Washington, Alonzo 1967–

views updated

Alonzo Washington 1967–

Comic book publisher

As the creator of the first African-American comic book to deal with social issues, and the largest African-American comic book publisher, Alonzo Washington tried to affect social change. Frustrated by the stereotypes he saw in comics, Washington strove to create moral, strong African-American superheroes to fight gangs, drugs, racism, and social injustice. His company, Omega 7 Comics, reflected his social consciousness. A community activist since high school, Washington himself worked to fight gangs and drugs before creating such superheroes as Omega Man and Dark Force.

Alonzo Lavert Washington was born in Kansas City, Kansas, on June 1, 1967. He was raised in inner-city Kansas City by his divorced mother, Millie C. Washington, a preschool teacher. As a child, Washington loved comic books, but found none he could relate to. If black characters did appear in his favorite books, they were usually criminals, athletes, or were bossed around by white characters. “At the worst, they were sidekicks or stereotypes,” he said in an interview with the Washington Post. “At best, they were like Superman dipped in chocolate—not really African American.”

In an attempt to create a black superhero, Washington painted his white action figures and give them Afros crafted from clay. In the fifth grade, Washington began creating his own characters. With his mother’s encouragement, Washington wrote comics based on the lessons and values she taught him. He made his own rough comic books, and sold them to classmates for 25 cents.

After graduating from Kansas City’s Washington High School, Washington was inspired to become an agent for change. He was 18 when he watched an interview with gang members on the television news. In an interview located online at CNN.com he recalled being dumbfounded to see what he considered the “worst among us” speaking on national television. He hosted his own public-television show, and founded the Black National Congress, a group of young black men who reached out to the community. The group performed positive acts, such as speaking to school children and painting over graffiti.

Character Taught Self-Esteem

Original Man, Washington’s first character, was introduced while he was working as a gang and youth counselor and intervention specialist. He used Original Man in a one-time exercise to teach black children about self-esteem. In 1992 he began researching the comic-book business, but found little enthusiasm for his ideas from comic-book publishers.

He started promoting his first comic, Original Man, to churches, bookstores, community organizations, and cultural stores before it was even printed. He was surprised by the support he found, and was able to collect $1000 from advance orders for his first printing deposit on 5,000 copies of Original Man. “With my product, I knew I was going to break stereotypes and address social issues,” he said in an interview with Black Enterprise. “I wanted to educate and enlighten

At a Glance…

Born on June 1, 1967, in Kansas City, KS; son of Millie C. Washington; married Dana D. Washington, March 24, 1993; children: Antonio S. Davis, Akeem Alonzo, Kamaal Malik, Malcolm, Khalid, and Alona. Education: Kansas City Community College, Pioneer Community College, Kansas City Media Project Communications.

Career: AD HOC Group Against Crime, gang/youth counselor, intervention specialist, 1990-92; Swope Parkway Health Center, outreach specialist, counselor, 1992-94; Omega 7 Comics, Inc., president, publisher, writer, designer, 1992-.

Awards: Certification of Appreciation, Mayor Emanuel Cleaver H, 1993; Malcolm X Leadership Award, Black United Front, Kansas City Chapter, 1991; Publisher of the Year, UB & UBS Communication Systems, 1992; Distinguished Community Service Award, United Minority Media Association, 1993; Golden Eagle Community Service Award, Kansas City Masterminds Alliance, 1994.

Member: President, Black National Congress, 1990-; honorary member, Black United Front, 1990-; member, AD HOC Group Against Crime, 1990-; president, Association of African-American Comic Book Publishers, 1994-; New Democracy Movement, 1993-.

Addresses: c/o Omega 7 Inc., PO Box 171046, Kansas City, KS 66117.

African-American youth.” Through a campaign of signings and school appearances, Washington quickly sold out of the first batch, and printed 10,000 more copies. Washington made $30,000 in sales from the first issue, and put it all back into the business.

The momentum grew, and, with the help of his mother, Millie, and wife, Dana, Washington generated more Original Man comic books, and created other characters and titles. By 1998, Washington’s company, Omega 7, Inc., was the largest African-American-owned comic book company in the United States. “This wasn’t at first about making money, it was about making a difference,” he told the Washington Post. “Now we’re doing both,” he added.

Legion of Superheroes Grew

Washington’s wife, a former HIV counselor, became Washington’s business partner, editor, publicist, business manager, support team, and mother of the couple’s six children. Dana Washington was the model for Original Woman. “My wife responds to a community crisis like a real superhero,” Washington told Black Enterprise. In addition to balancing their marriage, business, and family, Dana Washington regularly dressed up as Original Woman and spoke to school groups. “I want them (school children) to see that you can have a good family. You can have morals. You can have a wife. And you can still be a cool person,” Alonzo Washington said in an interview found online at CNN.com.

Washington’s cast of characters grew to include Omega Man, Mighty Ace, Lady Ace, Dark Wolf, and Original Woman. All of them sported African-American features—they weren’t just white superheroes painted brown, like Washington’s childhood figures. With their dark skin, full lips, and broad noses, Washington’s legion of superheroes fought gangs, drugs, racism, and social injustice. His leading character, Omega Man, wore a braid on the back of his head, a symbol of African royalty. Omega Man possessed traditional superhero powers, including time travel, super intelligence, super strength, the ability to fly and project powerful plasma from his hands, and he was bullet-proof. He came from the future, where there was no racism, drugs, ghettos, or crime. Omega Man battled such foes as the evil Kuhl and Skulgorians, and an Aryan-supremacist army. Because he was sent to the present on a mission to save the future, Omega Man had to be careful about affecting world events.

Some companies spend millions on market research and focus groups. Washington didn’t have to. The reactions of his own children was a good indication of how successful a character or idea would be. If he was working, he told the Washington Post, and his kids were constantly looking over his shoulder or asking questions about it, he knew he was coming up with “something good.” He knew the six-inch-tall Omega Man action figure was going to be a hit, because his kids bugged him constantly to play with the prototype.

One Hundred-Percent Positive

Though he did secure a deal with toy-store chain Toys ‘R’ Us to carry Omega Man action figures, Washington found distribution of his minority toys a challenge. He tried to get the toys onto the shelves of big retail chains like Wal-Mart, Target, and Kmart, but found little enthusiasm. “Ironically, it seems like the stores that talk the most about their ‘vendor diversity programs’ have been the hardest to sell,” he told the Washington Post. Although Toys ‘R’ Us was supportive, flying Washington to its stores for promotional appearances, the company still only agreed to sell the figures in minority areas. Omega 7 characters also appeared on T-shirts, watches, baseball caps, and posters.

The action figures were available in both light and dark skin tones. Washington often saw Hispanic or Asian parents buying the light-skinned models for their children. He was often sobered when he watched white kids who wanted an Omega Man action figure, whose parents would “almost snatch their arm out of the socket to get them away,” he told the Washington Post. He added that he sometimes felt white parents would rather their children idolize a “Satan-worshiping white rock star” than a strong, moral, black character. Still, when white kids told Washington they wanted to be just like Omega Man, “I know I’ve created a true hero,” he said in the Washington Post.

As the head of the largest African-American comicbook company in the United States, and the first to offer an action figure, Washington wanted his socially conscious characters to achieve equal status with the great superheroes. “I want Omega Man to be the equivalent of any Caucasian superhero, like a Super man, Batman, a noble righteous character,” Washington said in the CNN.com interview. “That’s what we’re trying to do with Omega Man—give you a symbol that is African-American but is 100-percent positive.”