Autor: William Morrison

Joseph „Joe“ Samachson (October 13, 1906 – June 1980) was an American scientist and author, primarily of science fiction and comic books. He wrote a number of science fiction works (under the pseudonym William Morrison), including two novels published in Startling Stories, the 1937 pulp title Murder of a Professor and short stories for a number of magazines, including Money from Heaven (1942). He also penned a couple of Captain Future pulp novels c.1941–1942 (under the house name „Brett Sterling“), and had work appear in the science fiction magazine Galaxy. His young adult novel Mel Oliver and Space Rover on Mars was published by Gnome Press in 1954. He is believed to have begun working for DC Comics in late 1942, working on comics scripts for characters notably including Batman. He also wrote scripts for comics and characters including Sandman, Green Arrow, Airwave and Robotman, as well as „a string of 17 science-fiction stories in 1955 and 1956“. In 1955, he created (with artist Joe Certa) the Martian Manhunter in the pages of Detective Comics #225. Usually credited as author on the initial strip, some commentators believe that he may have produced the plot, but that writer Jack Miller (who most believe succeeded Samachson in writing the character with the next issue), may have produced the first script. Don Markstein“s Toonopedia also suggests that Samachson wrote „many subsequent“ appearances of J“Onn J“Onzz rather than just the first. Jerry Bails also lists Samachson as having co-created the historical DC character Tomahawk. In 1943 Samachson also created the character Two-Gun Percy, which first appeared under the DC Comics imprint All Funny Comics and was drawn by Bernard Baily.