Jerry Robinson (American, 1924-2011)

Jerry Robinson is one of the most influential figures in the cartoon arts in America and around the world. As a member of the original Batman team, he was responsible for the first and most iconic of all supervillains, the Joker, and co-created Robin, the archetypal sidekick. From the earliest days of the Golden Age of comic books, Robinson created characters such as London, Atoman and Jet Scott, and worked in many genres, notably editorial cartooning, newspaper strips and illustration. In his other influential careers, Robinson has been a features syndicate founder, teacher, curator and champion of artists rights.

Among Robinson’s thirty published works is The Comics: An Illustrated History of Comic Strip Art (Dark Horse), a definitive study of the genre. His other books include the biography Skippy and Percy Crosby (Holt), The 1970s: Best Political Cartoons of the Decade (McGraw Hill), and most recently a two-volume set of his 1950s sci-fi strip, Jet Scott (Dark Horse). The biography Jerry Robinson: Ambassador to the Comics (Abrams) was published last year. Robinson’s numerous honors include the National Cartoonists Society Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award and the San Diego Comic-Con Eisner Hall of Fame.