When you think of the founding fathers of comic books – those few names that hang in the pantheon of comic book history – you think of Stan Lee, of Jack Kirby and of Steve Ditko. It is with great sadness that we must report the loss of Steve Ditko. He was 90 years old.
Not much is known about Steve Ditko’s personal life as he was famously reclusive and, in the stylings of J.D. Salinger, infamously elusive in the limelight. It is said he used to work on his artwork at the McDonald’s in Times Square in the middle of the night. Ditko is known for his devout devotion to Ayn Randian Objectivism which bled over in to his later works such as with Mr. A. He refused consultation and a golden opportunity to shine in the starlight when Marvel Studios brought Doctor Strange to life on the “big screen”. He repeatedly refused interviews over the years, saying that his work should stand alone from the person who created it. I suppose this was him trying to remain objective about himself.
But his legion of fans and those who were impacted by his contributions knew better and, until the end, have wanted to pay respects and honor this amazing talent.
Steve Ditko is a wildly respected and celebrated man for his artistic talents and contributions to the comic book medium. Ditko is credited was co-creator of Spider-man and creator of much of Spider-man’s rogues gallery like The Sandman, Kraven, The Jackal, Electro, The Enforcers and Mysterio. He created Doctor Strange and his cast of trippy, halucingenic worlds and creations like Dormammu, The Mindless Ones, The Ancient One, Baron Mordo. For D.C. Comics, he created The Question, Hawk and Dove, Ted Kord, The Creeper. He created The Madmen for Charlton Comics but this property was later purchased by D.C. Comics and became Supervillains for Blue Beetle and Hawk and Dove. Oh and Squirrel Girl; in fact she would be one of his last professional creations.
It is being reported that the New York Police Department found Ditko after a concerned social worker performed a welfare check on him at his Manhattan home. His cause of death is listed as arteriosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease. In other words, he had high blood pressure and clogged arteries and his heart failed.
We will bring you more if it should become available.
