Mindy Newell: The Spider-Woman Scandal – A Different View

Mindy Newell

These days Mindy Newell knows that if she could do it all over again she’d have gone to college for screenwriting and film editing. Instead she became a nurse to please her parents and pleasing your parents was what it was all about for nice Jewish girls who graduated from high school in 1971. But the creative larva was in her soul, and when the cocoon broke and the butterfly emerged, it flew to DC’s New Talent Showcase program. Under the auspices of legendary editors Karen Berger, Len Wein, Julius Schwartz, Paul Levitz, and ComicMix’s own Robert Greenberger, Mindy learned the craft and art of writing comics, including Tales Of The Legion, V, Legionnaires 3, Amethyst, Lois Lane: When It Rains God Is Crying, and numerous other comics, including a Superman story based on a dream Mindy had as a child. She also worked on Howard Chaykin’s American Flagg! and other independent comics. All this time Mindy continued to work as a nurse while being a single mom to her daughter Alixandra, until the late and dear Mark Gruenwald hired her as an assistant editor at Marvel, while writing stories of the Black Widow and Daredevil. She edited NFL Pro Action, a licensed kid’s magazine about football with the NFL until Marvel imploded in 1996. Returning to full-time nursing, she she also co-wrote a story for 2000 A.D. with her then-husband, British artist John Higgins. A few years ago Mike Gold called and asked her to join the team of columnists here at ComicMix, where her topics freely range from comics to pop culture to politics; she even wrote a piece about the great American thoroughbred Secretariat, which caused editor Mike to tell her that she had won the prize for the most off-topic column ever written ComicMix.

You may also like...

6 Responses

  1. Martha Thomases says:

    Yeah, I think there is “anything wrong with that.” Power based on sexuality is a power based on pleasing men. We don’t celebrate the sexuality of “ugly” women (as judged by society). For example, Melissa McCarthy in BRIDESMAIDS isn’t feared for her powerful sex drive. Instead, we laugh. And that movie deserves credit for acknowledging that she has a sex drive at all. Usually, only “beautiful” women (as judged by society) get to do that.

    Sue Storm (and almost every super heroine who wears a costume) doesn’t look strong to me. She looks like she needs a better bra.

    • Mindy Newell says:

      I don’t know, Martha, I think Melissa McCarthy’s power is making you realize that “overweight” women (by today’s standards–in the past buxom, voluptuous women were the ones considered beautiful, i.e., check out Titian, for instance) are sensual and sexual and comfortable in their bodies.

  2. JSintheStates says:

    Well said, well written! My wife turns 61 today (Labor Day 2014) and although she won’t be caught dead in a bikini, our sex live survives quite well, thank you very much!

    True, Manara’s art is erotic, if not prurient! But I agree with your observations and arguments. Why are we, or rather who, is trying to de-sex women?

    Yes, there is severe rape in the world, and many victimized women! Yes, there is war, and poverty, and bigotry! There is a perverse religious thread in de-sexing and thus subjugating women!

    I truly did enjoy your article! Thank you!

  3. mike weber says:

    The real problem with that costume for Sue Storm is that it’s ugly.