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Nelvana of the Northern Lights

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Nelvana of the Northern Lights is one of the first female superheroes in North American comic books and the first to debut in Canada. She first appeared in " Triumph-Adventure Comics" #1 (August, 1941). The publication date indicates she preceded Wonder Woman by at least three months.

She was created by Adrian Dingle, writer and artist. He was inspired by Inuit legend about a male deity called Koliak of the Northern Lights. According to legend Koliak mated with a mortal woman, resulting in the birth of a witch. Said daughter was supposed to look like an Old Hag. Dingle was searching for ideas for a super-heroine. He decided to name said daughter Nelvana and depict her as a young beauty.

In Dingle's version, Koliak was an Inuit god who broke a taboo by marrying with a mortal. He was cursed by his fellow gods to be only seen in the form of the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) by all "earthly beings". The marriage did result in the birth of two children, Nelvana and Tanero. Tanero, the boy, inherited his father's curse. Nelvana inherited the beautiful features of her mother but also the powers off her father. She could fly "at the speed of light", become invisible, shape-shift to ice form, communicate telepathically and was immortal. She could also summon her father's powerful rays, able to melt metal and disrupt radio communications.

Her adventures continued publication in various titles between 1941 and 1947. She initially helped mortal Canadians against Axis invaders and other threats but then returned to her father. She eventually infiltrated human society under the identity of "Alana North" and became an agent of the Secret Service. Her adventures only ended with the demise of the company publishing them.

In the 1970s there was an interest among Canadian comic book fans for the heroes and heroines published in their country during World War II. Comic book historians Michael Hirsh and Patrick Loubert acquired the rights to Nelvana and other old characters. In 1971 the duo partnered with Clive A. Smith in creating their own animation studio. They named it Nelvana, after the old comic book character.The character was not however revived.

In the 1980s, Canadian artist John Byrne created his own version of Nelvana as part of the background for his own Inuit demigoddess, Snowbird. Koliak was renamed to " Hodiak" and Nelvana to " Nelvanna". She was depicted as an old hag but could shape-shift into another form. She mated with a mortal to give birth to Snowbird.
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RoyalKnightV's avatar
I think she might finally be in the public domain now, it's been at 50 some odd years since Dingle died and the old copyrights were never all that well kept