Kim Thompson (September 25, 1956 – June 19, 2013) was an Americancomic bookeditor,translator, andpublisher, best known as vice president and co-publisher ofSeattle-basedFantagraphics Books. Along with co-publisherGary Groth, Thompson used his position to further the cause ofalternative comics in the American market. In addition, Thompson made it his business to bring the work ofEuropean cartoonists to American readers.
Kim Thompson was born in Denmark in 1956.[1][2][3] Child of a government contractor father,[4] Thompson spent much of his youth in Europe,[5] living inWest Germany and theNetherlands.[6] His mother wasDanish, and Thompson grew up speaking the language,[6] a skill which aided his later career as a translator of European comic books. (He was also fluent in French.)[6]
Thompson developed an interest in comics early in life, some of his favorites being the works ofAndré Franquin,Maurice Tillieux,[5]Jacques Tardi,[6] andJean "Mœbius" Giraud.[7] As a young man, Thompson was a frequent contributor to Americansuperherocomic book letter columns, with letters published in (among others)Amazing Spider-Man,Captain America,Conan the Barbarian,Incredible Hulk,Iron Man,Marvel Spotlight, andMarvel-Two-in-One.[8] Early writing work by Thompson was published in the comics fanzineOmniverse fanzine in 1979.[3]
Thompson moved to the United States in 1977, and soon met Groth through a mutual friend.[4] He joined Fantagraphics' staff in that year, and soon became a co-owner with Groth.[9] In 1978, Thompson saved Fantagraphics from bankruptcy by pouring his inheritance into the company's financial coffers.[10]
Thompson was a regular contributor to the industry magazineThe Comics Journal (which is published by Fantagraphics) since 1977. Although soft-spoken in person, as a writer Thompson did not shy from controversy. Even though he personally reviewedDave Sim's long-running self-published comicCerebus in early issues ofThe Comics Journal, Thompson (along with Groth) later took Sim to task in its pages for Sim's controversial statements about feminism and self-publishing.[11]
Thompson was also a regular contributor to the (now defunct) Fantagraphics-published magazineAmazing Heroes, writing for that journal from 1981 to 1987.[3]
Thompson's last major Fantagraphics release was a remastered and expanded new edition ofGuy Peellaert's landmark graphic novelThe Adventures of Jodelle (1966) for which Thompson also provided a new translation from the French.
A long-time champion of European comics, Thompson translated the work of a number of international cartoonists published by Fantagraphics, as well as material used inThe Comics Journal. He was also the regular translator of theIgnatz Series co-published by Fantagraphics. Thompson described his translation work for Fantagraphics this way:
I translate pretty much every European foreign-language cartoonist we publish except forMatti Hagelberg who is Finnish (Finnish is well outside of my area of expertise). ... A more or less complete list of cartoonists whose comics I've worked on in the last couple years would be Nikoline Werdelin (Danish);Joost Swarte (Dutch);David B.,Emile Bravo,Killoffer,Jacques Tardi,[12] andLewis Trondheim (French);Nicolas Mahler (German); Gabriella Giandelli,Igort, Leila Marzocchi, and Sergio Ponchione (Italian);Jason (Norwegian or French);Max (Spanish); andMartin Kellerman (Swedish). ... In case you're wondering, I don't actuallyspeak all of those languages, but I can read them, more or less in some cases. ... Danish is my native language. Swedish and Norwegian are so close to Danish ... that with a little work any Dane can read them pretty well, as I do. I learned Spanish in high school and kept up with it. I lived for six years in Germany and also studied German in high school, so that stuck with me too. I lived for three years in Holland. Italian is my weakest language, I sort of plow my way through that thanks to French and Spanish and use of a dictionary — but all my Italian translations I always check with the authors anyway.[6]
On March 6, 2013, Thompson announced he hadlung cancer and was taking a leave of absence from Fantagraphics to pursue treatment.[13] He died on June 19, 2013, at his home, at the age of 56, survived by his wife, Lynn Emmert, as well as his mother, father, and brother.[14][15]
