Bernie Wrightson obit

Bernie Wrightson, Comic Book Artist and Swamp Thing Co-Creator, Dies at 68

"His masterful, evocative line work was simply unparalleled," wrote DC co-publisher Jim Lee on Twitter.

 He was not on the list.

Bernie Wrightson, the acclaimed comic book artist and co-creator of DC’s Swamp Thing, has died after a battle with brain cancer. He was 68.

His wife Liz Wrightson shared a remembrance of her husband on the Austin-based artist’s website Sunday.

Wrightson’s career dates to 1968’s House of Mystery No. 168. In addition to creating Swamp Thing with writer Len Wein, he and Marv Wolfman co-created Destiny, who would later become a mainstay of Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman.

After leaving DC,  Wrightson worked for National Lampoon and created illustrations for a number of novels, including editions of Frankenstein and Stephen King’s Cycle of the Werewolf, The Stand, From a Buick 8 and Dark Tower V. He also illustrated the comic book adaptation of King’s movie collaboration with George A Romero, Creepshow  (1982). As a conceptual artist, he worked on films such as Ghostbusters, Galaxy Quest and Spider-Man.

Recent work includes a collaboration with 30 Days of Night creator Steve Niles for the three-issue comic book series Frankenstein Alive, Alive!

In addition to his wife, Wrightson is survived by by two sons, John and Jeffrey, and one stepson, Thomas Adamson.