Fletcher Hanks
| Fletcher Hanks, Sr. | |
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Undated photograph.
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| Born |
December 1, 1889 Paterson, New Jersey |
| Died | January 22, 1976 (aged 86) Manhattan, New York |
| Nationality | American |
| Area(s) | Cartoonist |
| Pseudonym(s) |
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Notable works
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| http://www.fletcherhanks.com | |
Fletcher Hanks, Sr. (December 1, 1889 – January 22, 1976, in New York City) was a cartoonist from the Golden Age of Comic Books, who wrote and drew stories detailing the adventures of all-powerful, supernatural heroes and their elaborate punishments of transgressors. In addition to his birth name, Hanks worked under a number of pen names, including "Hank Christy," "Charles Netcher," "C. C. Starr," and "Barclay Flagg." Hanks was active in comic books from 1939 to 1941.
Little is known of the life of Fletcher Hanks. He was born on December 1, 1889 in Paterson, New Jersey and grew up in Oxford, Maryland. His father, William Hanks, was a Methodist minister, and his mother, Alice Fletcher Hanks, was daughter of English immigrants; they married c. 1885. Fletcher himself married Margaret c. 1912. In 1910, his mother paid for her son to take the W. L. Evans correspondence course in cartooning; as early as 1911 he described himself as a cartoonist. His nickname was "Christy," in reference to the great baseball pitcher Christy Mathewson.
Hanks had four children: William, Fletcher Jr. (also nicknamed "Christy"), Alma, and Douglas. Fletcher Jr. (1918–2008) was the primary source of biographical information on his father. Family members have described Fletcher Sr. as an abusive father and spouse, and an alcoholic, spoiled by an over-indulgent mother. He made money painting murals for the wealthy, and spent the money on alcohol for himself and his friends. Fletcher Jr. worked odd jobs to support the family; in 1930, he found his earnings missing, along with his father. Fletcher Jr. said his mother responded, "It's a small price to pay to be rid of the bum."
In 1939, in the wake of the success of Action Comics and Superman, Hanks began producing comic book stories. Gradually, he abandoned the crosshatch-heavy style he had learned in his Evans courses and settled on a cleaner, thick-lined style that reproduced better in the cheaply manufactured comic books.
Some of Hanks' work was for the Eisner & Iger comic book packaging company; Will Eisner recalled Hanks as punctual artist whose work was reminiscent of the early work of Basil Wolverton. Hanks did all the work on his comics, from the writing to the lettering, and was considerably older than the other artists who worked there — many of whom were teenagers. The primary publishers he produced work for were Fiction House and Fox Features Syndicate. His creations include Stardust the Super Wizard, Tabu the Wizard of the Jungle, Big Red McLane, and Fantomah—one of the first female superheroes, predating Wonder Woman.
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Wikipedia