Here’s the latest installment of Maggie Thompson’s ongoing look at important beginnings, middles, and ends, this time for September 26 through October 2, 2025…

185 years ago September 27, 1840 The editorial cartoonist some call “Father of the American Cartoon,” Thomas Nast, is born. He creates the popular image of Santa Claus – and the metaphors of Republicans as elephants and Democrats as donkeys.

180 years ago October 1, 1845 German painter and caricaturist Adolf Oberländer is born.

165 years ago October 1, 1860 British engraver Ebenezer Landells dies. The co-founder of Punch was age 51 or 52.

120 years ago September 26, 1905 Artist Bill Perry is born. The Frank King assistant creates Ned Handy.

120 years ago September 28, 1905 Artist Frank Beard dies at age 63. His cartoons appeared in Judge.

120 years ago September 30, 1905 Dutch artist and teacher Hubert Levigne is born.

115 years ago September 29, 1910 Writer-artist Carl Pfeufer is born. With Bob Moore, he co-creates Don Dixon. With Otto Binder, he co-creates Super Green Beret. He draws Tom Mix stories for Fawcett and, as a member of the Funnies Inc. studio, he draws Sub-Mariner for Marvel.

115 years ago October 2, 1910 Writer-artist Ernest Hart is born. The Super Rabbit creator works for Timely, Quality, and Charlton.

110 years ago September 30, 1915 Dutch artist Karel Links is born.

100 years ago September 27, 1925 Bill Finger Award-winner George Gladir is born. The Archie comics writer co-creates Sabrina Spellman with Dan DeCarlo and is head writer of Cracked.

90 years ago September 26, 1935 Italian-Argentine artist Juan Zanotto is born. He is artistic director at the Codex publishing house and Ediciones Record and, with Alfredo Grassi, he co-creates Ric de la Frontera.

85 years ago September 28, 1940 Animator and artist Earl Hurd dies at age 60. He held the patent for the invention of cel animation and worked for cartoon studios including Terrytoons and Disney.

85 years ago September 28, 1940 Dutch artist Albert Winands (who works as “Ab Survie”) is born. He creates De Vleermuis.

85 years ago October 1, 1940 Award-winning artist Richard Corben is born. The work of the creator of Den appears in magazines including Creepy and Heavy Metal along with underground comix. The Fantagor Press publisher also participates in a variety of pop culture projects.

75 years ago September 27, 1950 Jan Eliot is born. She writes and draws Stone Soup.

75 years ago October 2, 1950 Peanuts by Charles Schulz begins in seven papers.

75 years ago October 2, 1950 Brazilian artist José Carlos dies of a stroke at age 66.

70 years ago September 27, 1955 Award-winning writer-artist Charles Burns is born. His creations include Dogboy and Black Hole.

70 years ago September 27, 1955 Artist, animator, and teacher Randy Emberlin is born.

70 years ago October 1, 1955 Writer-artist-editor Michael Golden is born. The co-creator of Rogue and Bucky O’Hare works at Marvel, Continuity, and DC.

65 years ago October 2, 1960 Award-winning editor-writer Barbara Randall Kesel is born.

65 years ago October 2, 1960 Joe Sacco is born. The award-winning comics journalist writes and draws such books as Safe Area Gorazde and Footnotes in Gaza and is among the artists on Harvey Pekar’s American Splendor.

60 years ago September 30, 1965 The Red Ryder comic strip ends. Created by Fred Harman, it was being drawn by Bob McLeod.

50 years ago September 30, 1975 Award-winning writer Ta-Nehisi Coates is born. He works on such comics as Black Panther and Captain America.

50 years ago October 2, 1975 Dutch artist and editor Ton van Tast dies at age 91. (His real name was Anton van der Valk.)

35 years ago September 26, 1990 Prolific Greek writer-artist Byron Aptosoglou dies at age 67. He created his own Byron imprint.

