| Michael Turner | |
|---|---|
 Turner at his drawing board, as seen in the posthumousSoulfire #8 (April 2009) | |
| Born | Michael Layne Turner (1971-04-21)April 21, 1971 Crossville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | June 27, 2008(2008-06-27) (aged 37) Santa Monica, California, U.S. |
| Area | Writer,Penciller,Inker, Publisher |
Notable works | Fathom Soulfire Superman/Batman Witchblade |
Michael Layne Turner[1] (April 21, 1971 – June 27, 2008)[2] was anAmericancomics artist known for his work onWitchblade,Fathom,Superman/Batman,Soulfire, and various covers forDC Comics andMarvel Comics. He was also the president of the entertainment companyAspen MLT.[3]
Michael Turner was born inCrossville, Tennessee on April 21, 1971.[4] He was a student at theUniversity of Tennessee, and graduated from the International Performing Arts Academy after which he moved toSan Diego, California, where he developed an interest in comics.[5]
Turner was discovered byMarc Silvestri at a convention[4] and hired by Silvestri'sTop Cow Productions as an artist.[3] He initially did background illustrations for Top Cow titles before co-creatingWitchblade. In the summer of 1998 he debuted thecreator-ownedFathom, having also worked on his new seriesSoulfire.
As well as an artist, Turner was an award-winning water skier, held an instructor-level red sash in martial arts, and was an avidvideo game player. In March 2000, Turner was diagnosed withchondrosarcoma, a form ofcancer, in the right pelvis. He was treated at theRonald Reagan UCLA Medical Center with surgery in which he lost a hip, 40% of his pelvis, and three pounds of bone. The surgery was followed by nine months ofradiation therapy.
Turner departed Top Cow in late 2002 to found his own comic book publishing company,[4]Aspen MLT Inc. (where MLT stands for Michael Layne Turner), located in Santa Monica, with a studio inMarina del Rey, California. The release of comics from Aspen was delayed by a year-long lawsuit with Top Cow Productions over the rights toFathom and over the rights to the unreleased titlesSoulfire (initially calledDragonfly) andEkos, both of which Turner had begun developing before leaving Top Cow and before his diagnosis of cancer. Aspen and Top Cow settled the lawsuit out of court in 2003.
In 2004 Turner contributed covers to variousDC Comics titles, includingThe Flash andIdentity Crisis. He provided cover art and co-wrote the "Godfall" story arc that ran in the three mainSuperman titles in early 2004 and illustrated the six-issueSupergirl story arc inSuperman/Batman.[5][6] His creator-owned titleSoulfire began publication in 2004 andFathom resumed publication in that year as well, though this time with Aspen MLT rather than Top Cow.
On August 6, 2005,Marvel Comics announced the signing of Michael Turner to a work-for-hire deal for a six-issue project and covers. This would turn out to be at least the variant covers for the miniseriesCivil War and the Wolverine ongoing seriesWolverine: Origins.[5] In addition Turner had been announced as the artist onUltimate Wolverine.
Turner createdonline comic adaptations for theNBC television seriesHeroes.[1]
Turner died June 27, 2008, at theSanta Monica Hospital inSanta Monica, California, of complications frombone cancer.[7] He is survived by his mother Grace Crick, his brother Jake Turner, and his fiancée Kelly Carmichael.[1]Fathom vol. 3 #1, which was published on Wednesday, August 6, 2008, featured a tribute to Turner in the form of a stylized blue ribbon in the upper right-hand corner of its cover, and its first page was a memorial to him.[8] Aspen MLT also published atrade paperback collection of writings from people who knew Turner, titledA Tribute to Michael Turner, which features a cover painted byAlex Ross. Volume #21 ofThe Boys included a page dedicated to Michael Turner as well.[9]
[Jeph] Loeb began the second major story arc on this title in this issue [#8], drawn by superstar Michael Turner.
Covers: Michael Turner
Covers: Michael Turner
Covers: Michael Turner
| Preceded by n/a | Witchblade penciller 1995–1998 | Succeeded by Randy Green |
| Preceded by | Superman/Batman penciller 2004 | Succeeded by |
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