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Our
Guest Artists for 2012! |
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Herb
Trimpe |
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Herb Trimpe (born
May 26,
1939) is an American comic book artist, probably
best known for his lengthy run pencilling
Marvel Comics' the Hulk, which
included the first appearance of
Wolverine. In the late 70s and 80s, he
worked on many of Marvel's comics that dealt with licensed properties,
including
G.I. Joe and
Transformers.
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Herb
Trimpe spent 29 years in the comic world as an artist (1967-1996). First hired
as a production assistant by editor Stan Lee, Herb showed a strong and visually
different style of drawing, and was soon drawing many of Marvel's biggest and
best characters. For three decades, Herb had, at one time or another, the
opportunity to draw virtually every character in the Marvel universe. Probably
best known for his runs on HULK and DEFENDERS, it was Herb Trimpe who penciled
the first appearance of WOLVERINE. Herb also penciled other titles including
WEST COAST AVENGERS, QUASAR, and the often forgotten GODZILLA, and SHOGUN
WARRIORS. With the recent revival of properties from the 70's and 80's, don't
be surprised if Trimpe art associated with Godzilla and Shogun Warriors takes a
steep rise in demand by collectors. On a side note, Herb Trimpe did not leave
comics on his own accord. With the dramatic influx of new creators in the
mid-90's, Herb was asked to draw in a more 'modern' way, and that was just not
Herb's way. His art was, and still is, unique among the comic community.
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In addition to working on issues 11, 12 and 20, he drew a number of
covers for the series as well. Due to his familiarity with both properties, he
was the artist tapped to draw the
G.I. Joe and the Transformers limited
series.
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Val
Mayerik |
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Val Mayerik was born March 29, 1950 in Youngstown, Ohio. Upon college
graduation, he met and began working as an assistant to Ohio-based comic-book
artist Dan Adkins, alongside fellow assistant P. Craig Russell. Through Adkins,
who was primarily an inker for Marvel Comics, Mayerik broke into comics that
summer as penciler, over Adkins layouts, of the eight-page story "Spell of the
Dragon", starring author John Jakes' sword-and-sorcery hero Brak the Barbarian.
Published in the horror-fantasy anthology Chamber of Chills # 2 (Jan. 1973), it
appeared a month after his first published comics work, the full-length "The
Monster of the Monoliths" in Marvel's Conan the Barbarian #21, which Mayerik
and Russell penciled over Barry Windsor-Smith layouts. |
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Mayerik quickly
found more assignments, penciling Marvel's adaptation of H.G. Wells' The
Invisible Man, over Adkins layouts, in Supernatural Thrillers # 2 (Feb. 1973);
and doing his first full penciling, with writer George Alec Effinger's
adaptation of Lin Carter's "Thongor! Warrior of Lost Lemuria" story "Thieves of
Zangabal", in Creatures on the Loose # 22 (March 1973).
Mayerik became the regular artist of the
swamp-monster feature "Man-Thing" in Fear #13 (April 1973). Six issues later,
he and writer Steve Gerber introduced Howard the Duck.Initially a minor
supporting character intended only for an issue or two, the anthropomorphic
waterfowl — bedecked in suit and tie as a parody of funny animal ducks, except
for his cigar-smoking and his angry, ascerbic wit — Howard eventually became a
star character with his own satiric series, penciled first by Frank Brunner and
then Gene Colan. The character shortly afterward became a mainstream
pop-culture figure. Mayerick continued to pencil both the "Man-Thing" and
"Thongor" series until the former received his own title, for which Mayerik
drew the premiere issue (Jan. 1974).
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While also doing scattered horror/fantasy/science-fiction anthology
stories, Mayerik teamed with Gerber on a second series, the Living Mummy, in
Supernatural Thrillers, and took over the art on The Frankenstein Monster. With
writer Doug Moench, he did a monumental adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's
Sherlock Holmes novel The Hound of the Baskervilles in the black-and-white
magazine Marvel Preview # 5-6 (April & Spring 1976). He also penciled the
final six issues of the 20-issue, 1974 to 1977 jungle-lord series Ka-Zar.
Also interested in acting, Mayerik appears in The
Demon Lover (1977),a low-budget horror film shot in and around Detroit,
Michigan. In early 1977, Mayerik moved to New York City,
where he acted off-off-Broadway and found work with artist Neal Adams'
Continuity Associates studio, sharing space with fellow fledglings Howard
Chaykin, Walt Simonson, and Jim Starlin.
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During this time, he drew the first Howard the Duck Annual (May 1977) and
Howard the Duck #22-23 (March–April 1978). He was also an artist on the Howard
the Duck newspaper comic strip in 1977.[citation needed] He co-plotted and
co-scripted, in addition to drawing, Howard the Duck #33 (Sept. 1986), the
second and last issue of a short-lived series revival coinciding with the
release of the movie Howard the Duck. He expanded beyond his prolific Marvel
work to draw for Heavy Metal magazine and the Warren Publishing line of
black-and-white comics magazines; the latter work included the continuing
samurai feature "Young Master", reprints of which appeared as backup stories in
Mayerik and writer Larry Hama 1987-1989 Young Master series published by New
Comics Group. Mayerik left New York City in 1981, moving first to Cleveland,
Ohio, where he did local TV and film work and regional theater in addition to
his art, before settling in Oregon in 1993.
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Mayerik continued to draw for comics through the 1980s and early 1990s, working
on series for Eclipse Comics, First Comics, Now Comics, Pacific Comics, and
Harvey Pekar's self-published American Splendor, in addition to Marvel,[4] but
was seguing toward more of a career in advertising art and in illustration for
the games industry, including the roleplaying game companies TSR, Inc. and
Wizards of the Coast.[5] As a spin-off of this, he drew the four-issue Acclaim
Comics miniseries Magic: The Gathering — The Shadow Mage (July-Oct. 1995). As
of 2010, artist Mayerik and writer James Hudnall produce the comic strip Useful
Idiots for the political site BigJournalism.com. Mayerik has done storyboards
and other art for clients ranging from Coca-Cola and Microsoft to the American
Indian College Fund and the Oregon Historical Society. |
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Val Mayerik web-site:
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Watch A U-Tube Video on Val:
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