Kin Platt
Encyclopedia
Kin Platt was an American
writer
-artist
best known for penning radio
comedy
and animated TV series, as well as children's
mystery
novels, for one of which he received the Mystery Writers of America
Edgar Award
.
He additionally wrote and drew comic books (creating an early funny-animal superhero
, Supermouse) and comic strips.
, Jack Benny
, the comedy team of Stoopnagle and Budd
, and The National Biscuit Comedy Hour of 1936. Later in the 1930s, he wrote for Disney and Walter Lantz
theatrical cartoons, and he scripted the Robert Benchley
film, How to Read (1938).
character), featuring a district attorney
turned costumed crimefighter, in Exciting Comics; and writer Richard Hughes' Doc Savage
-like "Doc Strange" (no relation to Marvel Comics
' Dr. Strange
), in Thrilling Comics.
After doing WWII military service
with the U.S. Army Air Force's Air Transport Command from 1943–46, Platt began working for such comic-book companies as Timely Comics
(the 1940s predecessor of Marvel Comics
), for which his features included "Widjet Witch" in Comedy Comics); and Better/Nedor/Standard, where he created Supermouse in 1948. Additionally, Platt wrote for the Bob Hope
and Jerry Lewis
comics at DC. For two years he drew the adventures of Pepsi and Pete for the advertising strip, Pepsi Cola Cops.
Al Jaffee
, then an editor of Timely's humor comics, recalled in 2004,
For the New York Herald Tribune
Syndicate, Platt wrote and drew the comic strip Mr. and Mrs. from 1947–63, and The Duke and the Duchess from 1950-54. Additionally, he drew theatrical
caricature
s for such newspapers and magazines as The Village Voice
and the Los Angeles Times
.
In the 1960s, Platt scripted TV animation, including for the Hanna-Barbera
series The Jetsons
, The Flintstones
, Yogi Bear
, Top Cat
and Jonny Quest
(for which at one point he held the title of "story director"), as well as for Hal Seeger Productions' Milton the Monster
.
and young-adult mysteries in 1961. He eventually published more than 30 books, including general-reader mysteries. His pseudonyms included Guy West, Alan West, Wesley Simon York, Nick Tall, Nick West, Noah Zark and Kirby Carr. Platt wrote several novels in the "Hitman" series under the name Kirby Carr.
Platt also returned to comics around this time, writing occasional stories for the DC Comics
titles G.I. Combat
, Our Army at War
and Star Spangled War Stories in 1964. His final known comics credit is a 48-page adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson
's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in Marvel Classics Comics #1 (1976).
, was based on a book by Platt, The Boy Who Could Make Himself Disappear.
He continued writing books throughout the 1980s, though some novels remained unpublished. This material, as well as unpublished caricatures submitted to magazines and newspapers, was donated to the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center at Boston University
. Big Max and the Missing Giraffe was published posthumously by HarperTrophy in 2005.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
-artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
best known for penning radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
and animated TV series, as well as children's
Children's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
mystery
Mystery fiction
Mystery fiction is a loosely-defined term.1.It is often used as a synonym for detective fiction or crime fiction— in other words a novel or short story in which a detective investigates and solves a crime mystery. Sometimes mystery books are nonfiction...
novels, for one of which he received the Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America is an organization for mystery writers, based in New York.The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday....
Edgar Award
Edgar Award
The Edgar Allan Poe Awards , named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America...
.
He additionally wrote and drew comic books (creating an early funny-animal superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
, Supermouse) and comic strips.
Early life and career
The son of Daniel and Etta Hochberg Platt, Kin Platt in the mid-1930s wrote radio comedy for George BurnsGeorge Burns
George Burns , born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became...
, Jack Benny
Jack Benny
Jack Benny was an American comedian, vaudevillian, and actor for radio, television, and film...
, the comedy team of Stoopnagle and Budd
Stoopnagle and Budd
Stoopnagle and Budd were a popular radio comedy team of the 1930s, who are sometimes cited as forerunners of the Bob and Ray style of radio comedy...
, and The National Biscuit Comedy Hour of 1936. Later in the 1930s, he wrote for Disney and Walter Lantz
Walter Lantz
Walter Benjamin Lantz was an American cartoonist, animator, film producer, and director, best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker.-Early years and start in animation:...
theatrical cartoons, and he scripted the Robert Benchley
Robert Benchley
Robert Charles Benchley was an American humorist best known for his work as a newspaper columnist and film actor...
film, How to Read (1938).
Comic books
He broke into comic books with humor stories featuring the character "Happy" in the Better Comics omnibus Best Comics #1 (Nov. 1939). Platt went on to write and draw many features in the next few issues and to draw such features as "Captain Future" in Better's Startling Comics; "The Mask" (no relation to the 1990s Dark Horse ComicsDark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
character), featuring a district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
turned costumed crimefighter, in Exciting Comics; and writer Richard Hughes' Doc Savage
Doc Savage
Doc Savage is a fictional character originally published in American pulp magazines during the 1930s and 1940s. He was created by publisher Henry W. Ralston and editor John L...
