Steve Skeates

Stephen Skeates (; January 29, 1943 – March 30, 2023 ) was an American comic book creator known for his work on such titles as Aquaman, Hawk and Dove, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, and Plop!. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Chester P. Hazel He and his parents lived in the attic of his maternal grandmother's Fairport home until he was four and a half, at which time they and his baby brother moved into a two-story home that his father and uncle had built. His parents tended to describe him as "a dreamer" because he preferred to play alone rather than interact with other children. He enjoyed reading comic books, preferring cartoon animal antics to the superhero titles. From an early age, he wanted to become a writer, but he found that ambition hampered by the fact that he read very slowly. So, in junior high school and later at Fairport High School,

Career

The 1960s and early 1970s In 1965, Skeates moved to New York City to become Lee's assistant editor, which largely required him to proofread finished comics. His lack of skill for this quickly became apparent, and Lee grew frustrated when obvious artwork errors were overlooked. Within two weeks, Roy Thomas became the new assistant, and Skeates was assigned to write westerns as compensation. the series about which Skeates professed to be the proudest because it "spoke quite emphatically to the disillusionment extant at least throughout this country during the so-called Watergate era." In 1973, he shared the best humor story award with Bernie Wrightson for "The Gourmet" (Plop #1), which has been reprinted more than any other Skeates-written work.

Favorite co-workers Of all of his artistic collaborators, Skeates named as his favorites Pat Boyette, with whom he worked at Charlton (his favorite employer); Jim Aparo, his partner on a highly regarded Aquaman run that lasted until April 1971; and Steve Ditko, with whom he co-created the quirky team Hawk and Dove in Showcase #75 (June 1968), despite the fact that progressive Skeates and Objectivist Ditko are politically polar opposites. During the 1970s he began a long-standing collaboration with fellow comics writer Mary Skrenes.

Plastic Man One of the series Skeates wrote at DC in the 1970s was Plastic Man, for which he created the villain Carrot Man, an evil game show host who hit contestants on their heads with a toaster. When that character appeared on the Plastic Man animated show, his creator received no royalties, but the showrunners "tried to make good" by changing Carrot Man's true identity to Stephen Skeates. As a result, people would stop the writer on the street and say, "You were on TV!" During the mid-1980s he also co-wrote a handful of episodes of Transformers, G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, and Jem. that appeared in All-Surprising Comics #1. He then scripted a seven-pager that was illustrated by Ron Stewart and appeared in Monty's World #1. The fate of a third Depthon script is unknown to Skeates. A number of smaller comics companies proceeded to contact Skeates, including Canada-based Red Lion, whose editor-publisher, Jonathan A. Gilbert, wanted to revive an unsold talking-animal property called Stateside Mouse, which Skeates and artist Joe Orsak had developed twenty years earlier as a World War II-era adventure series

From 1996 to 2012, Skeates was the editor of the PCBN (Peoples' Comic Book Newsletter). A fanzine that promoted upcoming comic books artists and writers.

Canadian comics creator Jonathan A. Gilbert wrote of Skeates, "The reason Steve is such an influence on me creatively is because of his unique writing style. He is not what I would call a 'pretty writer' but rather takes a subject and puts a unique twist on it that no one else had even considered. He can make the old look new again which is a rare talent in our business."

Awards 1972 Shazam Award: Best Humor Story, "The Poster Plague" in House of Mystery #201 (with Sergio Aragonés) 1973 Warren Award: for Best All Around Writer 1973 Shazam Award: for Best Writer (Humor Division) 1973 Shazam Award: Best Humor Story, "The Gourmet" in Plop! #1 2012 Bill Finger Award