Gene Colan, the Marvel artist, has passed at the age of 84. He was mostly known for his horror series "Dracula Lives", "Tomb of Dracula" and "Tomb of Shadows" among others. On the superhero side, he wrote for Captain America, Daredevil, Doctor Strange, Silver Surfer and the Sub-Mariner.
Most notably, he with Stan Lee, co-created the first African-American superhero The Falcon. When asked about the creation, Colan said in 2008:
"...in the late 1960s [when news of the] Vietnam War and civil rights protests were regular occurrences, and Stan, always wanting to be at the forefront of things, started bringing these headlines into the comics. ... One of the biggest steps we took in this direction came in Captain America. I enjoyed drawing people of every kind. I drew as many different types of people as I could into the scenes I illustrated, and I loved drawing black people. I always found their features interesting and so much of their strength, spirit and wisdom written on their faces. I approached Stan, as I remember, with the idea of introducing an African-American hero and he took to it right away. ... I looked at several African-American magazines, and used them as the basis of inspiration for bringing The Falcon to life."
His friend Clifford Meth had this to say:
"I regret to announce that my friend Gene Colan died at about 11 pm on June 23. Gene spent this last week in a quasi-coma state following a broken hip and complications from liver disease. He was 84.
I am terribly saddened to lose Gene. He was a gentle and deeply spiritual man, a bright light in every context, and those who knew him at any level were enriched by his warmth and generous nature. Below are some thoughts I cobbled together when he slipped from consciousness earlier this week.
I leave the historical perspective and details of Gene’s significant career to my friends Tom Spurgeon and Mark Evanier. For now, I mourn.
Clifford Meth"
Marvel has lost yet another fantastic artist. Please keep his family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.