Ernie Colón facts for kids

Ernesto Colón Sierra (born July 13, 1931 – died August 8, 2019) was a talented Puerto Rican comics artist. He was famous for drawing many different types of comics. These included comics for kids, superhero stories, horror tales, and even non-fiction books.

Ernesto Colón's Early Life

Ernesto Colón was born on July 13, 1931, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. When he was 10, he moved to the mainland United States.

He loved adventure comic strips from newspapers. Some of his favorite artists were Milton Caniff and Will Eisner. He also liked the superhero Captain Marvel from the 1940s. Colón said that Captain Marvel was funny and didn't take himself too seriously. He went to high school at the School of Industrial Art in New York City.

A Look at His Amazing Career

Working in the 1950s to 1970s

Ernesto Colón worked for many years at Harvey Comics. There, he met editor Sid Jacobson, who became a frequent partner.

Colón's first known comic work appeared in December 1960. He drew a 15-page story called "Spellbound" for The Friendly Ghost, Casper #28. He also drew a two-page feature for Archie Comics.

During the 1960s and 1970s, Colón drew many comics for Harvey. He also worked for other companies like Gold Key Comics. He drew three issues of Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom. He also contributed to scary black-and-white magazines like Creepy and Vampirella. Sometimes, he used the pen name Jack Purcell for his work.

In 1979, he worked with writer Roger McKenzie. They created a comic book version of Battlestar Galactica for Marvel Comics.

His Work from the 1980s Onward

At DC Comics, Colón helped create the fantasy series Arak, Son of Thunder with writer Roy Thomas. The character first appeared in The Warlord #48 in 1981.

Two years later, he helped introduce Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld. He worked with writers Dan Mishkin and Gary Cohn on this series. Colón also worked as an editor for DC Comics from 1982 to 1985. He oversaw popular titles like The Flash and Wonder Woman.

He also drew for other comic companies. These included Grim Ghost for Atlas/Seaboard Comics and Airboy for Eclipse Comics. For Marvel Comics, he drew Damage Control and Doom 2099. He even wrote, drew, and colored his own science-fiction graphic novel called Ax in 1988.

In the late 1980s, Colón drew the Bullwinkle and Rocky series for Marvel's children's comics. He returned to Harvey Comics in the early 1990s with Sid Jacobson. There, he worked on comics like Monster in My Pocket and Ultraman. From 2005 to 2007, he drew a weekly comic strip called "SpyCat" for the Weekly World News tabloid.

Colón and Sid Jacobson created a graphic novel about the 9/11 Commission Report. It was called The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation (2006). They also released a follow-up book, After 9/11: America's War on Terror (2008). In 2009, they published A Graphic Biography: Che. Their next book was Anne Frank: The Anne Frank House Authorized Graphic Biography in 2010.

He also worked with his wife, Ruth Ashby, who is an author. They created the comic book A Spy for General Washington (2005). This book told the story of Revolutionary War secret agent Robert Townsend. They also worked on the graphic novel The Great American Documents: Volume 1 (2014). Colón teamed up with writer Dan Mishkin again for The Warren Commission Report: A Graphic Investigation Into the Kennedy Assassination in 2014.

His Personal Life

In the United States, Ernesto Colón first lived in Brooklyn, New York City. Later, he moved to Huntington, New York, on Long Island.

He was married and had four children: Amanda, Suzan, Luisa Colón, and Rebecca Ashby-Colón. His last wife was Ruth Ashby, who writes books for children and young adults. Ernesto Colón passed away in Huntington, New York, on August 8, 2019, at the age of 88.