Alan Zelenetz

Alan Zelenetz
Alan Zelenetz
Nationality	American
Area(s)	Writer

Alan Zelenetz is an American film producer and comic-book writer best known for co-creating the series Alien Legion for the Marvel Comics imprint Epic Comics and a founder of Ovie Entertainment. Zelenetz also wrote several issues of Marvel's Moon Knight series, several issues of Thor and a run of Conan the King (issues #16–28).

Biography

Before becoming a film producer, Zelenetz was a junior high school principal at the Yeshiva of Flatbush, an Orthodox Jewish school in Brooklyn, and Solomon Schechter High School of New York.^[1] One of the science teachers under his supervision was the father of Darren Aronofsky, director of Pi (1998) and Requiem for a Dream (2000).

Zelenetz quit his job as a high school principal and worked his way into a paid position at Marvel Comics. He did some volunteer proofreading work for a while, and then started to write for Thor, Conan the Barbarian, and Moon Knight. For Moon Knight, he introduced the Jewish identity of the character to the storyline.^[1] In Thor Annual #10 (1982), Zelenetz introduced the first Nigerian hero, Shango (recruited by Thor to confront Demogorge), in the history of Marvel.^[2]

Zelenetz was the main author and researcher for Marvel's Official Handbook of the Conan Universe,^[3] a guide to the Hyborian Age, the fictional setting of the Conan the Barbarian stories.

He is also director of ICI, the Institute for Curricular Initiatives in New York City.^[4]

Selected filmography

Pi (1998) (Judaica advisor)
Darkon (2006) (producer, executive producer;)
The Funeral Party (2007) (co-producer)
Andorra scheduled in (2007) (producer)

Selected comics bibliography

Alien Legion (1984) #1-20
Alien Legion (1987) #1
Amazing High Adventure #4
The Avengers vol. 1 #224
Bizarre Adventures #32
Conan the Barbarian #145
Conan the King #20-27
Epic Illustrated #30
Official Handbook of the Conan Universe
King Conan #16-19
Kull the Conqueror #1-10
Marvel Age Annual #1
Marvel Fanfare vol. 1 #13, #34-37
Marvel Graphic Novel #15 (The Raven Banner (A Tale of Asgard)), #25 (Alien Legion: A Grey Day to Die), #47 (Kull: The Vale of Shadow)
Master of Kung Fu vol. 1 #123-125
Moon Knight vol. 1 #18, #21–22, #27, #32 (backup stories); #36-38 (main stories)
Moon Knight vol. 2 #1-4
The Savage Sword of Conan #83, #86, #88, #95
Thor vol. 1 #329–336, Annual #10-13
What If? vol. 1 #35, #39, #41

References

^ ^a ^b PJ Grisar (February 23, 2022). "He made Moon Knight Jewish. He doesn't care if Disney has other ideas". Forward.com. Archived from the original on March 19, 2023. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
^ "Nigerian Characters in the Marvel universe". Bookshy. August 2017. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
^ The Official Handbook of the Conan Universe Archived September 24, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, as mentioned in Comicvine
^ "Born in Another Time". Jewishideas.com. Archived from the original on March 29, 2023. Retrieved June 15, 2022.

External links

Preceded by Doug Moench	Thor writer 1983 (with Bob Hall in early 1983)	Succeeded by Walt Simonson

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[forward_knight-1] PJ Grisar (February 23, 2022). "He made Moon Knight Jewish. He doesn't care if Disney has other ideas". Forward.com. Archived from the original on March 19, 2023. Retrieved June 15, 2022.

[2] "Nigerian Characters in the Marvel universe". Bookshy. August 2017. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022. Retrieved June 15, 2022.

[3] The Official Handbook of the Conan Universe Archived September 24, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, as mentioned in Comicvine

[4] "Born in Another Time". Jewishideas.com. Archived from the original on March 29, 2023. Retrieved June 15, 2022.

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