30 years ago September 30, 1995 Nestor Redondo dies at age 67. He drew many DC fantasy stories and Rima, as well as a collection of Bible tales and many other Christian comics. His work also appeared in the Pendulum Illustrated Classics collection.

30 years ago October 2, 1995 Golden Age artist John Belfi dies at age 71. His credits included work on characters including Plastic Man, Captain Marvel Jr., and Blackhawks.

30 years ago October 2, 1995 French artist Georges Langlais (who worked as “Gal”) dies at age 80.

25 years ago September 29, 2000 The Dutch S1NGLE comic strip by Hanco Kolk and Peter de Wit begins in Het Parool.

25 years ago September 29, 2000 Dutch artist Wim Bijmoer dies at age 86.

20 years ago September 26, 2005 Political cartoonist and teacher Mickey Siporin dies at age 65.

20 years ago September 30, 2005 Based on the 1997 graphic novel by John Wagner and Vince Locke, A History of Violence opens in theaters. The film is directed by David Cronenberg and stars Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris, and William Hurt.

15 years ago September 28, 2010 Writer-artist Daniel Robert Aguila dies at age 82. Also known as “El Dani,” the editorial cartoonist worked on such strips as Student Life and Barrio Breeze.

10 years ago September 26, 2015 Belgian writer-artist Liliane Funcken dies at age 88. She was known for work with her husband, Fred, for Tintin.

10 years ago October 1, 2015 The first Cartoon Crossroads Columbus begins; the event runs October 1-3. The annual festival begins with discussions featuring Lucy Caswell, Jeff Smith, and Vijaya Iyer.

5 years ago September 30, 2020 Award-winning and influential Argentine artist Joaquín Salvador Lavado Tejón (who worked as “Quino”) dies at age 88. He created the popular Mafalda comic strip.

And here are the anniversaries spanning the month of October…

160 years ago October 1865 Wilhelm Busch publishes the influential Max und Moritz.

90 years ago October 1935 DC’s New Fun #6 introduces fantasy character Dr. Occult by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in a story in which he and his partner (Rose Psychic) try to stop a vampire. (This is the last issue before the title becomes More Fun.) They do another feature in the issue, too. (By the way, this is about two and a half years before Siegel and Shuster bring Superman to DC.)

80 years ago October 1940 Donald Duck invites readers to pull back the cover of Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories #1, introducing what some consider to be the first funny animal comic book series. Lots of strip reprints pack the issue.

85 years ago October 1940 Street & Smith’s Sport Comics #1 is one of the earliest true life comics. Less than a year before his death, it cover-features the “Life Story of Lou Gehrig,” who retired the year before.

85 years ago October 1940 All-American Comics #19 introduces DC’s Atom (Al Pratt) in “Introducing the Mighty Atom” by Bill O’Connor, Ben Flinton, and Leonard Sansone. He’s not the teeny Silver Age Atom – and in this story he doesn’t appear in costume.

85 years ago October 1940 MLJ’s Top Notch Comics #9 introduces The Black Hood (“man of mystery”) in a story by Abner Sundell (as Cliff Campbell) and Al Camy.

85 years ago October 1940 Although Magno (the Magnetic Man) gets the cover treatment of Ace’s Super-Mystery Comics #3, “A new avenger has struck terror,” when The Black Spider is introduced.

85 years ago October 1940 Centaur’s Super Spy #1 (of two) introduces The Sparkler (drawn by John F. Kolb) and Super Spy 5Y-8R (drawn by Albert W. Tyler).

75 years ago October 1950 EC’s Tales from the Crypt begins with #20, continuing the numbering of Crypt of Terror. (Most of the horror scripts are by Al Feldstein.)

65 years ago October 1960 In “a great 3-part novel,” DC’s Superman #140 introduces Bizarro Supergirl and Bizarro-Jr. #1. “The Son of Bizarro!” is by Otto Binder, Wayne Boring, and Stan Kaye.

65 years ago October 1960 DC’s Justice League of America #1 introduces the villainous Despero from the dimension of Kalanor. The story is by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs. The cover indicates there’s more of a board game and less hitting in “The World of No Return!” than is customary for super-heroics.

