A New Comics Exhibit Celebrates Heroes Marvel Left Behind

Billy Penn at WHYY reported about an exhibition of Africa-American themed comics at the University of Pennsylvania, and a new GN about the 1955 murder of Emmett Till, which is authored by artist Eric Battle: Some people spend decades figuring out what they want to do with their lives. Eric Battle found his calling at a corner store in West Philadelphia when he was 5. “I can still remember the day, like it was yesterday,” said Battle, now 59. He was walking to the store with his mother and two sisters when he discovered a comic book spinner rack in the back. “I ran over and flipped through the comics. And it’s been a love affair ever since, but that spawned my interest in drawing and reading and everything else,” he said. That fascination grew into a career illustrating stories for Marvel and DC Comics, children’s books and graphic novels. Now, Battle is helping explore the history of Black characters and creators in comics through “The Black Hero’s Journey,” an exhibition that opened Oct. 15 at the University of Pennsylvania’s Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts. Battle is a co-curator of the exhibition, which runs through May 13, 2027, in the Goldstei...