Walt Simonson

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Walter "Walt" Simonson (born September 2, 1946) is an American comic book writer and artist best known for his run on Marvel Comics' Thor from 1983 to 1987, during which he created the character Beta Ray Bill.

He is also known for his creator-owned Star Slammers, which he began in 1972 as a Rhode Island School of Design thesis.

He has worked on other Marvel comics, including X-Factor and Fantastic Four, as well as DC Comics' Detective Comics, Manhunter, Metal Men, and Orion, as well as Star Wars, Alien, Battlestar Galactica, and Robocop vs. Terminator. Simonson has received numerous accolades for his work, as well as influences artists such as Arthur Adams and Todd McFarlane. Louise Simonson, a comics writer, with whom he worked on X-Factor from 1988 to 1989, and with whom he made a cameo appearance in the 2011 Thor feature film.

Early life

Walter Simonson was born September 2, 1946 in Knoxville, Tennessee, and spent two and a half years there. Simonson, his younger brother, and his parents migrated to Maryland, where Simonson's parents were still living as of 1989. He worked for the United States Department of Agriculture, but not at that time. Simonson first read comics as a kid, thanks to Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, which his brother had purchased. He was a huge fan of Carl Barks', Little Lulu, Little Iodine, and Alex Toth's Land Unknown by the age of ten. He also loved drawing from a young age. Despite being oblivious to see girls buying comics as a kid, Russ Manning's Magnus Robot Fighter was discovered right before he started college and submitted a drawing that was published in issue #10 in May, 1965, "Robot Gallery." This was his first published comic book.

Simonson studied geology at Amherst College with the intention of becoming a dinosaur expert. Simonson, 1964 or 1965, discovered Marvel Comics, in particular that company's Thor's version. Simonson's favorite title was already an interest in Norse mythology prior to reading Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's take on the hammer-wielding deity, and it became Simonson's favorite subject, one he read for four years. Despite harboring a passion for the former that ruled the remainder of his life, he discovered that drawing comics was more enjoyable and more appropriate as a career than working outdoors in hot weather as a geologist or paleontologist. Simonson was heavily influenced by the artists who created them, including Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, and Gil Kane, as well as British artist Jim Holdaway, Antonio Hernandez Palacios, and Sergio Toppi. Simonson began writing his own epic story about Lee and Kirby's interpretation of the character, which also included Surtur and the Odinsword in 1967. He'll have the opportunity to publish this article in the future as the writer on the story.

Simonson, who earned a bachelor's degree in Geology, took a year off and then enrolled at Rhode Island School of Design, graduating in 1972. His thesis project was The Star Slammers, a 50-page black and white book that took him two years to write, pencil, letter, and ink himself, and it was first published as a series of ashcan promotional 5.5" x 8.5" b&w chapter booklets from 1971–1973 in Washington, D.C. (DisCon II). Simonson would later resurrect Star Slammers during his career, releasing it through many publishers over the decades.

Personal life

In 1973, Simonson met Louise Jones, his future wife. The couple married in 1980 after starting dating in August 1974 and becoming married in 1980.

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Career

Simonson travelled to New York in August 1972 with his Star Slammers portfolio, where many young artists had started working in the 1970s, as Simonson recalls. Simonson and editor Archie Goodwin met in Boudreau for a meeting. Simonson escorted to the DC coffee room, where he saw Howard Chaykin, Michael Kaluta, Berni Wrightson, and Alan Weiss together, after a Goodwin coffee break. Simonson started a chat with the artist, who took a look at his portfolio. Kaluta displayed Simonson's work to Assistant Production Manager Jack Adler, who in turn showed it to DC Publisher Carmine Infantino, who then summoned Simonson into his office after being shown the portfolio. Goodwin and his fellow editors Julius Schwartz and Joe Orlando were given Simonson's work after being on a ten-minute chat with Simonson. Simonson walked out of Infantino's office with jobs from each one of them.

Simonson lived in the same Queens apartment building as artists Allen Milgrom, Howard Chaykin, and Bernie Wrightson at one time. "We'd get together at 3 a.m." Simonson says. They'd arrived, and we'd have popcorn and sit around and discuss whatever a 26, 27-year-old guy and his girlfriends were dreaming about. You name it, our art, television, and movies. "These are the good ole days," I pretty much remember at the time.