60 years ago October 1965 In Mad #98, Al Jaffee’s “Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions” begins.

60 years ago October 1965 Lana Lang makes her first appearance as Insect Queen in DC’s Superboy #124 in a story by Otto Binder and George Papp.

60 years ago October 1965 “Introducing Power Man! Who is he?” Spoiler: He’s one of Zemo’s sidekicks in “The Bitter Taste of Defeat” in Marvel’s The Avengers #21. The story is by Stan Lee, Don Heck, and Wally Wood.

60 years ago October 1965 “See: The strangest foes Daredevil has ever faced!” In Marvel’s Daredevil #10, that announces the introduction of The Organizer, Cat Man, Ape Man, Frog Man, and Bird Man. The story is by Wally Wood and Bob Powell. (By the way, Bird Man is Henry Hawk; is Wood having fun in morphing the name of a Looney Tunes character?]

60 years ago October 1965 DC says on the cover of Green Lantern #40, “You’ve clamored for it.” Golden Age and Silver Age Green Lanterns fight a power ring duel. The issue also provides the origin tale of The Guardians of the Universe and introduces the villainous Krona in a story by John Broome, Gil Kane, and Sid Greene.

60 years ago October 1965 The cover of DC’s Wonder Woman #157 doesn’t mention it (though it cautions there’s a “triple surprise ending”), but “I – the Bomb” by Robert Kanigher, Ross Andru, and Mike Esposito introduces Egg Fu.

60 years ago October 1965 Harvey introduces four titles in its “Thriller Line”: Unearthly Spectaculars #1 (of 3), Thrill-O-Rama #1 (of 3), Blast-Off #1 (and only), and Warfront #36 (which introduces Dynamite Joe, “the blast-crazy Marine!!” and runs for three more issues). [Jack Q. Frost will first appear in Unearthly Spectaculars #2, and Pirana will first appear in Thrill-O-Rama #2.]

60 years ago October 1965 The cover says that DC’s The Brave and the Bold #62 has “a sensational comic book first!” It gets a bit more vague about that “first” thing: “The Sportsmaster and Huntress – as Mr. and Mrs. Menace – set sinister snares on their ‘Big Super-Hero Hunt!’” Anyway, the story by Gardner Fox and Murphy Anderson provides the first Silver Age appearances of Huntress and Wildcat.

60 years ago October 1965 Dell’s Nukla #1 introduces Nukla (“the greatest super hero on Earth!”). Hey, he’s got to fight “the evilest man in the world,” so let’s hope he’s the greatest. The stories are by Joe Gill, Sal Trapani, and Dick Giordano.

55 years ago October 1970 Conan first appeared in Weird Tales in “The Phoenix on the Sword” by Robert E. Howard in December 1932. Marvel brings him from pulps to comics in Conan the Barbarian #1. “The Coming of Conan!” is by Roy Thomas, Barry Windsor-Smith, and Dan Adkins.

55 years ago October 1970 Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen #133 kicks off Jack Kirby’s Fourth World for DC and brings The Newsboy Legion to the Silver Age. Writer-artist Kirby introduces Morgan Edge, Intergang, Project Cadmus, and more.

55 years ago October 1970 DC’s All-Star Western #2 introduces El Diablo. “A ghostly shadow glides across the moonlit plain…” “The Devil Has Two Faces!” is written by Robert Kanigher, and artist Gray Morrow includes inside jokes, casting comics creators and a fan as actors in the tale.

55 years ago October 1970 Company & Sons’ Young Lust #1 features stories by Jay Kinney, Bill Griffith, and Art Spiegelman.

50 years ago October 1975 Marvel’s The Defenders #28 provides the first full appearance of Starhawk in “My Mother, the Badoon!” by Steve Gerber, Sal Buscema, Frank Giacoia, and John Tartaglione.

