RKMBs Forums .::Robegories::. Comic Books RIP Steve Lightle

He was one of my favorite Legion artists and not really that old. LLL

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Wow!

I didn't see that one coming. His first pro work was only published in LEGION 3rd series (beginning 1984), so you're right, not that old, only 61.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Lightle

Lightle's art is very detailed and beautiful. I first recall him doing about a year's worth of LEGION after Giffen's first 5 issues on the 1984 Baxter series. And his 4-issue DOOM PATROL miniseries, and BATMAN 400. There's a checklist of Lightle's work at the Wikipedia link.

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https://readcomiconline.to/Comic/Legion-of-Super-Heroes-1984/Issue-7?id=85229

A link to Lightle's earliest LEGION run, (vol 3, 1984 series), issues 3–5 (over Gifffen layouts), and 7–10, 12–14, 16, 23 (full Lightle pencils) .
I linked to issue 7, that begins with Lightle's full pencils.

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https://readcomiconline.to/Comic/Batman-1940/Issue-400?id=18059#1

BATMAN 400, a great artist-jam anniversary issue, with the opening 6- page chapter by Steve Lightle. In great company with the remaining story by George Perez, Paris Cullins, Bill Sienkiewicz, Arthur Adams, Tom Sutton, Steve Leialoha, Joe Kubert, Ken Steacy, Rick Leonardi, and Brian Bolland. With pin-ups by Grell, Wrightson, Kaluta and Rude.

Here's a photo of Lightle on his birthday in 2016, from a Legion blog, with a lot of nice covers and pages by Lightle over many years.

http://legionofsuperbloggers.blogspot.com/2016/11/happy-birthday-steve-lightle.html

TALES OF THE LEGION 342, one of my favorite LEGION covers by Lightle, poster-worthy.

Thanks WB, he was a great talent.

He definitely was.

I was surprised by how relatively little comics work Lightle did over the last 36 years. Outside of his LEGION work, he often suffered from inkers whose style was not compatible with his, and mask his decorative linework. But his LEGION, DOOM PATROL, and DETECTIVE 400 work are beautiful examples of how good his work is.

I wasn't aware Lightle did work for Marvel till now, and I noticed he did a long run on MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS, hopefully some other great Lightle work to explore.

I was looking again at the checklist of Lightle's work, and came across this X-FACTOR 32 issue (1988) that was pencilled and inked by Lightle, and is consistent with the work he did in LEGION and DOOM PATROL in the same period.

https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/X-Factor-1986/Issue-32?id=40725#1

As I said above, it was disapponting how many stories he did have artists whose inking style blunts and goes completely against Lightle's clean and very detailed linestyle. This one is an example of how all Lightle's work should look, when an editor didn't destroy his work by pairing Lightle's pencils with the wrong inker. (Some truly awful stories are in WORLD'S FINEST 304 and 306, if I recall inked by Sal Trapani, a complete mismatch) .

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This looks like a convention sketch by Steve Lightle. Or maybe an unused cover.





And this cover from X-MEN CLASSIC 52, another sampling from Lightle's wwork on the Marvel side of the fence.

Lightle did covers and inside-cover illustrations on issues 30-42, 44-52, and 56.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=97241

https://viewcomiconline.com/classic-x-men-issue-30/ ( titled CLASSIC X-MEN, issues 1-45 )
https://viewcomiconline.com/x-men-classic-issue-52/ ( titled X-MEN CLASSIC, issues 46-up )

At the latter viewcomic links, you can view each cover in a larger size, and also the inside-cover illustraions by Lightle, that in many cases are as nice, or nicer, than the covers by Lightle.

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One of my favorite single issue stories from Steve Lightle's run, in LEGION 13, August 1985. A great issue, by both Levitz and Lightle.

Here's a link to the full issue, where you can read it online.
https://viewcomiconline.com/legion-of-super-heroes-1984-issue-13/

Again, Lightle did work on LEGION issues 3–5 (over Giffen layouts), and 7–10, 12–14, 16, 23 (full Lightle pencils) .

