Mike Esposito (July 14, 1927 – October 24, 2010), (Requires subscription) Print version: "Mike Esposito, Comic Book Artist", p. A30 who sometimes used the pseudonyms Mickey Demeo, Mickey Dee, Michael Dee, and Joe Gaudioso, was an American

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

artist whose work 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 ...

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 ...

and others spanned the 1950s to the 2000s. As a

inker teamed with his childhood friend Ross Andru, he drew for such major titles as ''

The Amazing Spider-Man ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' is an ongoing American comic book series featuring the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man as its main protagonist. Being in the mainstream continuity of the franchise, it began publication in 1963 as a bimonthly per ...

'' and ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

''. An Andru-Esposito drawing of Wonder Woman appears on a 2006 U.S. stamp. Esposito was inducted into the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2007.

Biography

Early life and career

Mike Esposito was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, New York, with a musician father who in 1928 fronted the band Ralph Perry and His Orchestra, and later was a grocer.Esposito, Best, p. 14 Esposito graduated from

The High School of Music & Art The High School of Music & Art, informally known as "Music & Art" (or "M&A"), was a public specialized high school located at 443-465 West 135th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York, from 1936 until 1984. In 1961, Music & Art and the High ...

, then in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...

, where one of his classmates and friends was future comics artist Ross Andru,Esposito, Mike, in Additional, June 16, 2012. with whom he would collaborate on flip-book animation. One early artistic influence was

Milt Caniff Milton Arthur Paul Caniff (; February 28, 1907 – April 3, 1988) was an People of the United States, American cartoonist famous for the ''Terry and the Pirates (comic strip), Terry and the Pirates'' and ''Steve Canyon'' comic strips. Biography ...

's ''

Terry and the Pirates ''Terry and the Pirates'' is an action-adventure comic strip created by cartoonist Milton Caniff, which originally ran from October 22, 1934, to February 25, 1973. Captain Joseph Patterson, editor for the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndicate, ...

'', while another was

Lev Gleason Publications Lev Gleason Publications, founded by Leverett Stone Gleason (1898–1971), was the publisher of a number of popular comic books during the 1940s and early 1950s, including '' Daredevil Comics'', '' Crime Does Not Pay'', and '' Boy Comics''. Backg ...

crime comics Crime comics is a genre of American comic books and format of crime fiction. The genre was originally popular in the late 1940s and early 1950s and is marked by a moralistic editorial tone and graphic depictions of violence and criminal activity ...

artist

George Tuska George Tuska (; April 26, 1916 – October 16, 2009),George Tuska
at the

, of whom he said, Originally Esposito dreamed of becoming an animator at

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

. This ended when his father did not want him to leave New York for the West Coast. Drafted into the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

on September 15, 1945, before finishing high school,Esposito, Best, p. 16 he served at

Camp Dix Fort Dix, the common name for the Army Support Activity (ASA) located at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, is a United States Army post. It is located south-southeast of Trenton, New Jersey. Fort Dix is under the jurisdiction of the Air Force A ...

and

Camp Crowder Fort Crowder was a U.S. Army post located in Newton and McDonald counties in southwest Missouri, constructed and used during World War II. Establishment and purpose Camp Crowder was a military installation named in honor of Major General Eno ...

until it was discovered he could draw; Esposito was then dispatched to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, where he did

venereal disease Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), also referred to as sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and the older term venereal diseases, are infections that are Transmission (medicine), spread by Human sexual activity, sexual activity, especi ...

prevention posters, including the well-known "If you're drippin', you ain't shippin'" and "VD or not VD, that is the question." He was discharged from the Army "in about '47." That year he and Andru both enrolled in Burne Hogarth's Cartoonists and Illustrators School,Esposito, Best, p. 22. later renamed the

School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by ...

