Joe Edwards, an artist who bags all the credit for the character of Li’l Jinx and Archie in my all time favorite Archie comics died on Feb. 1 at his New York home, after years of treatment for heart problems. He was 85.He started working on Archies with the 1942 debut issue of Archie comics. He is survived by his wife, Eda Selnick, his son Todd; another son Ken, of Holbrook; a daughter, Naomi, of West Babylon and a number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Edwards earlier worked for Demby Studios, which produced comic book stories for a number of publishers. Later on, he joined the former MLJ Comics, now known as Archie Comics. Edwards was a resident of Manhattan and served in the Army during World War II also. While he was in Italy, he drew animated cartoons warning of minefields around Naples. He made use of his terrific drawing skills in army too.
Todd added that his father kept a sketch pad with him always even in his last years. Despite failing health, he would draw sketches for doctors and nurses and made them smile. Along with creating Li’l Jinx, he also used to draw the popular, Archie Andrews, his pals, Jughead, Betty and Veronica. The Li’l Jinx’s adventures were basically based on his own experiences with his two sons and daughter. Edwards was a member of the Berndt Toast Gang also, which is a dub for the Long Island chapter of the National Cartoonists’ Society.
