The 56th annual San Diego Comic-Con kicks off today with preview night, which means we’re only a few days away from the Will Eisner Awards ceremony and Hall of Fame inductions. Which means it’s a good time to not only review the nominees for the prestigious awards, but also take a look at some of the other awards that will be given out this week.
The 37th annual Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards ceremony will be held Friday July 25 in the Indigo Ballroom at the Hilton Bayfront, for those attending in person. For those not attending, you can follow along with us on BlueSky as we cover the results live like we have in years past.
In addition to the Eisner Awards and the Russ Manning Awards, the ceremony will include the presentation of the Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award, the Bill Finger Award and the Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award.
This year’s Bob Clampett award recipient is L.A. Strong, the anthology published by Mad Cave Studios to raise funds to benefit comic industry personnel who fell victim to the Los Angeles Fires earlier this year.
“The comic book industry pulled together to support fellow creators who lost homes to the tragic 2025 Los Angeles fires with this benefit anthology special. Featuring contributions from Barbara Kesel, Brian Azzarello, Brian Michael Bendis, Christos Gage, Dan DiDio, Daniel Kibblesmith, Frank Tieri, Greg Pak, Jimmy Palmiotti, Jody Houser, Marv Wolfman, Paul Cornell, Rob DenBleyker, Sina Grace, Stephanie Phillips, Steve Orlando, Alex Cormack, Alison Sampson, Amanda Conner, Christian Ward, Geraldo Borges, Ian Churchill, Michael Avon Oeming, Nico Leon, Rian Gonzales, Salvador Larroca, Sami Kivelä, and many, many more. Together, as a community, we stood L.A. strong for one another,” the nomination reads on the CCI website. The award will be presented by Clampett’s daughter, Ruth.
Don Glut and Sheldon Mayer have been selected to receive the 2025 Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing. The selections were made by a committee chaired by writer-historian Mark Evanier, who annually present the award to two under-recognized writers from comics’ history.
“When Jerry first suggested this award, it was the worst-kept secret in comics that Finger had co-created Batman and much of the mythos and supporting cast of that character. Nowhere on the comics or movies or TV shows was Bill Finger credited. That has changed, but there are still plenty of important, undercredited writers for us to put into the spotlight. Which is what this award is all about.”
Glut is a filmmaker, novelist and comic book writer who worked primarily in the 1970s for Warren, Marvel and Gold Key Comics, where he co-created and wrote three series that formed what’s been called the “Don Glut Universe” within the company’s line: Dagar the Invincible, The Occult Files of Doctor Spektor and Tragg and the Sky Gods. His other credits include Creepy, Eerie, Vampirella, Captain America, The Invaders, Kull the Destroyer, Solomon Kane, Star Wars and What If…?
Sheldon Mayer was active in comics beginning in the 1930s, working as a writer, artist and editor. He’s often credited as the person who pulled Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster’s Superman proposal off the rejection pile and thus making comics history. He worked for various comic companies over the years, including All-American, where he presided over the creation of Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and The Flash. He would move to DC when they bought All-America, and eventually retired from editing to focus on creating his own comics. He created Sugar & Spike, co-created and wrote The Black Orchid for Adventure Comics and even adapted The Bible into a special edition DC comic.
The Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award, or the Spirit Award, will be presented on Friday. It acknowledges “the important role that comics retailers play in the industry, nurturing the relationship between creators and their readers,” and was created at the suggestion of Will Eisner. This year’s finalists are:
- Dreamer & Make-Believers in Baltimore, Maryland
- Flying Colors Comics in Concord, California
- The Comic Bug in Manhattan Beach, California
- Bat City Comics in Bradenton, Florida
- Akira Comics in Madrid, Spain
Congrats to the nominees, and we’re looking forward to seeing who wins on Friday.