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Jill Thompson

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For the American educator and politician, see Jill Long Thompson.
Jill Thompson
Thompson at the 2011 New York Comic Con.
Born (1966-11-20) November 20, 1966 (age 57)
NationalityAmerican
Area(s)Writer and Illustrator
Notable works
The Sandman
Scary Godmother
Beasts of Burden

Jill Thompson (born November 20, 1966)[1] is an American illustrator and writer who has worked for stage, film, and television. Well known for her work on Neil Gaiman's The Sandman characters and her own Scary Godmother series, she has worked on The Invisibles, Swamp Thing, and Wonder Woman as well.

Early life

Thompson attended The American Academy of Art in Chicago, graduating in 1987 with a degree in Illustration and Watercolor.[2]

Career

Thompson illustrating in her sketchbook

Jill Thompson began her comics career working for such publishers as First Comics and Now Comics in the 1980s.[3] She became the artist of DC Comics' Wonder Woman series in 1990.[4] Her work on the "Chalk Drawings" story in Wonder Woman #46 (Sept. 1990) drew praise from writer George Pérez who stated "It was a good, quiet story, and I think Jill and I worked really well together on that one."[5] Thompson illustrated the Brief Lives story arc in The Sandman issues #41–49,[6] and the story "The Parliament of Rooks" in issue #40 (part of the Fables and Reflections collection).[7] Within this tale she created the characters Li'l Death and Li'l Morpheus, childlike versions of two of the Endless based on classic comic characters Sugar and Spike.

She has since written and illustrated several stories featuring the Sandman characters. These include the manga-style book Death: At Death's Door, one of DC's best selling books of 2003,[8] set during the events of Season of Mists, and The Little Endless Storybook, a children's book using childlike versions of the Endless.[9] In 2005 Thompson wrote and illustrated the Dead Boy Detectives, an original graphic novel based on two minor characters from Season of Mists.[4]

Thompson designs the ring attire for WWE wrestler Daniel Bryan.[10]

Thompson created the comic book series Scary Godmother, originally published by Sirius Entertainment and later by Dark Horse Comics. The books spawned two television specials: Scary Godmother Halloween Spooktacular, which aired in foreign countries in 2003 before being picked up by Cartoon Network in 2004.[11] This was followed by Scary Godmother: The Revenge of Jimmy in 2005. Both were animated using CGI. Thompson did scripting for the project and maintained a measure of creative control. In 2003, the merchandising rights to Scary Godmother reverted to Thompson, allowing her to proceed with plans to create a Scary Godmother fashion doll for which she promoted a successful Kickstarter campaign.[12]

Thompson was a body model for other comics artists, and uses herself as the basis for several characters in her work, most notably as the original model for Scary Godmother.[13] Her likeness has been used by P. Craig Russell in his graphic novel The Magic Flute,[14] and many other works by Russell. In a 2012 interview, she said,"For his Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight story "Hothouse", I was this evil doctor, or someone who was manipulating Poison Ivy...He used me for operas and things, like Brunhilda and Ring of the Nibelung."[15] Alex Ross used her likeness for the character Duela Dent in Kingdom Come.[16][17]

Thompson is a featured interview in the film Ringers: Lord of the Fans, a documentary about The Lord of the Rings fandom.[18] She was also interviewed for the film She Makes Comics, a documentary about the history of women in the comics industry.[19]

In 2015, Thompson was ranked fourth in the "Top 50 Female Comic Book Artists" poll conducted by Comic Book Resources.[20]

In April 2022, Thompson was reported among the more than three dozen comics creators who contributed to Operation USA's benefit anthology book, Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds, a project spearheaded by editor Scott Dunbier, whose profits would be donated to relief efforts for Ukrainian refugees resulting from the February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[21][22]

In The Sandman: Act III audiobook adaptation of the graphic novel series, Jill Thompson performed the role of Etain, a character she drew in the comic book series.[23]

Personal life

Thompson studied improvisation comedy at Chicago's The Players Workshop and The Second City Training Center. She performed for four years with the Cleveland Improv Troupe.[24]

Thompson is an avid gardener and holds a Master Gardener Certificate from the Chicago-based Extension program.[25]

Thompson was formerly married to writer Brian Azzarello, but Azzarello mentioned in a 2021 interview that they were no longer together.[16][26]