. Esposito's first published work in the comic-book field was for Victor Fox's Fox Feature Syndicate, where he worked as penciler, inker, and sometimes

letterer A letterer is a member of a team of comic book creators responsible for drawing the comic book's text. The letterer's use of typefaces, calligraphy, letter size, and layout all contribute to the impact of the comic. The letterer crafts the comi ...

. Andru assisted Hogarth on the ''

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

'' newspaper comic strip from 1948 until, Esposito recalled, "the strip died in about 1950-51. Then Ross came to me when I started publishing and we more or less teamed up." Another source says penciler Andru first teamed with inker Esposito in 1949 for the publisher

Fiction House Fiction House was an American publisher of pulp magazines and comic books that existed from the 1920s to the 1950s. It was founded by John B. "Jack" Kelly and John W. Glenister.Saunders, David"JACK BYRNE (1902-1972),"Field Guide to Wild American P ...

, but this is unconfirmed at the

Grand Comics Database The Grand Comics Database (GCD) is an Internet-based project to build a database of comic book information through user contributions. The GCD project catalogues information on creator credits, story details, reprints, and other information useful ...

. The team's first confirmed collaboration was on the six-page "Wylie's Wild Horses" in

Hillman Periodicals Hillman Periodicals, Inc., was an American magazine and comic book publishing company founded in 1938 by Alex L. Hillman, a former New York City book publisher. It is best known for its true confession and true crime magazines; for the long-runni ...

' ''Western Fighters'' vol. 2, #12 (Nov. 1950), signaling the start of a four-decade collaboration.Ross Andru
at the

In 1949, Esposito was working on staff at Lev Gleason. "I was there for a while and then I shopped around. Went to school first, naturally, and then went up to

Timely Comics Timely Comics is the common name for the group of corporations that was the earliest comic book arm of American publisher Martin Goodman, and the entity that would evolve by the 1960s to become Marvel Comics. "Timely Publications became the name ...

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_...

,_as_it_was_transitioning_into_its_1950s_iteration,_Atlas_Comics_(1950s).html" ;"title="he future

, as it was transitioning into its 1950s iteration, Atlas Comics (1950s)">Atlas Comics]. ... Stan Lee interviewed me and said, 'Okay, you can start here as a penciler.' So my job was to pencil so many pages a week for my salary."Esposito in Cassell, et al., p. 65 His first confirmed work there is as penciler and inker of the

war comics War comics is a genre of comic books that gained popularity in English-speaking countries following World War II. History American war comics Shortly after the birth of the modern comic book in the mid- to late 1930s, comics publishers began incl ...

story "Heat of Battle" in ''Men's Adventures'' #6 (Feb. 1951),Mike Esposito

. Retrieved February 24, 2012. though he had done much uncredited work in the interim, including his first professional inking. He recalled, Let go from Atlas Comics after a short time, he and Andru became longtime collaborators, working together on various projects over a span of four decades. They quickly founded their own comics-book company, the name of which is variously rendered as MR Publications,Esposito, Best, "Three: Some Hard Business Lessons > Part 1: MR Publications: We Get 'Taken'", p. 39. after the initial of their first names; Mr. Publications, after the company's sole series, the whimsical adventure comic ''Mister Universe'', which ran five issues (July 1951 - April 1952);''Mister Universe''; Publisher's Brands: MR. Publications; Indicia Publishers: Media Publications, Inc.
at the Grand Comics Database or the hybrid MR. Publications. The two also co-founded Mikeross Publications in 1953, which through 1954 produced one issue each of the 3D

romance comics Romance comics is a comics genre depicting strong and close romantic love and its attendant complications such as jealousy, marriage, divorce, betrayal, and heartache. The term is generally associated with an American comic books genre published t ...

''3-D Love'' and ''3-D Romance'', two issues of the romance comic ''Heart and Soul'', and three issues of the satiric humor comic ''Get Lost''.Mikeross Publications
at the Grand Comics Database. Retrieved October 25, 2010. By this time, after having teamed for early work on

Key Publications Key Publications was an American comic-book company founded by Stanley P. Morse that published under the imprints Aragon Magazines, Gillmor Magazines, Medal Comics, Media Publications, S. P. M. Publications, Stanmor Publications, and ...

