Marc Silvestri (born March 29, 1958) is an American comic book artist, creator and publisher. He serves as CEO of both

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 L ...

and

Image Comics Image Comics is an American comic book publisher and is the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry in both unit and market share. It was founded in 1992 by several high-profile illustrators as a venue for creator-ow ...

Early life

Marc Silvestri was born on March 29, 1958 in

Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from several nearby cities including West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach by the Intracoas ...

.Rosenberg, Aaron (March 29, 2008)
"Happy Birthday: Marc Silvestri"

ComicMix IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW), itself formed in 1999, and is regularly recog ...

. Silvestri first discovered comics through his cousin, who was an avid collector. It was during visits to his cousin's house that Silvestri would become familiar with artists such as

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 gr ...

Bernie Wrightson Bernard Albert Wrightson (October 27, 1948 – March 18, 2017), sometimes credited as Bernie Wrightson, was an American artist, known for co-creating the Swamp Thing, his adaptation of the novel ''Frankenstein'' illustration work, and for his o ...

and John Buscema. Silvestri names Wrightson, Buscema, and

Frank Frazetta Frank Frazetta (born Frank Frazzetta ; February 9, 1928 – May 10, 2010) was an American fantasy and science fiction artist, noted for comic books, paperback book covers, paintings, posters, LP record album covers, and other media. He is ...

as his biggest influences."The Third Degree: Marc Silvestri". ''Point of Impact''. Image Comics. October 2012. Page 27.

Career

Silvestri began his career drawing issues 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

First Comics First Comics was an American comic book publisher that was active from 1983 to 1991, known for titles like ''American Flagg!'', ''Grimjack'', ''Nexus'', ''Badger'', ''Dreadstar'', and ''Jon Sable''. Along with competitors like Pacific Comics and ...

. He joined Marvel Comics in the mid-1980s (having earlier guest pencilled for Marvel as early as 1982 on Master of Kung Fu issue 119), and became the penciller on ''Uncanny X-Me''n from 1987 to 1990. He subsequently spent two years pencilling its spin-off title ''

Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " 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 a muscul ...

''. In 1992, Silvestri became one of the original seven artists — along with

Jim Lee Jim Lee (Korean 이용철; born August 11, 1964) is a Korean American comic-book artist, writer, editor, and publisher. He is currently the Publisher and Chief Creative Officer of DC Comics. In recognition of his work, Lee has received a Harvey ...

Whilce Portacio William "Whilce" Portacio (; born July 8, 1963) is a Filipino American comic book writer and artist noted for his work on such titles as ''The Punisher'', ''X-Factor'', ''Uncanny X-Men'', '' Iron Man'', ''Wetworks'' and ''Spawn''. Portacio was als ...

Rob Liefeld Robert Liefeld (; born October 3, 1967) is an American comic book creator. A prominent writer and artist in the 1990s, he is known for co-creating the character Cable (comics), Cable with writer Louise Simonson and the character Deadpool with wri ...

Erik Larsen Erik J. Larsen (born December 8, 1962) is an American comic book artist, writer, and publisher. He currently acts as the chief financial officer of Image Comics. He gained attention in the early 1990s with his art on Spider-Man series for Marvel ...

Todd McFarlane Todd McFarlane (; born March 16, 1961) is a Canadian comic book creator, artist, writer, filmmaker and entrepreneur, best known for his work as the artist on ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' and as the creator, writer, and artist on the superhero horro ...

and

Jim Valentino Jim Valentino (born October 28, 1952) is an American writer, penciler, editor and publisher of comic books, best known for his 1990–1992 work on ''Guardians of the Galaxy'' for Marvel Comics, and for co-founding Image Comics, a company publis ...

— to form the breakaway comics company

. Silvestri's stable of titles was published under the imprint

Top Cow 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 ...

with the first title released being '' Cyberforce''. Besides his art, Silvestri was also scripter (and co-plotter) on the Top Cow title '' Codename: Stryke Force''. Many of Silvestri's stories were scripted by his brother,

Eric Silvestri The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* ain ...

