Who is Joe Letterese?

Joe Letterese seems to be one of the less documented people who have worked in comics. Surprising as some of his work is exceptionally iconic.

Joe was born on June 14, 1917 and raised in the Bronx, New York. A profile that DC ran about him claims he got his start in the comics industry in the late 1930s. According to census records, he worked in the "milk industry." It's not unbelievable that a comics letterer would have another job. He would also serve as a stock clerk in the US army during World War II. DC's profile claims the was an aircraft identification expert and was injured during the bombings of London.

The Comic Vine website credits Letterese with 96 issues, eight of them being reprint books. Sometimes the talent on comics weren't credited, and if they were, it was usually the writer and artist only. It wasn't until later that inkers and letterers would get credit. Yet it's unquestionable that his work was far more expansive. The Grand Comics Database credits him (with some question marks) with over 1200 issues. The DC profile mentions that he worked for Atlas Comics, who would later be rebranded as Marvel. John Romita Sr. mentions that he knew Joe from his time at Atlas and that Joe created logos that Marvel was still using decades later.

While Joe's work in comics is expansive enough that anyone giving a good look at Silver Age titles will have definitely seen his work, it's more likely that people know his work from a different medium. The 1966 Batman TV series had a trademark of showing comic book sound effects onscreen during a fight. But who designed these panels? It was none other than Joe Letterese!

Joe retired from comics in 1981, living his final years in Wycoff, New Jersey with his wife Katherine and his son, Joseph Jr. He died on June 3, 1991.