Awards and honors

Thompson has won multiple Eisner Awards, including in 2001 for best painter for Scary Godmother, 2004 for "Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)" for her work on The Dark Horse Book of Hauntings,[27] and in 2005 for "Best Short Story" for Unfamiliar (from The Dark Horse Book of the Dead) with Evan Dorkin.[28] In 2011 the National Cartoonist Society named her Best Comic Book Artist for Beasts of Burden.[29]

She was nominated for Lulu of the Year in 1998[30] and won in 1999.[31]

National Cartoonists Society Award

  • 2011 Best Comic Book Artist Beasts of Burden[32]

Eisner Awards:

  • 2000 Best Humor Publication Bart Simpson's Treehouse of Horror (group award) 2000[33]
  • 2001 Best Painter/Multimedia Scary Godmother (interior art)[34]
  • 2001 Best Title for a Younger Audience Scary Godmother: The Boo Flu[34]
  • 2004 Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art) "Stray" The Dark Horse Book of Hauntings[35]
  • 2005 Best Short Story, "Unfamiliar" The Dark Horse Book of Witchcraft Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson 2005[36]
  • 2007 Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art) "A Dog and His Boy" The Dark Horse Book of Monsters (etc.)[37]

Eisner Award nominations:

  • 1998 Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition[38]
  • 1998 Best Graphic Album-New Scary Godmother[38]
  • 1998 Best Publication Design Scary Godmother[38]
  • 2000 Best Painter/Multimedia Scary Godmother: The Mystery Date[33]
  • 2004 Best Anthology The Dark Horse Book Of Hauntings (group award)[35]

Bibliography

Comics

Comico

  • The Elementals #13, 20, 23–25, 27–29 (1987–1988)
  • Fathom #1–3 (1987)

First Comics

DC Comics

Marvel Comics

Topps Comics

Dark Horse Comics

  • The Badger: Shattered Mirror
  • The Dark Horse Book of...:
    • Hauntings: "Stray" (2003)
    • Witchcraft: "The Unfamiliar" (2004)
    • The Dead: "Let Sleeping Dogs Lie" (2005)
    • Monsters: "A Dog and His Boy" (2006)
  • Beasts of Burden #1–4 (2009)[39]
  • Hellboy/Beasts of Burden (2010)
  • Beasts of Burden: Neighborhood Watch (2012)
  • Beasts of Burden: Hunters and Gatherers (2014)
  • Beasts of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In (2016)

Sirius Entertainment

  • Scary Godmother books (all creator/writer/illustrator):
  • Scary Godmother comics:
    • Scary Godmother: My Bloody Valentine (1998)
    • Scary Godmother Holiday Spooktakular (1998)
    • Scary Godmother Activity book (2000)
    • Scary Godmother: Wild About Harry (2000)
    • Scary Godmother: Ghoul’s Out for Summer (2000–2001)

Bongo Comics

Caliber Comics

Scholastic

Other material

Harper Collins Children's Books

Created by, written and illustrated by Thompson:

  • Magic Trixie (2008)
  • Magic Trixie Sleeps Over (2008)
  • Magic Trixie and the Dragon (2009)
  • The Curse of the Royal Ruby: A Rinnah Two Feathers Mystery (as illustrator)
  • The Secret of Dead Man's Mine: A Rinnah Two Feathers Mystery (as illustrator)
  • Mick Foley's Halloween Hijinx (as illustrator)
  • Tales from Wrescal Lane (as illustrator)

Stageplay

Adaptation/ co-writer, art director, set designer:

  • Scary Godmother 2001 at the Athanaeum Theatre in Chicago with Runamuck Productions

Film

Actor, "Aunt Lindsay":

Scary Godmother Animated Specials

With Mainframe Entertainment:

