Spelling Errors in Comics: The Avengers, Fantastic Four, and Dummo Mouse

May 23, 2026

Did Marvel editors in the late 1970s know how to spell the word ‘privilege’?

“It’s just a rough draft!”

That’s what my older brother could say if I ever pointed out the spelling error in this unfinished Dummo Mouse comic strip (see below) from the early 1980s. But I’d never mention it as a criticism. I know that he knows how to spell ‘valuable.’ He would have fixed it when he got around to inking it, which he never did.

I don’t think I noticed the spelling error the first (or second/third) time I read this. I was too busy looking at all the background details in each panel.

The spelling errors in the Marvel comics aren’t as easy for me to dismiss. Yeah, to some extent these comic books were meant for kids, but standard grammar, punctuation, and spelling rules are/were expected to be followed. Plus, these comics went through the editorial process where several experienced creators (I don’t know how many) looked over the pages before they were approved for publication.

Dummo Mouse? The editorial board was just my older brother. And he wasn’t even finished yet!