' ''Mister Mystery'' in 1951 and

Standard Comics Standard Comics was a comic book imprint of American publisher Ned Pines, who also published pulp magazines (under a variety of company names that he also used for the comics) and paperback books (under the Popular Library name). Standard in t ...

' ''The Unseen'' and ''Joe Yank'' (the latter credited as "Mikeross"), the two began a long career as one of

' primary war story artists, alongside the likes of

Joe Kubert Joseph Kubert (; September 18, 1926 – August 12, 2012) was a Polish-born American comic book artist, art teacher, and founder of The Kubert School. He is best known for his work on the DC Comics characters Sgt. Rock and Hawkman. He is also kno ...

Russ Heath Russell Heath Jr. (September 29, 1926 – August 23, 2018), was an American artist best known for his comic book work, particularly his DC Comics war stories and his 1960s art for ''Playboy'' magazine's "Little Annie Fanny" feature. He also prod ...

, and

Jerry Grandenetti Charles J. "Jerry" Grandenetti (April 15, 1926 – February 19, 2010) was an American comic book artist and advertising art director, best known for his work with writer-artist Will Eisner on the celebrated comics feature "The Spirit", and for h ...

, beginning with a story each in '' All-American Men of War'' #6, ''

Our Army at War ''Our Army at War'' was an American comic book anthology published by DC Comics that featured war-themed stories and featured the first appearances of Sgt. Rock and Enemy Ace. The series was published from August 1952 to February 1977, then ...

'' #14, and '' Star Spangled War Stories'' #13 (all Sept. 1953). For those titles as well as ''

G.I. Combat ''G.I. Combat'' was an American comics anthology featuring war stories. It was published from 1952 until 1956 by Quality Comics, followed by DC Comics until its final issue in 1987. In 2012 it was briefly revived. Publication history The focu ...

'' and ''

Our Fighting Forces ''Our Fighting Forces'' is a war comics anthology series published by DC Comics for 181 issues from 1954–1978. Publication history ''Our Fighting Forces'' began with an October–November 1954 cover date. Writer-editor Robert Kanigher's w ...

'', Andru and Esposito drew hundreds of tales of combat under editor and frequent writer

Robert Kanigher Robert "Bob" Kanigher (; June 18, 1915 – May 7, 2002)Social Security Death Index, social security #116-07-5117. was an American comic book writer and editor whose career spanned five decades. He was involved with the Wonder Woman franchise for ...

. From 1957 to 1959, Andru and Esposito shared a studio with fellow comics artists Jack Abel,

Art Peddy Arthur F. Peddy
at the L ...

and Bernie Sachslate, generally credited as Bernie Sachs. With Kanigher, the Andru-Esposito team introduced the non-superpowered adventurers the

Suicide Squad The Suicide Squad is an antihero/supervillain team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the Suicide Squad debuted in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #25 (September 1959) and the second and modern version, cre ...

in ''

The Brave and the Bold ''The Brave and the Bold'' is a comic book series published by DC Comics as an ongoing series from 1955 to 1983. It was followed by two mini-series in 1991 and 1999, and was revived as an ongoing title in 2007. The focus of the series has varied ...

'' #25 (Sept. 1959). The duo also drew early issues of '' Rip Hunter, Time Master'' in 1961.

Silver Age

After

in 1956 ushered in the period fans and historians call the

Silver Age of Comic Books The Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and widespread commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those featuring the superhero archetype. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an in ...

