Nope, created by the inimitable Joe Simon (best known for co-creating Captain America). But Prez was from his "LSD in the water cooler" period in the early 70s, which also resulted in Brother Power the Geek. Prez lasted 4 issues, plus one guest shot in Supergirl, then vanished utterly until Gaiman revived him.
I think Gaiman must have been impressed at an early age by the notion "There are no bad characters, only bad authors." He certainly has shown a fondness for taking obscure characters and reinvigorating them.
His version of Prez was much more mthyological, and much less silly, but respectfully didn't contradict the original stories. For instance, the next time you read that Sandman story, be aware that the middle-aged woman, "Martha", that Prez is talking to in the White House is both his Vice President and his mom! And several of the newspaper headlines that are briefly glimpsed refer to events in the original comic.
It would be hard to be as strange as the original was. In the fourth issue, the US ends up at war with Transylvania, and Prez is attacked by Dracula. For reasons that are never made clear, this version of Dracula had no legs, and got around on one of those wheeled wooden platforms that old-time war vets used...
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Re: Semi-off-topic
Date: 2007-01-17 09:21 pm (UTC)I think Gaiman must have been impressed at an early age by the notion "There are no bad characters, only bad authors." He certainly has shown a fondness for taking obscure characters and reinvigorating them.
His version of Prez was much more mthyological, and much less silly, but respectfully didn't contradict the original stories. For instance, the next time you read that Sandman story, be aware that the middle-aged woman, "Martha", that Prez is talking to in the White House is both his Vice President and his mom! And several of the newspaper headlines that are briefly glimpsed refer to events in the original comic.
It would be hard to be as strange as the original was. In the fourth issue, the US ends up at war with Transylvania, and Prez is attacked by Dracula. For reasons that are never made clear, this version of Dracula had no legs, and got around on one of those wheeled wooden platforms that old-time war vets used...