Home › Comics › Alter Ego spotlights the career of MAD magazine’s Angelo Torres

Alter Ego spotlights the career of MAD magazine’s Angelo Torres

By John Freeman on February 10, 2024

Alter Ego (#186) spotlights the career of Angelo Torres (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2024)

The latest issue of Alter Ego (#186), from TwoMorrows Publishing spotlights the career of the award-winning comic artist Angelo Torres, the youngest and last of the fabled EC Comics artists, who went on to a fabulous career as a horror, science-fiction, and humour artist for Timely/Marvel, Warren Publishing, and MAD magazine.

Angelo was born in 1932, on the island of Puerto Rico, where he spent the first fourteen years of his life. His first recollection of any interest in comics was fighting his cousin over who’d get the Will Eisner The Spirit insert that came with the family’s magazine subscription.

Coming to America, he graduated from the School of Industrial Art but was immediately drafted to fight in the Korean War, returning to enrol in the Cartoonists and Illustrators School (now known as the School of Visual Arts) to study with Hogarth and others and make cartooning his profession. After a visit to the school by Stan Lee, and winning a student challenge he set, he quit school and started to work for Stan Lee – and never looked back.

Angelo was part of a group of friends with Frank Frazetta and Al Williamson, who, along with Roy Krenkel, called themselves The Fleagle Gang (also known as “The Fleagles”), Torres and Frazetta often helping Williamson on his EC stories, pitching in with inking and backgrounds.

Edited by Roy Thomas, this issue features a lushly illustrated retrospective of his still-ongoing career – plus FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America), Michael T. Gilbert in Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, and more.

• Alter Ego #186 is available to order in print or digitally direct from the TwoMorrows Publishing web store, or your Local Comic Shop | Buy it here from Forbidden Planet (Affiliate Link) | Diamond Comic Distributors Order Code: OCT232018

• Angelo Torres is online at angelotorresart.com

With thanks to Martin Gray and Pete Doree

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.