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 The Swamp Thing is a superhero in American comic books published by DC Comics. A humanoid/plant elemental creature, created by writer Len Wein and artist Bernie Wrightson, the Swamp Thing has had several humanoid or monster incarnations i ...

, his adaptation of the novel ''

Frankenstein ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific exp ...

'' illustration work, and for his other

horror Horror may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Genres *Horror fiction, a genre of fiction ** Japanese horror, Japanese horror fiction **Korean horror, Korean horror fiction * Horror film, a film genre *Horror comics, comic books focusing o ...

comics and illustrations, which feature his trademark intricate pen and brushwork.

Early life

Wrightson was born October 27, 1948, in

Dundalk, Maryland Dundalk ( or ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 67,796 at the 2020 census. In 1960 and 1970, Dundalk was the largest unincorporated community in Ma ...

. He received training in art from watching

Jon Gnagy Jon Gnagy (January 13, 1907 – March 7, 1981) was a self-taught artist most remembered for being America's original television art instructor, hosting '' You Are an Artist'', which began on the NBC network and included analysis of paintings fro ...

on television, reading comics, particularly those of EC, as well as through a

correspondence course Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at a school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance. Traditionally, this usually in ...

from the Famous Artists School. His artistic influences were Frank Frazetta, Al Williamson, Al Dorne, Graham Ingels, Jack Davis and Howard Pyle. He published a piece of

fan art Fan art or fanart is artwork created by fans of a work of fiction and derived from a series character or other aspect of that work. They are usually done by amateur artists, semi-professionals or professionals. As fan labor, fan art refers t ...

, containing a headstone bearing the inscription "Berni Wrightson, Dec. 15, 1965", on page 33 of

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

's '' Creepy'' #9 (

cover-date The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unu ...

d June 1966).

Career

In 1966, Wrightson began working for ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...

'' newspaper as an illustrator. The following year, after meeting artist Frank Frazetta at a comic-book convention in New York City, he was inspired to produce his own stories. In 1968, he showed copies of his sequential art to

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 their f ...

editor Dick Giordano and was given a freelance assignment. Wrightson began spelling his name "Berni" in his professional work to distinguish himself from an Olympic diver named Bernie Wrightson, but later restored the final "e" to his name. In 1968, he drew his first professional comic book story, "The Man Who Murdered Himself", which appeared in ''

House of Mystery ''The House of Mystery'' is the name of several horror comics, horror, fantasy comics, fantasy, and mystery fiction, mystery comics anthology, Comics anthologies published by DC Comics. It had a companion series, ''The House of Secrets (DC Comic ...

'' #179 ( cover-dated March–April 1969). He continued to work on a variety of mystery and anthology titles for both DC and, a few years later, its principal rival,

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book 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 Comics'' in 19 ...

. It was for Marvel's '' Chamber of Darkness'' and '' Tower of Shadows'' titles where he was first encouraged to slightly simplify his intricate pen-and-ink drawing, and where his lush brushwork, a hallmark of his comics inking in the 1970s, was first evidenced. Like many artists in the 1970s and 1980s, Wrightson moved to New York in hopes of finding work with comics publishers such as

. At one point Wrightson lived in the same Queens apartment building as artists Allen Milgrom,

Howard Chaykin Howard Victor Chaykin (; born October 7, 1950) is an American comic book artist and writer. Chaykin's influences include his one-time employer and mentor, Gil Kane, and the mid-20th century illustrators Robert Fawcett and Al Parker. Early lif ...

and Walter Simonson. Simonson recalls, "We'd get together at 3 a.m. They'd come up and we'd have popcorn and sit around and talk about whatever a 26, 27 and 20-year-old guys talk about. Our art, TV, you name it. I pretty much knew at the time, 'These are the good ole days.'"

Swamp Thing

With writer

Len Wein Leonard Norman Wein (; June 12, 1948 – September 10, 2017) was an American comic book writer and editor best known for co-creating DC Comics' Swamp Thing and Marvel Comics' Wolverine, and for helping revive the Marvel superhero team the X-Men ...

