Marvel has a proud history of creating iconic women of color, yet their first reoccurring black female character has been largely forgotten. Before Monica Rambeau, Storm, Misty Knight, and Shuri, there was Jill Jerold.

Co-created by Denny O’Neil, one of the most influential writers in the Bronze Age of Comics, Jill was a model who primarily served as a supporting character in Millie the Model, Marvel’s longest-running female-led title which ran from 1945 through 1973, although she also once found herself in a love triangle with the Human Torch and Hercules. As the first black woman to have a reoccurring role in a Marvel comic, Jill broke down barriers, and looked fashionable while she did it.

Black Characters in Timely and Atlas Comics

To truly appreciate how historic Jill Jerold was, it’s important to look at what things were like before her introduction. Marvel’s publishing predecessor Timely Comics seldomly included black characters in their stories, and when they did the results could be charitably described as offensive.

In 1941, Timely published a title called Young Allies, which featured the Human Torch’s sidekick Toro, Captain America’s sidekick Bucky, and a group of teenage freedom fighters. Whitewash Jones was a young African-American teen who fought alongside the Young Allies. Jones was depicted as a racist stereotype. He was drawn with exaggerated features, echoing minstrel shows. He was written as unintelligent, and was consistently the punchline of whatever scene he was in.

In 1954, Atlas Comics (a re-branded Timely, which would eventually become Marvel as it's known today) published Jungle Tales #1. The anthology title included a feature called Waku, Prince of the Bantu. Waku was the prince of a South African tribe, who inherited his leadership position after the death of his father. Waku’s ongoing feature included a primarily black cast of characters, something unheard of at that time. Due to the similarities in their origins and status quo, some comic scholars have speculated that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby had Waku in mind when they created Black Panther. Jungle Tales would run seven issues, before being retitled Jann of the Jungle - a white heroine, of course - with the series' eighth issue.

Is Jill truly Marvel’s first ongoing woman of color?

It can be argued that Waku’s love interest Lalei is Marvel’s true first ongoing black woman. However, Jungle Tales was published by Atlas Comics, which had not yet become Marvel. In addition, Waku, Lalei, and the Bantu were never incorporated into the larger Marvel Universe, like other Atlas and Timely characters were. Many comic book scholars consider 1961 and Fantastic Four #1 to be the true start of the Marvel Universe, despite the continuation of some Timely and Atlas characters. For these reasons, Jill Jerold is considered Marvel’s first ongoing black female character. However, it’s still important to note Lalei’s role, and her place in history.

Marvel before Jill Jerold

In 1961, Atlas became Marvel Comics, and launched what would become known as the Marvel Universe. Early on, African-Americans were seldomly seen, but editor Stan Lee began requesting that they be drawn into the background.

It's important to look at the state of the world before Jill Jerold’s introduction. In 1966, the Civil Rights Movement was in full swing, as African-Americans continued to fight for equal rights. The 24th amendment had been passed two years earlier, abolishing the poll tax that prevented many African-Americans from voting. Lyndon B. Johnson had signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited segregation in public facilities and discriminatory hiring practices.

However, there was still a lot of work to be done. Despite the passing of the 1964 bill, African-Americans were still the victims of discrimination and violence. Movies, television shows, and comic books were hesitant to feature black characters in prominent roles, fearing that they would alienate southern markets.

Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #1 (1963) introduced Gabriel Jones, an African-American soldier who fought in World War II. (Post-production printing errors sometimes resulted in Jones being erroneously colored white, but later issues would, thankfully, correct this problem.) Stan Lee was warned that Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos would not sell due to the inclusion of Gabe Jones. Despite these warnings, Marvel persisted.

T'Challa, the Black Panther, was introduced some years later in 1966's Fantastic Four #52, going on to become one of the pillars of the Marvel Universe both in comic books and onscreen. Two months later, Millie the Model #143 introduced Jill to readers. In other words, not only was Jill Jerold Marvel’s first ongoing black woman, she was also their third ongoing black character.

