The Stolen First Appearance of Marvel's Werewolf By Night

Posted in: Comics | Tagged: mike ploog, Werewolf By Night

Mike Ploog co-created the character Jack Russell, known as Werewolf By Night, for Marvel Spotlight #2 published by Marvel Comics in 1972.

Mike Ploog co-created the character Jack Russell, known as Werewolf By Night, for Marvel Spotlight #2, published by Marvel Comics in 1972. His first full-length comic, in which he created a werewolf character that has lasted five decades and even made it into its own Marvel TV show. It has been quite the ride. But Ploog never got his original artwork back for the comic book. At a time when original artwork would be given away, destroyed, or plain went walkabout from the major comic book publishers, Mike Ploog’s out was out-and-out stolen. And now he is publicly trying to find anyone who might have it. He posts to Facebook;

PLEASE NOTIFY ME IF YOU KNOW WHERE THIS STOLEN ART IS! I WANT IT RETURNED TO ME.THIS IS A 28-PAGE STORY AND 27 OF THE PAGES REMAIN STOLEN.MARVEL SPOTLIGHT 2 – Splash – Published in 1972My first full-length comic. I’m very proud of it. Werewolf By Night was the first character that I actually co-created. I got to give him the vibe and look that I wanted. No long snouted dog-like muzzle and so forth. This was my baby. UNFORTUNATELY, the original art was never returned to me. I raised hell with everyone that I could to get the art returned to me. No luck. It was stolen from me over 50 years ago. A very kind soul returned this splash page to me but the other 27 pages remain stolen. And I am told that the rest of the issue is still complete, somewhere, of which I am grateful for and expect to have it returned to me. Over the years someone took the time to send me scans of the pages so I was able to use them in my THE ART OF PLOOG.

Other artwork stolen includes the following;

The complete INTERIORS (NOT covers) to Frankenstein issues 1-5. And a heck of a lot of other Werewolf issues. We are closing in on over 150 pages from a USA art dealer that I had no idea were still in existence. I was told they were accidentally destroyed years ago.

As for people going through their own collections, Mike Ploog wanted to assure everyone.

I am NOT interested in any claim to individual pages that fans bought in sincerity. I am interested in three things. 1) The complete Marvel Spotlight 2 book (my first at Marvel), 2) All five Frankenstein interiors from issues 1-5. (ALL Covers and pages from issue #6 are legit), and 3) A group of about 150 misc all Werewolf By Night pages that a dealer in the USA has. I do not want to cause a panic to individual collectors who really just love the comics and the art.

Mike Ploog is in his nineties. Sooner rather than later, yes?

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