Michael Layne Turner (April 21, 1971 – June 27, 2008) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

comics artist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and g ...

known for his work on ''

Witchblade ''Witchblade'' is a comic book series published by Top Cow Productions, an imprint of Image Comics, which ran from November 1995 to October 2015. The series was created by Top Cow founder and owner Marc Silvestri, editor David Wohl, writers B ...

'', ''

Fathom A fathom is a unit of length in the imperial and the U.S. customary systems equal to , used especially for measuring the depth of water. The fathom is neither an International Standard (SI) unit, nor an internationally-accepted non-SI unit. Hi ...

'', ''

Superman/Batman ''Superman/Batman'' is a monthly comic book series published by DC Comics that features the publisher's two most popular superheroes: Superman and Batman. ''Superman/Batman'' premiered in August 2003, an update of the previous series, ''World's ...

'', '' Soulfire'', and various covers for

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

and

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

. He was also the president of the entertainment company

Aspen MLT Aspen Comics (Aspen MLT Inc.) is a California entertainment company founded in 2003 by artist Michael Turner. It has locations in Santa Monica and Marina Del Rey. The company is best known for producing comic books and figurines. History The co ...

Early life

Michael Turner was born in

Crossville, Tennessee Crossville is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Tennessee, United States. It is part of the Crossville, TN Micropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 12,071 at the 2020 census. History Crossville developed at the inters ...

on April 21, 1971. He was a student at the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

, and graduated from the International Performing Arts Academy after which he moved to San Diego, California, where he developed an interest in comics.

Career

Turner was discovered by

Marc Silvestri Marc Silvestri (born March 29, 1958) is an American comic book artist, creator and publisher. He serves as CEO of both Top Cow Productions and Image Comics. Early life Marc Silvestri was born on March 29, 1958 in Palm Beach, Florida.Rosenberg, ...

at a convention and hired by Silvestri's

Top Cow Productions Top Cow Productions is an American comics publisher, an imprint of Image Comics founded by Marc Silvestri in 1992. History During the early years of Image Comics, which was founded in 1992, co-founder Marc Silvestri shared a studio with Jim Le ...

as an artist. He initially did background illustrations for Top Cow titles before co-creating ''

''. In the summer of 1998 he debuted the

creator-owned In the United States, creator ownership in comics is an arrangement in which the comic book creator retains full ownership of the material, regardless of whether the work is self-published or published by a corporate publisher. In some fields of ...

'', having also worked on his new series '' Soulfire''. As well as an artist, Turner was an award-winning water skier, held an instructor level red sash in martial arts, and was an avid video game player. In March 2000, Turner was diagnosed with

chondrosarcoma Chondrosarcoma is a bone sarcoma, a primary cancer composed of cells derived from transformed cells that produce cartilage. A chondrosarcoma is a member of a category of tumors of bone and soft tissue known as sarcomas. About 30% of bone sarcomas ...

, a form of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

, in the right pelvis. He was treated at the

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center (also commonly referred to as ''UCLA Medical Center'', "RRMC" or "Ronald Reagan") is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles, in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, United ...

with surgery in which he lost a hip, 40% of his pelvis, and three pounds of bone. The surgery was followed by nine months of

radiation therapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy, often abbreviated RT, RTx, or XRT, is a therapy using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of cancer treatment to control or kill malignant cells and normally delivered by a linear accelerator. Radia ...

. Turner departed Top Cow in late 2002 to found his own comic book publishing company, Aspen MLT Inc. (where MLT stands for Michael Layne Turner), located in

Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...

, with a studio in

Marina del Rey, California Marina del Rey (Spanish for "Marina of the King") is an unincorporated seaside community in Los Angeles County, California, with an eponymous harbor that is a major boating and water recreation destination of the greater Los Angeles area. The p ...

. The release of comics from Aspen was delayed by a year-long lawsuit with Top Cow Productions over the rights to ''Fathom'' and over the rights to the unreleased titles '' Soulfire'' (initially called ''Dragonfly'') and '' Ekos'', both of which Turner had begun developing before leaving Top Cow and before his diagnosis of cancer. Aspen and Top Cow settled the lawsuit out of court in 2003. In 2004 Turner contributed covers to various

titles, including ''

The Flash The Flash (or simply Flash) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date ...

'' and ''

Identity Crisis In psychology, identity crisis is a stage theory of identity development where it involves resolution of a conflict over the 8 stages of the lifespan.(Schultz, 216) The term was coined by German psychologist Erik Erikson. The stage of psychosoci ...