50 years ago October 1975 In “Even if I Live, I Die!” in Marvel’s The Amazing Spider-Man #149, Gerry Conway, Ross Andru, and Mike Esposito introduce the clone eventually known as Ben Reilly.

50 years ago October 1975 In addition to the other developments at Marvel this month, the company closes out Giant-Size Fantastic Four (with #6), Man-Thing (with #22), The Outlaw Kid (with #30), Supernatural Thrillers (with #15), War Is Hell (with #15), and Where Monsters Dwell (with #38). On the other hand, it introduces four new titles (and a few new characters): The Champions (introducing Champions); The Inhumans; Marvel Chillers (introducing Modred the Mystic); and Marvel Presents (introducing Bloodstone).

50 years ago October 1975 Gold Key’s Mystery Comics Digest ends with #26, cover-featuring “spine-tinglers in the Karloff tradition!” That tradition is Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery, which is the source for most of the stories.

50 years ago October 1975 DC’s Hercules Unbound #1 is set after World War III. The issue is by Gerry Conway, José Luis García-López, Wally Wood, and A.L. Sirois.

50 years ago October 1975 DC’s Super-Team Family #1 features Superman, Batman, and Flash reprints in the giant issue.

50 years ago October 1975 “The Torpedo is busting loose!” in Marvel’s Daredevil #126. Brock Jones becomes Torpedo in a story by Marv Wolfman, Bob Brown, and Klaus Janson.

45 years ago October 1980 DC Comics Presents #26 introduces New Teen Titans as a team (introducing in that team Cyborg, Raven, and Starfire) in the issue’s bonus insert. “Where Nightmares Begin!” is by Marv Wolfman, George Pérez, and Dick Giordano.

45 years ago October 1980 Marvel’s The Amazing Spider-Man #209 introduces Calypso in “To Salvage My Honor!” by Denny O’Neil, Alan Weiss, Klaus Janson, Bob McLeod, Joe Rubinstein, Bob Wiacek, and Al Milgrom.

45 years ago October 1980 Marvel’s Thor #300 celebrates with a story by Mark Gruenwald, Ralph Macchio, Keith Pollard, and Gene Day. It delves into Thor’s origin.

45 years ago October 1980 Marvel’s The Avengers #200 is double-sized in celebration. “The Child Is Father to…?” is by Jim Shooter, George Pérez, Bob Layton, David Michelinie, and Dan Green.

40 years ago October 1985 Megaton #2 (from, yes, Megaton Comics) introduces The Dragon in the second part of “Dead Line” by Erik Larsen, Gary Carlson, and Sam Grainger. Larsen’s Savage Dragon, you shouldn’t be surprised to know, gets a pretty good career on his own later on.

40 years ago October 1985 Marvel’s Captain America #310 introduces Diamondback (as a member of The Serpent Society). “Serpents of the World Unite” is by Mark Gruenwald, Paul Neary, and Dennis Janke.

40 years ago October 1985 Marvel’s The Thing #28 introduces Demolition Man in “In This Corner” by Mike Carlin, Ron Wilson, and Brett Breeding.

40 years ago October 1985 The cover of the first issue of Marvel’s 12-issue limited series announces, “The battle begins! Deviants versus the gods who walk among us!” Eternals introduces Cybele, Khoryphos, and Phastos in “A Mirror for Mortality!” by Peter B. Gillis, Sal Buscema, and Al Gordon.

40 years ago October 1985 DC’s Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 features – Well, it’d be a Spoiler. Unless, of course, you look at the cover. Then, you’ve got a pretty good clue that the Spoiler might be the death of Supergirl. Dang!

40 years ago October 1985 “Good-bye, Flash” – DC’s The Flash concludes with (“Double-sized last issue!”) #350. “Flash Flees” (say that fast five times) is by Cary Bates, Carmine Infantino, and Frank McLaughlin.

40 years ago October 1985 Fantagraphics’ Music for Mechanics is the first sequential The Complete Love & Rockets collection.