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Steve Lightle's DOOM PATROL, art on issues 1-5
https://viewcomiconline.com/doom-patrol-1987-issue-1/



And X-FACTOR 32
https://viewcomiconline.com/x-factor-1986-issue-32/

And LEGION by Lightle, (vol 3, 1984 series), issues 3–5 (over Gifffen layouts), and 7–10, 12–14, 16, 23 (full Lightle pencils) .
I linked to issue 7, that begins where Lightle began doing full pencils.
(Lightle covers on 6-16, 23, 25-35, 37, 39-44, 51-53, 55-63. So of 63 issues in Vol. 3, Lightle did covers on 42 of the 63 issues.)
https://viewcomiconline.com/legion-of-super-heroes-1984-issue-7/

And here's TALES OF THE LEGION, that reprint the vol 3 issues beginning with issue 1 in 326
So the Lightle issues in TALES would be 328-330, 332-335, 337-339,341 and 348. With many new Lightle covers on these and other issues from 330- 342.
https://viewcomiconline.com/tales-of-the-legion-issue-330/

Here's the cover for 342 again, in a larger size where you can see the detail, on that beautiful poster-worthy cover :
https://viewcomiconline.com/tales-of-the-legion-issue-342/

The BATMAN and LEGION issues by Lightle remain my favorites of his work.

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It's a few years after the fact, but I just ran across this article about Steve Lightle's death by Covid-19, and how he fell ill and unexpectedly had to be rushed to the emergency room.
With a lot of quoted accounts by Lightle's wife, about that sudden illness, and about his overall personality during their 35 or so years together, about his work habits, and his interaction with fans at conventions.
And similarly, commentary by Paul Levitz, about his years working together with Steve Lightle.


Comic book artist's sudden death a shock: 'We had no idea he had Covid'
Steve Lightle, who worked for both DC and Marvel, died on Jan. 8, just three days after coming down with what he thought was a cold.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/obituaries/comic-book-artist-s-sudden-death-shock-we-had-no-n1254399

• Jan. 18, 2021, By Ethan Sacks
  
  
  As the artist for the popular comic "Legion of Super-Heroes" in the early 1980s, Steve Lightle made a living dreaming up the future, but his own was cut short by Covid-19.
  
  Lightle, 61, died from cardiac arrest in a Kansas City, Missouri, hospital on Jan. 8, just three days after coming down with what he thought was a head cold and just hours after he was rushed to the hospital.
  
  "Covid stole my husband's life and our future together," said Marianne Lightle, his wife of 38 years, by email. "We wore masks, social distanced, washed our hands. ... It appeared as a cold and became death.
  "I will never forget the helpless feeling of not being able to save him," added Marianne Lightle, who now has Covid-19 herself.
  
  Best known for his runs on "Legion" and "Doom Patrol" for DC and "Classic X-Men" covers for Marvel, Lightle became a fixture at conventions, never too busy to mentor the next generation. He came across as larger than life and drew visuals that were just as grand.
  "My memories of him are that he was just a very enthusiastic, very warm guy who was excited about everything he was doing," said Paul Levitz, the writer on Lightle's "Legion" run and a longtime friend. "He was happy to be contributing in any way that he possibly could, had a bunch of ideas and was just enjoying the hell out of what he was getting to do."
  
  Born in Kansas City, Kansas, on Nov. 19, 1959, as the youngest of four children in a working-class family, Lightle had his work cut out for him to break into the comic business. He hailed, after all, from a part of the country that was more Smallville than Metropolis at a time when the comic book industry was centralized in New York City.
  
  "When he was a teenager, he self-published," Marianne Lightle said. "He was always an artist and always drawing."
  
  With the rise of overnight delivery services in the early 1980s, however, an artist like Lightle could work from anywhere. His first professional credit came with AC Comics' "Black Diamond" #4 in 1984, and within months he was tapped to draw "The Legion of Super-Heroes" for DC. It was a giant leap in a single bound for a young artist.
  
  The gig was an especially sweet plot twist for a kid who grew up doodling that team of superheroes from the 31st century.
  
  "I try to give my all to each assignment that I take on," Lightle told Comic Book Resources in 2002. "With the Legion it's really easy to find that personal connection, because I've been a fan of the series since my childhood. The first Legion drawing that I can remember ever doing was created at my school desk in 2nd grade."
  
  Levitz, then the established writer of that series, remembers his new artistic partner as always thinking ahead — 1,000 years into the future to be exact. Lightle, for example, came up with the design for the fan-favorite hero Tellus, a hulking aquatic creature that proved surprisingly human at heart.
  
  "As a creative person, he was an unusually thoughtful artist about coming up with new characters and new elements," Levitz said. "He was very comfortable trying to figure out how to depict the future, which is always an interesting question."
  