In early October 2021, Kim was posthumously awarded the inaugural Tom Spurgeon Award at theCartoon Crossroads Columbus’ (CXC) seventh festival. Fellow awardees (both also posthumous) includedsyndicate managerMollie Slott andAll-Negro Comics founder and publisherOrrin C. Evans. The Tom Spurgeon Award is aimed at recognizing the role of non-cartoonists — living and deceased — in supporting the broader medium.[16]
. . . Thompson has worked the last several years transforming the longtime alternative comics company he co-owns into a small but potent comics, art book, and graphic novel publishing house. . . . [H]e has been one of North America's most effective advocates for translated books from the rich French-language tradition. He is also a talented editor, a fine interviewer . . . and generally informed and involved when it comes to all aspects of how that company functions. If Fantagraphics were a car, Kim would be the guy in the jumpsuit and dirty fingernails constantly poking around under its hood.[5]
Comics critic R. Fiore:
If he had told you 36 years ago that he would one day be the publisher ofRobert Crumb,Charles Schulz,Walt Kelly,Carl Barks,Harvey Kurtzman,Will Elder,Hergé,Jacques Tardi, andEC Comics, together with much of the Mount Rushmore of a comics era yet undreamed of, you would have said, "Will this be before or after you've laid all the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders?" ... And yet it all came to pass.Above all, creatively speaking, his loss will be a terrible blow to French comics in English. ... Where even the best translations of comics French, up to and including the renowned work ofAnthea Bell andDerek Hockridge onAsterix, will come out somewhat stilted, Kim's come off as idiomatic and natural English. If you were Fantagraphics this skill was just there, like water in the tap.[17]
Jason, 2007. The last musketeer. Fantagraphics Books, Seattle, WA. - Winner of the Eisner Best U.S. Edition of International Material Award in 2009"The Eisner Awards". Comic Con San Diego. 2 December 2012. Retrieved1 March 2017.
Manara, M., Fellini, F., Pisu, S., 2012a. The Manara library. Volume 3. Dark Horse Books, Milwaukie, Or.
Manara, M., Orzechowski, T., Buhalis, L., 2013. The Manara library. Volume 4. Dark Horse ; Diamond [distributor], Milwaukie, Or.; London.
Manara, M., Pratt, H., 2011. The Manara library. Volume 1. Dark Horse Books, Milwaukie, Or. - Winner of the Eisner Best U.S. Edition of International Material Award in 2012"The Eisner Awards". Comic Con San Diego. 2 December 2012. Retrieved1 March 2017.
Manara, M., Pratt, H., Milani, M., 2012b. The Manara library. Volume 2. Dark Horse Books, Milwaukie, Or.
Mattotti, L., Zentner, J., 2012. The Crackle of the Frost, 1 edition. ed. Fantagraphics, Seattle, Wash.
Max, 2006. Bardín the Superrealist: his deeds, his utterances, his exploits, and his perambulations. Fantagraphics Books, Seattle, WA.
Peellaert, G., Bartier, P., Sterckx, P., 2013. The adventures of Jodelle.
Schultheiss, M., 1992. Talk dirty. Eros Comix, Seattle, WA.
Sokal, 1989. Shaggy dog story: from the files of Inspector Carnado. Rijperman / Fantagraphics, [France].
Tardi, J., 2011. The Arctic marauder. Fantagraphics Books, Seattle.
Tardi, J., 2010a. It was the war of the trenches. Fantagraphics Books, Seattle. - Winner of the Eisner Best U.S. Edition of International Material Award in 2011"The Eisner Awards". Comic Con San Diego. 2 December 2012. Retrieved1 March 2017.
Tardi, J., 2010b. The extraordinary adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec. [Volume] 1, [Volume] 1,. Fantagraphics Books ; Distributed ... by W.W. Norton, Seattle, WA; [New York].
Tardi, J., Legrand, B., Grange, D., 2012. New York Mon Amour, 1 edition. ed. Fantagraphics, Seattle, WA.
Tardi, J., Malet, L., 2015. Fog over Tolbiac Bridge.
Tardi, J., Manchette, J.-P., 2011. Like a sniper lining up his shot. Fantagraphics Books, Seattle, WA.
Tardi, J., Manchette, J.-P., 2009. West coast blues. Fantagraphics Books ; Distributed in the U.S. by W.W. Norton, Seattle, WA; [New York?].
Tardi, J., Thompson, K., 2011. The extraordinary adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec. The Mad Scientist and Mummies on Parade [Vol.] 2 [Vol.] 2. Fantagraphics Books ; Distributed to bookstores in the U.S. by W.W. Norton, Seattle, Wash.; [New York].
Tardi, J., Verney, J.-P., Dascher, H., 2013. Goddamn this war! Fantagraphics Books, Seattle, WA. - Winner of the Eisner Best U.S. Edition of International Material Award in 2014"The Eisner Awards". Comic Con San Diego. 2 December 2012. Retrieved1 March 2017.