Jill Jerold arrives

Millie the Model began as a comedy series centered around the exploits of Millie Collins, her rival Chili Storm, and her fellow models at Hanover’s Modeling Agency. By 1966, the series had left its humor roots behind, and had begun telling serialized romantic adventure stories. Stan Lee had stepped away from the title after years of scripting it, turning writing duties over to new Marvel talent such as Roy Thomas and Denny O’Neil.

Millie the Model was one of the first comics Denny O’Neil ever wrote. At the time, he was credited as Denny-O, and billed third, after editor Stan Lee and Jill's co-creator, artist Stan Goldberg. This was common practice for Marvel’s young writers in the Silver Age. According to interviews with Denny O’Neil, titles like Millie the Model and Patsy Walker were considered training books for new writers, where they were allowed to make mistakes and hone their craft. “I’m grateful to her (Millie). I don’t know who was reading it, but I learned just the kindergarten level – the basic ABCs of comic book writing,” O’Neil told Comic Archive.

Speaking to Popverse through his manager John Cimino, Roy Thomas recalled the circumstances behind Jill’s creation. “Denny O'Neil clearly came up with the idea, and Stan Lee resolutely approved. I believe she even appeared on the cover of one of the first comics in which she was featured, so Marvel was clearly not trying to sneak anything past anyone. We were right there up front with it. I wish I could remember more, but I don't think there was any real discussion about it. Denny just came up with the idea, Stan (Lee) said fine, Stan Goldberg drew her in a story from Denny's plot, and that was it.”

When Stan Goldberg penciled Jill’s introduction, he added a note next to her that said Negro. This was done in order to avoid some of the post-production errors that occurred with Gabe Jones’ earliest appearances. Jill is introduced when Millie and her friends visit England. The models decide to hold a fashion show at their friend’s castle, and Jill is one of the European models featured at their event. Jill’s gimmick was that she would tell jokes to the audience as she modeled the latest clothing. “My name is Jill, and it’s a pleasure to be working here tonight! In fact, it’s a pleasure to be working anywhere tonight,” Jill tells the crowd. The audience eats it up. “She’s beautiful and funny too,” an attendee remarks. After Jill’s performance concludes, the narration caption lets readers know that she’ll be sticking around. “Watch out for Jill in future issues, gals! We think you’re going to love her.”

At the time the story was written, European fashion houses were using black models more frequently than American ones were. This gave some interesting real life context to Jill’s introduction. It’s also important to note that since Jill comes from England, she would not be considered an African-American. That’s why this article refers to her as a Black woman, or woman of color.

Whether Denny O’Neil realized it or not, Jill was the first Black woman to have a regular role in a Marvel comic. She was not a maid, or a cook. Jill Jerold was a high class fashion model, embodying glamour, class, and grace. She was equal to Millie, Chili, and the other models in the book. We might take it for granted now, but in 1966, this was considered highly progressive.

Today O’Neil is remembered as one of the most progressive writers in comic book history. He helped push boundaries in the medium, writing about race, drug use, and politics in titles like Green Lantern/Green Arrow. He also co-created John Stewart, one of DC Comics first African-American characters. Despite this reputation, O’Neil never gets the credit he deserves for introducing the first black woman in the Marvel Universe. Perhaps this article can change that.

Life with Jill

Jill Jerold was seen again in Modeling with Millie, which was a spin-off of Millie The Model. Issue 48 featured Jill on the cover. “If you haven’t met saucy, sparkling Jill Jerold yet, you’re in for a treat,” the cover blurb boasted. In a contrived coincidence, Millie and Chili run into Jill at the airport. The English model was having trouble booking work, and decided to try her hand in America. Millie and Chili immediately drag Jill to their boss Howard Hanover, who hires her on the spot. If only it were that easy.

Jill then became a regular character in Millie the Model and Modeling with Millie. However, she was more than just a sidekick. Jill was frequently written as one of the smarter characters in the room, and wound up saving the day on more than one occasion. In Modeling with Millie #48 (1966) Jill tracked down a deceptive writer, and convinced him to retract a fabricated interview. In Millie the Model #143 (1966) Jill goes undercover with a hidden tape recorder to expose a fraud that had been conning young women.

