Kevin Conroy, voice of Batman in cartoons, dies

Posted on November 11, 2022 by The Spy Commander

Logo for Batman: The Animated Series

Kevin Conroy, who became the voice of Bruce Wayne and Batman starting in 1992 with Batman: The Animated Series, died this week at 66, according to multiple media reports.

Here is an excerpt from the website of CBS:

The actor voiced the caped crusader in “Batman: The Animated Series,” which aired 85 episodes from 1992 to 1996 and in several DC animated movies and video games. In total, he brought the character to life in more than 60 projects. 

In 2019, he performed a live-action version of the role for the first time, appearing on the CW’s television event “Crisis on Infinite Earths” as a future version of Bruce Wayne.

CBS added this detail:

Conroy was the first and only openly gay actor to play Batman. In June 2022, Conroy wrote a comic called “Finding Batman” for DC Pride, where he reflected on his experience voicing the character while coming to terms with his sexuality. In a Twitter video shared shortly after the comic was published, Conroy thanked fans for their “overwhelming” support. 

Batman: The Animated Series ranks as one of the best — if not the best — adaptations of Batman. Conroy’s voice work was one of the reasons.

The show also adapted certain Batman comic stories, providing the writers of those stories credit. Batman: The Animated Series featured high production values and attracted actors such as Edward Asner, Efrem Zimbalist Jr. (as Alfred), Mark Hamill (as The Joker), John Vernon, Paul Williams (as the Penguin), and others. Adam West, star of the 1966-68 live-action Batman television show, also was a voice actor on Batman: The Animated Series.

Paul Dini, part of the production team, put out this tweet:

Filed under: Comic book movies | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Len Wein, co-creator of Wolverine, dies at 69

Posted on September 10, 2017 by The Spy Commander

Len Wein (1948-2017)

Len Wein, a comics fan turned comics professional, has died at 69, according to multiple posts on social meedia by comics professionals including Mark Millar and Kurt Busiek. .

Wein co-created the mutant character Wolverine while writing The Incredible Hulk for Marvel.

He also revived the X-Men in 1975, with a new cast, including Wolverine. (The X-Men originally were created in 1963 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.)

Wolverine helped make Hugh Jackman a star, both through X-Men and Wolverine movies. Jackman’s most recent performance as the character was in this year’s Logan.

At DC Comics, Wein wrote a number of Batman stories. One highlight was a 1970s story, Moon of the Wolf, illustrated by Neal Adams and Dick Giorddano, in which Batman encounters a warewolf. It would later be adapted in the Batman: The Animated Series.

Growing up in the greater New York area, Wein and friend Marv Wolfman (who would also become a comics professional) would visit the prolific Jack Kirby at his home.

“We came over for mile and cookies on Saturdays,” Wein said in a documentary about Kirby. When they’d see Kirby at his drawing board, Wein said, “His hand was always moving, producing.”

Such experiences presumably explain why Wein went into the field.

After becoming a writer at Marvel, he was named editor-in-chief after Roy Thomas (who had succeeded Stan Lee) stepped down. It wasn’t an easy time for the company. “Wein struggled with the constant cycle of cancellations and launches,” Sean Howe wrote in his book, Marvel Comics: The Untold Story. Wolfman took over.

Eventually, a number of people (Thomas, Wein, Wolfman and others) got deals where they were editors of the titles they wrote. In the late 1970s, these deals were ended and Jim Shooter was put in charge of Marvel’s titles.

Nevertheless, Wein stayed in the field for a long time. Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and director of the first two Avengers movie for Marvel, posted a tribute:

UPDATE (8:55 p.m. ET): Hugh Jackman posted a tribute to Len Wein on Twitter.

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Filed under: Comic book movies | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »