Biography

Mr. Schwartz is a pioneer in both the science fiction and comic book fields. He is credited with publishing the very first SF fanzine, "The Time Machine", in 1930. In 1934, he started the Solar Sales Service, a literary agency that represented such classic SF writers as 'Alfred Bester', Ray Bradbury and Robert Bloch. In 1939, he, along with fellow fans Samuel Moskowitz and other, organized the very first World Science Fiction Convention in NYC; the convention is still held annually to this day.

In 1944, Schwartz became an editor at All-American Comics (later merged with DC). He was unfamiliar with the media (he read his first comic book just before his job interview), and spent several years working on various genre titles.

In 1956, with interest in superhero comics at an all time low, Schwartz was given the opportunity to update a character from the 1940s, "The Flash". Instead of reusing the same character, Schwartz and his team rebuilt the character from the ground up. The new "Flash" was a hit, and Schwartz began using the same technique to revive such Golden Age characters as "Green Lantern", "Hawkman", and so on. Because of this, Schwartz has been given much of the credit for starting the Silver Age of comics. Schwartz continues his work with DC Comics to this day. He greatly scaled back his work as editor, but still found time to work with writers new and old (including longtime client and friend Ray Bradbury). He passed away on the 8th February 2004, in Winthrop Hospital, New York, due to complications from pneumonia. He was 88. He is survived by his son-in-law, three grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren. The Science Fiction and Comic book world mourned his passing.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Mike Konczewski