Who is Nicola Cuti:

( October 29, 1944 – February 21, 2020)

Nicola Cuti , known as Nick Cuti, is an artist and comic book writer-editor, notable for his co-creation of E-Man (with artist Joe Staton) and Moonchild. He has also worked as an animation background designer, magazine illustrator and screenwriter.   In the mid-1960s, Cuti encountered the Warren horror and science-fiction magazines, which prompted him to write and submit a script, “Grub”, which was published in Warren’s Creepy. Cuti also drew a simple six-panel comic strip for a French friend’s fledgling art magazine.

Returning home, Cuti began attending the New York Comic Art Convention and determined to make his future in comics. While employed at the Ralph Bakshi animation studio, he continued to produce scripts for the Warren magazines.

Starting in 1968, he self-published three underground comix featuring his first original character, Moonchild, a big-eyed, buxom innocent waif who had the ability to live in outer space without any life support systems. She was also featured in Mark Estren’s book A History of the Underground Comics, in the first underground comic in full color, Weird Fantasies and in several issues of Cheri magazine. She was then published as a three issue miniseries, under the name Moonie, Moonchild the Starbabe, by MU Press with covers, writing, editing, pencils by Cuti and inks and lettering by Dave Simons.

Cuti had long admired the work of comic artist Wally Wood and asked if Wood would look at his portfolio. Cuti did a single-page comic strip featuring Moonwhild but it was never published in Wood’s magazine Witzend; however, Cuti eventually became Wood’s studio assistant at the Wood Studio in Valley Stream, Long Island. He worked on the strips Cannon and Sally Forth for Wood.

Where can you find Nicola Cuti: