Every once in a while a public figure will pass on and it will feel deeply personal to you. For me, one of those happened last Sunday. Mike Wieringo, whom you may know from his work on Flash with Mark Waid, most recently Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man with Peter David, or if nothing else, take a look at those preview pages below for Mike’s work on Tellos with Todd Dezago, a great work. Honestly one of my favorites. On Sunday, he passed away of heart failure. At only 44 years old, it was certainly an untimely loss, but at any age, it’s a shame that so many people will not have a chance to see his beautiful work.
I’ve only had the luck to meet him twice, both at conventions, both on a busy floor. One of those times I got a sketch. The other time I got a couple issues of Tellos signed and shook his hand and told him how much I enjoyed his work. Neither one a really stand out meeting event, but he was an extremely nice both times.
He was one of those artists that when I was thinking of how my comics would look I’d picture them in his style. I hoped to one day work with him, but now I and many other creators will never have a chance, but I will still love his work.
Here’s to you, Mike. And say hi to Kirby for me. I’m sure you’ll have fun sharing sketches.