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Creator

Ben Oda

letterercolorist
Ben Oda
Known forYoung Romance
Issues credited2,647
Active1932–1954
Primary roleletterer
House of Secrets #92
House of Secrets #92 (1971)

Ben Oda was one of the most prolific letterers in American comics history, born on December 21, 1915, and raised to become a quietly indispensable figure across decades of the medium. He died on November 28, 1984. A graduate of the Chouinard Art Institute, he began his professional life as an apprentice at Walt Disney Studios before serving as a paratrooper with the U.S. Army's 442nd Combat Team during World War II.

DC Comics Presents #26
DC Comics Presents #26 (1980)

After the war, Oda entered comics through work for Hillman Periodicals on titles such as Airboy and Real Clue Crime Stories, which brought him into orbit of the Simon & Kirby studio. His reputation grew through the 1950s when Harvey Kurtzman, impressed by Oda's clean, distinctive hand, specifically sought him out for EC Comics work — reportedly insisting on his style over competing approaches.

Mad #21
Mad #21 (1955)

Oda's range extended well beyond comic books. He lettered newspaper strips for both the Chicago Tribune and King Features syndicates, contributing to Flash Gordon, Prince Valiant, The Spirit, Steve Canyon, Little Orphan Annie, and numerous others. At DC Comics, where he worked until his death, his lettering appeared across Action Comics, Justice League of America, Wonder Woman, Teen Titans, and many more titles. His wife, Nishi Oda, was also a letterer. His family later commissioned Odaballoon, a freeware typeface preserving his style. In 2019, Oda was posthumously inducted into the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame, with the tribute introduced by former DC president Paul Levitz.

Known for

House of Secrets #92
House of Secrets #92
DC Comics Presents #26
DC Comics Presents #26
Mad #21
Mad #21
Batman #357
Batman #357
All-Star Comics #58
All-Star Comics #58
The New Teen Titans #2
The New Teen Titans #2