35 years ago October 1990 “Clay Pigeons” in DC’s The New Titans #70 gives Deathstroke the Terminator his first solo story. It’s by Marv Wolfman, Steve Erwin, and Willie Blyberg.

35 years ago October 1990 DC’s The Huntress concludes with #19, cover-featuring the words “Final issue.” “The Last of the Streetfighters” is by Joey Cavalieri, Joe Staton, and Bob Smith.

35 years ago October 1990 Marvel’s Foolkiller #1 introduces Foolkiller in “Mad… as in Angry” by Steve Gerber, Joe Brozowski, and Tony DeZuniga.

35 years ago October 1990 Marvel’s The New Warriors #4 introduces Psionex (“They were bred for one purpose – to destroy The New Warriors!”): Asylum, Coronary, Impulse, Mathemanic, and more. The story is by Fabian Nicieza, Mark Bagley, and Larry Mahlstedt.

35 years ago October 1990 Swamp Thing #100 is a double-sized issue and features a cuddly cover with Swamp Thing and Abigail Cable. “Tales of Eden” is by Doug Wheeler, Kelley Jones, Pat Broderick, and Alfredo Alcala.

35 years ago October 1990 Mighty Mouse has starred in comics from a number of different publishers over the years. The cover of Marvel’s Mighty Mouse #1 pays tribute to the cover of DC’s Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and proclaims Mighty Mouse “a rodent for the ’90s!” Did I mention the text in the Marvel ID? “Double-bag it. A good investment. Collector’s item first issue. Buy ten copies – no – 20! From the people who do that McFarlane stuff. It’s good clean fun. 100% fat free. Less salt.” “The Dark Might Returns” is by Michael Gallagher, Ernie Colon, and Marie Severin.

35 years ago October 1990 Marvel’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser #1 begins its adaptation of Fritz Leiber’s characters (introduced in pulps in 1939) to comic book format. The adaptation is by Howard Chaykin, Mike Mignola, and Al Williamson.

30 years ago October 1995 Archie Comics ends its Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures with #72.

30 years ago October 1995 Stuck Rubber Baby by Howard Cruse comes from Paradox Press. It will win the Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album–New of the year.

30 years ago October 1995 The first issue of Marvel’s Disney Comic Hits features Pocahontas. “Colors in the Sky!” is by Barbara Slate, Cosme Quartieri, and Horacio Ottolini.

30 years ago October 1995 Marvel’s Green Goblin begins with “Enter the Green Goblin!” by Tom DeFalco and Scott McDaniel.

30 years ago October 1995 DC begins a new New Gods series, featuring “Attack on the Source!” by Tom Peyer, Rachel Pollack, Luke Ross, and Brian Garvey.

30 years ago October 1995 Archie’s begins its Scooby-Doo series with “Monster of a Time” and “Birddog of Alcatraz.”

30 years ago October 1995 The first issue of Vampirella Strikes from Harris features “The Prize” by Tom Sniegoski, Edward McGuinness, and Nathan Massengill.

30 years ago October 1995 DC’s Millennium Fever miniseries begins with “A Way of Saying Things” by Nick Abadzis and Duncan Fegredo.

25 years ago October 2000 “Hang Up on the Hang Low” by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso begins with Vertigo/DC’s 100 Bullets #15. The story, which runs #15-18, will win the Eisner Award for Best Serialized Story of the year.

25 years ago October 2000 J. Michael Straczynski’s Midnight Nation begins from Image. He wrote the story; the art is by Gary Frank, Jason Gorder, and Jay Liesten.

25 years ago October 2000 DC’s JSA Annual #1 (and only) introduces a new Nemesis and Elina in “Genesis” by Dave Goyer, Uriel Caton, and Wade von Grawbadger.

25 years ago October 2000 “Sex, Stars, and Serpents” by Alan Moore, J.H. Williams III, and Mick Gray is published in DC’s Promethea #10 (under its America’s Best Comics label). It will win the Eisner Award for Best Single Issue of the year.