  "An awful lot of the things that we came up in the comics in those days, we only got right [in] 20 years, not 1,000, and some we may not get for the full 1,000 years. It's hard to tell," Levitz said.
  
  By the time he landed the "Legion" job, he was working on a more traditional kind of future, having married his childhood sweetheart, Marianne, whom he met when he was 19 and she was 16. The couple went on to have two children together: a son, Matthew, in 1986 and a daughter, Nina, in 1994.
  
  In 1988, Lightle drew the first five issues of DC's "Doom Patrol," a superteam that would inspire a TV series just over 20 years later.
  
  Marvel tapped him to draw the covers for the series "Classic X-Men" in 1989. He drew more books for the publisher through the '90s, including several issues featuring the popular hero Wolverine.
  
  The experience of working with the claw-popping "X-Men" character would come in handy when he drew a birthday announcement for his grandson Logan, who shares the same name as the hero.
  
  "My husband drew an illustration of my very pregnant daughter-in-law with the word 'snikt' and claws coming from her belly," recalled Marianne Lightle, referring to the word for the sound effect of Wolverine's claws being extended.
  
  Lightle continued to draw up until his death, channeling his passion into his own online comic series, "Justin Zane." He also enjoyed meeting fans on the comic-convention circuit, where his original fans who enjoyed his work in their childhoods were bringing their own children along.
  
  "He also liked talking with young aspiring artists," Marianne Lightle said. "He made some lasting friendships with a few he had mentored."
  
  Though he never achieved the superstardom of some other artists, people in the industry appreciated his dynamic style. After learning of Lightle's death, Jim Lee, one of the most popular artists in the business and now chief creative officer at DC, tweeted that he was "a huge fan of his work on Legion of Superheroes growing up."
  
  There should have been more issues of comics, more laughs with fans at conventions, more time with his five — soon to be six — grandchildren.
  
  "He loved people. He loved animals. He was just such a gentle soul," Marianne Lightle said. "He felt deeply and was never one to mince words. He was the most honest human being I have known."
  
  "He was my best friend," she said, "and I can't talk about him without losing my grip, because he was my strength."

It also lists several works by Lightle that even up to this point I was still unaware of.

And has 2 more photos of Lightle, one with his wife Marianne.

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I also meant earlier to post a link to Lightle's MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS work (1992-1995), so here it is :


issues 109–116 (Wolverine and Typhoid Mary); https://viewcomiconline.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-109/

issues 123–130 (Ghost Rider and Typhoid Mary); https://viewcomiconline.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-123/

issues132–136 (Wolverine); https://viewcomiconline.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-132/


issue 150 (Vengeance, Wolverine, Daredevil, Typhoid Mary); https://viewcomiconline.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-150/

and
issue175 (ttwo stories: Steel Raven, and New Genix) https://viewcomiconline.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-175/

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And a self-publishing character by Liightle, JUSTIN ZANE, that apparently doesn't exist as a published comic, only as a web comic on the internet :

https://stevelightle.wixsite.com/justin-zane/home

https://stevelightle.wixsite.com/justin-zane


And a lengthy interview of Steve Lightle about his work across 35 years for DC and Marvel, and the above JUSTIN ZANE series.
He goes into a lot of detail on his work process and creative collaborations on the series he worked on.
And he sure doesn't hold anything back about why he left the DOOM PATROL series. Lightle expresses a deep understanding of the Doom Patrol characters from their Drake/Premiani creation and original series, and how they should be intelligently developed based on that going forward, and yet he was promised plot collaboration participation but was ignored, not as promised, after he agreed and contracted to do the series.

http://www.dcinthe80s.com/2016/05/steve-lightle-talks-about-his-1987-run.html

Lightle expresses a similar deep understanding and appreciation of LEGION from its Silver Age roots as well.
I'm impressed with the clarity, detail and intelligence Lightle expresses about the series and characters he worked on.

DOOM PATROL (original Drake/Premiani series, 1964-1968, and 1973. Was MY GREATEST ADVENTURE, issues 1-85)
86-124 https://viewcomiconline.com/doom-patrol-1964-issue-86/

DOOM PATROL (1987 series)
1-87 (1-5 ly Lightle) https://viewcomiconline.com/doom-patrol-1987-issue-1/



And another Steve Lightle tribute link, that could turn you on to stuff you might have missed the first time :
http://legionofsuperbloggers.blogspot.com/search/label/Steve%20Lightle

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In my internet travels, I saw that Tom Veitch, mostly a 1970's underground comics writer, but who also did some DC and other mainstream work in the 1980's - 1990's, is another casualty who died of Covid-19 in 2022, at the age of 80.