''. He provided cover art and co-wrote the "Godfall" story arc that ran in the three main ''Superman'' titles in early 2004 and illustrated the six-issue Supergirl story arc in ''

.'' His creator-owned title '' Soulfire'' began publication in 2004 and ''

'' resumed publication in that year as well, though this time with Aspen MLT rather than Top Cow. On August 6, 2005,

announced the signing of Michael Turner to a work-for-hire deal for a six-issue project and covers. This would turn out to be at least the variant covers for the miniseries ''

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

'' and the Wolverine ongoing series '' Wolverine: Origins''. In addition Turner had been announced as the artist on ''

Ultimate Wolverine Wolverine (James Howlett) is a fictional character appearing in books published by Marvel Comics. He is an alternative version of Wolverine that appears in the Ultimate Marvel imprint, in stories separate from the original character. Created by ...

''. Turner created online comic adaptations for the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

television series ''

Heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...

''.

Death and tribute

Turner died June 27, 2008, at the

Santa Monica Hospital UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center is a hospital located within the city of Santa Monica, California. The hospital was founded in 1926, and is a member of the UCLA Health. The hospital is also known internationally for operating its Rape Treatment ...

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

, of complications from

bone cancer A bone tumor is an abnormal growth of tissue in bone, traditionally classified as noncancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant). Cancerous bone tumors usually originate from a cancer in another part of the body such as from lung, breast, thyro ...

. He is survived by his mother Grace Crick, his brother Jake Turner, and his fiancée Kelly Carmichael. ''Fathom'' vol. 3 #1, which was published on Wednesday, August 6, 2008, featured a tribute to Turner in the form of a stylized blue ribbon in the upper right hand corner of its cover, and its first page was a memorial to him. AspenMLT also published a

trade paperback Trade paperback may refer to: * Trade paperback, a higher-quality softcover version of a book * Trade paperback (comics) In comics in the United States, a trade paperback (shortened: TPB or trade) is a collection of stories originally published ...

collection of writings from people who knew Turner, titled ''A Tribute to Michael Turner'', which features a cover painted by

Alex Ross Nelson Alexander Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an American comic book writer and artist known primarily for his painted interiors, covers, and design work. He first became known with the 1994 miniseries ''Marvels'', on which he collaborated wi ...

. Volume #21 of ''

The Boys Boys are young male humans. Boys or The Boys may also refer to: Film and television Films * ''The Boys'' (1962 British film), a courtroom drama by Sidney J. Furie * ''The Boys'' (1962 Finnish film), a war drama by Mikko Niskanen * ''Boys'' ( ...

'' included a page dedicated to Michael Turner as well.''

'' vol. #21 (Sept. 2008)

Bibliography

Interior art

Aspen MLT

* '' Soulfire'' #0–7 (2004–2005)

DC Comics

* ''

'' #8–13 (2004)

Image Comics/Top Cow Productions

* ''

Ballistic Ballistics may refer to: Science * Ballistics, the science that deals with the motion, behavior, and effects of projectiles ** Forensic ballistics, the science of analyzing firearm usage in crimes ** Internal ballistics, the study of the proce ...

'' #1–3 (1995) * '' Codename: Strykeforce'' #14 (among other artists) (1995) * ''

'' #0–14 (1998–2002) * ''

Tomb Raider ''Tomb Raider'', also known as ''Lara Croft: Tomb Raider'' from 2001 to 2008, is a media franchise that originated with an action-adventure video game series created by British gaming company Core Design. Formerly owned by Eidos Interactive, th ...

'' #25 (2002) * ''Tomb Raider/

'', one-shot, (with Brian Ching) #1 (1997) * ''Witchblade'' #1–8, 10–23, 25 (1995–1998) * ''Witchblade/Tomb Raider Special'' #1 (with Keu Cha)(1998) * ''Wolverine/Witchblade'' #1 (1997) * ''Witchblade/Elektra '' #1 (1997)

Covers

Aspen MLT

*''

'' vol. 2, ''Beginnings'', ''Prelude'' #0, 1–4, 7–8, 10–11 (2005–2006) *''

Shrugged Shrugged is a comic series published by Aspen MLT, publishers of '' Soulfire'' and ''Fathom A fathom is a unit of length in the imperial and the U.S. customary systems equal to , used especially for measuring the depth of water. The fathom ...

'' #0, 1–6 (2006–2007) *'' Soulfire'' ''Preview'', #0, 1–10 (2004–2009)

DC Comics

* ''

Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/Comic anthology, magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics ...

