May 14, 2016: Comic Writer/Artist Darwyn Cooke Passes Away

by Neil Cole

Eisner award winning Canadian comic book writer, artist, cartoonist and animator Darwyn Cooke has passed away at the age of 53 following a battle with cancer.

Cooke was known for his work on such comic book titles as Catwoman, DC: The New Frontier, The Spirit and Richard Stark's Parker: The Hunter.

He worked as a storyboard artist for Batman: The Animated Series and Superman: The Animated Series, and in 1999 he animated the main title design for Batman Beyond. He then worked as a director for Sony Animation's Men in Black: The Series for a year.

In 2001, Cooke and writer Ed Brubaker revamped the Catwoman character. They started with a four-issue serial "Trail of the Catwoman" in Detective Comics #759–762 in which private detective Slam Bradley attempts to investigate the death of Selina Kyle (aka Catwoman). The story led into a new Catwoman title in late 2001 by Brubaker and Cooke, in which the character's costume, supporting cast and modus operandi were all redesigned and redeveloped.

Cooke's next project was the DC: The New Frontier (2004), a six issue miniseries which bridged the gap between the end of the golden and the start of the silver age of comic books in the DC Universe. The story, which was set in the 1950s, featured dozens of super-hero characters and drew inspiration from the comic books and movies of the period.

In 2008, the story was released as a direct-to-DVD animated movie by Warner Bros. Animation and DC Comics. Cooke co-wrote the film with Stan Berkowitz and also provided art direction. The movie was produced by Bruce Timm.

In April 2014, Darwyn Cooke released a Batman Beyond animated short celebrating the 75th anniversary of Batman.

Cooke passed away on the morning of May 14, 2016. He is survived by his wife Marsha and his brother Dennis.



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