. Disputes among the Image partners led to Silvestri briefly leaving the publisher in 1996, but he returned after Liefeld severed his own ties with Image.Dean, Michael
"The Image Story, part 3"
. ''The Comics Journal''. 2000. Retrieved April 20, 2007. Top Cow's successes include the titles ''

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 ...

'', '' The Darkness'', ''

Inferno Hellbound Inferno may refer to: * Hell, an afterlife place of suffering * Conflagration, a large uncontrolled fire Film * ''L'Inferno'', a 1911 Italian film * ''Inferno'' (1953 film), a film noir by Roy Ward Baker * ''Inferno'' (1973 film), a German ...

'' (publication of which was interrupted for unknown reasons), and '' Fathom''. Silvestri produced the story and preliminary character sketches for the 1997

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

'' Fighting Force''. In 2004, Silvestri made a brief return to Marvel to pencil several issues of ''

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

'', collaborating with writer

Grant Morrison Grant Morrison, MBE (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, w ...

. Later in the year, he launched a new Top Cow title, ''

Hunter-Killer Hunter-killer may refer to: Military terminology * Hunter-killer team, a team that separates the tasks of "hunting" and "killing" to two or more individuals * Hunter-killer armored-vehicle team, scout vehicles and tanks operating in concert as "hun ...

'' with writer Mark Waid. He provided covers for the Marvel Comics mini-series, '' X-Men: Deadly Genesis'' by

Ed Brubaker Ed Brubaker (; born November 17, 1966) is an American comic book writer, cartoonist and screenwriter who works primarily in the crime fiction genre. He began his career with the semi-autobiographical series '' Lowlife'' and a number of serials i ...

and

Trevor Hairsine Trevor Hairsine is a British comics artist, whose detailed style has been compared to that of Bryan Hitch. In August 2005 Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada named him as one of Marvel Comics's "Young Guns", a group of artists who have the qual ...

. In June 2006, Top Cow released ''Cyberforce'' #0 featuring art by Silvestri. In late 2007 (cover date December), he pencilled the '' X-Men: Messiah Complex'' one-shot, as well as many covers in the crossover of the same name that followed. Silvestri executive produced the

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

adaptation of ''

''. He continued his work on ''X-Men'', penciling the first installment, in the form of the Uncanny X-Men/

Dark Avengers ''Dark Avengers'' is a 2009–2013 American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. It is part of a series of titles that features various iterations of the superhero team the Avengers, with this version of the team - unbeknownst to the pu ...

one-shot crossover ''

Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', describing a fictional ...

'' in 2009. That same year, he contributed to the crossover miniseries ''

Image United ''Image United'' is an incomplete comic book limited series published by Image Comics. The intent of the series was to re-unite the founders of Image Comics on a joint project, serving as a crossover between various Image Comics and Image Universe ...

'', penciling all the characters he created during his run at Image that featured in the story. In 2012, Silvestri was one of several artists to illustrate a variant cover for Robert Kirkman's '' The Walking Dead'' #100, which was released July 11 at the

San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is co ...

.Logan, Michael (June 4, 2012)
"Exclusive First Look: The Walking Dead Comic Hits 100"
''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

''.

Personal life

Silvestri is married to Bridget Silvestri.

Bibliography

DC

*''

Batman Black and White ''Batman Black and White'' refers to the comic book limited series published by DC Comics featuring 8-page black and white Batman stories. Volumes 1, 4 and 5 of the series feature all-new stories (published in 1996, 2013–14, and 2020–21, res ...

'' #3 (1996) *'' Ghosts'' #104 (1981) *''

House of Mystery ''The House of Mystery'' is the name of several horror, fantasy, and mystery Comics anthologies published by DC Comics. It had a companion series, ''The House of Secrets''. It is also the name of the titular setting of the series. First serie ...

'' #292 (1981) *'' The Unexpected'' #222 (1982) *''

Weird War Tales ''Weird War Tales'' was a war comic book title with supernatural overtones published by DC Comics. It was published from September–October 1971 to June 1983. Publication history The original title ran for 12 years and 124 issues. It was ...