, Wrightson co-created the muck creature

in '' House of Secrets'' #92 (July 1971) in a standalone horror story set in the Victorian era. Wein later recounted how Wrightson became involved with the story: "Bernie Wrightson had just broken up with a girlfriend, and we were sitting in my car just talking about life – all the important things to do when you're 19 and 20 years old. 'Laughs''And I said, 'You know, I just wrote a story that actually kind of feels like the way you feel now.' I told him about Swamp Thing, and he said, 'I gotta draw that.'" In summer 1972 he published ''Badtime Stories'', a horror/science fiction comics anthology featuring his own scripts and artwork (from the period 1970–1971), each story being drawn in a different medium (ink wash, tonal pencil drawings, duoshade paper, screen tones, e.g., along with traditional pen-and-ink and brushwork). He and writer

Marv Wolfman Marvin Arthur Wolfman (born May 13, 1946) is an American comic book and novelization writer. He worked on Marvel Comics's '' The Tomb of Dracula'', for which he and artist Gene Colan created the vampire-slayer Blade, and DC Comics's ''The New ...

co-created

Destiny Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although oft ...

in ''

Weird Mystery Tales ''Weird Mystery Tales'' was a mystery horror comics anthology published by DC Comics from July–August 1972 to November 1975. Publication history 100 Page Super Spectacular The title ''Weird Mystery Tales'' was first used for '' DC 100 Page Su ...

'' #1 (July–Aug. 1972), a character which would later be used in the work of

Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gr ...

. In the fall of 1972 the Swamp Thing returned in his own series, set in the contemporary world and in the general DC continuity. Wrightson drew the first ten issues of the series. Abigail Arcane, a major supporting character in the Swamp Thing mythos was introduced in issue #3 (Feb.-March 1973). Wrightson had originally been asked by DC to handle the art for its revival of

The Shadow The Shadow is a fictional character created by magazine publishers Street & Smith and writer Walter B. Gibson. Originally created to be a mysterious radio show narrator, and developed into a distinct literary character in 1931 by writer Walter ...

, but he left the project early on when he realized he could not produce the necessary minimum number of pages on time, along with his work on ''Swamp Thing''.

Michael Kaluta Michael William Kaluta, sometimes credited as Mike Kaluta or Michael Wm. Kaluta (born August 25, 1947), is an American comics artist and writer best known for his acclaimed 1970s adaptation of the pulp magazine hero ''The Shadow'' with writer De ...

illustrated the series, but Wrightson did contribute much to the third issue in both pencils and inks, as well as inking the splash page of issue #4.

Warren and The Studio

In January 1974, he left DC to work at

, and for whose black-and-white

-comics magazines he produced a series of original work as well as short story adaptations. As with ''BadTime Stories'', Wrightson experimented with different media in these black-and-white tales:

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...

's "The Black Cat" featured intricate pen-and-ink work which stood in direct contrast with his brush-dominated ''Swamp Thing'' panels. "Jenifer", scripted by

Bruce Jones Bruce Jones may refer to: * Bruce Jones (actor) (born 1953), British actor *Bruce Jones (American football) (1904–1974), American football player *Bruce Jones (comics) (born 1944), American comic book writer *Bruce Jones (surfboards) (?–2014), ...

, was atmospherically rendered with gray markers. "The Pepper Lake Monster" was a synthesis of brush and pen-and-ink, whereas H.P. Lovecraft's "Cool Air" was a foray into duotone paper. "Nightfall" was an exercise in ink wash. "Clarice" was also drawn in pen, brush, and ink, and with ink wash. In 1975, Wrightson joined with fellow artists Jeffrey Catherine Jones,

, and Barry Windsor-Smith to form The Studio, a shared loft in Manhattan where the group would pursue creative products outside the constraints of comic book commercialism. Though he continued to produce sequential art, Wrightson at this time began producing artwork for numerous posters, prints, calendars, and even a highly detailed coloring book, ''The Monsters''. He also drew sporadic comics stories and single illustrations for '' National Lampoon'' magazine from 1973 to 1983. Wrightson spent seven years drawing approximately 50 detailed pen-and-ink illustrations to accompany an edition of

Mary Shelley Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (; ; 30 August 1797 – 1 February 1851) was an English novelist who wrote the Gothic novel '' Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' (1818), which is considered an early example of science fiction. She also ...

's novel ''

''.

Later career

The "

Captain Sternn Captain Lincoln F. Sternn is a comic book character created by Bernie Wrightson. Personality and appearance Captain Sternn is considered "part Han Solo, part James Garner from '' The Great Escape''". The character, as written by Wrightson, is an ...

" segment of the animated film '' Heavy Metal'' is based on a character created by Wrightson (first appearing in the June 1980 issue of ''Heavy Metal'' magazine). The ''Freakshow'' graphic novel, written by

and illustrated (via pen, brush, and ink with watercolors) by Wrightson, was published in Spain in 1982 and serialized in '' Heavy Metal'' magazine in the early 1980s. In 1983 Bernie Wrightson illustrated the comic book adaptation of the Stephen King-penned horror film '' Creepshow''. This led to several other collaborations with King, including illustrations for the novella "

Cycle of the Werewolf ''Cycle of the Werewolf'' is a short horror novel by American writer Stephen King, featuring illustrations by comic-book artist Bernie Wrightson. Each chapter is a short story unto itself. It tells the story of a werewolf haunting a small town as ...

", the restored edition of King's apocalyptic horror epic, ''

The Stand ''The Stand'' is a post-apocalyptic dark fantasy novel written by American author Stephen King and first published in 1978 by Doubleday. The plot centers on a deadly pandemic of weaponized influenza and its aftermath, in which the few survivi ...

'', and '' Wolves of the Calla'', the fifth installment of King's '' Dark Tower'' series. He would later illustrate the cover for ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program TV listings, listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news. The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine, TV Guide Mag ...

'' magazine's April 26 – May 2, 1997 issue, illustrating the TV miniseries of King's '' The Shining''. During production on the 1984 film ''

Ghostbusters ''Ghostbusters'' is a 1984 American supernatural comedy film directed and produced by Ivan Reitman, and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. It stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Egon Spengler, ...

'', Wrightson was among the artists hired by associate producer

Michael C. Gross Michael C. Gross (October 3, 1945 – November 16, 2015) was an American artist, designer, and film producer. From 1970 to 1974 he art-directed '' National Lampoon'' magazine, and subsequently co-ran a design company. In 1980 he started wo ...

to provide

concept art Concept art is a form of visual art used to convey an idea for use in films, video games, animation, comic books, or other media before it is put into the final product. Concept art usually refers to world-building artwork used to inspire the d ...

envisioning the ghosts and other psychic phenomena encountered by that film's characters. The artwork he contributed included images of the "escapees" from the Ghostbusters' electrically-powered ghost storage facility, which run amok after the facility's electricity is turned off. Bernie Wrightson 2012

Jim Starlin and Wrightson produced ''

Heroes for Hope ''Heroes for Hope: Starring the X-Men'' is a 1985 Marvel comic book designed to raise awareness about hunger in Africa. Proceeds from the comic went to the American Friends Service Committee, to assist in their work on behalf of African famine r ...

'', a 1985 one-shot designed to raise money for African famine relief and recovery. Published in the form of a " comic jam", the book featured an all-star lineup of comics creators as well as a few notable authors from outside the comic book industry, such as

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high ...

, George R. R. Martin,

Harlan Ellison Harlan Jay Ellison (May 27, 1934 – June 28, 2018) was an American writer, known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. Robert Bloch, the author of ''Psycho'', ...

, and

Edward Bryant Edward Winslow Bryant Jr. (August 27, 1945 – February 10, 2017) was an American science fiction and horror writer sometimes associated with the Dangerous Visions series of anthologies that bolstered The New Wave. At the time of his death, he ...

. In 1986, Wrightson and writer Susan K. Putney collaborated on the '' Spider-Man: Hooky'' graphic novel. That same year saw Wrightson and Starlin produce a second benefit comic, ''

Heroes Against Hunger ''Heroes Against Hunger'' is a 1986 all-star benefit comic book for African famine relief and recovery. Published by DC Comics in the form of a "comic jam" or exquisite corpse, the book starred Superman and Batman. Spearheaded by Jim Starlin and ...

'' featuring Superman and

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book '' Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939 ...

which was published by DC and like the earlier Marvel project featured many top comics creators. Starlin and Wrightson collaborated on two

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format ...

in 1988, ''

The Weird ''The Weird: A Compendium of Strange and Dark Stories'' is an anthology of weird fiction edited by Ann and Jeff VanderMeer. Published on 30 Oct 2011, it contains 110 short stories, novellas and short novels. At 1,152 pages in the hardcover edi ...

'' and '' Batman: The Cult'', as well as ''

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 establis ...

'' #29 featuring the Hulk 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 focus ...

for Marvel. He has illustrated cards for Last Unicorn Games' collectible card game '' Heresy: Kingdom Come'', and has contributed album covers for a number of bands, including

Meat Loaf Michael Lee Aday (born Marvin Lee Aday; September 27, 1947 – January 20, 2022), known professionally as Meat Loaf, was an American rock singer and actor. He was noted for his powerful, wide-ranging voice and theatrical live shows. He is on t ...