'' #812–813 (2004) * '' The Adventures of Superman'' #625–626 (2004) * ''

'' vol. 2 #207–211 (2004) * ''

'' #1–7 (2004) * ''

Justice League of America The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...

'' vol. 2 #0–12 (2006–2007) * ''

Supergirl Supergirl is the name of several fictional superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The original, current, and most well known Supergirl is Kara Zor-El, the cousin of superhero Superman. The character made her fir ...

'' vol. 5 #1–3, 5, 50 (2005) * ''

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

'' vol. 2, #202–203, 205 (2004) * ''

'' #8–13, 19, 26 (2006) * ''

Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to DC ...

'' vol. 3 #1 (2003)

Image Comics/Top Cow Productions

* ''

Darkness Darkness, the direct opposite of lightness, is defined as a lack of illumination, an absence of visible light, or a surface that absorbs light, such as black or brown. Human vision is unable to distinguish colors in conditions of very low lu ...

'' #7, 11 (1997–1998) * ''

'' #1, 9, 25, 46 (1999–2004) * ''

'' #1–25, 27, 50, 86, 100, 103 (1995–2007)

Image Comics/Hurricane Ent.

* ''

Violent Messiahs ''Violent Messiahs'' is an American comic book series created by Joshua Dysart and William O'Neil and published by Image Comics. The comic takes place in a fictional city known as Rankor Island, and focused on the Rankor PD's attempts to bring i ...

: Lamenting Pain #1 (2002)

Marvel Comics

* ''

Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been d ...

'' vol. 4 #18, 23–25 (2006–2007) * ''

'' #1–7 (2006–2007) * ''

Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in ''The Fantastic Four'' #1 ( cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first ...

'' #544–553 (2007) * ''

Hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''The Incredible Hulk (comic book), The Incredible Hulk' ...

'' vol. 2 #1, 6 (2008) * ''

The Incredible Hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of '' The Incredible Hulk'' (May 1962). In his comic book a ...

'' vol. 3 #100 (2006) * ''

Ms. Marvel Ms. Marvel is the name of several fictional superheroes appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was originally conceived as a female counterpart to Captain Marvel. Like Captain Marvel, most of the bearers of the Ms. M ...

'' vol. 2 #1 (2006) * ''

Onslaught Onslaught may refer to: Characters * Onslaught (Marvel Comics), a Marvel Comics supervillain * Onslaught (DC Comics), a DC Comics team of Quraci terrorists * Onslaught (Transformers), the leader of the Combaticons in the ''Transformers'' series G ...

: Reborn'' #1 (2006) * ''

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book '' Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the ...

Red Sonja Red Sonja is a fictional sword and sorcery comic-book superheroine created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Barry Windsor-Smith for Marvel Comics in 1973, partially inspired by Robert E. Howard's character Red Sonya of Rogatino. Marvel Comics ...

'' #1–5 (2007) * '' Sub-Mariner'' vol. 2 #1, 6 (2007–2008) * ''

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding æsir, god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred trees and groves in Germanic paganism and mythology, sacred groves ...

'' vol. 3 #1 (2007) * ''

Ultimate X-Men ''Ultimate X-Men'' is a superhero comic book series, which was published by Marvel Comics, from 2001 to 2009. The series is a modernized re-imagining of Marvel's long-running X-Men comic book franchise as part of the Ultimate Marvel imprint. The U ...

'' #75 (2006) * ''

Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X ...

'' #500 (2008) * ''

World War Hulk "World War Hulk" is a comic book crossover storyline that ran through a self-titled limited series and various titles published by Marvel Comics in 2007, featuring the Hulk. The series consists of five main issues titled ''World War Hulk'', wi ...

'' #1 (2007) * '' Wolverine: Origins'' #1 (2006) * ''

Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for "gluttony, glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is ...

'' vol. 3 #66 (2008)

References

External links

Aspen MLT Inc.
official website
Michael Turner
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics

at the Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics Creators {{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, Michael 1971 births 2008 deaths 20th-century American artists 21st-century American artists American comics artists American comics writers Artists from San Diego Artists from Tennessee Comic book publishers (people) DC Comics people Deaths from bone cancer Deaths from cancer in California Marvel Comics people People from Crossville, Tennessee Witchblade

Early life

Career

Death and tribute

Bibliography

Interior art

Aspen MLT

DC Comics

Image Comics/Top Cow Productions

Covers

Aspen MLT

DC Comics

Image Comics/Top Cow Productions

Image Comics/Hurricane Ent.

Marvel Comics

References

Further reading

External links