Len Strazewski, Justice Society and Starman Writer and Prime Creator, Dies
It’s a rough week in the comic world. Another noteworthy creator and writer who poured decades of his life into the medium has died. Len Strazewski, known best as the creator of Malibu Comics’ Prime and DC’s Jesse Quick, as well as a writer on Justice Society of America, passed away. He was 71.
Members of his family shared the sad news on social media, explaining that Strazewski spent time in the hospital dealing with an infection on top of a long illness. The family’s statement added that his health had been declining for some time. He died “peacefully” in a nursing home overnight on April 27.
Strazewski was famed for writing established and legacy characters at DC. His runs on The Flash, JSA, and Starman are among his best known. However, many fans celebrate him for his time at Malibu Comics, where he contributed to their continuity that was colorfully known as the “Ultraverse.”
He helped create some of their elite characters, including the armored hero Prototype and the publisher’s arguable headliner, Prime. In a play on Shazam! (only slimier), Prime was the teenager Kevin Green in his everyday life and the larger-than-life hero when he was punching bad guys.
Green’s powers were the result of a substance called “goop,” with Prime bursting forth in the form of a transitory exoskeletal body made of the stuff. The book mixed elements of fantasy with Lovecraftian sci-fi and body horror. It was the 90s, the decade of Image and “extreme,” but looking back, Prime was a bit much.
Strazewski also left his mark on the world of Archie and Impact with the co-creation of The Fly, and on the timeless Speed Racer IP at NOW Comics. As impressive as that resume is, his life wasn’t limited to comics. Journalism was a second vocation that bequeathed him bylines in Chicago papers and a Professor Emeritus position at Columbia College Chicago, which he held for two decades.
In their heartfelt message to fans, Strazewski’s family thanks everyone for their thoughts and prayers, and urged fans to remember “all the ways that Len made you laugh, made you think and, yes, made you groan from time to time.”
