Norm Breyfogle
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Norman Keith Breyfogle (; February 27, 1960 – September 24, 2018) was an American artist, best known for his comic book art on
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 ...
' Batman franchise from 1987 to 1995. During this time, he co-created the villains
Ventriloquist Ventriloquism, or ventriloquy, is a performance act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) creates the illusion that their voice is coming from elsewhere, usually a puppeteered prop known as a "dummy". The act of ventriloquism is ve ...
and Ratcatcher with writers Alan Grant and
John Wagner John Wagner (born 1949) is an American-born British comics writer. Alongside Pat Mills, he helped revitalise British comics in the 1970s, and continues to be active in the British comics industry, occasionally also working in American comics. ...
, and the characters Anarky,
Jeremiah Arkham Jeremiah Arkham is a fictional supervillain and the head of the Arkham Asylum in DC Comics, created by Alan Grant. Arkham was created in 1992, and slowly "lost his mind" during his time in the Arkham Asylum, subsequently becoming the second B ...
, Victor Zsasz, and
Amygdala The amygdala (; plural: amygdalae or amygdalas; also '; Latin from Greek, , ', 'almond', 'tonsil') is one of two almond-shaped clusters of nuclei located deep and medially within the temporal lobes of the brain's cerebrum in complex verte ...
with Grant alone. He co-created with writers
Gerard Jones Gerard Jones (born July 10, 1957) is an American writer, known primarily for his non-fiction work about American entertainment media, and his comic book scripting, which includes co-creating the superhero Prime for Malibu Comics, and writing for ...
and
Len Strazewski Len Strazewski (born February 16, 1955) is a comic book author who wrote '' Starman'' after Roger Stern. He has also worked on ''The Flash'', ''Justice Society of America'', '' Phantom Lady'', '' The Fly'', and many other titles for DC comics. He ...
the
Malibu Comics Malibu Comics Entertainment, Inc. (also known as Malibu Graphics) was an American comic book publisher active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, best known for its Ultraverse line of superhero titles. Notable titles published by Malibu included ' ...
Ultraverse The Ultraverse is a defunct comic book imprint published by the American company Malibu Comics which is currently owned by Marvel Comics. The Ultraverse is a shared universe in which a variety of characters – known within the comics as Ultras †...
flagship hero
Prime A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways ...
, and both wrote and drew the Malibu-published series featuring his original character Metaphysique.


Early life

Norman Keith Breyfogle was born on February 27, 1960 in
Iowa City, Iowa Iowa City, offically the City of Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the home of the University of Iowa and county seat of Johnson County, at the center of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the tim ...
to parents Lois ( née Roberts) and Gerald Breyfogle.(Linked from the cited article
He had a brother Kevin and a sister Penny Duncan. Breyfogle began taking private art lessons at the age of twelve, and won an award at a local art show. His family subsequently moved to Houghton, Michigan, and the local newspaper '' The Daily Mining Gazette'' profiled him in 1976 as "Norm Breyfogle: Near Master Cartoonist at 16". While in high school, he produced ''Tech-Team'', a comic commissioned by local Michigan Technological University. In 1977, he submitted a design for Robin's costume, which was published in '' Batman Family'' #13. Breyfogle attended
Northern Michigan University Northern Michigan University (Northern Michigan, Northern or NMU) is a public university in Marquette, Michigan. It was established in 1899 by the Michigan Legislature as Northern State Normal School. In 1963, the state designated Northern a uni ...
, studying painting and illustration while working as an illustrator for a local magazine and a graphics company. In 1980, he illustrated a book titled ''Bunyan: Lore’s Loggin’ Hero'', published by Book Concern. He moved to California in 1982. He worked as a draftsman and later as a technical illustrator designing a
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training manual for the United Space Boosters.


