Joe Simon began his print career in the 1930s as an assistant art director for
The Rochester Journal-American,
The Syracuse Herald and
The Syracuse Journal-American. He moved to New York City in 1939 and quickly found work at the comics packaging company Funnies, Inc., where he created the Fiery Mask. In 1940 he met fellow artist Jack Kirby, and the two went on to form one of the most important partnerships in comics' Golden Age. Together they created Captain America, the Fighting American and the Guardian, as well as the characters Stuntman, Manhunter, the Boy Commandos and the Newsboy Legion. They also revamped DC's SANDMAN feature, giving the character a much more dynamic and eye-catching look and introducing Sandy the Golden Boy to the strip.
Following World War II, Simon and Kirby branched out into new genres, publishing the horror title Black Magic as well as the first romance comic Young Romance. After Simon and Kirby went their separate ways in 1955, Simon created the humor magazine Sick and worked extensively in advertising before returning to comics in the 1960s and '70s with Lancelot Strong, the Fly, Brother Power the Geek, Prez and the Outsiders. In 1990, Simon wrote his autobiographical history of the industry, The Comic Book Makers, and in 1999 he was inducted into the Eisner Awards Hall of Fame.