Denny O'Neil
Dennis "Denny" O'Neil (May 3, 1939–June 11, 2020) was an American comic book writer and editor until his retirement. He was known mostly for his involvement with Batman and Iron Man, and co-created characters like Ra's al Ghul, Lady Deathstrike, and the John Stewart Green Lantern.
When Hasbro approached Marvel Comics to develop a story for their Transformers toyline, Jim Shooter came up with the initial story treatment and had O'Neil create the characters and flesh out more of the treatment. However, Shooter rejected most of O'Neil's character names and concepts, and the job was passed down to Bob Budiansky. Ultimately, some of O'Neil's contributions were retained in the final product, including the name "Optimus Prime".[1] According to an interview with O'Neil from 2014, he did not remember naming Optimus Prime.[2]
Ralph Macchio was his assistant at one point.