Career


Early comics work

In 1984, Breyfogle penciled a six–page story 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 ...
’ ''
New Talent Showcase ''Showcase'' is a comic anthology series published by DC Comics. The general theme of the series was to feature new and minor characters as a way to gauge reader interest in them, without the difficulty and risk of featuring untested characters i ...
''.
Mike Friedrich Mike Friedrich (; born March 27, 1949) is an American comic book writer and publisher best known for his work at Marvel and DC Comics, and for publishing the anthology series '' Star*Reach'', one of the first independent comics. He is also an a ...
(President of Star Reach, a talent representative agency) saw Breyfogle's work hanging at the 1985
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Art Show and began representing him. This was followed by several issues of
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 ...
’ ''
American Flagg ''American Flagg!'' is an American comic book series created by writer-artist Howard Chaykin, published by First Comics from 1983 to 1989. A science fiction series and political satire, it was set in the U.S., particularly Chicago, Illinois, in th ...
'', penciling a back-up story titled "Bob Violence" in 1985. During this time he drew for '' Tales of Terror'', a horror anthology published by
Eclipse Comics Eclipse Comics was an American comic book publisher, one of several independent publishers during the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1978, it published the first graphic novel intended for the newly created comic book specialty store market. It was ...
. Following that, Breyfogle wrote, illustrated, and lettered a Captain America story in ''
Marvel Fanfare ''Marvel Fanfare'' was an anthology comic book series published by American company Marvel Comics. It was a showcase title featuring a variety of characters from the Marvel universe. Volume one ''Marvel Fanfare'' featured characters and settings ...
'' #29 (Nov. 1986). He then drew ''
Whisper Whispering is an unvoiced mode of phonation in which the vocal cords are abducted so that they do not vibrate; air passes between the arytenoid cartilages to create audible turbulence during speech. Supralaryngeal articulation remains the ...
'' for
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 ...
in 1986–1987, his first monthly book, before landing on '' Detective Comics '' starring Batman published by DC Comics.


Batman

Teamed with writer Alan Grant, Breyfogle worked on ''Detective Comics''. They introduced the
Ventriloquist Ventriloquism, or ventriloquy, is a performance act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) creates the illusion that their voice is coming from elsewhere, usually a puppeteered prop known as a "dummy". The act of ventriloquism is ve ...
in their first Batman story together and the Ratcatcher in their third. He drew the Batman for six years (1987–1993), penciling ''Detective Comics ''from 1987–1990, then moving to '' Batman'' to introduce the character
Tim Drake Timothy Jackson "Tim" Drake is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Created by Marv Wolfman and Pat Broderick, he first appeared in ''Batman'' #436 (August 19 ...
as the new Robin from 1990–1992, and finally starting a new Batman series for DC titled '' Batman: Shadow of the Bat'' from 1992–1993 which saw the Grant/Breyfogle team create three new characters,
Jeremiah Arkham Jeremiah Arkham is a fictional supervillain and the head of the Arkham Asylum in DC Comics, created by Alan Grant. Arkham was created in 1992, and slowly "lost his mind" during his time in the Arkham Asylum, subsequently becoming the second B ...
, Mr. Zsasz, and
Amygdala The amygdala (; plural: amygdalae or amygdalas; also '; Latin from Greek, , ', 'almond', 'tonsil') is one of two almond-shaped clusters of nuclei located deep and medially within the temporal lobes of the brain's cerebrum in complex verte ...
. During his six-year run on the Batman character, he drew a few one-shots, two of them being '' Batman: Holy Terror'', the first DC comic book to feature the Elseworlds logo, and ''Batman: Birth of the Demon'', which he hand painted. He provided pencils to a 10-page short story in '' Superman 80-Page Giant'' #1 (Feb. 1999).


