| Michele Wrightson | |
|---|---|
| Born | Michele Robinson |
| Died | May 30, 2015(2015-05-30) (aged 73) Saugerties, New York, US |
| Area(s) | Cartoonist,Colourist |
| Pseudonym(s) | Michele Brand |
Notable works | It Ain't Me, Babe Wimmen's Comix |
| Spouse(s) | Roger Brand (m. mid-1960s, div. c. 1974) Bernie Wrightson (m. c. 1976[1] – div.) |
Michele Wrightson, also known asMichele Brand, was an American artist who worked in thecomic book industry. She started out as anunderground comix cartoonist. Later, she made her name as acolorist.[2][3] She was a key contributor to the first all-female underground comic,It Ain't Me, Babe, as well as its follow-up series,Wimmen's Comix.
Michele Robinson grew up inNew Orleans, where her parents were on the faculty atTulane University.
In 1966, she and husband Roger Brand moved fromOakland, California, to New York City, specifically to break into the comics business. Roger Brand began working forWally Wood andBill Pearson onwitzend and other projects.[4] Michele assistedGil Kane onHis Name is Savage #1 (Adventure House Press, 1968). By the late 1960s the couple were back in theSan Francisco Bay Area.
Michele's first comics credit was in the groundbreaking all femaleone-shotIt Ain't Me, Babe (Last Gasp, 1970), with the story "Tirade Funnies."[5] She later became a contributor to the follow-up seriesWimmen's Comix, as well as anthologies likeArcade. She and her husband were part of the group of cartoonists who formed theUnited Cartoon Workers of America, an informal union designed to safeguardcreators' rights.[6]
In c. 1974, during the downturn of the underground comix market, she moved toNew York City and began working in the mainstream comics industry, mostly as a colorist. One of her last (proto-)underground contributions was toFlo Steinberg'sBig Apple Comix, published in 1975. She worked forMarvel Comics (doing color separations forMarvel UK) andWarren Publishing from 1974–1975, andHeavy Metal in 1977, and then took time off to marry Bernie Wrightson and raise their sons.
She returned to comics coloring in the mid-1980s, working for Marvel,Eclipse Comics, andDC Comics for the balance of that decade.[7] She often worked on projects illustrated by Bernie Wrightson, includingHeavy Metal #65–70 (HM Communications, Inc., 1977),Stephen King's Creepshow (Plume/Penguin Group, 1982), andThe Weird (DC Comics, 1988). She colored many books published by the DC imprintMilestone Media during its run (1993–1997), chieflyBlood Syndicate.
She had no significant comics credits after 1997.
She and Roger Brand lived in San Francisco in the late 1960s/early 1970s, at one point living across the street from fellow underground cartoonistLarry Todd.
She and Brand divorced circa 1974.[citation needed] She married Bernie Wrightson some time later; together they had two sons,[8] named John and Jeffrey. She and Wrightson had been divorced for some time before her death.[1]
As artist:
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| National | |
