Comic-book writer and executive Jim Shooter, 73, died on June 30. He was hired by DC comics after applying for work at age 13, and began writing Superman, Supergirl, and the Legion of Super-Heroes. “I was doing this because I had to,” he said, “working my way through high school to help keep my family alive.” Shooter created such characters as Karate Kid, Ferro Lad, Princess Projectra, and the Fatal Five. He moved to Marvel Comics, quickly became editor-in-chief, and just as quickly annoyed the hell out of everyone with his managerial style—he was bounced in 1987. He later founded Valiant, Defiant, and Broadway Comics, and worked as a freelance writer. Shooter said that working with Stan Lee on Spider-Man was no piece of cake: “Stan made it very clear that he wanted NO DIALOGUE SUGGESTIONS. It’s one thing to have a plot assistant, but every word that appeared in print HAD TO BE HIS. If I suggested dialogue, and it was good dialogue, Stan then felt he had to come up with another way to say the same thing, which was harder than just writing it himself in the first place.”
