Stan Lee on the character’s title, kicking off a three-year run that brought about the deaths of Gwen Stacy and the Green Goblin/Norman Osborn, the debut of the Punisher, and the first Clone Saga. His association with Spider-Man continued with the series Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man, and the inaugural Marvel/DC crossover, Superman vs. the Amazing Spider-Man, in 1976, as well as Web of Spider-Man in 1985.
Conway briefly held the title of Marvel’s editor-in-chief in 1976, between Marv Wolfman and Archie Goodwin, before choosing to focus on writing instead. More credits for the company included Fantastic Four, Thor, Avengers, Defenders, as well as the Punisher’s first solo story in 1975’s Marvel Preview #2, and the first three issues of Ms. Marvel in 1976. He’d return to the company throughout the 2010s, writing Carnage, Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows, and various other titles. His last, in 2023, was What If…? Dark: Spider-Gwen (written with Jody Houser), which brought his career full circle by revisiting his most infamous story 50 years later.
Over at DC, he co-created Power Girl for 1976’s All Star Comics #58, and Firestorm, Steel/Hank Heywood, and Vixen for their own series in the years that followed. He wrote Justice League of America from 1978 to 1986, during which time he introduced Vibe and Gypsy, and also penned Superman, Batman, Action Comics, Detective Comics, Wonder Woman, New Gods, and Metal Men. Jason Todd, the second Robin, was introduced in 1983’s Batman #357, while Killer Croc debuted that same year in Detective Comics #523. Later work for the company included 2009’s The Last Days of Animal Man, and 2016’s Legends of Tomorrow tie-in comic.
He branched into feature films with 1983’s Fire and Ice, and 1984’s Conan the Destroyer (both co-written by Roy Thomas), and into TV, writing episodes of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, The Transformers, My Little Pony, The Centurions, Matlock, Law & Order, and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. He was a producer and story editor on Father Dowling Mysteries, and co-produced Diagnosis: Murder and Law & Order: Criminal Intent in addition to working on the writing team. Other work included the Star Trek newspaper strip, and the sci-fi prose novels The Midnight Dancers and Mindship.
Conway was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2022, but was declared cancer-free the following year. Politically progressive, he was well-aware that the Punisher’s symbol had been co-opted by right-wing groups and corrupt cops, and in 2020, joined a group of artists to reclaim the symbol for left-wing movements like Black Lives Matter, on a project called Skulls for Justice. “This character and symbol was never intended as a symbol of oppression,” he was quoted as saying at the time. “This is a symbol of a systematic failure of equal justice. It’s time to claim this symbol for the cause of equal justice and Black Lives Matter.”
He is survived by his wife, Laura Conway, and their daughter Rachel, as well as a daughter from his first marriage, Cara. His first wife was fellow comic book writer Carla Conway. He was recognized during his lifetime with an Inkpot Award in 2013, and is set to be inducted into the Eisner Hall of Fame later this year. You can read tributes to him from Marvel Comics president Dan Buckley, editor-in-chief C.B. Cebulski, and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige at the official website. The Beat would also like to offer its condolences to Conway’s family, and thank him for the wonderful characters and stories he provided during his life.
I’ve never been sure how Mr. Conway pronounced his first name. Did it sound like Jerry or Gary?
Pardon, my first comment should have included condolences to Mr. Conway’s family, friends, colleagues and many, many fans.