GRUENWALD, MARK 273
such compositions while still meeting deadlines because of his legendary speed.
Evanier calls him the world’s fastest cartoonist, and at conventions he gives exhibi-
tions in which he and other cartoonists execute impromptu drawings in response
to Evanier’s instructions. In earlier years Aragonés encouraged close scrutiny of his
artwork by including a hidden message in each issue. For most of its run, the series
has been colored by Tom Luth and lettered by Stan Sakai. A fi nal notable feature
of Groo is the creators’ close relationship with the readers; many issues begin with a
gag strip starring Evanier and Aragonés, and the series has an impressive repertoire
of running jokes between the creators and the fans. In the most notable of these,
Evanier repeatedly worked the word “mulch” into his dialogue; then, in response to
letters asking him to defi ne it, he repeatedly cited a tedious dictionary defi nition of
the word.
Although the barbarian genre that inspired it has lost much of its popularity, Groo
has lasted for a quarter century on its own merits. In late 2008 it was announced that a
Groo animated movie is in production.
Selected Bibliography: Evanier, Mark. “Th e History of Groo.” POVonline (December
1994), http://www.povonline.com/cols/COL006.htm.
Aaron Kashtan
GRUENWALD, MARK (1953–96). Born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Mark Gruenwald was
infl uenced by his father’s love of comics, and turned that into his life’s work. After
graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in December of 1975 with a
BA in Art (with a minor in Literature), Gruenwald moved to New York City and
unsuccessfully marketed his art portfolio to Marvel and DC. While working in a bank,
Gruenwald started a self-published fanzine titled Omniverse in the fall of 1977, which
he then used as a marketing device for his editorial and writing skills. Th is proved
successful, and in February of 1978 Marvel’s new executive editor, Jim Shooter, hired
Gruenwald as an assistant editor.
By the end of 1978 Gruenwald had added writing duties on Spider-Woman to his edito-
rial responsibilities, and was soon the regular writer on books such as Marvel Two-in-One
and Th or. Moving from assistant to full-time editor in 1982, he became the writer for
Captain America in 1985 and remained on that book for just over a decade, introduc-
ing characters such as the Serpent Society, Flag-Smasher, and the U.S. Agent. His other
notable runs include the 60-issue run of Quasar (a very strait-laced cosmic hero), and
his 12-issue Squadron Supreme miniseries, which addressed questions about what would
really happen if superhumans chose to take over the world for the benefi t of humanity.
In 1986, Gruenwald began a regular column, “Mark’s Remarks,” in the books he
edited. Where Stan Lee had once used a similar column as a promotional venue,
during the 10-year run of “Mark’s Remarks,” Gruenwald provided a unique and con-
sidered viewpoint, both letting readers in on Marvel’s processes and also pondering
issues including comics as modern mythology, Captain America and fl ag-burning, and
