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A new volume promises a detailed look at the life and career of arguably the most influential comics creator of all time: Mr. Will Eisner.

Will Eisner: A Spirited Life by Bob Andelman.

Dark Horse comics' prose imprint M Press is proud to present a new biography on one of comics' true legends, Will Eisner. Will Eisner: A Spirited Life is the only authorised and extensively researched biography of Eisner over three years in the making.

Pictured: Mr Will Eisner, one of the founding fathers of the comic art world, is the subject of a new biography.

Chock full of entertaining anecdotes told by the comic industry's top talents, ‘A Spirited Life pays tribute to a true American original whose legacy will forever be felt not only in comic books and graphic novels but in commercial illustration, fine art, film, television and multimedia.

Pop Culture

The pop culture heavy world we live in today would never have been the same without the influence of the likes of Mr Will Eisner - and comics would be a very different genre indeed. Internationally recognised as the founding father of that utterly American medium: comic books - Eisner pioneered this art form in the 1940's, and continued to shape its direction until his passing at 87 years of age in 2006.

This personality-driven biography, written by Bob Andelman, explores the fascinating life of Eisner and details a career that stretched across six decades. Upon his death the tributes were many, varied and quick to come. Helen South, writing on About.com called him: “One of the real-life heroes of comic book art” and USA Today called his 16-page DC Comic's title The Spirit the “Citizen Kane of comics.”

Eisner spearheaded the cause of comics for adult readers - including 30 years spent producing comics for the U.S. Army and corporate clients such as General Motors and the United Nations - and in 1976 created the first widely accepted graphic novel: A Contract with God. It is another testimony to the man’s widely accepted status in this field that he has what most regard as the ‘Oscars’ of the comics world (the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards) bearing his name.

Influence

Eisner influenced some of the world's greatest comic art talent: Bob Kane (Batman); Jack Kirby (The Fantastic Four); Jules Feiffer; Dave Berg (Mad Magazine); and Joe Kubert (Tarzan). Eisner also inspired generations of modern artists and writers, including the likes of: Frank Miller (Sin City, mid-80s Daredevil and Elektra Assassin, The Dark Knight Returns), Robert Crumb, Harlan Ellison (TVs Star Trek), Brad Bird (The Incredibles) and Art Spiegelman (Maus and Maus II).

"As Will's authorised biographer, I spent the last three years with the artist in his studio and his home, as well as poring through his substantial archives at The Ohio State University Cartoon Research Library and interviewing dozens of his colleagues, friends and family," comments biographer Bob Andelman. "We should all be lucky enough to have left such consistent and positive impressions on so many people for so many years."

Tony Isabella, writing in Comics Buyer's Guide (October 2005) gives it '5 out of 5' and says: "...Andelman does justice to a man who is undisputedly one of comicdom's greatest creators. Reviewing this book from the uncorrected proof, I haven't seen the black-and-white illustrations which will accompany the text in the published work. Even without seeing them, I don't hesitate to proclaim Will Eisner: A Spirited Life as a must-have item for any serious devotee of the comics art form."

For further reading on the career – and loads of great black and white examples of the superb art of the man himself – see DC Comics’ hardback volume The Will Eisner Companion, written by N.C. Christopher Couch and Stephen Weiner.

Featuring an introduction by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Michael Chabon and an appreciation by Neal Adams, Will Eisner: A Spirited Life arrives on the shelves of US stores in September with a retail price of $14.95. The book is released by Dark Horse in the US. The UK release is through Hi Marketing Ltd/Diamond UK.

Now the third-largest comic-book publisher in the U.S Dark Horse Comics has proven - since 1986 - to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant.

In addition to publishing comics from top talent like Frank Miller (The Dark Knight Returns / The Dark Knight Strikes Back, Elektra Assassin, Sin City, 300, mid-80s Daredevil) Mike Mignola (Hellboy), Neil Gaiman (Neverwhere, Sandman), comics legend Will Eisner (The Spirit) as well as from lesser-known talent (Fluffy) Dark Horse is widely recognised as the world's leading publisher of licensed comics’ material. Their highly successful line-up of comics and products based on popular genre properties include: Star Wars, Aliens, Conan The Barbarian, Predator, The Thing, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Emily the Strange, Tim Burton, Trigun and The Incredibles.

For more information visit the Dark Horse Comics website at: www.darkhorse.com and see free online comics at: www.myspace.com/darkhorsepresents

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