. Wrightson did concept art for film and television, working on productions including ''

The Faculty ''The Faculty'' is a 1998 American science fiction horror film directed by Robert Rodriguez and written by Kevin Williamson. It stars Jordana Brewster, Clea DuVall, Laura Harris, Josh Hartnett, Shawn Hatosy, Famke Janssen, Piper Laurie, ...

'', ''

Galaxy Quest ''Galaxy Quest'' is a 1999 American science fiction comedy film directed by Dean Parisot and written by David Howard and Robert Gordon. A parody of and homage to science-fiction films and series, especially ''Star Trek'' and its fandom, th ...

'', '' Spider-Man'', ''The Mist'', ''

Land of the Dead ''Land of the Dead'' (also known as ''George A. Romero's Land of the Dead'') is a 2005 post-apocalyptic horror film written and directed by George A. Romero; the fourth of Romero's six ''Living Dead'' movies, it is preceded by ''Night of the Liv ...

'', and ''

Serenity Serenity may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Serenity'' (2019 film), a thriller starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway and Diane Lane * Sailor Moon (character), also known as Princess Serenity and Neo-Queen Serenity, in the ' ...

''. In 2012, Wrightson collaborated with Steve Niles on ''

Frankenstein Alive, Alive! ''Bernie Wrightson's Frankenstein'' is an illustrated edition of Mary Shelley's 1818 novel ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'', first published in 1983 by American company Marvel Comics, with dozens of full-page illustrations by Bernie Wri ...

'' published by

IDW Publishing 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 re ...

, for which he won a National Cartoonists Society's award.

Personal life

Wrightson's first wife

Michele Wrightson Michele Wrightson, also known as Michele Brand, was an American artist who worked in the comic book industry. The former wife of underground cartoonist Roger Brand, she started out as an underground comix cartoonist. Later, when she was married to ...

was involved in

underground comix Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, ...

, contributing stories to such publications as '' It Ain't Me, Babe'', '' Wimmen's Comix'', and '' Arcade''. She died in 2015. Wrightson and Michelle had two sons together, John and Jeffrey. Wrightson lived with his second wife Liz Wrightson and his stepson Thomas Adamson in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

. Wrightson announced in January 2017 that he was retiring because of his battle with cancer. He died on March 18, 2017, at the age of 68. The next day, Liz Wrightson confirmed that his death followed a long battle with

brain cancer A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and secon ...

. " The First Day of the Rest of Your Life", the April 2, 2017 season 7 finale of the TV series '' The Walking Dead'', was dedicated to Wrightson's memory.

Creative legacy

Wrightson's death met with a series of testimonials and tributes by colleagues and professional admirers that included Joss Whedon,

Guillermo del Toro Guillermo del Toro Gómez (; born October 9, 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and actor. He directed the Academy Award–winning fantasy films '' Pan's Labyrinth'' (2006) and '' The Shape of Water'' (2017), winning the Academy Awards for ...

, Walter Simonson Mike Mignola and he dedication to John Carpenter's "The Thing Artbook" (2017) Whedon called Wrightson "a star by which other pencillers chart their course", while Gaiman stated that Wrightson was the first comics artist whose work he loved. Horror connoisseur del Toro took a 24-hour pledge of silence in honor of Wrightson, writing, "As it comes to all of us, the end came for the greatest that ever lived: Bernie Wrightson. My North dark star of youth. A master."

Hellboy Hellboy is a fictional superhero created by writer-artist Mike Mignola. The character first appeared in ''San Diego Comic-Con Comics'' #2 (August 1993), and has since appeared in various eponymous miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a t ...

creator Mike Mignola said of Wrightson, "He was a genius, and not just a monster guy. Everything Bernie did had soul." Wrightson's former neighbor Walter Simonson, who lived in the same building as Wrightson in the 1980s, recalled, "Even at an early age, we were all really in awe of his work, it was so good." Analyzing Wrightson's skill in depth, Simonson explained that in addition to his ability to draw anything, Wrightson was a master of value, able to effect a precise command over the depth and tones of the colors and shades of grey in his work, stating, "In drawing or in painting, one of the things that you control is the value, which is the light and dark. If you were to take your color TV set and somehow turn off the color and just have a black and white and gray picture, you're looking at the values of those color pictures. 'Frankenstein' is a complete masterpiece of value, using incredibly complex pictures, and yet you always see exactly what you are supposed to see. He drives the eye right where it needs." Regarding the famously reproduced two-page spread from that work depicting Frankenstein's laboratory, Simonson said of that image, "It's so complicated and yet he's able to show you what he wants you to see. In some ways

he lab scene is He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...