Jill was usually portrayed as the sane one in her group. While Millie and Chili would bicker, Jill stayed above the rivalries. Her jokes would usually lighten the mood, even if they weren’t always appreciated. “Please Jill, don’t spoil my lovely mood with any corny jokes,” Chili pleaded in Millie the Model #144 (1966). In that same issue, Jill couldn’t resist telling another joke as the girls were skydiving. “I haven’t been this high since I got 50 cent tickets to the ball game,” Jill quipped.

Jill even found herself telling jokes when her life was in danger. In Millie the Model #150 (1967) Jill and Millie find themselves trapped in a runaway hot air balloon. “I always wanted to rise in the world, but this is ridiculous,” Jill said. “How can you joke at a time like this Jill,” Millie asked. “If I didn’t joke, I’d cry! Frankly Mil, I’m scared to death,” Jill admitted. In other words, like Spider-Man, Jill Jerold uses humor to mask her insecurities.

How did Marvel readers react to Jill Jerold?

Each issue of Millie the Model and Modeling with Millie contained letters from the readers. Instead of addressing an editor, Marvel invited readers to write the letters as if they were for the character Millie. This gave the letters a more personal tone, as young readers would ask the fictitious Millie for advice, or comment on her adventures. As editor of the comic, it was most likely Stan Lee who was answering these letters. It’s amusing to imagine the bombastic Lee pretending to be a young female model as he doled out advice to Millie’s fans.

Thanks to these letters pages, we can get a good sense of how readers reacted to Jill Jerold. The picture won’t be completely accurate, since Marvel chose which letters were published, giving readers a sense that most of their feedback was favorable. However, even if they’re a small sample size, these letters are still an invaluable insight to how fans felt about Jill Jerold. As I prepared to write this piece, I was amazed to find that many letter writers mentioned Jill by name. While readers also mentioned Millie’s other friends like Toni Turner or Chili Storm, it was Jill who was named the most frequently.

“I want to compliment you on your newest friend, Jill. She’s beautiful, and I love her jokes,” wrote Thomasina McDonough in Modeling with Millie #51 (1966). “I think Jill Jerold is super, and I hope she’s here to stay,” wrote Kathi Loughman in Millie the Model #145 (1966). “Jill Jerold is the greatest thing since records,” wrote Robin Rubenstein in Modeling with Millie #53 (1967). “Please keep Jill Jerold coming up in the fashion world. I think she’s just great, and I love the nickname Jolly Jilly,” wrote Lynn Pruitt in Modeling with Millie #54 (1967).

Some readers appreciated the representation Jill added to the comic, noting that it was refreshing to see a character who looked like them. “I am so glad to see that you now have a Negro girl in your books – for you see, I am a Negro girl myself,” wrote Jackie Brabam in Millie the Model #147 (1966). “My wish came true when you decided to let a Negro model join you at Hanover’s. Millie, did you ever dream for a moment that you had lots of fans out here in Liberia,” wrote Lydia A. Cooper, from Liberia, West Africa.

The conversation between readers and “Millie” in the letters pages also contained some interesting factoids about Jill Jerold that weren’t found in the main comic stories. The comments from “Millie” (most likely Stan Lee) helped flesh Jill out as a character, making her feel more like a real person. “Jill has just begun Spanish lessons,” Millie told readers in the Modeling with Millie #49 letters page.

“We all love Jill, too! Probably you yourself know someone like her – someone whose smile and warmth really brighten your day. If you do, you’ll understand how much her friendship means to Toni, Chili, and me,” Millie wrote in the Modeling with Millie #51 letters page. In Millie the Model #150 (1967) one reader wrote in to ask if Jill had a steady boyfriend. “I wouldn’t be too sure that a classy girl like Jill doesn’t already have a boyfriend, or two, or three or even four! She’s probably just keeping them all to herself for now! But don’t worry, I’m sure that as soon as she finds someone really special, we’ll be the first ones she tells about it,” Millie replied.

