Frank Bolle

Frank W. Bolle, born on June 23, 1924, spent more than seven decades working across newspaper strips, comic books, and magazine illustration, building one of the more quietly durable careers in American comics. He died on May 12, 2020.

Bolle got his start in comic books in 1944, eventually contributing artist, inking, lettering, and writing work across some 310 issues over his long career. His comic book credits range from the Western titles Tim Holt and Red Mask to horror and mystery anthologies including Grimm's Ghost Stories, Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery, and Ripley's Believe It or Not!, as well as the science-fiction series Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom. Alongside an unidentified writer, he co-created the Black Phantom, a masked heroine set in the Old West — one of the more distinctive female characters of the genre.

Newspaper strip readers came to know him primarily through his extended runs on Winnie Winkle and The Heart of Juliet Jones, domestic-drama serials that showcased his clean, expressive linework. He also spent eighteen years illustrating for Boys' Life, the Boy Scouts of America magazine, a steady assignment that underscored his versatility as a storyteller for younger audiences. He occasionally worked under the pen names FWB and F. L. Blake. No major industry awards are documented in the available record, but the sheer span and consistency of his output stand as their own testament.