The Losers is the name of a war comic book feature published by DC Comics . The name was later given to a reimagined comic book series for DC's Vertigo imprint .
37-577: The Losers may refer to: The Losers (comics) , a war comic book feature published by DC Comics starting in 1970 The Losers (Vertigo) , a comic published by DC Comics' Vertigo imprint, inspired by the original comic series The Losers (2010 film) , an action film based on the Vertigo comic The Losers (1970 film) , an American biker war film The Losers (TV series) , an ITV sitcom from 1978 starring Leonard Rossiter The Losers (Howard Stern) ,
74-721: A Lost Nightmare" in Iron Man #44 (Jan. 1972) and "Running for Love" in Our Love Story #19 (Oct. 1972). Kanigher returned as writer-editor of the Wonder Woman title with issue #204 (Jan.–Feb. 1973) and restored the character's powers and traditional costume. In 1974, drawing on a classic novel , he introduced Rima the Jungle Girl to the DC Universe in her own title. Kanigher and Kubert created Ragman in
111-452: A band made up of The Howard Stern Show cast members The Losers , a novel written by David Eddings and published in 1992 See also [ edit ] The Loser (novel) , a novel by Thomas Bernhard and originally published in German in 1983 Loser (disambiguation) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with
148-516: A female member named Ona Tomsen who was part of the Norwegian resistance movement , who joined the team in issue #135. At the same time, the team briefly lost Captain Storm, who suffered amnesia (and lost an eye) due to a bomb blast. They reunited in issue #141, when Capt. Storm reappeared as a one-eyed, peg-legged pirate. Gunner's pet dog Pooch also joined the team for some missions. Robert Kanigher
185-626: A few months later (January/February 1970), as the main feature of Our Fighting Forces , beginning with issue #123. Their stories as a team were written by Robert Kanigher and illustrated by a variety of artists, most notably Sam Glanzman , Russ Heath , John Severin , and Joe Kubert . The group served in Europe, Africa, and the Pacific, meeting other DC World War II characters such as the Haunted Tank and Sergeant Rock . The team briefly had
222-753: A group was with the Haunted Tank crew in G.I. Combat #138 (October–November 1969) in a story titled "The Losers". The tank crew had failed to destroy a Nazi radar station and collected the 'Losers'. The men were on their own after surviving separate disastrous battles. The eight-man strong group rallied and returned to the site of the Nazi radar station, demolishing it. Prior to that, Captain Storm, Gunner and Sarge (along with Fighting Devil Dog) had teamed together once before to fight some Japanese naval officers in Captain Storm #13. They got their own series
259-465: A mission, had appeared in All-American Men of War #82–115 (1960–1966); the two-man team of Gunner and Sarge had first appeared in issue #67 of the same title (March 1959) before transferring to Our Fighting Forces for a fifty-issue run, #45–94 (May 1959–August 1965). Captain Storm, a PT boat commander, had his own title, which lasted 18 issues from 1964 to 1967. Their first appearance as
296-605: A team of special forces soldiers who declare war on the Central Intelligence Agency after their Agency handler tries to assassinate them. It was initially inspired by and intended to be a continuation of the original series, with the unit having survived their final mission and getting back together in the 1950s for a caper story . In 2010 DC published five one-shots featuring characters and titles revived from their "classic" war comics line, including Our Fighting Forces , featuring The Losers. The one-shot
333-530: A veteran of Marvel Comics ' Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos began doing the art chores by issue #132. This series lasted until Jack Kirby became artist/writer with issue #151 during the autumn of 1974. While Kirby enjoyed working with the series, he changed the story's philosophy in a manner that was often disfavored by fans, judging by comments in the book's letter pages. There have been favorable comments about his series in recent years and DC released it in collected form. With issue #163 Bob Kanigher
370-435: A writer started early, with his short stories and poetry being published in magazines. He won The New York Times Collegiate Short Story Contest in 1932. In the late 1930s and early 1940s, Kanigher also wrote for radio, film, and authored several plays. In 1943 Kanigher wrote How to Make Money Writing, which included a section on comics, making it one of the earliest works on the subject. Kanigher's earliest comics work
407-458: Is considered one of his most memorable contributions to the medium. Comics historian Bill Schelly noted that "Kanigher's scripts were built on well-orchestrated dramatic sequences, with the story's objects not war-time danger and violence, but the impact these events had on the men of Easy Company ." In 1956, DC editor Julius Schwartz assigned Kanigher and Infantino to the company's first attempt at reviving superheroes: an updated version of
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#1732797537280444-523: Is not known if they somehow went back in time to conclude their lives or if this brings them into the present. In the backup story "Snapshot: Remembrance" in the retrospective mini-series DC Universe: Legacies #4, set during a reunion on July 4, 1976, it is revealed that the Losers did survive the end of the war. Storm works for the Bureau of Disabled Veterans Affairs , Gunner is a veterinarian in memory of