Simonson's first published comic book illustration was illustrated by Len Wein's book "Cyrano's Army," which appeared in DC's Weird War Tales #10, which was cover-dated January 1973. The bulk of Simonson's early published work was based on such short back-up war stories. He also created several illustrations for The Hobbit's Harry N. Abrams, Inc., and at least one unrelated print of a samurai warrior, which was purchased by Harvard University's Fogg Museum and included in the university's annual undergraduate-use loan program. "Manhunter," Simonson's breakthrough illustration assignment, was a back-up feature in DC's Detective Comics, which boosted Simonson's professional reputation. "What 'Manhunter' did was to establish me professionally," Simonson remembered in a 2000 interview. I was one more guy doing comedy before 'Manhunter,'; people in the field knew who I was.' It had received a few awards throughout the year, and after that, I had no problem finding jobs." Simonson also created Doctor Phosphorus with Steve Englehart, as well as Metal Men and Hercules Unbound. Simonson and writer David Vern Reed's story was included in Batman #300 (June 1978). Simonson and Goodwin collaborated on a 1979 Simonson and Goodwin tribute to Alien's film release by Heavy Metal. Simonson began his long working relationship with letter writer John Workman, who would go on to write the bulk of Simonson's letters.

Simonson was the pioneer on The Rampaging Hulk, a black-and-white magazine distributed by Marvel's Curtis Magazines line, beginning in January 1977. Simonson was also on Thor at this point, but only as the series' artist alongside writer Len Wein. Upstart Associates, a shared studio space on West 29th Street in New York City, was founded by Simonson, Howard Chaykin, Val Mayerik, and Jim Starlin in late 1978. With time, the studio's membership changed.

Simonson did writing and art on a book for the first time in 1979, while writing 12 sporadic issues with writer Roger McKenzie from Issue #4 to 23, as part of Marvel's licensed Battlestar Galactica series. After McKenzie left McKenzie's book, Simonson co-wrote some chapters with Bob Layton and Steven Grant, and continued writing the book himself with issue #19, which lasted until issue #233.

Simonson and writer Chris Claremont created The Uncanny X-Men and The New Teen Titans intercompany crossover between the top-selling Marvel and DC titles in 1982.

Simonson is best known for his drawing of Thor, which he began writing and drawing with issue #337 (Nov. 1983). Simonson converted Thor into a frog for three issues and introduced supporting character Beta Ray Bill, an alien warrior who unexpectedly proved worthy to wield Thor's hammer, Mjolnir, when he first began writing in college in 1967. With issue #367 (May 1986), he left the book as an artist, which Sal Buscema took over. Simonson continued to write the book until issue #382 (Aug. 1987). Simonson's tales, Buscema, were described as "very entertaining." It was a pleasure to work on his stories because they were so much fun to illustrate. He had a lot of good ideas, but Thor took a completely new direction." "I had a really busy season over the last six to eight months, and I'd like to take a break and refuel a little," Thor said.

Simonson had intended to write a Daredevil tale by Frank Miller, but it was never finished and remains unpublished. With issue #10, Simonson and his wife Louise appeared on the X-Factor film. In #25, the designers gave the character the Angel blue skin and metal wings in a process that would result in his name being changed to "Archangel" in the future. The X-Factor's run featured the story arcs "Mutant Massacre," "All of the Mutants," and "Inferno."

He returned to Star Slammers in 1983 with another version of the tale that Marvel published in Marvel Graphic Novel No. 69. 6.

In late 1986, Simonson joined Upstart Associates.

Simonson was the author of the Fantastic Four on Dec. 1989, but three issues later began penciling and inking as well (#337). He collaborated with Arthur Adams on the "New Fantastic Four," which features Wolverine, Spider-Man, Ghost Rider, and the Hulk, for issues #347-349. He illustrated dinosaurs with feathers in issue #345, two decades before this theory gained widespread acceptance among paleontologists. Simonson's choice to depict dinosaurs in this way was inspired by Gregory S. Paul's then-controversial book Predatory Dinosaurs of the World, in which Paul claimed that dinosaurs had feathers. Since this theory was met with suspicion from the scientific community at the time, Simonson decided to compromise by depicting the dinosaurs with a small amount of feathers rather than covering them. With issue #354 (July 1991), Simonson joined the Fantastic Four. In 1992, he wrote and illustrated the one-shot Superman Special #1 for DC. In the decade, he served as co-writer/writer on the Iron Man 2020 one-shot (June 1994) and co-authored the Heroes Reborn version of The Avengers.