, by reimagining such

Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the '' Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages, Gold being the first and the one during which the G ...

superheroes as the

Flash Flash, flashes, or FLASH may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional aliases * Flash (DC Comics character), several DC Comics superheroes with super speed: ** Flash (Barry Allen) ** Flash (Jay Garrick) ** Wally West, the first Kid F ...

and

Green Lantern Green Lantern is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. They fight evil with the aid of rings that grant them a variety of extraordinary powers, all of which come from imagination, fearlessness, ...

for modern audiences, Andru and Esposito began a long run on DC's ''

''. They drew the long-running superheroine's title from issues #98–171 (May 1958 – August 1967), "defining her look during

his His or HIS may refer to: Computing * Hightech Information System, a Hong Kong graphics card company * Honeywell Information Systems * Hybrid intelligent system * Microsoft Host Integration Server Education * Hangzhou International School, in ...

boom period". As well, with writer-editor

, they co-created the

robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may ...

superheroes the

Metal Men The Metal Men are a group of superheroes that appear in DC Comics. The characters first appeared in ''Showcase'' #37 (March–April 1962) and were created by writer Robert Kanigher and artist Ross Andru. Debuting in the Silver Age of Comic Boo ...

in ''

Showcase Showcase or vitrine may refer to: *Cabinet (furniture) *Display case Music * ''Showcase'' (Bill Anderson album), 1964 * ''Showcase'' (Patsy Cline album), 1961 * ''Showcase'' (Buddy Holly album), 1964 * ''Showcase'' (Philly Joe Jones album), 1959 ...

'' #37 (April 1962), going on to draw the first 29 issues of the lighthearted series ''Metal Men'', from 1963 to 1968. Esposito considered the series "the best idea anigherhad done," specifying that, "Bob left the character design up to Ross and myself, under his supervision, of course." Esposito gradually began freelancing for

, starting with his uncredited inking of industry giant

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comic book artist, writer and editor, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He gre ...

's cover of '' Fantastic Four Annual'' #3 (1965). For his inking of

Bob Powell Bob Powell (né Stanley Robert Pawlowski; While gives Stanislav Pavlowsky, and gives Stanislav Pavlowsky, Bails and Ware note: "family name corrected by his son, Seth R. Powell July 2006." October 2, 1916

in the "

Human Torch The Human Torch (Jonathan "Johnny" Storm) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is a founding member of the Fantastic Four. He is writer Stan Lee's and artist Jack Kirby's reinvention of a si ...

and the

Thing Thing or The Thing may refer to: Philosophy * An object * Broadly, an entity * Thing-in-itself (or ''noumenon''), the reality that underlies perceptions, a term coined by Immanuel Kant * Thing theory, a branch of critical theory that focuse ...

" feature in ''Strange Tales'' #132, and his inking of

Don Heck Donald L. HeckComic_Media.html" ;"title="ic; actually Comic Media">ic; actually Comic Media/nowiki>, in 1952," Heck recalled in 1993, Hardy “called me up and asked me to join."Heck, ''Comics Scene'' #37, p. 55 Heck's first known comics work appe ...

's " Iron Man" in ''

Tales of Suspense ''Tales of Suspense'' is the name of an American comic book anthology series and two one-shot comics published by Marvel Comics. The first, which ran from 1959 to 1968, began as a science-fiction anthology that served as a showcase for such arti ...

'' #65 (both May 1965), he took the pen name Mickey Demeo (occasionally given as Mickey Dee or Michael Dee) to conceal his Marvel work from his primary employer, DC. He also occasionally worked under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

Joe Gaudioso for the same reason. The pseudonym Mickey Demeo, he explained, "was a name I had in the 1950s when I was doing horror omicsstories" — considered disreputable at the time — "and I didn't want certain guys in the business to know who I was us. Mickey Demo was a relative's name up in Boston." When John Romita, Sr. succeeded artist co-creator

Steve Ditko Stephen John Ditko Page contains two reproductions from school yearbooks. A 1943 Garfield Junior High School yearbook excerpt lists "Stephen Ditko". A 1945 Johnstown High School yearbook excerpt lists "Stephen J. Ditko" under extracurricular act ...

