Wizard co-founder and former editor-in-chief Pat McCallum has passed away.

DC group editor Chris Conroy confirmed McCallum's passing on Twitter. McCallum himself worked at DC from 2011 to 2019. "Okay, well, the news is out," Conroy wrote. "The loss of Pat McCallum has crushed me today. I worked alongside him for years at DC, and he was one of the most deeply kind and gentle people I have ever met."

The immensely popular magazine Wizard launched in 1991. The publication featured news, interviews and the like pertaining to comics and their on-screen adaptations, as well as other topics. On that note, Wizard was known for being an early supporter of comic book publishers like Image and Valiant. Co-founder McCallum -- one of the most well-liked individuals in the comic industry -- served as Editor-in-Chief of Wizard before being let go in 2006 amid "staffing changes" at the company. Wizard ceased publication in 2011, being replaced by the online-only magazine Wizard World.

It was also in 2011 that McCallum was hired as an editor at DC. McCallum was elevated to the position of executive editor in 2017, thus being tasked with overseeing the DC Universe superhero titles. He ultimately departed DC in 2019.

The aforementioned Conroy is not the only industry professional to eulogize McCallum on social media. For instance, DC executive editor Ben Abernathy wrote, "Heartbroken over the loss of Pat McCallum. My memories match so many being shared with his humor, wisdom [and] kindness. He'll always be my hero for being an early champion of DCeased at DC -- he saw the potential when most wrote it off as a lame Marvel Zombies knockoff. Thank you, Pat."

This sentiment was echoed by writer Tom King. "Pat McCallum has passed," King wrote. "A big, kind, nerdy, cool dude who edited and wrote Wizard Magazine and was an editor at DC. He did a lot for comics for a lot of years, including making the call to let Joelle [Jones] and only Joelle design the [Catwoman] wedding dress. He was always on our side. RIP."

Others who knew and worked with McCallum have shared similar stories of his kind-hearted nature and love for comics. "Pat McCallum was one of my first bosses in comics, and his passion for the medium was powerful," wrote Alex Segura. "My heart goes out to his many friends today. I'll hold on to a lot of great memories of Pat from our time together at Wizard and DC. Let the people you care about know you care. RIP."

Source: Twitter