Later work

In 2000, Breyfogle drew the Elseworlds three-issue mini-series ''Flashpoint.'' In 2001, DC offered him the job of penciling ''The
Spectre Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to: Religion and spirituality * Vision (spirituality) * Apparitional experience * Ghost Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...
'' monthly, which he drew for one year. He spent 2003 penciling and inking the title ''
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'', published by Angel Gate Press. In 2004, Breyfogle began work on an illustrated children's book for the Society of St. John Monastery, finished many commissions for fans, put together a couple printed sketchbooks showcasing his work, and continued writing his novel, getting halfway done, finishing through chapter six. He wrote over forty poems and over 1,300 haikus in a five-month marathon, and a number of short stories. In February 2005 he accepted an offer to pencil and ink the interiors and covers of the new ongoing monthly title ''Of Bitter Souls'' from studio Relative Comics, originally published by Speakeasy Comics. It was written by Chuck Satterlee. Shortly before Speakeasy Comics went out of business, Relative Comics joined with Chimaera Studios and moved to publisher Markosia Comics. Breyfogle produced illustrations for a wide variety of clients outside of the comics industry including
Nike, Inc. Nike, Inc. ( or ) is an American multinational corporation that is engaged in the design, development, manufacturing, and worldwide marketing and sales of footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories, and services. The company is headquartered ne ...
, ''
Mojo Mojo may refer to: * Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * MOJO HD, an American television network * ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film * ' ...
'', ''
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'', '' Time Out'', '' Company'', '' Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin'', and various bands such as 12 Stone Toddler, among many others. In 2007, he provided art for the main story interiors and the covers for the comic book title ''The Danger's Dozen''. He began a professional relationship with the London-based art agency Debut Art. Starting in 2006, he began a working relationship with Mazz Press, contributing stand-alone illustrations to two novels by Stephen Pytak, ''The .40 Caliber Mousehunt'' and ''The Wild Damned.'' In 2008, Breyfogle began drawing Archie's New Look, for ''Archie's Double Digest'', published by Archie Publications. Breyfogle drew two titles for Archie Comics: ''Archie Loves
Betty Betty or Bettie is a name, a common diminutive for the names Bethany and Elizabeth. In Latin America, it is also a common diminutive for the given name Beatriz, the Spanish and Portuguese form of the Latin name Beatrix and the English name Beat ...
'' and ''Archie Loves Veronica''. He returned to DC to draw ''
DC Retroactive ''DC Retroactive'' is a line of one-shot comic book issues published by DC Comics. It revisited periods (grouped by decades) of the company's main characters: Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, the Justice League, and the Flash. T ...
: Batman – The '90s,'' written by his former Batman collaborator Alan Grant, in October 2011. Breyfogle contributed art to DC's '' Batman Beyond Unlimited'' digital comic series from 2012–2013; later reprinted as an 18 issue series. In 2015, DC published ''Legends of the Dark Knight: Norm Breyfogle Vol. 1'', a hardcover collection of Breyfogle's early Batman stories. A second volume was released in late 2018.


Retirement and death

On December 18, 2014, Breyfogle suffered a stroke that cut off blood flow to part of his brain, causing paralysis on his left side. He was left-handed, and although he regained some use of his left side, he was no longer able to draw professionally. In July 2015 writer/novelist Glenn Hauman and writer/editor
Bob Greenberger Robert "Bob" Greenberger (born July 24, 1958) is an American writer and editor known for his work on '' Comics Scene'', '' Starlog'', ''Weekly World News'', and '' Hellboy II'', and for the executive positions he held at both Marvel Comics and D ...
set up an Indiegogo campaign to raise $10,000 to defray the cost of Breyfogle's therapy, which involved producing a 280-page trade paperback reprinting issues #3–11 of ''Whisper'', a 1986
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 ...
series created by Steven Grant, which Breyfogle illustrated. The book also featured original contributions by participating creators, and was issued in hardcover to those donating at least $100. Breyfogle died of heart failure on September 24, 2018 in Houghton, Michigan.


