Real Name:
Herbert William TrimpeHERB
TRIMPE
Real Name:
Herbert William Trimpe
Identity/Class: Human (real
life character)
Occupation: Comic book artist, deacon;
former US Air Force weatherman
Group Membership: Marvel Comics (John
Romita, Roy
Thomas, Len
Wein, numerous others), Marvel Bullpen Softball Team;
formerly US Air Force
Affiliations: Sol Brodsky, Iron Fist (Danny Rand), John Romita, Rafael Scarfe, Roy Thomas, John Verpoorten, Len Wein, Wolverine (James Howlett)
Enemies: Monstroid
Known Relatives: Herbert Trimpe (father), Anna May
Jamison Trimpe (mother), Michael Richard Trimpe (brother), Patricia
(wife), Linda Fite (ex-wife), unidentified ex-wife (possibly Merrilee
Travis), Alexander Spurlock Trimpe (son), Melissa Trimpe, Amelia Fite
Trimpe, Sarah Trimpe (daughters), Alan Jamison, Arthur Jamison, Clarence
Jamison (paternal uncles), Marie Francis Trimpe, nee Dorritie
(sister-in-law), Mark D. Trimpe (nephew), Jennifer Trimpe (niece)
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Unrevealed;
formerly Peekskill, New York, USA
First Appearance: Sub-Mariner II#19 (November 1969)
Powers/Abilities: Herb Trimpe had no superhuman powers but he was an extremely skilled and versatile comic book artist, having worked for Marvel Comics for over twenty years straight.
Height: Unrevealed (see
comments)
Weight: Unrevealed (see
comments)
Eyes: Blue-gray
Hair: Gray; formerly brown
History:
(real life history) - Herbert William Trimpe was born May 26, 1939 in
Peekskill, New York to Herbert and Anna Jamison Trimpe. Growing up a fan
of comic books (especially the cartoonish "funny animal" genre like
Donald Duck and Plastic Man) alongside brother Mike, Herb graduated from
Lakeland High School and sought to create a syndicated comic strip.
While attending New York City's School of Visual Arts, Herb was
introduced to the world of professional comic books when his instructor
Tom Gill asked for a student to help ink his background art for Dell
Comics. Shortly after working on comic books such as westerns and other
licensed material, Herb enlisted in the US Air Force and served as a
weatherman from 1962-1966 before discharging and learning that his
School of Visual Arts classmate John Verpoorten was working at Marvel
Comics. Upon hearing that Marvel was looking for freelancers, Herb
visited the Marvel Comics offices and showed his work to Sol Brodsky,
who ultimately hired Herb in the production department to run the
photostat machine while occasionally picking up freelance penciling and
inking jobs. He had a daughter, Melissa, circa 1965, and married in 1969
but divorced in 1971. In late 1972, Herb married his second wife, fellow
artist Linda Fite, with whom he had three children, Alexander, Amelia
and Sarah.
(Sub-Mariner II#19) - While out at the Coney Island beach
with other members of the Marvel Bullpen Herb witnessed the collapsed
Sub-Mariner lying in the sand.
(Marvel
Premiere#24) - The Marvel Bullpen Softball team, including Herb, played
in Central Park's Sheep Meadow against Lt. Rafael Scarfe's team, which
included Danny "Iron Fist" Rand, in the First Annual Sheep Meadow
Softball Championship until the game was disrupted by the arrival of the
Monstroid.
(Marvel Comics I#1000 / 36 - BTS) - Herb Trimpe managed
the curtain on a stage north of the American border as the Canadian
mutant Wolverine was preparing to go after the incredible Hulk and
monstrous Wendigo.
Prior to leaving, Wolverine was checked by writers Roy Thomas and Len
Wein, as well as artist John Romita, and after everything was
satisfactory, the three comic book professionals had Herb open the
curtain so Wolverine could exit the stage and depart to confront the
Hulk and Wendigo.
(real life history) - In 1991, while still working at Marvel Comics, Herb Trimpe worked on two comic books with his son Alex and was ordained as an Episcopal deacon in 1992. Herb remained at Marvel Comics until 1996, when he lost his quasi-staff job due to widespread company downsizing. Afterwards, Herb decided to return to college, attending Empire State College and graduating with a bachelor's degree in Art in 1997. Subsequently earning his master's degree from SUNY New Paltz, Herb took a job teaching art at Eldred Central School in Sullivan County, New York in 1999 and taught for two years. At some point, Herb married his third wife, Patricia. He later returned to comics in 2005, providing for occasional Marvel stories and variant covers, and he regularly appeared at comic book conventions up until his death on April 13, 2015 at age 75.
|
Comments: Adapted into Marvel Comics by Roy Thomas and Marie Severin and Johnny Craig.
Herb Trimpe is in real life a
renowned Marvel Comics artist who worked consistently for the
company from the late 1960s into the mid-1990s, co-creating such
characters at the
Phantom Eagle, Doc Samson and Captain Britain to name a
small few...and, of course, he drew Wolverine in the character's
first appearance (though the character was conceived, written
and designed by Roy Thomas, Len Wein and John Romita, Sr.,
respectively). Herb appeared in panel, unidentified, along with other members of the then-Bullpen as bystanders on the beach surrounding a collapsed Namor in Sub-Mariner II#19. He was identified by fellow staffer Marie Severin here. Herb's appearance as a member of the Marvel Softball team seen Marvel Premiere#24 was confirmed in the letters page of Iron Fist I#2, though it doesn't confirm which Bullpenner is which. Based on how he looked circa 1971 in the student film documentary Herb Trimpe, We Love You!, I think he's the one on page 9, panel 1, furthest to the left. The main image of Herb
Trimpe comes from a self--portrait he did, one of a number of
artists' self-portraits produced for Marvelmania circa 1971,
the others being Ernie Colan, Jim Steranko, Jack Kirby, John
Romita and John Buscema. A smaller section of it was then
colored for portfolio adverts in titles such as Mad About
Millie Queen-Sized Special. A beautiful piece, it's since been
reprinted in the original black and white in Incredible Hulk
Epic Collection#4 and in color as the cover of TwoMorrows' The
Incredible Herb Trimpe, although with some text obscuring some
of the image. Both are worth seeing in their entirety, so I've
included them below. - Loki This profile was completed on
09/12/2026 but its publication was delayed, as it was intended
for the Appendix's 25th anniversary celebratory event. Profile by Proto-Man. |
CLARIFICATIONS:
Herb Trimpe should be distinguished from:
images: (without ads)Appearances:
Sub-Mariner II#19 (November 1969) - Roy Thomas (writer), Marie Severin
(pencils), Johnny Craig (inks), Stan Lee (editor)
Marvel Premiere#24 (September 1975) -
Chris Claremont (writer), Pat Broderick (pencils), Vinnie Colletta
(inks), Len Wein (editor)
Marvel Comics I#1000 (October, 2019) - "Enter-Stage Center" story
- Roy Thomas (writer), Rod Reis (art), Tom Brevoort (editor)
First posted: 09/23/2026
Last updated: 09/14/2026
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel
Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™ and © 1941-2099
Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you like this stuff, you
should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com
Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!
While
the BTS person reference in Marvel Comics I#1000 is clearly
meant to be Herb Trimpe, given the other creators in that same
story that had a hand in the creation of Wolverine, he is only
ever referred to as "Herb" without mentioning a last name. Given
Marvel's sliding time scale, that reference will eventually end
up being some other random guy named Herb rather than
specifically referencing Herb Trimpe.