Along with comic writer Dave Kraft who also died of Covid-19, for whom there is already another topic here in tribute to him and his work :
https://www.rkmbs.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1236527



Tom Veitch was the older brother of SWAMP THING artist Rick Veitch.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Veitch


A few of Tom Veitch's series :

SKULL COMICS 1-6 (1970-1972)
https://readallcomics.com/skull-comics-1/

also at:
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Skull-Comics/Issue-3?id=170814
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Skull-Comics/Issue-4?id=170815
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Skull-Comics/Issue-5?id=170816
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Skull-Comics/Issue-6?id=170817



SLOW DEATH 1-10 (1970-1979)
https://readallcomics.com/slow-death-1/

also at :
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death-Funnies/Issue-1?id=183719
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-2?id=183715
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-3?id=183716
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-4?id=183717
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-5?id=183718
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-6?id=183720
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-7?id=183721
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-8?id=183722
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-9?id=183723
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-10?id=183713
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Slow-Death/Issue-11?id=183714 (This last one a 1992 tribute by Alan Moore and others)




THE NAZZ 1-4 (1990)
https://readallcomics.com/the-nazz-1/

and at :
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/The-Nazz/Issue-1?id=114531



KAMANDI: AT EARTH'S END 1-6 (1993)
https://readallcomics.com/kamandi-at-earths-end-1/

also at :
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Kamandi-At-Earth-s-End/Issue-1?id=155231



STAR WARS: DARK EMPIRE 1-6
https://readallcomics.com/star-wars-dark-empire-01/

and at :
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Star-Wars-Dark-Empire





The previous ViewComicOnline was for a while replaced by OneMillionComics .
And now both hose sies are permanently down, and their domain names are available for sale.

And now with the OneMillionComics site permanently down, I added ReadAllComics links to the same issues.
( ReadComicOnline still works, but often, depending on the month, has an insufferable amount of pop-up ads. I use it as a backup, when the other sites aren't working. )

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"Steve Lightle: 10 Iconic Images By The Comics Artist" (CBR, Comic Book Resources)
https://www.cbr.com/steve-lightle-cover-art/



and...


The Comics Super-Blog, Tribute to Steve Lightle
https://smashpages.net/2021/01/08/rest-in-peace-steve-lightle/

With comments by Jim Lee, Dan Jurgens, Walt Simonson, Rob Liefeld, and Matt Lighttle, his son.

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I thought this was a nice comparison.
Lightle's black and white paste-up art, and the full-color final cover version, side by side.

full issue at :
https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-014/

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Another nice page by Lightle, of Mon-El.
I like the color overlay background, that projects well the visual effect of a half-visible Phantom Zone in the background behind him.
The overlay effect also implies memories of the past.

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Another impactful cover for LEGION 16, of Braniac 6 and Supergirl.
During the climactic period of CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS.

at
https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-016/

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Another nice page, from the Marvel side of the fence, from a GHOST RIDER / VENOM story.


From as described, iniially done as a cover for "a crossover story in GHOST RIDER / BLAZE: SPIRITS OF VENGEANCE 1-4 and WEB OF SPIDER-MAN 95-96 in 1993 for 4 issues", so it was published, but Lightle's one submited cover for whatever reason remained shelved and unused.
Till it finally was published in a SPIRITS OF VENGEANCE: RISE OF THE MIDNIGHT SONS collected trade of these issues in 2016. https://www.comics.org/issue/1637876/
And in a later 2024 GHOST RIDER OMNIBUS.
https://www.comicartfans.com/gallerypiece.asp?piece=1453298

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An explosive cover by Lightle, from LEGION 28

https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-028/

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One of the covers from Lightle's online-only series, JUSTIN ZANE.

Here are the same complete issues on a site that loads faster, and free from all the pop-up ads on ReadComicOnline.

LEGION OF SUPERHEROES (3rd series, 1984-1989.) ..

7 https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-007/
8 https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-008
9 https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-009/
10 https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-010/

12 https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-012/
13 https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-013/
14 https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-014/

16 https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-016/

23 https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-0/23

Beyond interior art, Steve Lightle also did covers on 6-16, 23, 25-35, 37, 39-44, 51-53, 55-63.
On 42 of the 63 issues of the series.



And Lightle also did new covers on the reprints of these issues, in
TALES OF THE LEGION (2nd series, 1980, issues 326-354 reprint 3rd series issues)
https://readallcomics.com/tales-of-the-legion-326/

Lightle covers on 330-334, 337-342.



Steve Lightle also did covers on later LEGION series, I haven't dug up the issues for those yet.

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An incomplete chronological checklist, that allows you to see the bulk of Lightle's work at a glance :

https://www.mikesamazingworld.com/main/features/creator.php?creatorid=587



And here's a more complete checklist, from Comics.org , that also includes all covers he did, and even foreign reprints, that has a total of 429 listings, about 150 of them are covers alone, and another 150 are foreign reprints.

https://www.comics.org/checklist/name/Steve%20Lightle/

I know this one is an older thread, but he was only in his 60s too.

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Lightle was a terrific artist, who died way too soon.

Particularly chilling for me when he died, he was only 2 years older than me.
I read an article that said 94% of those who died of Covid had a pre-existing condition, such as heart disease, diabetes, asthma, lupus, cystic fibrosis, cancer, or some other immune-compromising condition. Even having excess weight puts someone at greater risk. Some people who looked athletic and in shape, could unknowingly have evolving diabetes that put them at higher risk.

Looking at Steve Lightle's photos, he looked slightly overweight, which could be what made Covid more fatal for him.

In the last 2 years or so, Covid seems to have mutated into a strain that is less lethal, and I haven't heard in a long time about deaths from Covid.

I included the article above about Lightle's death, because it made clear that to him and his wife Lightle seemed to just have a normal flu, until it suddenly went severe and he had to be rushed to the hospital, and it quickly became fatal after that.
And in that period when he died, where the Covid virus was in its most dangerous strain, that article could have been a warning to others nationwide at similar risk, to take the utmost precautions . I wonder in many cases if a less than $20.00 prescription of Hydroxychloroquine or Ivermectin could have saved their lives.

MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS issues by Lightle, with updated links.

https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-109/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-110/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-111/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-112/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-113/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-114/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-115/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-116/

https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-123/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-124/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-125/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-12/6
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-127/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-128/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-129/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-130/

https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-132/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-133/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-134/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-135/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-136/

https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-150/

https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-presents-v1-175/

Another of Steve Lightle's best remembered but short-lived runs, on DOOM PATROL 1-5, with updated links :
( DOOM PATROL, by Steve Lightle, Vol 2, 1-5 : )

https://readallcomics.com/doom-patrol-v2-001/
https://readallcomics.com/doom-patrol-v2-002/
https://readallcomics.com/doom-patrol-v2-003/
https://readallcomics.com/doom-patrol-v2-004/
https://readallcomics.com/doom-patrol-v2-005/




The previous original DOOM PATROL run (March 1964--July 1973, vol 1, by Drake and Premiani ), are in issues 86-124
https://readallcomics.com/doom-patrol-v1-086/

And before the title change to DOOM PATROL, in MY GREATEST ADVENTURE 80-85.
https://readallcomics.com/my-greatest-adventure-v1-080/

Batman 400, Oct 1986

https://readallcomics.com/batman-v1-400/

Updated working link. Some nice representative Steve Lightle art, alongside a lot of other great artists in issue 400, in one of my favorite anniversary issues,


Along with JLA 200, DETECTIVE COMICS 500, and ACTION COMICS 600 (Three other nice artist-jam anniversary issues, but none of these others include Steve Lightle art, )
https://readallcomics.com/justice-league-of-america-v1-200/
https://readallcomics.com/detective-comics-v1-0500/
https://readallcomics.com/action-comics-v1-600/

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https://readallcomics.com/tales-of-the-legion-339/

Another poster-worthy cover by Steve Lightle, from a story where the Legion is selecting new members from among cadets applying for membership.

The cover for 3rd series issue 14 (that TALES 339 above reprints) I already posted a few posts ago, and linked the full issue of above.
The TALES OF THE LEGION reprint covers in several cases, including this one, are arguably even better than the covers when these stories were first printed a year before. In either case, you can choose for yourself which of the two covers for each of these stories is the better one.

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And here's a side-by-side comparison of Lightle's covers for LEGION (3rd series) 13,
with the new cover for the reprinting of it a year later in TALES OF THE LEGION 338 .






