I’ve always heard these were “rumours”, but I know of other creators who were with me when this stuff happened in front of us. It wasn’t a secret to anyone we knew. But still, they’re “rumours”.
In a month where Louie CK, President G H W Bush, Kevin Spacey, and so many others are being outed as sexual miscreants, let’s hope the dam is finally broken. This stuff happens ALL the time, with lovable, respectable men we don’t want to believe are capable of such creepy activities. I’m still reeling from Bill Cosby.
Was Julius Schwartz a predator or a lovable (but dirty) old man? I don’t know. I didn’t really know him.
But he genuinely pulled this “whoops, did I run my hands over your nipple?” trick in front of me. More than once.
When women tell you it’s happening, believe them.
When men know it’s happening. Say something.
Otherwise it’s everywhere.
Ty the Guy OUT!
Schwartz appeared as himself in a couple of cameos in DC Comics and ended up an official fictional character in the DCU. He met Superman a few times, helped rescue a dimension-lost Flash, and was uniquely chosen to survive the destruction of “Earth Prime” during the Crisis on Infinite Earths, arriving on the final Earth 1 at the conclusion of it all. Oh, and he helped create the DCU in the first place. So there’s that.
For last week’s equally disrespectful Bun Toon about another legendary creator, way more important than I am, click here.
Ty Templeton's ART LAND!! 
Hi Ty – With all due respect a dirty (but loveable) old man IS a predator. I love the Schwartz era of DC Comics just like I loved Cosby TV work, but the difference between them is a matter of degrees, not a chasm.
Otherwise, love and look forward to the Bunny every weekend. Thank you.
Will Emero II
I suppose it depends on the definition of predator, which seems to be expanding. In the day, Julie was known as lech, which is creepy, but not nearly as awful as a predator who manipulates or forces people into having sex with them. If there were any rumors of that, they never reached me, or a great many people I respect. Based on the rumors (which were rumors because I didn’t hear any first-hand), he was not in Louis CK’s territory and certainly not in Weinstein’s.
Hi, Ty. Even murder has degrees.
“When women tell you it’s happening, believe them”. I move to amend this to “when women tell you it’s happening, take them seriously”. Because that will also cover the cases, few though they may be, where the evidence ultimately doesn’t support the charge, or clearly disproves it.
You’re right, that puts it better.
Thank you for being an example that all men (people) in positions of influence should follow. Too often incidents like these–a boss or coworker acting inappropriately with a female colleague–occur and all the guys look the other way. It’s cowardly. You’re right. If I ever see this again, I am going to immediately put them on the spot. Oh yeah, and last week’s Bun-toon was spot on too!
Yeah, I’m not buying that there’s any sort of reasonable distinction between “lech” and “predator”, especially regarding someone who uses a freebie pin as an excuse to grope women in public. Sorry/not sorry
A problem with a “lech” who gropes women and who is even bold enough to do it in front of others — it signals to everyone watching that women do not have bodily autonomy, that they do not matter as human beings, they matter less than a man getting his jollies off. That a man can do whatever he likes, in the company of other men, and no one will speak up. This makes it far less likely that a women would speak out about something worse like assault or rape.
Or hell, Eddie Berganza who *only* got fired last week! None of the women (co-workers, his subordinates) whom he harassed are in comics anymore. He destroyed their careers. Disgusting that he worked on Wonder Woman.
…was anyone else flashing back to that Mayoral Candidate Penguin “here – have a button!” scene from Batman Returns while reading this?
Just me?
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