-like "Doc Strange" (no relation to Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
' Dr. Strange
Doctor Strange
Doctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, and first appeared in Strange Tales #110 ....
), in Thrilling Comics.
After doing WWII military service
Military service
Military service, in its simplest sense, is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, whether as a chosen job or as a result of an involuntary draft . Some nations require a specific amount of military service from every citizen...
with the U.S. Army Air Force's Air Transport Command from 1943–46, Platt began working for such comic-book companies as Timely Comics
Timely Comics
Timely Comics, an imprint of Timely Publications, was the earliest comic book arm of American publisher Martin Goodman, and the entity that would evolve by the 1960s to become Marvel Comics....
(the 1940s predecessor of Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
), for which his features included "Widjet Witch" in Comedy Comics); and Better/Nedor/Standard, where he created Supermouse in 1948. Additionally, Platt wrote for the Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
and Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis is an American comedian, actor, singer, film producer, screenwriter and film director. He is best known for his slapstick humor in film, television, stage and radio. He was originally paired up with Dean Martin in 1946, forming the famed comedy team of Martin and Lewis...
comics at DC. For two years he drew the adventures of Pepsi and Pete for the advertising strip, Pepsi Cola Cops.
Al Jaffee
Al Jaffee
Abraham Jaffee , known as Al Jaffee, is an American cartoonist. He is notable for his work in the satirical magazine Mad, including his trademark feature, the Mad Fold-in. As of 2010, Jaffee remains a regular in the magazine after 55 years and is its longest-running contributor...
, then an editor of Timely's humor comics, recalled in 2004,
For the New York Herald Tribune
New York Herald
The New York Herald was a large distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between May 6, 1835, and 1924.-History:The first issue of the paper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr., on May 6, 1835. By 1845 it was the most popular and profitable daily newspaper in the UnitedStates...
Syndicate, Platt wrote and drew the comic strip Mr. and Mrs. from 1947–63, and The Duke and the Duchess from 1950-54. Additionally, he drew theatrical
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
caricature
Caricature
A caricature is a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. In literature, a caricature is a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others.Caricatures can be...
s for such newspapers and magazines as The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
and the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
.
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
series The Jetsons
The Jetsons
The Jetsons is a animated American sitcom that was produced by Hanna-Barbera, originally airing in prime-time from 1962–1963 and again from 1985–1987...
, The Flintstones
The Flintstones
The Flintstones is an animated, prime-time American television sitcom that screened from September 30, 1960 to April 1, 1966, on ABC. Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, The Flintstones was about a working class Stone Age man's life with his family and his next-door neighbor and best friend. It...
, Yogi Bear
Yogi Bear
Yogi Bear is a fictional bear who appears in animated cartoons created by Hanna-Barbera Productions. He made his debut in 1958 as a supporting character in The Huckleberry Hound Show. Yogi Bear was the first breakout character created by Hanna-Barbera, and was eventually more popular than...
, Top Cat
Top Cat
Top Cat is a Hanna-Barbera prime time animated television series which ran from September 27, 1961 to April 18, 1962 for a run of 30 episodes on the ABC network. Reruns are played on Cartoon Network's classic animation network Boomerang.-History:...
and Jonny Quest
Jonny Quest
Jonny Quest is a media franchise that revolves around a boy named Jonny Quest who accompanies his father on extraordinary adventures. The franchise started with a 1964-65 television series and has come to include two subsequent television series, two television films, and a video game.-1964–1965...
(for which at one point he held the title of "story director"), as well as for Hal Seeger Productions' Milton the Monster
Milton the Monster
Milton the Monster, also called The Milton the Monster Show was an American animated cartoon TV series that ran on ABC from October 9, 1965, to September 7, 1968...
.
Young-readers' literature
Plat began writing children's booksChildren's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
and young-adult mysteries in 1961. He eventually published more than 30 books, including general-reader mysteries. His pseudonyms included Guy West, Alan West, Wesley Simon York, Nick Tall, Nick West, Noah Zark and Kirby Carr. Platt wrote several novels in the "Hitman" series under the name Kirby Carr.
Platt also returned to comics around this time, writing occasional stories for the DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
titles G.I. Combat
G.I. Combat
G.I. Combat is a long-running comic book series published first by Quality Comics and later by National Periodical Publications, which was the primary company of those that evolved to become DC Comics.-Publication history:...
, Our Army at War
Our Army at War
Our Army at War was the title for a comic book published by DC Comics that featured war themed stories and was the first appearance for popular heroes such like Sgt. Rock and Enemy Ace. The series started in August 1952 and ended in February 1977....
and Star Spangled War Stories in 1964. His final known comics credit is a 48-page adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in Marvel Classics Comics #1 (1976).
Later career
The 1973 film Baxter!, a psychological drama starring Patricia NealPatricia Neal
Patricia Neal was an American actress of stage and screen. She was best known for her film roles as World War II widow Helen Benson in The Day the Earth Stood Still , wealthy matron Emily Eustace Failenson in Breakfast at Tiffany's , middle-aged housekeeper Alma Brown in Hud , for which she won...