the core of the story. It's where Frankenstein breaks the laws of God. I think people were just drawn to it cause it's so completely over the top and yet it's so completely controlled at the same time." Comics analyst and historian

Scott McCloud Scott McCloud (born Scott McLeod; June 10, 1960) is an American cartoonist and comics theorist. He is best known for his non-fiction books about comics: ''Understanding Comics'' (1993), ''Reinventing Comics'' (2000), and '' Making Comics'' (200 ...

called that image a "riot of detail", saying, "It might take a moment before you even notice the corpse laying at the bottom of the composition on the left. That makes it a bit more of a treasure map. Bit more of a 'Where Is Waldo?'" During a 2016 tour of his extensive library of art and pop culture memorabilia, Del Toro named Wrightson's ''Frankenstein'' as the work whose original artwork was the hardest to find, saying, "They are very rare. The people that have them don't let them go. It's taken me years to get that. I have nine out of the 13 favorite plates of the Frankenstein book that Bernie Wrightson ever did. The other four: one of them, no one knows where it is, and the other three are, I would say, very hard to pry away from the people that have them."

Awards

Wrightson won the Shazam Award for Best Penciller (Dramatic Division) in 1972 and 1973 for

, the Shazam Award for Best Individual Story (Dramatic) in 1972 for ''

'' #1 (with Len Wein). He received additional nominations, including for the Shazam Award for Best Inker in 1973 for ''Swamp Thing'', as well as that year's Shazam for Best Individual Story, for "A Clockwork Horror" in ''Swamp Thing'' #6 (with Len Wein). Wrightson was a recipient of the 1974 Comic Fan Art Award for Favorite Pro Artist. He was a nominee for the same award, then known as the " Goethe Award," in 1973. Wrightson was co-recipient of the Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award for 1986, along with Jim Starlin, for his work on ''

''. The following year, Wrightson received an

Inkpot Award The Inkpot Award is an honor bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International. It is given to professionals in the fields of comic books, comic strips, animation, science fiction, and related areas of popular culture, at CCI's annual co ...

. Wrightson received the H.P. Lovecraft Award (also known as the "Howie") at the 2007 H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Portland, Oregon. He received the National Cartoonists Society's award in the category Comic Books for 2012 for ''

''. He was awarded the Inkwell Award Special Recognition Award in 2015 for his 45-plus years of work, including co-creating DC Comic's

and

. In 2021, Wrightson was induced into the Inkwell Awards Joe Sinnott Hall of Fame.

Bibliography

Comics

Bongo Comics

*''

Treehouse of Horror ''Treehouse of Horror'' is an annual series of special Halloween-themed episodes of the animated sitcom ''The Simpsons'', with 33 anthology episodes between 1990 and 2022. Also known as ''The Simpsons Halloween Specials'', each episode typica ...

'' #11 segment "Squish Thing", a parody of ''

'' (2005)

Chanting Monks Studios

*''Night Terrors'' #1 (2000)

Chaos! Comics

*''Nightmare Theater'' #1–4 (1997)

Cry for Dawn Productions

*''So Dark the Rose'' #1 (1995)

Dark Horse Comics

*''City of Others'' #1–4 (2007) *''Tarzan Le Monstre'' #11–12 (1998)

DC Comics

*''

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 b ...

Annual'' #4 (cover) (1998) *''

'' #265, 400 (interiors); #241, 320, ''Annual'' #22 (covers) (1972–1998) *''Batman: Hidden Treasures'' #1 (2010) *''Batman: Nevermore'' (covers) #1–5 (2003) *'' Batman: The Cult'' #1–4 (1988) *''

Detective Comics ''Detective Comics'' is an American comic book series published by Detective Comics, later shortened to DC Comics. The first volume, published from 1937 to 2011 (and later continued in 2016), is best known for introducing the superhero Batman ...

'' #425 (cover) (1972) *'' Flinch'' #14 (2000) *''

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 ...

Annual'' #7 (cover) (1998) *''Heroes Against Hunger'' (two pages only) (1986) *''

'' #179–181, 183, 186, 188, 191, 195, 204; (covers): #193–194, 207, 209, 211, 213–214, 217, 221, 229, 231, 236, 255–256 (1969–1978) *''House of Mystery'' vol. 2 #9; (cover): #1 (2009) *'' House of Secrets'' #92; (covers): #93–94, 96, 100, 103, 106–107, 135, 139 (1971–1976) *''

JLA JLA may refer to: * '' JLA'', a comic book series 1997–2006 * The Justice League of America, a fictional DC Comics superhero team * JLA (company), a laundry equipment provider * Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviat ...

