Morrie Turner, pioneering creator of “Wee Pals,” at work in his studio. (Courtesy of Creators - .)

HOW DO YOU say goodbye to someone you never met, yet on some level, through the power of his work, felt as though you always knew?

Morrie Turner had that power, through the heart of his art and the soul of his comic strip. When I read his work, I — like many — felt as though I was entering his world. And what a hopefully inviting realm it was.

Young Nipper, and intellectual Oliver, and level-headed Sybil. and outspoken Connie. I began following their exploits as a tween — when I was about the same age as these characters themselves — and it was crucial and welcome and unique that they somehow spoke to millions of kids like myself.

The strip was “Wee Pals,” and there was nothing like it on the page. I didn’t read it because Turner was a pioneer, that he was making history. I read it because he was, through the positive prism of a comic, reflecting the present.

REP. JOHN LEWIS’s graphic-novel memoir, “March: Book One,” has been selected as a Coretta Scott King Honor Book, the American Library Association announced.

Andrew Aydin, the Lewis aide, who co-wrote the book, spoke with gratitude about the honor.

(Top Shelf Comics) “I am deeply grateful for this recognition, and for the opportunity to help John Lewis share his story with a new generation ... ,” Aydin tells Comic Riffs. “The enthusiastic response from readers and librarians has been overwhelming and humbling. I look forward to continuing our work bringing this important story to the page.”

“March: Book One” (Top Shelf) has been critically acclaimed and has topped bestseller lists.

“I am also grateful to Nate Powell,” Aydin notes of the book’s artist, “who brought our words to life with splendor, beauty, and passion.”

“It's an honor every day to collaborate with Congressman Lewis and Andrew, and we're humbled at the recognition and passionate reaction ‘Book One’ has received,” Powell tells Comic Riffs. “There are still two books and several years left to spend at the drawing table — I look forward to the journey and the challenge."

The Coretta Scott King Book Awards recognize African American authors and illustrators who created “outstanding books for children and young adults.” The author award went to “P.S. Be Eleven,” by Rita Williams-Garcia (Amistad/HarperCollins). The other Honor Books for author were “Darius & Twig,” by Walter Dean Myers (Amistad) and “Words with Wings,” by Nikki Grimes (WordSong/Highlights).

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CONGRESSMAN John Lewis recalls vividly how he first met Martin Luther King.

“Are you the boy from Troy?”

Lewis is re-creating that moment, those first words, during our conversation last year.

“Are you the boy from Troy? Are you John Lewis?”

It was 1958, and Lewis wanted to attend college at Troy State, near his parents’ home, but as he says, “No black student was allowed.” He sought help, he says in his memoir, by writing to “the only person who I thought could understand what I was trying to do.” So he began his letter: “To Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ... ”

Young John Lewis exchanged letters with the Rev. Ralph Abernathy, as well as Dr. King’s attorney, Fred Gray, who had also represented Rosa Parks. Weeks later, he was boarding a Montgomery-bound bus. Upon his arrival, the teenager entered a church, and Martin Luther King rose, extending a hand and a question:

“Are you the boy from Troy? Are you John Lewis?...

(Top Shelf Comics) “Who is this young man who wants to desegregate Troy State?”

That pivotal scene — and Lewis’s ultimate decision to head to Nashville instead — is evocatively recounted in the Georgia Democrat’s recently published graphic-novel memoir, “March: Book One” (Top Shelf), which recounts the “Boy from Troy’s” rise to nonviolent protester and civil-rights icon. Just five years after that meeting, Lewis would appear on the same bill and world stage as King, as the youngest speaker (age 23) at the March on Washington.

(To hear more about John Lewis’s story, and learn more about his graphic memoir, here’s my interview with him last August, upon the March’s 50th anniversary.)

BATMAN will enjoy tributes as loud and thunderous as Gotham this year, as the Caped Crusader celebrates his 75th anniversary.

The man who helped form Batman’s origin, however — the late cartoonist who so crucially aided the acclaimed Bob Kane — may receive only the most muted of memorials this year, upon would what have been his 100th birthday.

Not that author Marc Tyler Nobleman isn’t trying to do something about it, as he aims to shine a public Bat-light on Bill Finger, who died 40 years ago today in New York.

In 2012, Nobleman saw the publication of his book, “Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman” (illustrated by Ty Templeton), in which he lays out the case of Finger’s crucial early contributions to the Bat universe — from “concept to costume to character.” The author spoke at bookstores and libraries and comic conventions, illuminating the rightful place of Finger, whose full role — like Batman himself — often lurked only in the shadows.

Now, Nobleman is hoping Google will help take up the case in one of the most public ways possible — by featuring Finger next month in a home-page birthday Doodle. (The cartoonist would have turned 100 on Feb. 8.) The campaign is a reflection not only of the reach of Google’s digital “billboard,” but also of the author’s commitment to seeing Finger receive his public due.

Comic Riffs recently caught up with Nobleman to talk about his years-long fight on behalf of Finger:

(Marc Tyler Nobleman and Ty Templeton / CHARLESBRIDGE 2012 )

THE LAST MIDCENTURY was a rocky time for comics, as superhero and horror stories came under attack, romance and satire were on the rise, and then a new wave of war stories gained traction. To weather such tumultuous times, it helped to have the virtuosic versatility of a Jack Kirby or Jerry Robinson — illustrators who could deftly do it all.

Russ Heath is one such artist.

Heath broke into comics as a teenager during World War II, and showed an early flair for Western, but as Congress and comics code began to alter the industry, Heath pivoted nimbly to sci-fi and crime, adventure to humor (including MAD) — and ultimately has become best known as a master of DC war stories like G.I. Combat.

This week, the National Cartoonists Society announced that Heath will receive its career Milton Caniff Award, which goes to great cartoonists who have not won the group’s Reuben Award for outstanding cartoonist of the year.

“It’s very humbling to put your best effort into something for so many years, and not really know if it's appreciated,” Heath tells Comic Riffs, “and then to find out that people have been paying attention and following what you've been doing.

“To know that my peers in the NCS have noticed my work, and are giving me this award is really a great honor,” adds Heath, e-mailing from the Los Angeles area where he’s based.

Russ Heath’s artistic flair has graced everything from swordsmen to soldiers, divers to gunfighters. (RUSS HEATH / Self-Portrait - courtesy of the NCS )

In announcing the award, the NCS cites Heath’s stature within the industry, as well as his amazing range.

“To refer to Russ heath as merely a ‘legend’ in comics is a gross understatement,” NCS President Tom Richmond tells Comic Riffs. “It's hard to imagine an artist who did more influential more in more different aspects of comic art. ...

“This honor is very well-deserved.”

The Caniff prize will be presented at the NCS Reuben Awards banquet, May 24 in San Diego.