DC Comics writer, Martin Pasko, best known for his work on DC properties in both comic books and television, died Sunday night of natural causes. He was 65.
Pasko was well-known for his comic book runs on Superman, Action Comics, Saga of the Swamp Thing, and Justice League of America. He began working at DC Comics in 1973. His first Superman-related story Private Life of Clark Kent was published in July 1974, beginning his life-long association with the character.
Former DC publisher Paul Levitz, a friend of Pasko, announced the writer’s death through a Facebook post on Monday. “The odds are you’ve read his work, credited or not, or enjoyed a comic or cartoon or TV show or even a theme park event he made better, even as he relentlessly complained about the difficulties of making it as good as it ‘should’ be,” Levitz wrote. “Marty didn’t have a genius for making anything easy (especially for him), but he had a real genius for making creative magic.”
Pasko also worked extensively in television, serving as a writer and story editor on Batman: The Animated Series for which he won a Daytime Emmy Award. He also wrote on Cheers, Roseanne, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and more programs. Additionally, Pasko co-wrote the animated feature Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, a spin-off of the animated series.