, was based on a book by Platt, The Boy Who Could Make Himself Disappear.
He continued writing books throughout the 1980s, though some novels remained unpublished. This material, as well as unpublished caricatures submitted to magazines and newspapers, was donated to the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center at Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
. Big Max and the Missing Giraffe was published posthumously by HarperTrophy in 2005.
Awards
- 1967 Edgar Award for juvenile mystery, for Sinbad and Me
- 1970 Edgar Award nomination, for The Mystery of the Witch Who Wouldn't
Children's Books
- Big Max, illustrated by Robert Lopshire (1965)
- Walt Disney's Snow White and Donald Duck (Whitman, 1967; as Nick Tall)
- Walt Disney's Donald Duck Buried Treasure, illustrated by Anthony Strobl (Whitman, 1968; as Nick Tall)
- Woody Woodpecker and the Busy Beavers (Whitman, 1968; as Nick Tall)
- Mystery of the Coughing Dragon (Alfred HitchcockAlfred HitchcockSir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
and the Three Investigators series, Book 14) (1970; as Nick West) - Mystery of the Nervous Lion (Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators series, Book 16) (1971; as Nick West)
- Robert Louis Stevenson: Kidnapped (comic book adaptation as Nick Tall, illustrated by Frank Redondo) (Pendulum Press, 1974)
- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: The Great Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (comic book adaptation as Nick Tall, illustrated by Nestor Redondo) (Pendulum Press, 1974)
- Big Max and the Mystery of the Missing Moose (HarperCollins, 1975)
- Darwin and the Great Beasts (Self-illustrated) (Greenwillow, 1992)
- Big Max and the Mystery of the Missing Giraffe, illustrated by Lynne Cravath (HarperCollins, 2005)
Young Adult Books
- The Boy Who Could Make Himself Disappear (Chilton, 1968)
- Hey, Dummy (Chilton, 1971)
- Chloris and the Creeps (Chilton, 1973)
- Chloris and the Freaks (Bradbury, 1975)
- Headman (Greenwillow, 1975)
- The Terrible Love Life of Dudley Cornflower (Bradbury, 1976)
- Run for Your Life (F. Watts, 1977)
- Chloris and the Weirdos (Bradbury, 1978)
- The Doomsday Gang (Greenwillow, 1978)
- Dracula, Go Home (F. Watts, 1979)
- The Ape Inside Me (Crowell, 1980)
- Flames Going Out (Methuen, 1980)
- Brogg's Brain (Crowell, 1981)
- Frank and Stein and Me (F. Watts, 1982)
- Crocker (Lippincott, 1983)
- A Mystery for Thoreau (Farrar, Straus and GirouxFarrar, Straus and GirouxFarrar, Straus and Giroux is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger W. Straus, Jr. and John C. Farrar. Known primarily as Farrar, Straus in its first decade of existence, the company was renamed several times, including Farrar, Straus and Young and Farrar, Straus and Cudahy...
, 2008)
"Steve Forrester" young-adult mysteries
- The Blue ManThe Blue ManThe Blue Man is a mystery, science fiction novel written by American author Kin Platt. It is the first in the four book "Steve Forrester" series...
(Harper, 1961) - Sinbad and Me (Chilton, 1966)
- The Mystery of the Witch Who Wouldn't (Chilton, 1969)
- The Ghost of Hellsfire Street (Delacorte, 1980)
Mysteries
- Dead as They Come (Random HouseRandom HouseRandom House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
, 1972) - A Pride of Women (Robert Hale, 1974)
- Murder in Rosslare (Walker, 1986)
"Max Roper" mysteries
- The Pushbutton Butterfly (Random House, 1970)
- The Kissing Gourami (Random House, 1970)
- The Princess Stakes Murder (Random House, 1973)
- The Giant Kill (Random House, 1974)
- Match Point for Murder (Random House, 1975)
- The Body Beautiful Murder (Random House, 1976)
- The Screwball King Murder (Random House, 1978)
"Hitman" Series (as Kirby Carr)
- Who Killed You, Cindy Castle (Canyon Books, 1974)
- Let Me Kill You, Sweetheart (Canyon Books, 1974)
- The Girls Who Came To Murder (Canyon Books, 1974)
- They're Coming to Kill You, Jane (Canyon Books, 1975)
- You Die Next, Jill Baby (Major Books, 1975)
- You're Hired, You're Dead (Major Books, 1975)
- Don't Bet On Living Alice (Major Books, 1975)
- The Impossible Spy (Major Books, 1976)
Adult books (various pseudonyms)
- Sex Heel as Guy West
- Group Grope as Alan West
- Pandora as Guy York
- Lovers & Exorcists as Wesley Simon York
External links
- Kin Platt at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- All-Amazing Comics #9 (May 2001) Reprint of seven-page story "The Mask" from Exciting Comics #20 (July 1942), art by Kin Platt