John Pierce Askegren (June 9, 1955 – November 29, 2006)Social Security Death Index
for Askegren, John P.,

Social Security Number In the United States, a Social Security number (SSN) is a nine-digit number issued to U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and temporary (working) residents under section 205(c)(2) of the Social Security Act, codified as . The number is issued to ...

420-72-2913, which specifies a death date based on "

Death certificate A death certificate is either a legal document issued by a medical practitioner which states when a person died, or a document issued by a government civil registration office, that declares the date, location and cause of a person's death, as ...

Observed." Death certificate issued in

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

was an American author best known for his adaptations of licensed properties, particularly those of the

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 ...

company

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 ...

Biography

Pierce Askegren was born in the

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, Pennsylvania, suburb of

Mount Lebanon Mount Lebanon ( ar, جَبَل لُبْنَان, ''jabal lubnān'', ; syr, ܛܘܪ ܠܒ݂ܢܢ, ', , ''ṭūr lewnōn'' french: Mont Liban) is a mountain range in Lebanon. It averages above in elevation, with its peak at . Geography The Mount Le ...

, and had two brothers, James W. and Robert, and a sister, Margaret. They grew up with their parents, Kenneth and Jacqueline Askegren, in

Lynchburg, Virginia Lynchburg is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. First settled in 1757 by ferry owner John Lynch (1740–1820), John Lynch, the city's populati ...

;

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...

; and

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

before his family in 1970 settled in northern

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. He attended

Broad Run High School Broad Run High School is a public secondary school in Ashburn, an unincorporated area in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. Broad Run is part of the Loudoun County Public Schools system (LCPS). It was ranked as the #1 Best Public High Scho ...

Ashburn, Virginia Ashburn is a census-designated place (CDP) in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. At the 2010 United States Census, its population was 43,511, up from 3,393 twenty years earlier. It is northwest of Washington, D.C., and part of the Washingt ...

, graduating in 1973, and went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication arts from

James Madison University James Madison University (JMU, Madison, or James Madison) is a public research university in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Founded in 1908 as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg, the institution was renamed Madison Coll ...

in 1978. Askegren got his start in the comics industry with three short stories published in 1979 and 1980 in

Warren Publishing Warren Publishing was an American magazine company founded by James Warren (publisher), James Warren, who published his first magazines in 1957 and continued in the business for decades. Magazines published by Warren include ''After Hours (magazin ...

's black-and-white

horror-comics Horror comics are comic books, graphic novels, black-and-white comics magazines, and manga focusing on horror fiction. In the US market, horror comic books reached a peak in the late 1940s through the mid-1950s, when concern over content and the ...

magazines ''

Creepy Creepiness is the state of being creepy, or causing an unpleasant feeling of fear or unease. A person who exhibits creepy behaviour is called a creep. Certain traits or hobbies may make people seem creepy to others. The internet has been descri ...

'' and ''

Vampirella Vampirella () is a fictional vampire superheroine created by Forrest J Ackerman and comic book artist Trina Robbins in Warren Publishing's black-and-white horror comics magazine ''Vampirella'' #1 (Sept. 1969), a sister publication of ''Creepy'' ...

'', beginning with the eight-page "Hell's Playground", illustrated by Leo Duranona, in ''Creepy'' No. 108 (June 1979).Pierce Askegren
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 ...

His regular employment, however, came as a manager at Crown Book Stores in the Washington, D.C., area, and later as a technical writer first at ACS Corporation and then at C2 Corporation in the

Tysons Corner, Virginia Tysons, also known as Tysons Corner, is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, developed from the corner of Chain Bridge Road ( SR 123) and the Leesburg Pike ( SR 7). Located in Northern Virginia between the c ...

, area. Askegren began his reentry into pop culture by corresponding with

Greg Theakston Greg Allen Theakston (November 21, 1953 – April 22, 2019) was an American comics artist and illustrator who worked for numerous publishers. He is known for his independent publications as a comics historian under his Pure Imagination impri ...

in the early 1990s. Askegren eventually became the copy editor for Theakston's ''Bettie Pages'' while submitting his prose to publishing houses. By the mid-1990s, he was writing prose

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest t ...

for anthologies starring

characters, beginning with "The Broken Land" in ''The Ultimate

Silver Surfer The Silver Surfer is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character also appears in a number of movies, television, and video game adaptations. The character was created by Jack Kirby and first a ...

