2024-04-23
On 24 August this year, Lily Renée Phillips (1921-2022), one of the pioneers of American comics, died in New York at the age of 101. She was one of the first women in the industry to gain recognition and create during the era of the ,,Golden Age of Comics". In 2007, Phillips was nominated for the Hall of Fame at the Comic-Con International convention in San Diego.
The artist was born in Vienna, from which she fled from the Nazis to the UK in 1939. Two years later, she found herself in New York, where she spent several years illustrating for ,,Fiction House", a well-known American comic book publisher. One of her most famous achievements was drawing the character of Señorita Rio (1942-1950), a daring and alluring US intelligence agent. Intriguingly, drawing the character was a form of ,,retaliation" for Phillips. Bringing to life the courageous intelligence agent who fought the Nazis, she imagined her own revenge. In the 1940s, the illustrator signed her work ,,L. Renée', thus soldiers, enthralled with Rio wrote letters to the artist addressed to 'Mr Phillips'.
Lily Renée Phillips' work would have remained largely forgotten had it not been for the dedication of another illustrator, Trina Robbins, who, through an interview in 2006, reminded the world of the Austrian woman's achievements. Robbins also led to Phillips' nomination to the Comic-Con Convention Hall of Fame.
The ,,Golden Age of Comics" is considered to be the era of American comic books published between 1938 and 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published, and their popularity grew rapidly. In addition, the superhero archetype was created, and many well-known characters were introduced, including Superman, Batman, Robin, Shazam, Captain America and Wonder Woman. The later generation of comics published between 1956 and 1970 are referred to as the ,,Silver Age of Comics", while those published between 1970 and 1985 are referred to as the ,,Bronze Age of Comics".