on ''

'', beginning with issue #39 (Aug. 1966), Esposito, initially as Demeo, was the first inker on what would become Marvel's flagship series. After three issues, Romita inked himself for the next half-dozen before Esposito returned — uncredited for issue #49 (June 1967), then as Mickey Demeo until finally taking credit under his own name with issue #56 (Jan. 1968). Except for one issue (#65) inked by his successor,

Jim Mooney James Noel Mooney (August 13, 1919 – March 30, 2008) was an American comics artist best known for his long tenure at DC Comics and as the signature artist of Supergirl, as well as a Marvel Comics inker and Spider-Man artist, both during wha ...

, the Romita-Esposito team continued through issue #66 (Nov. 1968), establishing the new look of Spider-Man. Esposito continued to use the "Demeo" credit sporadically, including on the debut story "

Guardians of the Galaxy The Guardians of the Galaxy is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It may more specifically refer to: Comic book teams * Guardians of the Galaxy (1969 team), the original 31st-century team fr ...

" in '' Marvel Super-Heroes'' #18 (Jan. 1969), and on ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #83 (April 1970), his last recorded use of the pen name. During this period as well, for DC, the Andru-Esposito team segued from ''Wonder Woman'' to ''

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 ...

'', drawing the super-speedster superhero's adventures from issue #175–194 (Dec. 1967 – Feb. 1970). All the while, Esposito regularly inked such artists as

Irv Novick Irving Novick (; April 11, 1916 – October 15, 2004) was an American comics artist who worked almost continuously from 1939 until the 1990s. Career A graduate of the National Academy of Design, Irv Novick got his start in the workshop of Harry " ...

and Curt Swan on the Superman family of comics, including ''

Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane ''Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane'' is an American comic book series published monthly by DC Comics. The series focusing on the adventures of Lois Lane began publication with a March/April 1958 cover date and ended its run in September/October 1 ...

'', ''

Superboy Superboy is the name of several fictional superheroes appearing in American comicbooks published by DC Comics. These characters have been featured in several eponymous comic series, in addition to ''Adventure Comics'' and other series featuring ...

'', and '' Superman'', and numerous Superman- Batman team-ups penciled by Andru in ''

World's Finest Comics ''World's Finest Comics'' was an American comic book series published by DC Comics from 1941 to 1986. The series was initially titled ''World's Best Comics'' for its first issue; issue #2 (Summer 1941) switched to the more familiar name. Michael ...

''. The Kanigher-Andru-Esposito trio introduced the Silver Age version of the split-personality superheroine feature "

Rose and Thorn Rose and Thorn are the two personalities of two characters (one in the Golden Age and one in the Silver Age) within publication of DC Comics. Before the ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'', Rose Canton came from Earth-Two and Rose Forrest from Earth-On ...

" in ''Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane'' #105 (Oct. 1970). For the

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

comics-magazine publisher

Skywald Skywald Publications was an American publisher of black-and-white comics magazines, primarily the horror fiction, horror anthologies ''Nightmare'', ''Psycho'', and ''Scream''. It also published a small line of comic books and other genre magazine ...

in 1971, Andru and Esposito contributed many stories across the line, including to the horror titles ''Nightmare'' and ''Psycho'' and the

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

titles ''Wild Western Action'', ''The Bravados'' and ''Butch Cassidy''. With writer

Gary Friedrich Gary Friedrich (; August 21, 1943 – August 29, 2018) was an American comic book writer best known for his Silver Age stories for Marvel Comics' '' Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos'', and, in the following era, for the series '' The Monster o ...

, they created Skywald's motorcycle-riding superhero ''

Hell-Rider ''Hell-Rider'' is a short-lived, black-and-white comics magazine published by Skywald Publications, a 1970s company best known for its horror-comics magazines ''Nightmare'', ''Psycho'', and ''Scream''. Like them and the similar publications o ...

