Posted in: Comics, Comics Publishers, Current News, DC Comics | Tagged: Michael Zulli. Neil Gaiman

DC Comics Runs Tributes to Comic Book Creator Michael Zulli This Week

This week, DC Comics run tributes to legendary comic book creator Michael Zulli from across the comics industry, in all its monthly titles.

Michael Zulli, comic book writer, artist and publisher known for his work as an animal and wildlife illustrator, died on the 8th of July, at the age of 71. Self-publisher of the environmental activist comic The Puma Blues in 1986 through Dave Sim's Aardvark One International before being picked up by Mirage Studios, he worked on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Swamp Thing, Sandman, Sweeney Todd,  Alice Cooper's The Last Temptation, Winter's Edge, Witchcraft: La Terreur, Sandman Presents: Love Street,  Shade, Delicate Creatures, Grendel, Creatures Of The Night, Tales Of Spider-Man, Star Wars Tales, Longshot: Fools, Batman: No Man's Land, The Facts In The Case Of The Departure Of Miss Finch and The Fracture Of The Universal Boy, for the likes of Marvel, Dark Horse, DC and Image Comics.

This week, DC Comics run tributes to the man from across the comics industry, in all its monthly titles.

Michael and I collaborated on a number of projects together in the late '90s/early 1000s. He wasn't just a brilliant artist; he was a brilliant man who was deep, passionate, and philosophical. When Michael began work on a story, he analyzed it, imbibed it, let it settle into the depths of his soul—and then unleashed his visions on the page. During those years of creative partnership, we spent many hours talking about the art of storytelling, the spiritual path, the search for God. There were no casual conversations with Michael Zulli — and that, in tandem with his prowess as a visual storyteller, made our collaborations memorable.
Michael very generously gave me the gorgeous painting he created for one of our Seekers into the Mystery issues as a gift many years ago. It's hung in a place of honor in my house ever since. I look at it every day, a piece of Michael woven into my life. —J.M. DeMatteis (Seekers into the Mystery)

I treasure the times Michael and I worked together, and the times we spent time together at conventions or on the phone. I loved his work and enjoyed his friendship and company, which was sadly only o few hours here and there over the years. May he rest in peace. –Todd Klein (The Sandman and more)

Michael was an artist's artist. Working with him was always a delight and an adventure. His pencils were always so perfect that something vanished in the inks, which was why we both decided to try and reproduce his art for "The Wake" directly from the pencils. He was funny, incredibly smart, gentle, and wise, and I loved that working with Michael meant we got to talk a lot, late into the night, about comics and everything else. We were friends the first time we met (at San Diego Comic-Con in 1989), and we stayed friends until the day he died. I will miss him more than I can easily say, and my thoughts remain with his wife, Karen. —Neil Gaiman (The Sandman and more)

Michael was already an artistic badass when he stepped onto the scene in the mid-1980s, one of the comic book industry's most creatively fertile periods. Yet he still managed to distinguish himself as something of a rare bird among his peers, owing in no small part to his unique style, penchant for naturalistic detail, and eyebrow-raising skill set, among o Solomon's Mine of other notable qualities. He was the real deal, consistently all in on everything he did. It saddens me to think he has vacated the premises and moved on to better realms, leaving us all the poorer for his absence. —John Totleben (Swamp Thing)

Michael Zulli was an artist whose life was a work of art. A man of boundless kindness with endless appreciation for the beauty of nature, and a depthless desire to share that love with us all. – Colleen Doran (The Sandman) 

In the times I've had the pleasure to work with Michael Zulli, I found him always to be a gentleman, a gentle man, and an amazing artist who cared passionately about his wonderful art and, perhaps as importantly, how it could best serve the story being told. A fantastic fellow whom I'm saddened to think I will never again discuss the finer points of obscure Victoriana with. — James Robinson (The Shade, Witchcraft: La Terreur)

You only have to glance at Michael Zulh's art to see how talented he was. He was passionate about his work and thoughtful and mystical, but also very down-to-earth and extremely funny. I'm really glad we got to collaborate with each other, and I miss him. let's do it all again in the next life, Zed! —Peter Hogan (The Sandman Presents: Love Street)

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