‘The Punisher,’ ‘Werewolf by Night’ Creator Gerry Conway Has Passed Away

Comic book legend Gerry Conway has passed away at the age of 73.

Conway’s contributions to the comic industry reach far and wide. Most notably, he co-created The Punisher in 1963’s The Amazing Spider-Man #129 and established the character’s tragic backstory in Marvel Preview #2.

The prolific writer brought more overt horror elements to Marvel, co-creating Man-Thing for Savage Tales #1, Dracula in Tomb of Dracula #1, and Werewolf by Night in Marvel Spotlight #2.

During his time at Marvel, Conway wrote The Amazing Spider-Man‘s famous “The Night Gwen Stacy Died” story arc, established Carol Danvers in Ms. Marvel #1, co-created supervillain Jackal, and briefly served as editor-in-chief.

Working for DC Comics, Conway co-created Firestorm, Steel, Vixen, Killer Croc, and Jason Todd, among other characters.

Conway was also a screenwriter, penning 1983’s Fire and Ice and receiving a story credit on Conan the Destroyer before working on “G.I. Joe,” “Transformers,” “My Little Pony,” “Batman: The Animated Series,” “Spider-Man: The Animated Series,” “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys,” “Law & Order,” and more.

“Gerry Conway was a gifted writer,” said Dan Buckley, President of Marvel Comics and Franchise. “He was thoughtful, deeply attuned to the emotional and moral core of storytelling, and a wonderful and articulate advocate for comics and creators. His writing has inspired all of us at Marvel, and will continue to inspire generations of writers, readers and fans to come.”

“From Spider-Man to the Avengers, Iron Man to Captain Marvel, Gerry Conway has deftly written almost every character in the Marvel Universe,” added Marvel Comics editor-in-chief C.B. Cebulski. “He thrilled us with new characters like the Punisher and broke our hearts in emotional tales like ‘The Night Gwen Stacy Died,’ a story that affects Spider-Man to this day. Gerry Conway’s legacy has made an undeniable and indelible impact on the super hero stories we know and love. He will be dearly missed.”

“Gerry Conway brought real stakes to his writing, able to weave together sensational super heroics with the human and relatable, and in doing so created some of the most memorable stories and characters of all time,” shared Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige. “His writing has been hugely impactful across our comics, but it has also inspired so much of what we’ve done on screen, from Werewolf by Night to Daredevil to Spider-Man and Punisher. Gerry was a wonderful collaborator and friend to so many and will be dearly missed.”

Conway’s legacy will live on in both comics and on screen, including the upcoming The Punisher: One Last Kill, streaming May 12 on Disney+.