Thank you Len Wein & Bernie Wrightson. Last night was a birthday party for the history books! Christine Valada (Len Wein’s wife), Stephen R. Bissette, Phil Hester, Nancy Collins, Bernie Wrightson’s sons (John & Jeff), Joshua Dysart, Stuart Moore and many more expressed their gratitude and birthday wishes to Swamp Thing for his 50th birthday. It was so wonderful to spend time with fellow Swampy fans, celebrating the character. I can’t thank the Grail Keepers Podcast enough for helping to host the show. The idea to host a Swamp Thing birthday party started as a small concept but quickly blossomed into a virtual, community celebration. Like a ripple effect, It’s been exciting to see many Swamp Thing fans join in on the birthday wishes on various social media platforms. Even though Swamp Thing’s 50th birthday party was live last night, you can still catch all the excitement on YouTube, here!

In coordinating the birthday party, I contacted the various participants for Swamp Thing’s video birthday card. It was a thrill to speak with so many big names in comic book history. I’m fortunate to know most of them because of Holland Files, and naturally crossing paths being a Swampy fan. I’m extremely grateful that so many people took time out of their schedules to wish Swamp Thing a happy birthday. I owe a special thank you to Tom Kleve for arranging John Wrightson’s video. I edited the birthday video submissions and am honored to share the results with you, below. 

The Swamp Thing birthday show was a wonderful reminder of how great Swamp Thing fans are. Hearing sentimental and fun stories regarding how the character changed peoples lives was really special. The birthday party inspired an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the wonderful experiences and the people I’ve met by being a fan of the character. It also reminded me to take time to say, “thank you” to everyone who visits my site, rootsoftheswampthing.com. I greatly appreciate your passion for Swamp Thing and am glad this site can be a place to love and learn about the character.