Simonson continued the Star Slammers' adventures in 1994 in a limited series as one of the creators of Malibu Comics' short-lived Bravura.

Simonson spent most of his time with DC Comics in the 2000s. He wrote and illustrated Orion from 2000 to 2002. He wrote six issues of Wonder Woman (vol.) after the series came to an end. Jerry Ordway created a second page. In 2002, he contributed to Panel Discussions, a nonfiction book about the emergence of sequential art and narrative literature, as well as Durwin Talon, Will Eisner, Mike Mignola, and Mark Schultz.

He drew the four-issue prestige mini-series Elric: The Making of a Sorcerer, written by Elric's creator, Michael Moorcock, from 2003 to 2006. In 2007, DC launched this collection as a 192-page graphic novel. Howard Chaykin, Joe Bennett, and Renato Arlem all continued to work in Washington, DC in 2006.

He has also written a Wildstorm comic book series based on the online role-playing game World of Warcraft, as well as designing cover art for a Bat Lash mini-series and the continuing series Vigilante. Louise Simonson, a warcraft author, co-written with his wife, #15 on co-written 25 issues. In 2009, he wrote the Demon and Catwoman serial in Wednesday Comics.

Simonson appeared in the live-action Thor film in 2011, as one of the guests at a large Asgardian banquet. Malekith the Accursed was featured in Simonson's sequel Thor: The Dark World.

Simonson is a member of The Hero Initiative, a comic-book industry charity.

Among the 2010s' other projects included drawing six issues of The Avengers vol. In 2012, they were 4 in 2012 and were in charge of three issues of The Indestructible Hulk, which guest starred Thor. In Rocketeer Adventures vol. 1, Simonson collaborated with his wife for a short story. During this time, Rocketeer comics were # 2 and drew covers for many Rocketeer comics.

The Judas Coin, a graphic novel written and drawn by Simonson, was released in 2012 by DC Comics. The book reveals how one silver coin paid to Judas to betray Jesus. The book also includes Batman.

The first issue of IDW Publishing in July 2014 published the first issue of Simonson's creator-owned series Ragnarök, which depicts a version of Thor that is unrelated to the Marvel version of the deity. It appeared in twelve issues before 2017, and was followed by the six-issue mini-series Ragnarök: The Breaking of Helheim, which was also written and drawn by Simonson.

Walt Simonson revisited his X-Factor experience in 2021 by providing covers and artwork for a two-issue X-Factor story in X-Men Legends, directed by his wife Louise Simonson, who had also written his own series.

Simonson and his wife Louise were among the more than three dozen comics creators included in Operation USA's benefit anthology book, Comics for Ukraine, which was a project initiated by IDW Publishing Special Projects Editor Scott Dunbier, whose proceeds will be donated to help Ukrainian refugees fleeing Ukraine's devastating Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Simonson's contribution was a tale starring the Star Slammers, his first return to the property since the 1990s.

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Awards and honors

• Simonson's awards include Shazam Awards for Outstanding New Talent in 1973, for Best Individual Short Story (Dramatic) in 1973 for "The Himalayan Incident" in Detective Comics #437 (with Archie Goodwin), and the same award in 1974 for "Cathedral Perilous" in Detective Comics #441 (again with Archie Goodwin). Simonson and Goodwin also won the Shazam Award for Best Individual Story (Dramatic) in 1974 for "Götterdämmerung" in Detective Comics #443. All three winning stories were a part of the Manhunter saga.
• Simonson received an Inkpot Award in 1985.
• At the 2010 Harvey Awards, which were held at the Baltimore Comic-Con on August 28, 2010, Simonson received the 2010 Hero Initiative Lifetime Achievement Award. It was presented to him by his wife, Louise Simonson.
• A collection of Simonson's Thor comics shot from the original art, published as part of IDW's Artist's Edition series, took the 2012 Eisner Award for "Best Archival Collection/Project: Comic Books" and two Harvey Awards for "Best Domestic Reprint Project and a Special Award for Excellence in Presentation".
• Asteroid 53237 Simonson was named in his honor. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 31 January 2018 (M.P.C. 108697).
• In 2022, Simonson was awarded the Inkwell Awards All-in-One Award.