Cover of Not Brand Echh No. 10. Photo: Marvel Entertainment / Marie Severin

Artist Marie Severin died today at the age of 89. Within the comics world, she loomed large, though she was never a household name in the way that contemporaries like Stan Lee and Jack Kirby were. Severin recently suffered a stroke and one of her close friends confirmed her death today. Born in New York, she got her start in the industry when her older brother, John, needed a colorist for a 1949 issue of EC Comics’ evocatively titled A Moon, a Girl … Romance. She went on to become an EC staple, doing colors and touch-up art, but her greatest fame arrived after she went to work for Timely, the publisher that soon became Marvel Comics. There, she became a rare all-purpose artist, doing pencils, inks, colors, and production for a wide range of titles, from Iron Man to The Incredible Hulk and, perhaps most delightfully, the parody series Not Brand Echh. Her presence and success were all the more amazing given that she was a woman in an overwhelmingly male-dominated — and often actively misogynist — industry. She was also an innovator, co-creating characters such as Spider-Woman, the Living Tribunal, and Doctor Bong. Her work brought her an array of awards, including a coveted spot in the Will Eisner Hall of Fame in 2001. Since her death was made public, tributes from comics pros have been pouring in:

RIP Marie Severin. One of the great cartoonists in comics and likely the greatest colorist in the history of comics. We stand on the shoulder of giants. pic.twitter.com/0ycrjVDd2F — Tom King (@TomKingTK) August 30, 2018

Rest In Peace, Marie Severin. Uber talented, trail blazing Marvel artist has passed away at 89 years old. Her work is stunning and had tremendous impact on Marvel in the late 60’s early 70’s! pic.twitter.com/IJc311BASX — robertliefeld (@robertliefeld) August 30, 2018

Marie Severin was a hero who's song too often went unsung. RIP. pic.twitter.com/ErKilrQq0p — Jason Latour (@jasonlatour) August 30, 2018

So sorry to hear about the passing of Marie Severin.

It was a privilege and honor to work with her.

She was funny, tough, always professional, and a fantastic artist.#MarieSeverin pic.twitter.com/TmxeCzioD0 — Fabian Nicieza (@FabianNicieza) August 30, 2018

Marie Severin has passed away. Marie was fundamental in making Marvel what Marvel is. An architect of their universe. pic.twitter.com/o2dQ1mxTbI — Patch Zircher (@PatrickZircher) August 30, 2018

Comics artist Marie Severin has reportedly passed away. She drew this panel, which blew my 5-year-old mind. I still remember buying this Hulk comic book (King-Size #1) on vacation in Cape Cod.@DerfBackderf has a great tweet tribute to this pioneer artist https://t.co/XBaPhKRa2s pic.twitter.com/B0V6bxbSP7 — Tom the Dancing Bug (@RubenBolling) August 30, 2018

Thank you, Marie Severin. Thank you so much. pic.twitter.com/tz0zoO6CZr — Javier Rodríguez (@javiercaster) August 30, 2018

RIP Marie Severin, legendary artist, trailblazer, and cover penciller for one of the GOAT Marvel covers. pic.twitter.com/LV17DBkC4I — axel alonso (@axelalonsomarv) August 30, 2018

Marie Severin's work had such incredible flow and energy. She could do comedy, she could do drama, she was a fantastic layout artist for many Marvel covers. And she drew a helluva King Kull. pic.twitter.com/iwIL1Q7W4p — J.M. DeMatteis (@JMDeMatteis) August 30, 2018

Marie Severin has passed, and the world is at once less funny and less colorful. I'll leave the personal reminiscences... Posted by Paul Levitz on Thursday, August 30, 2018