20 years ago October 2005 DC kicks off a new Supergirl series with #0 and #1, with stories by Jeph Loeb, Ian Churchill, and Norm Rapmund.

20 years ago October 2005 Marvel had a couple Justice series over the years. Now, it’s DC’s turn. Justice #1 features Justice League characters in a story by Alex Ross, Jim Krueger, and Doug Braithwaite.

20 years ago October 2005 Top Ten: The Forty-Niners published by DC (under its America’s Best Comics label) is by Alan Moore and Gene Ha. It will win the Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album–New of the year.

15 years ago October 2010 Marvel’s Deadpool #1000 is a 108-page one-shot. (You’re right. This is not the thousandth issue of the series.) The anthology provides a variety of satiric takes on a number of comics stories and characters.

15 years ago October 2010 The first issue of Dynamite’s Warlord of Mars begins with “A Tale of Two Planets, Part 1” by Arvid Nelson and Steve Sadowski.

15 years ago October 2010 Marvel’s Uncanny X-Force begins with “The Apocalypse Solution Chapter One” by Rick Remender and Jerome Opeña.

10 years ago October 2015 DC’s Batman Endgame: Special Edition #1 (and only) is a giveaway for “Batman Day.”

10 years ago October 2015 Marvel’s Ant-Man: Last Days #1 (and only) is a “Secret Wars” issue by Nick Spencer and Ramon Rosanas. So is Howard the Human #1 (and only) by Skottie Young and Jim Mahfood. And Hank Johnson, Agent of Hydra #1 (and only) by David Mandel and Michael Walsh.

10 years ago October 2015 Speaking of “Secret Wars,” Marvel’s House of M #1 comes a decade after the 2005 House of M limited series and is part of the “Secret Wars” storyline. The issue is by Dennis “Hopeless” Hallum and Marco Failla.

10 years ago October 2015 Valiant’s Book of Death: The Fall of X-O Manowar #1 (and only) is by Robert Venditti and Clayton Henry.

10 years ago October 2015 Hey, there are a lot of first issues this month. On the other hand, Archie’s World of Archie #1 (and only) is a #1 of a different (which is to say, standalone) type. In the case of the year’s Halloween ComicFest, there are a bunch of oddball special issues (some with variant printed issue dates), including titles Ultimate Spider-Man Web-Warriors/Avengers Assemble Season 2; Doctor Strange: The Oath; Donald Duck’s Halloween Scream; Skylanders; and Yo-Kai Watch.

10 years ago October 2015 Paper Girls begins from Image. It is by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chiang and will win the Eisner Award for Best New Series of the year.

10 years ago October 2015 The Two Brothers one-shot from Dark Horse is by Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá. It will win the Eisner Award for Best Adaptation from Another Medium.

5 years ago October 2020 As has been the case for several months, in-person conventions are canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some are rescheduled as virtual events.

5 years ago October 2020 Marvel variant editions abound, including (but not limited to) Amazing Spider-Man #46 (#847) and #47 (#848), Empyre #4 and #5, Spider-Man Facsimile Edition #1, Thor #6 (#732), Venom #27 (#192), and X-Men #11.

5 years ago October 2020 In EC’s Mad #15, Johnny Sampson provides his first Mad Fold-In: “What Accessory Do All Superheroes Wear?”

5 years ago October 2020 DC’s The Dreaming: Waking Hours begins with “The Bard and the Bard, Part One” by G. Willow Wilson and Nick Robles.

5 years ago October 2020 Marvel’s five-part miniseries Maestro begins with “Symphony in a Gamma Key Part One: Overture” by Peter David, Germán Peralta, and Dale Keown.

5 years ago October 2020 It’s a roast! A Joker War tie-in! A series finale! “This comic has it all!” “Except for class.” DC’s Harley Quinn #75 wraps up the DC series with features “Happy Birthday, Harley Quinn!” and “After the Laughter.”

5 years ago October 2020 Image’s The Walking Dead Deluxe begins with a story by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore.