During the 1960s, García-López worked for Charlton Comics. In 1974 he moved to New York, where he met DC Comics editor Joe Orlando. His first interior art credit for DC was June 1975's "Nightmare In Gold" back-up in "Action Comics" #448, where he inked the pencils of artist Dick Dillin. The following month, he inked the pencils of Curt Swan on a "Private Life of Clark Kent" backup story in "Superman" #289, before graduating to full pencils on a back-up story written by E. Nelson Bridwell in "Detective Comics" #452 (October 1975).