Editing Dave Cockrum (section)

==Early life==
Cockrum was born on November 11, 1943, in [[Pendleton, Oregon]]. His father was a [[Lieutenant colonel (United States)|lieutenant colonel]] of the [[United States Air Force]], resulting in the Cockrums frequently transporting their household from one city to another for years. Cockrum discovered comic books at a young age; an early favorite was [[Fawcett Comics|Fawcett]]'s ''[[Captain Marvel (DC Comics)|Captain Marvel]]'', especially [[Mac Raboy]]'s [[Captain Marvel Jr.]]<ref name="CBA">{{cite journal|last = Cooke |first = Jon B.|title = Dave "Blackhawk" Cockrum: The Marvel Days of the Co-Creator of the New X-Men|journal= [[Comic Book Artist]]|issue = 6|publisher = [[TwoMorrows Publishing]]|date = Fall 1999|location= Raleigh, North Carolina|url = http://twomorrows.com/comicbookartist/articles/06cockrum.html|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121024205417/http://twomorrows.com/comicbookartist/articles/06cockrum.html|archive-date= October 24, 2012|url-status= live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> Other artists whose work the young Cockrum admired were [[Wally Wood]], [[Gil Kane]], [[Murphy Anderson]], and [[Joe Kubert]].<ref name="CBA" />

As a young man, Cockrum was a dedicated "[[letterhack]]," who had many letters printed in [[comic book letter column]]s<ref>{{cite journal|last = Smith|first = Stephen Scott Beau|author-link = Beau Smith|title = The LOCsmiths|journal= [[Amazing Heroes]]|issue = 23|publisher = [[Fantagraphics Books]]|date = May 15, 1983}}</ref> such as ''[[Fantastic Four (comic book)|Fantastic Four]]'' #22 (Jan. 1964), ''[[The Amazing Spider-Man]]'' #12 (May 1964), ''[[Atom (Ray Palmer)|The Atom]]'' #1 (June 1962), and ''Fantastic Four'' #36 (March 1965) (return address "YN 'A' School, USNTC"). A letter from Cockrum in ''Fantastic Four'' #34 (Jan. 1965) led to a correspondence with Andrea Kline, who later became his first wife.<ref name="CBA"/><ref name=WashPost>{{cite news|last = Jacobson|first= Aileen|title = Serious Comics Fans|newspaper =[[The Washington Post]]|date = August 16, 1971|page=B2}}</ref>

Cockrum's ambition was to become a comic-book creator himself. After attending but not graduating from [[Southern Illinois University Carbondale|Southern Illinois University]],<ref>{{cite news|last= Martin|first= Douglas|title= Dave Cockrum, 63, Comic Book Artist, Dies|newspaper= [[The New York Times]]|date= November 29, 2006|url= http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/29/arts/design/29cockrum.html?_r=1&oref=slogin}}</ref> Cockrum joined the [[United States Navy]] for six years.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.lambiek.net/artists/c/cockrum_dave.htm|title= Dave Cockrum|year= 2010|publisher= [[Lambiek|Lambiek Comiclopedia]]|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120706053714/http://lambiek.net/artists/c/cockrum_dave.htm|archive-date= July 6, 2012|url-status= live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> During this time, he created the character [[Nightcrawler (character)|Nightcrawler]], though the character would not be used until years later.<ref name="TyphoonDave">{{cite news |last = Meth | first= Clifford | date = August 1993 | title = How a Typhoon Blew in Success | work = [[Wizard (magazine)|Wizard]]: X-Men Turn Thirty | issue = 1|pages = 50–52}}</ref>