481-522: The Flash that would appear in issue #4 (Oct. 1956) of the try-out series Showcase . The eventual success of the new, science-fiction oriented Flash heralded the wholesale return of superheroes, and the beginning of what fans and historians call the Silver Age of comics. Artist Ross Andru began a nine-year run on Wonder Woman , starting with issue #98 (May 1958), where he and Kanigher reinvented
518-702: The " Haunted Tank " feature, and the Sea Devils series. Several of Kanigher's characters were combined into a single feature titled " The Losers ". Their first appearance as a group was with the Haunted Tank crew in G.I. Combat #138 (Oct.–Nov. 1969). In the late 1950s and 1960s, Kanigher had a hand in creating many other characters, including the Viking Prince , Balloon Buster, and the Batman villain Poison Ivy . Among fellow comic creators, Kanigher
555-608: The " Hawkman " feature in Flash Comics , and Green Lantern . Kanigher edited Wonder Woman starting in 1948 to issue #176 (May–June 1968). A year after Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston died in 1947, Kanigher became the title's writer as well. Kanigher wrote "The Black Canary", a six-page Johnny Thunder story which introduced the Black Canary character in Flash Comics #86 (August 1947). This
592-483: The DC Universe resulted in a different ending for the team. In The Losers Special #1, written by Kanigher and illustrated by Glanzman, the Losers (along with Pooch) died in action during 1945 while destroying a German missile site: Sarge was bayoneted, Captain Storm fell on a grenade, and the remainder were strafed by aircraft bullets. The Special was published during 1985, during the Crisis' initial printing, and remained
629-780: The Flash in Showcase #4 (Oct. 1956). Kanigher was born in New York City, the third of Ephraim and Rebecca (née Herman) Kanigher's three children. Kanigher's parents were Romanian Jewish immigrants. Kanigher started working part-time when 12 years old to help support his family. "My father was destroyed in the Great Depression". He quickly started working full-time. "I supported them in their own flat (without their asking me), paying for everything from chewing gum to (their) coffins, 28 years later". Kanigher's career as
666-493: The bullpen. "Like the stuff ... like the stuff ..." That was about the amount of conversation we had. Then one day we were in the elevator together, and he said, "Like the stuff." I, like an innocent fool ... I used to do some adjustments to his pages. If he had a heavy-copy panel, I might take a balloon from one panel and put it in the next. Just because I was distributing space. I was so stupid and naive, I said to him, "It doesn't bother you, does it, that I sometimes switch some of
703-608: The character, introducing the Silver Age version and her supporting cast. Kanigher and Andru had several other notable collaborations. The "Gunner and Sarge" feature introduced in All-American Men of War #67 (March 1959) was one of the first war comics to feature recurring characters. Andru drew an early appearance of Kanigher's Sgt. Rock character in Our Army at War #81 (April 1959) The creative team co-created
740-466: The definitive ending of the group for several years. In 2000, a short-lived revival of the Creature Commandos resurrected Gunner as a cyborg warrior member of the new team. Gunner and Sarge are found alive and out of their own time in an issue of Birds of Prey , trapped in a POW camp in the time-fluctuating Dinosaur Island , now with a " Pooch " that is a trained Velociraptor . It
777-606: The first issue (Aug.–Sept. 1976) of that character's short-lived ongoing series. Around 1977, Kanigher taught for a year at the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art . Kanigher was still working for DC into the early 1980s, most notably on the Creature Commandos feature in Weird War Tales . When told the comic was being canceled, Kanigher wrote a one-page Creature Commandos story where
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#1732797537280814-487: The island, one by one, they are killed due to the dangers of the island. Gunner is smashed by a Tyrannosaurus rex , Storm is snatched by flying beasts, Sarge vanishes while trying to kill the same T. rex and is presumed dead. Pooch is hit by a booby trap set by a marooned Rick Flag. Johnny Cloud, after ensuring Flag can conclude the mission, sacrifices himself in a revenge mission on the same T. rex by falling down its throat with live hand grenades. Their epitaph, of sorts,
851-630: The now-dead Pooch, Sarge owns a string of service stations along the East Coast and Johnny Cloud is a third-term congressman . The other attendees are Jeb Stuart of the Haunted Tank , Gravedigger, Mademoiselle Marie and possibly the Unknown Soldier . An alternative ending was presented in the out-of-continuity 2004 miniseries DC: The New Frontier . In it, the group was sent to Dinosaur Island during December 1945 to rescue Rick Flag and important war-time information. Once they go on
888-853: The original version of the Suicide Squad in The Brave and the Bold #25 (September 1959). Another innovation was the melding of war comics with science-fiction in " The War that Time Forgot ", a feature created by Kanigher and Andru in Star Spangled War Stories #90 (May 1960). The Kanigher-Andru pairing co-created the Metal Men in Showcase #37 (March–April 1962). Kanigher also created other popular action series features, such as " Enemy Ace ", " The Losers ", and The Unknown Soldier . He and artist Russ Heath created