''. Andru and Esposito formed the publishing company Klevart Enterprises in 1970,Mike Esposito
at the Lambiek Comiclopedia which two years later published two issues of a humor magazine cover-titled ''Up Your Nose (and Out Your Ear)''. The name, Esposito said, came from an expression used by late-night

talk-show A talk show (or chat show in British English) is a television programming or radio programming genre structured around the act of spontaneous conversation.Bernard M. Timberg, Robert J. Erler'' (2010Television Talk: A History of the TV Talk Sho ...

host Johnny Carson, "May the bird of paradise fly up your nose, and out your ear." A third issue was written but never printed because of financial problems. After the magazine's demise, Esposito, who often came into the Marvel office to do freelance work for the company, took a staff job there for "about a year and a half", explaining,

Spider-Man

The Andru-Esposito team first drew the flagship

character Spider-Man in the premiere (March 1972) of that superhero's first spin-off comic book, ''

Marvel Team-Up ''Marvel Team-Up'' is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series featured two or more Marvel characters in one story. The series was originally published from March 1972 through February 1985, and featured Spider-Man as ...

'', nearly every issue of which featured Spider-Man paired with another hero. While Andru did not remain on the series, Esposito would go on to ink several issues, often those penciled by

Gil Kane Gil Kane (; born Eli Katz ; April 6, 1926 – January 31, 2000) was a Latvian-born American comics artist whose career spanned the 1940s to the 1990s and virtually every major comics company and character. Kane co-created the modern-day versio ...

. Andru and Esposito eventually took over the flagship title ''

''. Esposito inked the vast majority of a nearly four-year run on the title, encompassing issues #147-150, 152-171, 177, 179-182, 185-186, 188, and 191 (Aug. 1975 - April 1979), all penciled by Andru except for three issues penciled by

Sal Buscema Sal Buscema (; ; born Silvio Buscema, January 26, 1936) is an American comics artist, primarily for Marvel Comics, where he enjoyed a ten-year run as artist of '' The Incredible Hulk'' and an eight-year run as artist of ''The Spectacular Spider-M ...

and two by

Keith Pollard Keith Pollard (; born January 20, 1950) is an American comic book artist. Originally from the Detroit area, Pollard is best known for his simultaneous work on the Marvel Comics titles ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', ''Fantastic Four'', and ''Thor'' i ...

. Esposito inked the feature stories in ''The Amazing Spider-Man Annual'' #4-5 (1967–1968), over

Larry Lieber Lawrence D. Lieber (; born October 26, 1931) (Scroll down) is an American comic book artist and writer best known as co-creator of the Marvel Comics superheroes Iron Man, Thor, and Ant-Man; for his long stint both writing and drawing the Marvel ...

's pencils, with the latter issue introducing

Peter Parker 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 appearance, first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August ...

's parents; ''Annual'' #10 (Nov. 1976), over

; and ''Annual'' #22, over

Mark Bagley Mark Bagley (; born August 7, 1957) is an American comics artist. He has worked for Marvel Comics on such titles as ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', ''Thunderbolts'', ''New Warriors'', ''Venom'' and '' Ultimate Spider-Man'' and for DC Comics on ''Justic ...

. Esposito additionally inked several issues apiece of ''

The Spectacular Spider-Man ''The Spectacular Spider-Man'' is a comic book and magazine series starring Spider-Man and published by Marvel Comics. Following the success of Spider-Man's original series, ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', Marvel felt the character could support ...

''; the children's comic ''

Spidey Super Stories "Spidey Super Stories" is a live-action, recurring skit on the original version of the Children's Television Workshop series ''The Electric Company''. Overview Episodes featured the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man, provided to the Children's Te ...