I have a slight preference for the TALES 338 cover, but you can decide for yourself. I think they're both pretty equally nice.

full issues in larger size at :
https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v3-013/
https://readallcomics.com/tales-of-the-legion-338/

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The work I love most on LEGION is by Paul Levitz, in collaboration with first Keith Giffen (1982-1984), then Steve Lighlle (1984-1985, and covers for the remainder of the 3rd series), and Greg Larocque for several years after till Giffen came back.

I wondered how many issues total Paul Levitz had written, and courtesy of a DuckDuckGo search, the answer is "over 147 issues"
http://legionofsuperbloggers.blogspot.com/2016/10/happy-birthday-paul-levitz.html

I could count from my own collection SUPERBOY 225-226, 228-231, 233, 235-237, 239-247, and 251 (some co-written)
and DC SPECIAL SERIES 21 (DC HOLIDAY SPECIAL).................................................................................................................... = 21 issues

Then LEGION (2nd series, 1979) issues 282, 284-313,
and TALES OF THE LEGION 314-326 (the issues after are Leviz, but reprints).................................................................................. = 43 issues

Then LEGION (3rd series, 1984) issues 1-63....................................................................................................................................... = 63 issues

So the Levitz issues I know come to .......................................................................................................................................................127 issues total.


And later issues I haven't seen, from 2010-2013, that apparently bring it up to "over 147".
I don't know why, if they tabulated that much, why they couldn't just say exactly how many issues Levitz did.
But that at least gives a rough approximation.
Which alone approaches Dave Sim on CEREBUS, and Peter David on INCREDIBLE HULK, and even surpasses Lee / Kirby on FANTASTIC FOUR.

Elsewhere, they specified Levitz did 219 issues total.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Levitz

• Initial Run (1977-1979)..................................25
  
  Second Run (1981-1989)............................147
  
  Return (2010-2013).......................................47
  _______________________________________
  
  Total Levitz issues........................................219
  
  Paul Levitz is known for his significant contributions to the "Legion of Super-Heroes," having written a total of 219 issues across different periods.
  His work on the series is highly regarded, particularly during his long tenure from 1981 to 1989.

Which however you slice it up, and especially for Levitz's consistency with the preceding Silver Age run Legion across ADVENTURE COMICS, ACTION COMICS and SUPERBOY/LEGION, and how fun Levitz's issues are, is definitely an achievement. My favorites are LEGION 284-306, then the Levitz/ Lightle issues, and the Levittz/Larocque issues.
It was nice to have Giffen come back to collaborate on issues 50-63 (even if his art was very different from his earlier work).

And then the Tom & Mary Bierbaum "Five Year Gap" run in the LEGION 4th series (1989)
https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v4-001/

The Beiebaums' 4th series LEGION is mostly interesting and thought provoking, but a bit challenging to read with all the alternate timelines that would last a few issues, and then repeatedly be obliterated and replaced by a new alternate history and present in the next issue. They (the Bierbaums, and Giffen, after Levitz had left the series) also introduced a new younger Silver age-ish version of the Legion that co-existed in the present with the adult Legion, that was also a nice element, that let the older and younger versions interact in great ways, play off each other, and further define the characters at both ages.
https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v4-025/
https://readallcomics.com/legion-of-super-heroes-v4-040/

I pretty much lost all interest when the "Zero Hour" storyline (issue 60) wiped out the 35 years or so of Legion continuity up to that point, and re-booted the series.
And then the series was re-booted again, and re-booted, and re-booted, over and over, until I no longer cared anymore.

But I still love the old Legion (I have a steady run back to ADVENTURE 303, and all the ACTION issues and all the SUPERBOY/LEGION issues, up till Zero Hour. And Levitz's issues for me are the high point of that long run. Much as I also love the Shooter, Swan/Klein, Cockrum, Grell and Starlin issues.

The only other even longer runs I have that I treasure even more are my BATMAN and DETECTIVE COMICS runs, from Infantino up to O'Neil/Adams/Novick/Giordano, and on up through the Moench/Kelley issues.

.


I just stumbled on what I think is probably Steve Lightle's first published work for DC, and likely first pro work period.
NEW TALENT SHOWCASE issues 4 and 5, April and May 1984.

Full issues at:
https://readallcomics.com/new-talent-showcase-v1-04/
https://readallcomics.com/new-talent-showcase-v1-05/


Lightle also did the cover for issue 4.