The creator of the Golden Age Green Lantern, Alan Scott (and thus, the founder of the entire Green Lantern legacy), has passed away.

Here’s the news from Matt Hawes of Comics Unlimited:

Late last month, Dave Cockrum, creator of Storm, Colossus, and Nightcrawler, passed away. Now, sadly, another wonderful person and artist has left us, Martin Nodell. He was 91 years-old.

Martin Nodell created Alan Scott, the original Green Lantern, and designed the Pillsbury Doughboy. I have attended the Wizardworld Comic Convention for every year but one since 2001, and I always made it a point to visit Martin Nodell’s stand at the show. He was a sweet man who was very kind and appreciative of his fans. I enjoyed several conversations with him, and his late wife, Carrie, an equally lovely person. I was lucky enough to have also seen him in Saint Louis one year.

Martin was one of the people responsible for the business and entertainment I love so much. It was his work, along with others, that helped lay the foundations for the comic book industry. He was an elder statesman of comic books that I looked forward to visiting.

Rest in peace, Martin. You are missed.

I would just like to second Matt’s sentiments. One of the highlights of Wizard World Chicago was going over to Artists’ Alley to see which former Playboy model Martin was placed next to. It’s a shame that one of the few surviving Golden Age creators had to buy his own table and wasn’t even allowed into Wizard’s guests lounge, but Martin seemed to sell enough merchandise and meet enough stunned admirers to make it worth it every year. I talked to him several times, and Martin was always happy to meet Green Lantern fans.

Martin was confined to a wheelchair but managed to run his table fine with the help of his wife, Carrie. She seemed much younger than he was, bustling around the table area to make sure that people didn’t use a flashbulb when taking pictures or rearranging the merchandise. The first time I saw him at Wizard, which was either 1999 or 2000, I remember thinking that it was great Martin was able to attend a con one last time. Next year, I check: he’s still there, doing fine. If anything, he looked healthier. The next year, same thing. Then last year I went only to find out that he’s still there, but his wife had passed! It was a moment of shock, followed by even more shock that she went first. Wasn’t expecting that!

I’m reminded of the DC writer John Broome who created numerous characters that became DC institutions then quit to move to Japan. He attended only one con in his life, the 1999 Comicon in San Diego, and had had no idea until then how highly he was regarded. He died not long after.

Martin Nodell left this world knowing that he was appreciated for his accomplishments, and that’s comforting. R.I.P.