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Comic Book Legend Len Wein Has Passed Away at Age 69

The comic book industry lost another legend this weekend. Celebrated writer and editor Len Wein passed away on Sunday. Word first broke on social media posts from his colleagues and peers, but further details about Wein’s death are currently unknown. He was 69 years old.

Wein was one of the first Silver Age comic book fans to break into the industry as a professional, and he got his start with an issue of Daredevil in 1970. One year later, Wein and artist Bernie Wrightson created the iconic DC horror character, Swamp Thing. Wein went on to write several DC titles including Justice League of America and Batman. Among his many contributions to that comic book universe, Wein co-created the Human Target, Lucius Fox, and the third incarnation of Clayface.

But it was at Marvel that Wein unleashed his most popular creation: Wolverine. In 1974, Wein and artists Herb Trime and John Romita Sr. introduced Wolverine within the pages of Incredible Hulk. Wein later used Wolverine as one of the All-New X-Men, alongside his other co-creations, Storm, Nightcrawler, Colossus, and Thunderbird. While Wein didn’t stay with the X-Men title, his characters proved to be invaluable to the franchise and among Marvel’s greatest superheroes.

Wein was also briefly the editor-in-chief of both Marvel Comics and Disney Comics, but his most memorable editorial runs were at DC Comics. In the mid-80s, Wein served as the editor of Alan Moore and David GibbonsWatchmen and helped them shape that story into a superhero classic.

Outside of comics, Wein wrote for Batman: The Animated Series, the Ben 10 franchise, the Watchmen: The End Is Nigh video game, and countless projects across his incredibly prolific career. Wein was a giant in the industry, and he will be greatly missed by his family, his colleagues, and his fans all over the world.

Share your favorite Len Wein stories and memories about him with us in the comment section below.

Images: PBS/Marvel Comics

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