First Appearance Of
Fantastic Four #1 (1961). Ben Grimm as the Thing on the cover, alongside Reed Richards, Sue Storm, and Johnny Storm.

1st Appearance and 1st Cover

First Appearance of Thing

Fantastic Four #1

November 1961 · Marvel · Silver Age

The orange-rocked test pilot. Reed Richards's best friend, the Fantastic Four's heart, and the most relatable Lee-Kirby creation of the Silver Age.

Key Issue

Created by Stan Lee · Jack Kirby

By Atomm Updated

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The first appearance (1st app) of the Thing is Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961), created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Ben Grimm debuts alongside Reed Richards, Sue Storm, and Johnny Storm in the issue that launched Marvel's Silver Age. Fantastic Four #1 is one of the most important comic books ever published. The Thing's first solo title is Marvel Two-in-One #1 (January 1974), a team-up ongoing that ran 100 issues. The character has been a Fantastic Four mainstay for sixty-three years.

Quick Facts

Debut
Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961)
Real name
Benjamin Jacob Grimm
Creators
Stan Lee (script), Jack Kirby (art, character design)
Publisher
Marvel Comics
First enemy
The Mole Man (Fantastic Four #1's primary antagonist)
First ally
Reed Richards (his lifelong best friend), Sue Storm (Invisible Woman), Johnny Storm (Human Torch)
Team affiliations
Fantastic Four (founding member), Avengers (briefly), West Coast Avengers

Firsts Timeline

  1. Fantastic Four #1 cover
    First Appearance First Cover November 1961

    Fantastic Four #1

    By Stan Lee, Jack Kirby

    Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's launch of the Marvel Age. Ben Grimm debuts alongside Reed Richards (Mr. Fantastic), Sue Storm (Invisible Woman), and Johnny Storm (Human Torch). The book that kicked off Marvel's Silver Age and one of the most important comic books ever published.

    Read the full breakdown
  2. First Solo Title January 1974

    Marvel Two-in-One #1

    By Steve Gerber, Gil Kane

    First Thing-led ongoing. Marvel Two-in-One was a team-up book starring the Thing alongside a rotating Marvel guest each issue. Ran 100 issues through 1983 and is widely regarded as one of Marvel's most consistently entertaining team-up titles.

    Read the full breakdown

Creation Story

The Thing is Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s Fantastic Four heart-character. Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961) launched Marvel’s Silver Age and introduced Ben Grimm alongside Reed Richards, Sue Storm, and Johnny Storm. Lee scripted; Kirby pencilled and designed all four characters. Ben’s transformation into the Thing (orange rocky skin, superhuman strength, permanent non-human body) is the central tragedy of the Fantastic Four’s origin.

Lee’s writing positioned Ben as the team’s emotional center: the most relatable character despite the most monstrous appearance, perpetually struggling with his transformation while remaining loyal to Reed and the team. Kirby’s design (orange rocky body, blue trunks) has been essentially unchanged across sixty-three years.

The Thing has been continuously published since 1961 with no significant absence from the Marvel publishing lineup. Only Spider-Man and the rest of the Fantastic Four have comparable continuous-publishing tenure among Silver Age Marvel characters.

Marvel Two-in-One

Marvel Two-in-One #1 (January 1974) launched the Thing’s first solo ongoing. The book ran 100 issues through June 1983 and paired Ben with a different Marvel character each issue. Steve Gerber, Bill Mantlo, and Mark Gruenwald all wrote substantial portions of the run. The title is widely regarded as one of Marvel’s most consistently entertaining team-up books and an important showcase for Ben as a solo lead.

The Thing self-titled

The Thing #1 (July 1983) launched John Byrne’s solo Thing ongoing, spun out of his Fantastic Four run. Byrne wrote and pencilled the book through issue #22. The run gave Ben his most extended solo character development of the 1980s.

Collector context

Fantastic Four #1 is one of the most valuable Silver Age Marvel books. High-grade CGC 9.0+ copies have crossed $1.5 million at auction. The book sits alongside Amazing Fantasy #15 in the top tier of Silver Age Marvel collector demand. It is also the first appearance of Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Mole Man, giving it compounded multi-debut weight.

Secondary keys: Fantastic Four #51 (1966, “This Man… This Monster!”). Marvel Two-in-One #1 (1974, first solo). The Thing #1 (1983, Byrne self-titled).

Key subsequent appearances

After the debut, these are the issues collectors and historians reach for next.

  1. 1961

    Fantastic Four #1

    First appearance.

  2. 1966

    Fantastic Four #51

    This Man... This Monster!

    Lee-Kirby. Widely regarded as one of the best single-issue Fantastic Four stories. Ben Grimm character study.

  3. 1974

    Marvel Two-in-One #1

    First solo title.

  4. 1983

    The Thing #1

    First Self-Titled

    First Thing self-titled ongoing. John Byrne writes and pencils. Spun out of his Fantastic Four run.

In adaptations

Film, TV, animation, and game appearances.

  1. 2005

    Fantastic Four

    Film

    Starring:Michael Chiklis

    Tim Story directs. Chiklis's Thing across two films (2005 and 2007).

  2. 2015

    Fantastic Four

    Film

    Starring:Jamie Bell

    Josh Trank directs. Critical and commercial failure.

  3. 2025

    The Fantastic Four: First Steps

    Film

    Starring:Ebon Moss-Bachrach

    Matt Shakman directs. Moss-Bachrach plays the Thing in the MCU's first Fantastic Four entry.

Frequently asked questions

The questions readers and collectors ask most.

What is the Thing's first appearance?

The Thing's first appearance is Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961), created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. The issue is also his first cover. Ben Grimm debuts alongside Reed Richards, Sue Storm, and Johnny Storm. Fantastic Four #1 is one of the most important comic books ever published.

Is Fantastic Four #1 valuable?

Yes, extraordinarily. Fantastic Four #1 is the foundational Silver Age Marvel book and one of the most valuable mainstream comic books ever published. High-grade copies (CGC 9.0 and above) have crossed $1.5 million at auction. Low-grade reader copies trade in the mid-five-figure range. The book sits alongside Amazing Fantasy #15 and Action Comics #1 at the absolute top tier of Silver Age and Golden Age collector demand respectively.

Why is Ben Grimm orange and rocky?

Cosmic radiation. The Fantastic Four's origin (Fantastic Four #1) is that Reed Richards, Ben Grimm, Sue Storm, and Johnny Storm were exposed to cosmic radiation during an unauthorized rocket flight. Each developed different powers; Ben's transformation gave him orange rocky skin and superhuman strength but trapped him permanently in a non-human body. The transformation is the central character tragedy of Ben's arc and has been canonical for sixty-three years.

What is Marvel Two-in-One?

Marvel Two-in-One is the Thing's first solo ongoing, running 100 issues from January 1974 through June 1983. Each issue paired the Thing with a different Marvel guest character. The book is widely regarded as one of Marvel's most consistently entertaining team-up titles and an important showcase for the Thing as a solo lead. Steve Gerber, Bill Mantlo, and Mark Gruenwald all wrote substantial portions of the run.

Has the Thing ever been cured?

Yes, periodically, but never permanently. Across decades of Fantastic Four storylines, Ben Grimm has been temporarily restored to human form multiple times, only to revert back to his Thing body. The cure-and-revert cycle is a recurring narrative device that allows the comics to explore Ben's identity tension without permanently resolving the tragedy. Modern continuity treats the Thing form as effectively permanent.

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