The disappearance of Jill Jerold

In 1967, Millie the Model went through a metamorphosis. Fans had been writing letters requesting that the series move away from serialized dramas, and return to humorous one-offs. As Marvel’s superhero line took off, romantic adventure series became less of a priority for the publishing company. Other romantic adventure comics such as Patsy Walker and Patsy and Hedy were cancelled, leaving Millie the Model as Marvel’s oldest title still in publication. The spin-off series Modeling with Millie was cancelled, leaving Millie the Model as the only non-superhero and non-western comic Marvel was publishing.

Millie the Model #154 was a complete tonal shift for the series. The book returned to the comedy format, with artists Stan Goldberg and Sol Brodsky changing their art style to mimic Dan DeCarlo, who had penciled the series during its heyday. Stan Lee returned as writer, telling interviewers that comedy had been his first love. Lee would remain with the series for the next four years, even after stepping away from superhero titles like Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America.

Jill Jerold was not included in the revamp of the title. Despite her popularity with readers, and letters pages that promised a long future for her, Jill disappeared after Millie the Model #153 (1967). One year after her introduction, Jill had exited the series. Although Lee had served as editor when Jill was introduced, it’s possible he overlooked her because he was focusing on emulating an earlier era of the series.

It’s unlikely that racism was the reason Jill was removed. At the time, Marvel was adding more black characters as heroes and supporting characters. Shortly after Jill’s introduction, Robbie Robertson was introduced in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man, while Bill Foster was introduced in Avengers. It’s also important to note that Toni Turner, a white supporting character, was also removed from Millie the Model during the revamp (although she would later return). Toni’s removal can be considered evidence that Jill’s absence wasn’t racially motivated.

Readers noticed Jill’s absence, mentioning her in their fan letters. “Would you please get Jill and Toni back to the agency,” Michele McCullough wrote in Millie the Model #158 (1968). Millie responded by saying that Jill and Toni had retired from modeling, but teased that both women would be dropping by from time to time.

Jill briefly returned, but she was only used as a background character. A black model was seen in Millie the Model #174, Millie the Model #181, Chili #5, and Chili #6. She was never named, and only spoke a few lines of dialogue. We know this unnamed character is Jill Jerold, because Stan Goldberg drew her to match fashion pinup pages he drew of the character in Millie the Model #186 (1970) and Chili #15 (1970). Jill is named in both pinup pages, but not in any of the stories found within the comics.

Jill’s solo fashion pinup in Chili #15 would be her last new appearance for almost 40 years. Interestingly, the Goldberg illustrated pinup is dated 1967, three years before it was published. It’s possible that the pinup had been meant for an earlier issue of Millie the Model.

The comeback of Jill Jerold

In 2008, Marvel published The Age of the Sentry, a limited series that paid homage to the Silver Age of Comics. The third issue featured a tribute to Millie the Model, with story and art by the husband and wife team of Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover. This comic contained Jill Jerold’s first appearance since 1970. The second story of the issue features a faux Millie the Model cover, with Millie and Chili making eyes at the superhero known as the Sentry, as his wife Lindy watches in anger.

An unnamed black model stands next to Lindy, narrating the events. “Gee, Lindy! Millie and Chili are ga-ga over the Sentry’s mod new designs,” the model says. “Hmpf! I don’t like the designs they have on him,” Lindy replies. Popverse reached out to Colleen Coover, who confirmed that the unnamed model was indeed Jill. This was the beginning of her return to the Marvel Universe.

By 2009, Millie the Model had fallen into obscurity. Marvel’s publishing slate had been primarily dominated by superheroes for decades, leaving little room for romance and comedy. Models Inc. was a four-issue limited series that brought Millie the Model into the modern Marvel Universe. The title was written by Paul Tobin, who was a longtime fan of the original title.