'' #113 (1982)

Image/TopCow

*''21'' #3 (along with

Billy Tan Billy Tan Mung Khoy, commonly known as Billy Tan, is a Malaysian comic book artist. Early life Billy Tan was born in Malaysia and moved to the United States when he was 18, in 1989 to study business at the University of Kentucky. He began working ...

) (1996) *'' Cyberforce'' #1–4 (miniseries, also referred as vol. 1) (1992) *''Cyberforce'', regular series, #1–7, 9–13, 18 (1993–95) *''Cyberforce Ashcan'', one-shot *''

Cyblade Cyblade is the name of Image Universe superhero from Top Cow Productions. She is a member of Cyberforce. Publication history After her initial appearances in other comics, Cyblade was one of two properties to win the first '' Pilot Season'' in ...

Shi Shi or SHI may refer to: Language * ''Shi'', a Japanese titles#Shi, Japanese title commonly used as a pronoun * ''Shi'', proposed gender-neutral pronoun * Shi (kana), a kana in Japanese syllabaries * Shi language * ''Shī'', transliteration of ...

: The Battle for Independents'' #1 (1995) *''

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 ...

'' #1–7, 9–12 (1996–97); #75 (2009) *'' EVO: Endgame #1'' *''

'' #0–6 (2005–06) *''

'' #1–3 (2009–10) *''

Spawn Spawn or spawning may refer to: * Spawn (biology), the eggs and sperm of aquatic animals Arts, entertainment, and media * Spawn (character), a fictional character in the comic series of the same name and in the associated franchise ** '' Spawn: ...

'' #25 (1994) (Cover Art) *'' Codename: Stryke Force'' *"

September Mourning September Mourning is a heavy metal music, metal band, which incorporates a transmedia dark culture project created by Emily Lazar and Marc Silvestri. The conceptual project was formed by frontwoman, vocalist, and Screaming (music), screamer Emi ...

Marvel

*'' Civil War: The Initiative'', one-shot (2007) *''

Cloak and Dagger "Cloak and dagger" was a fighting style common in the Renaissance involving a knife hidden beneath a cloak. The term later came into use as a metaphor, referring to situations involving intrigue, secrecy, espionage, or mystery. Overview In " Th ...

'' #7 (1986) *'' King Conan'' #13–16, 19–29 (1982-85) *'' Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Utopia'' #1, one-shot (2009) *'' Incredible Hulk'', vol. 3, #1–3 (2011) *''

Marvel Graphic Novel ''Marvel Graphic Novel'' (''MGN'') is a line of graphic novel trade paperbacks published from 1982 to 1993 by Marvel Comics. The books were published in an oversized format, 8.5" x 11", similar to French albums. In response, DC Comics establi ...

'' #17: Revenge of the

Living Monolith The Living Monolith (Ahmet Abdol) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He first appeared in ''The X-Men'' #54 (March 1969). Abdol is the Living Pharaoh while in his normal appearance, but once he obtai ...

(1985) *'' Master of Kung Fu'' #119 (1982) *''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'', one-shot (among other artists) (1996) *'' New X-Men'' #151–154 (2004) *''

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 ...

'' #218, 220–222, 224–227, 229, 230, 232–234, 236, 238–244, 246, 247, 249–251, 253–255, 259–261 (1987–90) *'' What If?'' ( Sub-Mariner) #41 (1983) *''

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 ...

'' #16–20, 22 (1986–87) *''

'' #31–43, 45, 46, 48–50, 52, 53, 55–57 (1990–92) *''

X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...

'' #8, 12, 54 (1986–90) *'' X-Men: Messiah Complex'', one-shot (2007)

Other publishers

*''Warp Special'' #2 (First Comics, 1984)

Notes

References

Marc Silvestri
on Marvel.com

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Silvestri, Marc 1959 births Living people American comics artists American people of Italian descent Image Comics People from Palm Beach, Florida Top Cow Productions Witchblade Marvel Comics people