925-524: The panels around and move some of the balloons from one panel to another?" He started to chew me out in the elevator! "Who the hell do you think you are, changing my stuff? Where do you come off changing my stuff? You don't know anything about this business!" Reuniting with Andru, Kanigher co-created the " Rose & The Thorn " backup feature in Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane #105 (October 1970). Kanigher wrote two stories for Marvel Comics : "Weep for
962-471: The team of military superhumans and himself were rocketed off into space. In 1985, DC Comics named Kanigher as one of the honorees in the company's 50th anniversary publication Fifty Who Made DC Great . Streets and buildings have been named in his honor in several of DC Comics' fictional cities, including Central City and Keystone City . The hometown of Nate Banks in the comic book themed kids' series of novels, The Amazing Adventures of Nate Banks ,
999-483: The title The Losers . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Losers&oldid=1132321605 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages The Losers (comics) The first Losers comic
1036-537: Was a war comics feature set during World War II . It was created by Robert Kanigher and became a regular feature in DC's long-running war comic book series Our Fighting Forces beginning with issue #123, dated January/February 1970. Prior to the formation of the group, each character had his own adventures in DC's war anthology comics. Captain Johnny Cloud, a Navajo pilot who always destroyed his planes after
1073-497: Was also artist Carmine Infantino 's first published work for DC. Other new characters created by Kanigher during this time included Rose and Thorn and the Harlequin . Starting in 1952, Kanigher began editing and writing the "big five" DC Comics' war titles: G.I. Combat , Our Army at War , Our Fighting Forces , All-American Men of War , and Star Spangled War Stories . His creation of Sgt. Rock with Joe Kubert
1110-433: Was as well known for his unstable personality and violent temper as he was for his brilliance as a writer, and collaborators such as Gene Colan and John Romita Sr. have commented on the difficulty of working with him. Romita recounted: I worked on a series with Kanigher — he wrote two series for me in the romance dept. One about an airline stewardess, and one about a nurse. He used to compliment me whenever he'd see me in
1147-400: Was back writing the book with Jack Lehti doing the art. For issue #164, Ric Estrada penciled and George Evans inked, and Evans did all of the artistic duties by issue #166. He continued with the series until the final issue, #181 (September/October 1978). A story that was originally set to feature in issue #182, written by Kanigher and drawn by Evans and entitled "Young Losers - Young Lions",
The Losers - Misplaced Pages Continue
1184-584: Was finally printed four years later in The Unknown Soldier #265 (July 1982). According to Crisis on Infinite Earths , the team ended in Markovia during the spring of 1944. Along with powered beings, such as Geo-Force and Doctor Polaris , they were defending the towers created by the Monitor . The Anti-Monitor's shadow demon minions touched each one, destroying them. The re-ordering of
1221-607: Was in such titles as Fox Feature Syndicate 's Blue Beetle (where he created the Bouncer ), MLJ/Archie Comics 's Steel Sterling and The Web , and Fawcett Comics Captain Marvel Adventures . Kanigher joined All-American Comics , a precursor of the future DC Comics , as a scripter in 1945, and was quickly promoted to editor. He wrote the " Justice Society of America " feature in All Star Comics ,
1258-538: Was involved with the Wonder Woman franchise for over twenty years, taking over the scripting from creator William Moulton Marston . In addition, Kanigher spent many years in charge of DC Comics 's war titles and created the character Sgt. Rock . Kanigher scripted what is considered the first Silver Age comic book story, "Mystery of the Human Thunderbolt!", which introduced the Barry Allen version of
1295-549: Was the original writer for the series, and he emphasized the group's bad luck. They were anti-heroes, and the stories emphasized negative aspects of war. During the Vietnam War , Kanigher added this philosophy to many of the DC war books. Also in common with most DC war books of the time were spectacular cover illustrations by Joe Kubert . Ken Barr did the art chores for the first issue, with Ross Andru and Mike Esposito participating beginning with issue #124. John Severin ,
1332-531: Was written by B. Clay Moore and drawn by Chad Hardin and Wayne Faucher . The story featured the "classic" team of Johnny Cloud, Captain Storm and Gunner & Sarge. The Losers appear as character summons in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure . Robert Kanigher Robert Kanigher ( / ˈ k æ n ɪ ɡ ər / ; June 18, 1915 – May 7, 2002) was an American comic book writer and editor whose career spanned five decades. He
1369-468: Was written by Johnny Cloud: "Ask my family and they'll tell you I was a Navajo. Ask the Army Air Force and they'll say I was an American. But if you ask my brothers, they'll set you straight. John Cloud was a Loser". A new The Losers series began during 2004, created by writer Andy Diggle and artist Jock and published under DC's Vertigo imprint. The new series, set in the present, concerns
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