Full bibliography (first 500) · 88 series

Young Romance (1947) · 75
#2 [2]#3 [3]#4 [4]#4#5 (5)#6 (6)#1 (7)#7#2 (8)#3 (9)#4 (10)#10#5 (11)#11#12#1 (13)#2 (14)#3 (15)#4 (16)#5 (17)#6 (18)#7 (19)#8 (20)#9 (21)#10 (22)#11 (23)#12 (24)#1 (25)#2 (26)#3 (27)#4 (28)#5 (29)#6 (30)#7 (31)#8 (32)#9 (33)#10 (34)#11 (35)#12 (36)#1 (37)#2 (38)#3 (39)#4 (40)#5 (41)#6 (42)#7 (43)#8 (44)#9 (45)#10 (46)#11 (47)#1 (49)#2 (50)#3 (51)#4 (52)#5 (53)#6 (54)#7 (55)#8 (56)#9 (57)#10 (58)#11 (59)#12 (60)#1 (61)#2 (62)#3 (63)#4 (64)#5 (65)#7 (67)#8 (68)#9 (69)#10 (70)#11 (71)#12 (72)#1 (73)#2 (74)
Young Love (1949) · 54
#2 [2]#3 [3]#4 [4]#5 [5]#6 [6]#2 [8]#4 [10]#5 [11]#6 [12]#7 [13]#8 [14]#9 (15)#11 (17)#12 [18]#2 (20)#3 (21)#4 (22)#5 (23)#6 (24)#7 (25)#9 (27)#10 (28)#11 (29)#12 (30)#1 (31)#2 (32)#4 (34)#6 (36)#7 (37)#8 (38)#10 (40)#1#11 (41)#24#12 (42)#1 (43)#2 (44)#3 (45)#4 (46)#5 (47)#26#7 (49)#8 (50)#9 (51)#10 (52)#11 (53)#12 (54)#1 (55)#2 (56)#3 (57)#4 (58)#5 (59)#7 (61)#8 (62)
Justice Traps the Guilty (1947) · 34
#1 [1]#2 (2)#3 (3)#3#4#5 (5)#5#6 (6)#6#1 (7)#3 (9)#5 (11)#3 (15)#6 (18)#1 (19)#3 (21)#6 (24)#10 (28)#1 (31)#7#5 (35)#12 (42)#5 (47)#7 (49)#8 (50)#9 (51)#10 (52)#2 (56)#3 (57)#31#5 (60)#8 (62)#11 (65)#3 (69)
Prize Comics Western (1948) · 30
#5 (72)#6 (73)#1 (74)#2 (75)#4 (77)#2#1 (80)#2 (81)#3 (82)#4 (83)#5 (84)#6 (85)#1 (86)#2 (87)#1#3 (88)#4 (89)#5 (90)#6 (91)#1 (92)#2 (93)#3 (94)#4 (95)#5 (96)#6 (97)#1 (98)#2 (99)#3 (100)#5 (102)#1 (104)
Black Magic (1950) · 30
#1 [1]#1#2 [2]#3 [3]#4 [4]#5 [5]#6 [6]#1 [7]#2 [8]#3 [9]#4 [10]#5 [11]#6 [12]#7 (13)#8 (14)#9 (15)#10 (16)#11 (17)#12 (18)#1 (19)#2 (20)#3 (21)#4 (22)#6 (24)#1 (25)#2 (26)#3 (27)#4 (28)#5 (29)#2 (32)
Frontline Combat (1951) · 27
#1#1#2#2#3#4#4#5#5#6#6#7#7#8#8#9#9#10#10#11#11#12#12#13#13#14#15
Two-Fisted Tales (1950) · 23
#19#20#20#21#22#23#24#25#26#27#28#28#29#30#31#32#33#34#35#36#37#38#39
The Spirit (1940) · 18
#3/5/1950#6/25/1950#6/4/1950#9/3/1950#12/10/1950#1/21/1951#2/18/1951#4/15/1951#5/20/1951#5/6/1951#8/17/1952#8/31/1952#8/24/1952#9/21/1952#9/7/1952#9/28/1952#9/14/1952#10/5/1952
Mad (1952) · 18
#1#2#3#4#4#5#6#7#8#9#10#12#13#14#15#16#17#18
Headline Comics (1943) · 17
#2 (26)#3 (27)#5 (29)#1 (31)#31#4 (34)#34#5 (35)#3 (33)#4 (40)#1 (43)#4 (46)#2 (50)#5 (53)#1 (61)#3 (63)#4 (64)
Young Brides (1952) · 17
#1 [1]#2 [2]#3 [3]#4 [4]#5 [5]#6 [6]#1 [7]#2 [8]#3 [9]#5 [11]#6 [12]#7 [13]#8 [14]#9 (15)#11 (17)#12 (18)#1 (19)
Romantic Confessions (1949) · 8
#5#8#10#11#1#2#6#10
Black Magic Comics (1952) · 8
#1#2#7#8#9#10#4#6
Real West Romances (1949) · 7
#1#2#3#4#5#6#1
Dead-Eye Western Comics (1948) · 7
#9#1#2#3#4#5#10
Boys' Ranch (1950) · 7
#1#2#2#3#4#5#6
Battle Cry (1952) · 6
#1#7#8#9#11#13
Mister Mystery (1951) · 5
#10#14#15#16#17
Weird Thrillers (1951) · 4
#4#2#3#5
Weird Science (1950) · 4
#15#5#6#7
The Strange World of Your Dreams (1952) · 4
#1#2#3#4
Fighting American (1954) · 4
#1 [1]#2 [2]#3 [3]#4 [4]
Buster Brown Comic Book (1945) · 3
#9#12#15
The Westerner Comics (1948) · 3
#19#22#38
The American Air Forces (1944) · 3
#5 [A-1 #45]#5#8 [A-1 #65]
The Hawk (1951) · 3
#1#2#5
Nightmare (1952) · 3
#1#2#13
Romantic Marriage (1950) · 3
#16#18#24
The Masked G-Man (1952) · 3
#16#21#25
Adventures into the Unknown (1948) · 3
#53#57#58
Weird Fantasy (1950) · 2
#16#6
Amazing Adventures (1950) · 2
#4#5
Punch and Judy Comics (1944) · 2
#4#8
Baseball Thrills (1951) · 2
#2 [11]#3
Hot Rod and Speedway Comics (1952) · 2
#1#1
Baffling Mysteries (1951) · 2
#7#9
Radiant Love (1953) · 2
#2#6
Two Fisted Tales (1953) · 2
#10#11
Approved Comics (1954) · 2
#1#5
Battle (1951) · 2
#29#34
Amazing Ghost Stories (1954) · 2
#14#15
Clue Comics (1943) · 1
#3 [15]
Real Clue Crime Stories (1947) · 1
#5 [17]
Green Hornet Comics (1942) · 1
#38
Airboy Comics (1945) · 1
#6 [53]
Manhunt (1947) · 1
#11
The Black Terror (1942) · 1
#25
Wanted Comics (1947) · 1
#23
Silver Kid Bumper Comic (1950) · 1
#[nn]
Babe Ruth Sports Comics (1949) · 1
#6
Tomahawk (1950) · 1
#2
Prize Western (1951) · 1
#[nn]
Love Diary (1949) · 1
#18
Eerie Adventures (1951) · 1
#1
Dick Tracy (1950) · 1
#46
Explorer Joe (1951) · 1
#1
He-Man (1952) · 1
#1
Roaring Western (1952) · 1
#1
Speed Smith, the Hot Rod King (1952) · 1
#1
Star Spangled Comics (1941) · 1
#126
Crime Clinic (1951) · 1
#5
Tim Holt (1948) · 1
#31
Captain Fleet (1952) · 1
#1
Tops in Adventure (1952) · 1
#1
Danger (1953) · 1
#1
Indian Fighters (1953) · 1
#[nn]
My Own Romance (1949) · 1
#26
Dead-Eye Western Comic (1953) · 1
#1
Weird Horrors (1952) · 1
#6
Weird Tales of the Future (1952) · 1
#6
Weird Mysteries (1952) · 1
#4
Love Romances (1949) · 1
#28
G.I. Joe (1951) · 1
#22
Weird Terror (1952) · 1
#7
Dear Lonely Hearts (1953) · 1
#2
Perfect Love (1953) · 1
#9
Fantastic Fears (1953) · 1
#5
Outlaws - A Streamline Bumper Comic (1954) · 1
#[nn]
Tender Romance (1953) · 1
#2
Blazing Western (1954) · 1
#2
Space Adventures (1952) · 1
#10
G.I. Sweethearts (1953) · 1
#40
War Comics (1950) · 1
#26
Police Trap (1954) · 1
#1
Foxhole (1954) · 1
#1
Mutiny (1954) · 1
#1
Bulls Eye (1954) · 1
#3
Headline Stories (1954) · 1
#31

Original biography and editorial content © comicbooks.com™. Information drawn in part from Wikipedia and the Grand Comics Database. Portrait by Phyzome / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0). Cover thumbnails shown under fair use, each linking to its issue.