| George Metzger | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1939 (age 85–86) Illinois, U.S. |
| Area | Cartoonist |
Notable works | Moondog |
George Metzger (born 1939) is an Americancartoonist andanimator. He was anunderground comics artist during the mid-1960s and early 1970s in California, eventually relocating to Canada, where he worked in animation.[1]
Born in ruralIllinois, Metzger moved with his family to northern California when he was six years old. As a youth, he collectedcomic strips and read such authors asH. P. Lovecraft,Robert E. Howard, andHerbert Asbury. He studied the work of such book illustrators asFritz Eichenberg, andLynd Ward. His later work was influenced by his interest inMaxfield Parrish,Hannes Bok,EC Comics, and various science fiction illustrators.[2]
After graduating from high school in 1957, he attended a two-year junior college, worked in forestry for two years and then returned to college. In the early 1960s, he contributed to fanzines and anunderground newspaper, followed by a period in theNational Guard.[2]
Later, he lived inSanta Cruz, California and moved toSan Jose, California, where he resided for many years near theSan Jose State University campus. In the mid-to-late 1960s, he worked atSanta Clara'sHambley Studios, where he was a production serigraph printer for fine art print production of such artists asCorita Kent.
Metzger contributed to such publications asGothic Blimp Works andBill Spicer'sGraphic Story Magazine. He eliminated dialogue balloons in "Mal-Ig" (Gothic Blimp Works #7); reprinted inGraphic Story Magazine, "Mal-Ig" was a strong influence onPaul Chadwick'sThe World Below.[3]
Obsessively drawing every night, Metzger could be found at his drawing board while friends gathered and talked around him. In the early days of the originalStar Trek, Metzger and several friends would gather every Wednesday evening to watch. Always a guest at the hippest parties in the Bay Area, he often carried a flask of brandy in his back pocket for all to share. He was friendly with the underground artists of the day, plus many Bay Area bluegrass and country musicians, as well as theGrateful Dead.[citation needed]
His best known creation isMoondog, a science-fantasy series notable for its sophisticated art and elaborate imaginative framework. Published by thePrint Mint, it ran from1969 until1973. It has no connection with the character Moondog inJim Meddick's comic stripMonty.
His story "Routine" was published inGraphic Story Magazine #16. The cover of Metzger's comic bookTruckin (Print Mint, 1972) includes a self-portrait in the truck's mirror. In 1978,Kitchen Sink Press published Metzger'sMu, the Land that Never Was. That same year, he was a guest atSan Diego Comic-Con.
Metzger later worked for several animation studios inVancouver, includingMarv Newland's International Rocketship Limited.[1]
In 2016,Fantagraphics Books re-issued Metzger's graphic novel,Beyond Time and Again.[4] In 2024, they releasedThe Lost Worlds of George Metzger, a collection of Metzger's comics work including rediscovered stories.[5]
Metzger was theArtist Guest of Honor atVancouver'sVcon 8 in 1980, invited back as theArtist GoH Emeritus in 2010.[1]
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