page_title: Kin Platt
section_title: Comic books
hierarchical_section_title: Kin Platt / Biography / Comic books
caption_attribution_description: English: Cover, Startling Comics #2 ( August 1940; Better/Nedor/Standard -- defunct company). Cover art by Kin Platt
context_page_description: Kin Platt was an American writer-artist, painter, sculptor, caricaturist and comics 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 and comic strips.
context_section_description: 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 Comics 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,
  I knew Kin. Dave Gantz said that Kin created [the print-advertising comic strip] the Pepsi Cola Cops. I didn't know Kin had done that, but it was his style. That may have been what brought him to Stan Lee. Kin sort of looked like Groucho Marx and had both Groucho's sense of humor and delivery; a very funny guy. He wrote very well and did so in a lot of mediums. He was one of the truly gifted guys in our business, very smart and very talented. Whenever he came into the office, things got lively. I also remember getting together with Kin and his wife in Long Island after the war. I don't doubt that Kin created Squat Car Squad, since it'd been something he was familiar with.
  For the New York Herald Tribune Syndicate, Platt wrote and drew the comic strip Mr. and Mrs.(originally by Clare Briggs) from 1947–1963, and The Duke and the Duchess from 1950–1954. Additionally, he drew theatrical caricatures 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.
caption: Startling Comics #2 (Aug. 1940). Captain Future cover art by Platt.
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