Charles Nicholas (comics)

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"Charles Nicholas" is the pseudonym of three early creators of American comic books.

Future industry legend Jack Kirby used it during his fledgling days, adopting that in-house author's name during his three-month run in 1940 as artist for the Fox Feature Syndicate comic strip The Blue Beetle.

The remaining two creators are Chuck Cuidera (c. 1915-2001) and Charles Wojtkowski (1921-1985). According to Cuidera, speaking on a panel at the 1999 San Diego ComicCon (transcription published Sept. 1, 2000) [link], he is the Charles Nicholas who created the Blue Beetle and was the first artist and co-creator of Blackhawk. Will Eisner, at that same panel, said Wojtkowski later took up the Charles Nicholas pen name.

However, Cuidera's claims to have created the Blue Beetle character have now been shown to be unfounded. An obituary about Cuidera authored by Mark Evanier based on communications with the family of the late Charles Nicholas Wojtkoski now confirms that he [Wojtkoski] and not Cuidera actually created the Blue Beetle character in 1939. As Mr. Evanier states in Cuidera's obituary, "At the time, he [Cuidera] was working under Eisner, who later got confused as to which was which. In truth, Cuidera was probably still at Pratt when the first, four-page Blue Beetle story appeared." Charles Nicholas Wojtkoski was forced to sell the rights to the Blue Beetle character to help support his family shortly before he went into the service in World War II.

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