Bibliography


DC Comics

* '' Anarky'' #1–4 (1997) * ''Anarky'', vol. 2, #1–8 (1999) * ''
Aquaman Aquaman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in '' More Fun Comics'' #73 (November 1941). The character is a pastiche of Namor. Initially a ...
Secret Files and Origins ''Secret Files and Origins'' (abbreviated ''SF&O'') is a series of one-shot comic books and miniseries produced by DC Comics during the late 1990s and 2000s. Publication history The books are a combination of origin stories (similar to the earli ...
2003'' #1 (2003) * '' Batman'' #455–466, 470–476, 492–493, 556, ''Annual'' #11–12 (1990–1998) * '' Batman Beyond Unlimited'' #1–13, 15 (2012–2013) * ''Batman: Birth of the Demon'' HC (1993) * ''Batman: Brotherhood of the Bat'' #1 (1995) * ''Batman: Dreamland'' #1 (2000) * '' Batman: Holy Terror'' #1 (1991) * '' Batman: Shadow of the Bat'' #1–5, 13, 50, 65–67, 75 (1992–1998) * ''Batman: The Abduction'' #1 (1998) * ''
Catwoman Catwoman is a fictional character created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Debuting as "the Cat" in ''Batman'' #1 (spring 1940), she is ...
'' #45 (1997) * ''
DC Comics Presents ''DC Comics Presents'' is a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1978 to 1986 which ran for 97 issues and four ''Annual''s. It featured team-ups between Superman and a wide variety of other characters in the DC Universe. A recurring bac ...
: Green Lantern'' #1 (2004) * ''
DC One Million ''DC One Million'' is a comic book crossover storyline that ran through a self-titled, weekly miniseries and through special issues of almost all of the "DCU" titles published by DC Comics in November 1998. It featured a vision of the DC Univer ...
80-Page Giant'' #1 (1999) * ''
DC Retroactive ''DC Retroactive'' is a line of one-shot comic book issues published by DC Comics. It revisited periods (grouped by decades) of the company's main characters: Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, the Justice League, and the Flash. T ...
: Batman – The '90s'' #1 (2011) * ''DCU Heroes Secret Files'' #1 (1999) * '' Detective Comics'' #579, 582–594, 601–621, 627, 659 (1987–1993) * ''Detention Comics'' #1 (1996) * '' The Flash 80-Page Giant'' #2 (1999) * '' Flashpoint'' #1–3 (1999–2000) * ''Green Lantern: Circle of Fire'' #1 (2000) * '' Human Defense Corps'' #6 (2003) * '' JLA: Incarnations'' #5 (2001) * '' Legion of Super-Heroes'' vol. 3 #24 (1986) * '' Lobo'' #51 (1998) * ''
New Talent Showcase ''Showcase'' is a comic anthology series published by DC Comics. The general theme of the series was to feature new and minor characters as a way to gauge reader interest in them, without the difficulty and risk of featuring untested characters i ...
'' #11, 13 (1984–1985) * '' Silver Age Secret Files'' #1 (2000) * ''Sins of Youth Secret Files'' #1 (2000) * ''
Spectre Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to: Religion and spirituality * Vision (spirituality) * Apparitional experience * Ghost Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...
'', vol. 4, #15–23, 25–27 (2002–2003) * '' Superman'', vol. 2, #130, #1,000,000 (1997–1998) * ''Superman 80-Page Giant'' #1 (1999) * ''Superman Forever'' #1 (1998) * '' Supermen of America'' #1 (1999) * '' Talent Showcase'' #18 (1985) * ''Trinity of Sin: The
Phantom Stranger The Phantom Stranger is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, of unspecified paranormal origins, who battles mysterious and occult forces, sometimes under their Vertigo imprint. The character first appeared in an ...
'' #18–20 (2014) * ''
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 ...
Annual'' #5 (1996)


Eclipse Comics

* '' Tales of Terror'' #6, 8 (1986)


First Comics

* ''
American Flagg! ''American Flagg!'' is an American comic book series created by writer-artist Howard Chaykin, published by First Comics from 1983 to 1989. A science fiction series and political satire, it was set in the U.S., particularly Chicago, Illinois, in th ...
'' #33, 35–38 (1986–1987) * ''Whisper'' #3–11 (1986–1988)


Malibu Comics

* '' Firearm'' #5 (1994) * '' Hardcase'' #1 (1993) * ''
Prime A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways ...
'' #1–12 (1993–1994) * ''Prime: Gross and Disgusting'' #1 (1994)


Marvel Comics

* '' The Avengers Annual 2000'' #1 (2000) * '' Black Panther'', vol. 3, #30 (2001) * '' Hellcat'' #1–3 (2000) * ''Marc Spector: Moon Knight'', vol. 3, #42 (1992) * ''
Marvel Fanfare ''Marvel Fanfare'' was an anthology comic book series published by American company Marvel Comics. It was a showcase title featuring a variety of characters from the Marvel universe. Volume one ''Marvel Fanfare'' featured characters and settings ...
'' #29 ( Captain America); #37 ( Fantastic Four) (1986–1988) * ''Open Space'' #3 (1990) * ''Prime'' vol, 2 #9–10 (1996) * ''Prime/ Captain America'' #1 (1996) * '' Thunderbolts 2000'' #1 (2000) * ''Within Our Reach'' #1 (1992)


Now

* '' The Terminator'' #7 (cover) (1989)


Valiant Comics

* '' Bloodshot'' #30–31, 34–35 (1995)


References


External links

*
Norm Breyfogle
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics {{DEFAULTSORT:Breyfogle, Norm 1960 births 2018 deaths 20th-century American artists 21st-century American artists American comics artists American comics writers DC Comics people Marvel Comics people Northern Michigan University alumni Writers from Iowa City, Iowa