Hellboy Artists Collection: Richard Corben

Mike Mignola’s fascination with ghosts and monsters began at an early age; reading Dracula at age twelve introduced him to Victorian literature and folklore, from which he has never recovered. Starting in 1982 as a bad inker for Marvel Comics, he swiftly evolved into a not-so-bad artist. By the late 1980s, he had begun to develop his own unique graphic style, with mainstream projects like Cosmic Odyssey and Batman: Gotham by Gaslight. In 1994, he published the first Hellboy series through Dark Horse. There are thirteen Hellboy graphic novels (with more on the way), several spin-off titles (B.P.R.D., Lobster Johnson, Abe Sapien, and Sir Edward Grey: Witchfinder), prose books, animated films, and two live-action films starring Ron Perlman. Along the way he worked on Francis Ford Coppola’s film Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992), was a production designer for Disney’s Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001), and was the visual consultant to director Guillermo del Toro on Blade II (2002), Hellboy (2004), and Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008). Mike’s books have earned numerous awards and are published in a great many countries. Mike lives in Southern California with his wife, daughter, and cat.

Richard Corben was born on a farm in Anderson, Missouri, and went on to get a bachelor of fine arts degree from the Kansas City Art Institute in 1965. After working as a professional animator, Corben started doing underground comics, including Grim Wit, Slow Death, Skull, Rowlf, Fever Dreams, and his own anthology Fantagor. In 1970 he began illustrating horror and science-fiction stories for Warren Publishing. His stories appeared in Creepy, Eerie, Vampirella, 1984, and Comix International. He also colored several episodes of Will Eisner’s Spirit. In 1975, when Mœbius, Druillet, and Jean-Pierre Dionnet started publishing the magazine Métal Hurlant in France, Corben submitted some of his stories to them. He continued his work for the franchise in America, where the magazine was called Heavy Metal. In 1976 he adapted a short Robert E. Howard story in Bloodstar. In 2012 he was elected to the Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame.

Dave Stewart is a multiple Eisner Award–winning colorist who works for Dark Horse, Marvel, and DC Comics. His credits include Iron Man: Enter the Mandarin, Daytripper, and Michael Chabon Presents The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist.