Dynamite Entertainment has announced that Will Eisner‘s iconic hero, The Spirit, has a new home thanks to a licensing agreement with the Eisner estate. The Spirit, a murdered cop named Denny Colt who was mysteriously brought back to life to fight crime, joins the publisher’s stable of noir-influenced iconic heroes and bestselling titles.

The Spirit’s inclusion at Dynamite is a perfect fit as the company is the home to iconic characters and series such as Flash Gordon, The Shadow, The Green Hornet, The Lone Ranger, Zorro, among others. Will Eisner created The Spirit in 1940 as a syndicated seven-page newspaper supplement, where The Spirit fought the villains of Central City weekly until 1952.

Originally published in 1939 by Quality Comics, The Spirit has long been admired for the ingenuity of its creator, Will Eisner.  Eisner’s amazing artistic skill and groundbreaking storytelling techniques in the weekly Sunday strips helped pave the way for modern comic books. His career spanned over seventy years, and he is largely considered as the inventor of the “graphic novel.” In addition to The Spirit, his most celebrated works include A Contract with God and Last Day in Vietnam. The industry’s highest accolade, the prestigious Eisner Award, is named in his honor, and awarded annually at San Diego Comic-Con International.

The Spirit is one of comicdom’s greatest characters, and has stood the test of time for nearly 75 years. Eisner is one of the greats, and his influence as a storyteller is incredible.