Annual'' #2 (cover) (1998) *'' Jonah Hex'' #9 (cover) (1978) *''

Kong the Untamed ''Kong the Untamed'' is a comic book series published by DC Comics that ran for five issues. It was created in 1975 by writer Jack Oleck and artist Alfredo Alcala. The title character, Kong, is an intelligent caveman who is a direct descendant ...

'' #1–2 (covers) (1975) *'' Plop!'' #1, 5 (1973–1974) *'' Secrets of Haunted House'' #5, 44 (covers) (1975–1982) *''

'' Vol. 2 #3, (1974) *'' Showcase'' ( Nightmaster) #83–84 (1969) *''

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 ...

'' #9 (1969) *''Spectre'' vol. 3 #58 (cover) (1997) *''

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' ...

Annual'' #3 (cover) (2009) *''

'' #1–10 (1972–1974) *'' Tales of the Unexpected'' #4 (cover) (2007) *'' The Unexpected'' #116, 119, 128 (1970–1971) *'' Toe Tags Featuring George Romero'' (cover) #1–6 (2004–2005) *''Welcome Back to the House of Mystery'' #1 (cover) (1998) *''

'' #1–4 (1988) *''

'' #1 (interiors); #21 (cover) (1972–1975) *''

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, and their life partner, Olive Byrne, are credited as being ...

Annual'' #7 (cover) (1998) *''

Witching Hour In folklore, the witching hour or devil's hour is a time of night that is associated with supernatural events, whereby witches, demons and ghosts are thought to appear and be at their most powerful. Definitions vary, and include the hour immedi ...

'' #3, 5 (1969)

DC Comics and Dark Horse Comics

*''

Batman/Aliens ''Batman/Aliens'' is a crossover between the Batman and Aliens comic book franchises. It was published in 1997. A sequel was released in 2003. ''Batman/Aliens'' Batman parachutes into the jungle near the Guatemala and Mexico borderline, inve ...

'' miniseries #1–2 (1997)

Eclipse Comics

*''Berni Wrightson: Master of the Macabre'' #5 (1984)

Fantagraphics Books/Eros Comix

*''Collected Purple Pictography'' #1 (1991) *''The Reaper of Love and Other Stories'' #1 (1988)

FPG

Bernie Wrightson: MASTER OF THE MACABRE (1993, Trading Card Series), MORE MACABRE (1994, Second Trading Card Series)

IDW Publishing

*''Dead, She Said'' #1–3 (with Steve Niles) (2008) *''

'' #1–3 (2012–2014)

Image Comics

*''Frankenstein Mobster'' #7 (2004) *''The Walking Dead''

Kitchen Sink Press

*''Captain Sternn: Running Out of Time '' #1–5 (1993)

Major Publications

*''Web of Horror'' #1–3 (1969–1970)

Marvel Comics

*'' Astonishing Tales'' #31 (cover inks) (1975) *'' Captain Marvel'' #41–42 (interiors); #43 (cover) (1975–1976) *'' Chamber of Darkness'' #7 (interior); #8 (cover) (1970) *'' Clive Barker's Hellraiser'' #1 (1989) *''

Conan the Barbarian Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including '' Conan the Barbarian'' and '' Conan the Destroyer'') ...

'' #12 (1971) *'' Creatures on the Loose'' ( King Kull) #10 (1971) *'' Doctor Strange Special Edition'' #1 (cover) (1983) *'' Dreadstar'' #6–7 (1983) *''

Epic Illustrated ''Epic Illustrated'' was a comics anthology in magazine format published in the United States by Marvel Comics. Similar to the US-licensed comic book magazine '' Heavy Metal'', it allowed explicit content to be featured, unlike the traditional Ame ...

'' #8, 10, 22, 25, 30, 34 (interiors); #30 (cover) (1981–1986) *''

Gargoyle In architecture, and specifically Gothic architecture, a gargoyle () is a carved or formed grotesque with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building, thereby preventing it from running down masonry wall ...

'' #1 (cover) (1985) *''Giant-Size Chillers'' #3 (cover) (1975) *'' Heroes for Hope starring the X-Men'' #1 (three pages only) (1985) *''

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 ...

'' #197 (cover) (1976) *''

'' #22 ( Spider-Man: "Hooky"); #29 (The Hulk and the

: "The Big Change") (1986–1987) *''