'' (1995). He also contributed to ''The Ultimate Super-Villains'' (1996), ''Untold Tales of

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 ...

'' (1997), ''The Ultimate

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' ...

'' (1998) and ''The Chick Is in the Mail'' (2000). He also did novelizations, serving as the

ghost writer A ghostwriter is hired to write literary or journalistic works, speeches, or other texts that are officially credited to another person as the author. Celebrities, executives, participants in timely news stories, and political leaders often h ...

of ''Spider-Man and the Incredible Hulk: Rampage'' (1996); as co-author with

Danny Fingeroth Daniel Fingeroth (; born September 17) is an American comic book writer and editor, best known for a long stint as group editor of the Spider-Man books at Marvel Comics. Early life Fingeroth was born in New York City, New York. Career As a write ...

of ''Spider-Man and

Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. The charact ...

: Sabotage'' (1997); as co-author with Eric Fein of ''Spider-Man and Fantastic Four: Wreckage'' (1997); and as author of ''Marc Miller's Traveller: Gateway to the Stars'' (1998), ''Fantastic Four: Countdown to Chaos'' (1998) and ''The Avengers and the Thunderbolts'' (1999). Outside the realm of licensed properties, he wrote the "Inconstant Moon" trilogy of science-fiction novels, about corporate colonies on the moon: ''Human Resource'' (2005), ''Fall Girl'' (2005) and ''Exit Strategy'' (2006). His last short story, "Try and Try Again," appeared in the anthology ''Time Twisters'', released posthumously in January 2007. In 2010, his ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. It is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film of the same name, also written by W ...

'' novelization, ''After Image'' (2006), was rereleased, along with two other Buffy books. Askegren was found dead in his

Annandale, Virginia Annandale () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia.

Franchise novels

: Doom's Day"Askegren, Pierce"
''SF Encyclopedia,'' Feb. 23, 2017. Accessed 28 April 2017. **''Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk: Doom's Day 1: Rampage'' (Berkley Boulevard, 1996) uncredited (with Danny Fingeroth) **''Spider-Man and Iron Man: Doom's Day 2: Sabotage'' (Berkley Boulevard, 1997) (with Danny Fingeroth) **''Spider-Man and Fantastic Four: Doom's Day 3: Wreckage'' (Berkley Boulevard, 1997) (with Eric Fein) *''Gateway to the Stars: Marc Miller's Traveller'' (1998) *''

The Avengers Avenger, Avengers, The Avenger, or The Avengers may refer to: Arts and entertainment In the Marvel Comics universe * Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes ** Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes o ...

and the Thunderbolts'' (1998) *''

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 ...

: Countdown to Chaos'' (1998) *''

Alias Alias may refer to: * Pseudonym * Pen name * Nickname Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Alias'' (2013 film), a 2013 Canadian documentary film * ''Alias'' (TV series), an American action thriller series 2001–2006 * ''Alias the ...

'' (with J. J. Abrams) * ''

Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

: The Longest Night, Volume One'' (Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, 2002) *''Collateral Damage'' (2005) *''

'': ''

After Image AfterImage is a Filipino rock band formed in 1986, best known for their songs "Habang May Buhay", "Next in Line", and "Mangarap Ka". They disbanded in 1997 and became active again in 2008 after they reunited and released their fourth studio album ...

'' (Simon and Schuster/Spotlight Entertainment, 2006)

Series

*Inconstant Moon: **''Human Resource'' (2005) **''Fall Girl'' (2005) **''Exit Strategy'' (2006)

Short StoriesISFDB bibliography
Pierce Askegren
/ref>

*"Horse Laugh "(1979) *"The Broken Land" (1995) *"Private Exhibition" (1996) *"Better Looting Through Modern Chemistry" (with John Garcia) (1997) *"Pitfall" (1998) *"Foxy Boxer Gal Fights Giant Monster King!" (2000) *"Where the Bodies Are Buried" (2001) *"Try and Try Again" (2007)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Askegren, Pierce 1955 births 2006 deaths James Madison University alumni Novelists from Pennsylvania 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American novelists American male novelists 21st-century American male writers