“I truly love Marvel's model comics,” writer Paul Tobin told Popverse. “I wish there was something with that feel today. Just having fun and being people. Wearing nice clothes. Crabbing at each other but STILL having each other’s backs when it came down to it. Marvel slowly became almost entirely a superhero company, and I think comics were hurt for a while, because of that. Luckily, today's world is SO open in terms of genre that people can dish up whatever genre they're hungry for.”

Although Models Inc. was a comeback vehicle for Millie, at its core the mini-series was an ensemble title. Millie was joined by her old rival Chili Storm, fellow romance comic star Patsy Walker (who was now the superheroine Hellcat), Toni Turner, and for the first time since 1970, Jill Jerold. “I do own a few (Stan) Goldberg originals from the time period (Silver Age),” Tobin shared. “One nice pin-up of Jill has served to always keep her in mind, and was part of the reason I put her in Models Inc, but honestly the group wouldn't be complete without her.”

“Jill was always a standout for me,” Tobin continued. “Millie and Chili were always bickering, but Jill was a rock. Like, nothing really bothered her. She'd seen it all and emerged from it with a smile and looking fashionable. I always felt like she was the sharpest dressed, too. Like Goldberg would give her the best outfits. I felt she was the most complete character among the models, too. Like, for Millie and Chili it was ALL about the life of a model, but Jill (in my mind) went home at night, kicked back, made soup from scratch, called friends and played records.”

The limited series explains Jill’s long absence by revealing that she had returned to England. Jill was surprised to learn that fellow romance comic star Patsy Walker had become the superheroine Hellcat. However, Jill had her own ties to the superhero community. Jill’s modeling colleagues were surprised to learn that she was dating Johnny Storm, the Human Torch. The mini-series also revealed that Jill was friends with Mary Jane Watson, Spider-Man’s longtime love interest.

The mini-series followed the girls as they solved a murder mystery and prepared for fashion week. Jill proved to be just as resourceful as she was in the Silver Age. She fought off assassins, dodged gunfire, saved the lives of her friends, and looked good doing it. The third issue contained a fun out-of-continuity backup story illustrated by Tobin and Coover, which found Jill and the other models dealing with a zombie apocalypse.

Coover played with the Jill Jerold/Human Torch romance in the 2010 limited series Thor and the Warriors Four. The mini-series contained a backup tale about Hercules babysitting the young superhero siblings known as the Power Pack. Initially Johnny Storm had been tasked with watching the kids, but he had a date with Jill Jerold. He calls on Hercules to watch the kids in his place.

The dialogue indicates that Hercules once had a romance with Jill as well, and it seems like he’s still carrying a torch for her. Jill doesn’t physically appear in Thor and the Warriors Four, but in some ways the comic still manages to elevate her character. After all, how many women have both Hercules and the Human Torch eating out of their hand? This is a love triangle with two superheroes, yet Jill is the one who is clearly calling the shots. “I chose Jill as Johnny's potential date, because I wanted to include a little Easter egg of a non-super character from the Marvel Universe, and I didn't want her to be as well-remembered as Millie or Chili,” Coover told Popverse.

“I needed a way to get Hercules roped into the job of babysitting these four kids, and I came up with the idea that Johnny needed a last-minute substitute so he could go on a date. Hercules agrees, not because he owes Johnny a favor, but because his personal code won't allow him to let down a bud who's pursuing a courtship! The bit where Herc and Jill used to date is part of a running gag in the Power Pack story, as any time Hercules mentions having met a woman at some point in his past, he makes sure to also mention that she was madly in love with him. In my own head, he and Jill had a good time, but she was never that invested in the relationship.”

Jill Jerold’s place in the Marvel Universe

Whether you realize it or not, Jill Jerold is one of the most important characters in the Marvel Universe. She has never starred in her own comic, or been adapted into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but her legacy is enormous. Jill Jerold hasn’t been seen in a Marvel Comic since Models Inc #4 in 2009, but in a way her presence can still be felt every month. Whenever Riri Williams soars through the air, or Storm summons a lightning bolt, or Misty Knight does an aerial kick. Jill Jerold opened the door for these powerful black women, and now they rule the Marvel Universe.