''; and a host of Spider-Man miscellanea, such as ''Spider-Man Giveaway: AIM Toothpaste Exclusive Collectors' Edition'' (1980), and ''Spider-Man Giveaway: National Committee for Prevention of Child Abuse'' #1 (1984). Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Esposito inked virtually every major Marvel penciler on virtually every major Marvel title, from '' The Avengers'' to ''

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in 1970 due to lo ...

''. By the mid-1980s, however, his Marvel work had tapered to a trickle. Among his final Spider-Man work, he was co-inker on the story "Moving Up", penciled by

Alex Saviuk Alex Saviuk (; born August 17, 1952) is an American comics artist primarily known for his work on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. Early life Alex Saviuk grew up on Long Island, New York, graduating from Floral Park Memorial High Schoo ...

, in ''

Web of Spider-Man ''Web of Spider-Man'' is the name of two different monthly comic book series starring Spider-Man that have been published by Marvel Comics since 1985, the first volume of which ran for 129 issues between 1985 and 1995, and the second of which ran ...

'' #38 (May 1988); inker of the following issue's cover; and inker of the 11-page partial origin retelling "My Science Project", penciled by Bagley, in ''The Amazing Spider-Man Annual'' #23 (1989). His final Spider-Man story was also his last with Andru, who died in 1993: the

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

''Spider-Man: Fear Itself'' (Feb. 1992). Esposito's final Marvel tale was the 11-page

Darkhold The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several noteworthy concepts besides its fictional characters, such as unique places and artifacts. There follows a list of those features. Places Certain places fe ...

story "Skin", penciled by Dan Lawlis, in the horror comics title ''Midnight Sons, Midnight Sons Unlimited'' #2 (July 1993).

Later life and career

By this time, however, Esposito was well-ensconced at Archie Comics, inking hundreds of teenage-humor stories starring Archie Andrews (comics), Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper and the other high-schoolers of Riverdale, U.S.A., generally over the pencils of fellow former longtime Marvel artist Stan Goldberg. In 1992, he reunited with writer Gerry Conway and artist Ross Andru for a story in Web of Spider-Man Annual #6. Also in 1992, the graphic novel Spider-Man: Fear Itself, pencilled by Andru, inked by Esposito, plotted by Conway and scripted by Stan Lee was published. Andru & Esposito's last published work together was for Archie Comics' Zen, Intergalactic Ninja in 1992. Prior to Andru's death in 1993, Esposito was working with Andru on a new project to be called The Strobe Warrior for another independent company founded by Esposito and his assistant N Blake Seals. The project fell apart after Andru's passing but was revived years later in song by a band called Fling Lois. and once again in a graphic novel released in 2020 entitled "The Saga of Evil Monkey Man" by N Blake Seals. Esposito's final Archie work was inking four Goldberg stories in ''Betty'' #56 (Dec. 1997). Esposito, discussing this late period, said, "I started working over Stan's pencils, and did so for quite a few years. But as you get older, the pace with which you work becomes a strain. With Ross passing away in 1993, I decided to stop working for publishers and change my directions," turning to commissioned recreations of his old comics work.

Personal life

Esposito's first wife, Mary, died when he was in his 40s. He later married his second wife, Irene, who died on January 12, 2020. Esposito had two children: Mark, who predeceased him, and Michele. Esposito's grandson, Tyler Esposito, created the online documentary ''My Retro Life: A Gamer's Documentary'', which includes home-video footage of Mike Esposito. Esposito lived in Lake Grove, New York, on Long Island, in his later years, and died October 24, 2010, at age 83.

Awards

Esposito was inducted into the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2007. In 2021 he was awarded the Inkwell Awards Joe Sinnott Hall of Fame Award.First Comic News - 2021 INKWELL AWARDS VOTING RESULTS
/ref>2021 Winners - Inkwell Awards Official Site
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Legacy

An Andru-Esposito drawing of Wonder Woman appears on one of the 10 character stamps issued in the U.S. Postal Service's 2006 commemorative stamp series "DC Comics Super Heroes".

References

External links

* (official site) *
Mickey Demeo
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