References

  1. ^ Miller, John Jackson (June 10, 2005). "Comics Industry Birthdays". Comics Buyer's Guide. Iola, Wisconsin. Archived from the original on February 18, 2011.
  2. ^ Rockford Register Star staff. (November 7, 2005). "Meet a couple of comic book creators". The Rockford Register Star. p. 1E
  3. ^ "Jill Thompson". Lambiek Comiclopedia. April 28, 2014. Archived from the original on December 30, 2013.
  4. ^ a b Jill Thompson at the Grand Comics Database
  5. ^ Nolen-Weathington, Eric (2003). Modern Masters Volume 2: George Pérez. Raleigh, North Carolina: TwoMorrows Publishing. p. 57. ISBN 978-1893905252.
  6. ^ Bender, Hy (1999). The Sandman Companion. New York, New York: DC Comics. pp. 173–174. ISBN 978-1563894657.
  7. ^ Burgas, Greg (January 7, 2013). "Comics You Should Own – Sandman". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on April 10, 2014.
  8. ^ Arnold, Andrew D. (February 16, 2004). "Drawing In the Gals; Move over, guys. Graphics for girls are the hot new genre in Japanese comics". Time. p. 97
  9. ^ Cowsill, Alan; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "2000s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 300. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9. The Little Endless Storybook, written and lovingly illustrated by Jill Thompson in the style of a young children's picture book, told the story of the Endless' Delirium and her dog, Barnabas. {{cite book}}: |first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ Waters, Luis (December 13, 2011). "Jill Thompson dresses an "American Dragon"". Archived from the original on January 7, 2012. Retrieved June 24, 2012. Legendary comic artist Jill Thompson has been busy designing ring attire for WWE superstar, Daniel Bryan.
  11. ^ Borrelli, Christopher (June 30, 2017). "Meet one of the women behind Wonder Woman comics". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on August 9, 2018.
  12. ^ Wilson, Matt D. (August 29, 2013). "Contribute To Jill Thompson's New Kickstarter, Get A Fancy 'Scary Godmother' Doll". ComicsAlliance. Archived from the original on March 11, 2016.
  13. ^ Thompson, Jill (September 12, 2013). "The Scary Godmother Doll". Kickstarter. Archived from the original on January 6, 2014.
  14. ^ Thompson, Jill (August 18, 2010). "A panel from The Magic Flute by P. Craig Russell". Twitter. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Archive requires scrolldown.
  15. ^ Irving, Christopher (January 30, 2012). "Getting Scary, Cheery and Chatty with Jill Thompson". NYC Graphic. Archived from the original on December 21, 2013.
  16. ^ a b Cronin, Brian (April 17, 2008). "Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #151". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on July 31, 2013. Retrieved August 31, 2013. In Kingdom Come, Alex Ross DID specifically use [Jill] Thompson as the model for Joker's Daughter (and her husband, Brian Azzarello, as the basis for another character, the villain 666).
  17. ^ Nevins, Jess (December 18, 2000). "Kingdom Come #1 Annotations". Annotations And Other Pursuits. Archived from the original on October 26, 2009.
  18. ^ "Ringers: Lord of the Fans". TheOneRing.net. 2005. Archived from the original on January 22, 2013.
  19. ^ Steiner, Chelsea (January 28, 2015). "She Makes Comics is a celebration of women in the comics industry". After Ellen. Archived from the original on May 3, 2016.
  20. ^ Cronin, Brian (March 21, 2015). "Top 50 Female Comic Book Writers and Artists Master List". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on June 26, 2019. What's absolutely fascinating to me about Jill Thompson is that she is one of the few artists who have become a star artist using two fairly dramatically different art styles.
  21. ^ Kaplan, Rebecca O. (April 18, 2022). "ZOOP launches benefit anthology COMICS FOR UKRAINE: SUNFLOWER SEEDS". The Beat. Archived from the original on April 18, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  22. ^ Brooke, David (April 18, 2022). "'Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds' to benefit Ukrainian refugees". AIPT. Archived from the original on April 26, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  23. ^ https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Sandman-Act-III-Audiobook/B0BFK1K36D?qid=1699483372&sr=1-2&ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_2&pf_rd_p=83218cca-c308-412f-bfcf-90198b687a2f&pf_rd_r=ZY1D98NSGNWSGRPSADGM&pageLoadId=p8zsp25zMgVhxmmj&ref_plink=not_applicable&creativeId=0d6f6720-f41c-457e-a42b-8c8dceb62f2c
  24. ^ Thompson, Jill (n.d.). "Basic Info". Facebook.
  25. ^ "Jill Thompson at Crimespree Booth at Chicago Comic Con". Crimespreemag.com. August 9, 2010. Archived from the original on January 6, 2014.
  26. ^ John Siuntres (2021-02-22). "Word Balloon Comics Podcast: Brian Azzarello Checks In". Spreaker (Podcast). Event occurs at 53:25. Retrieved 2023-02-21.
  27. ^ Price, Matthew. (July 30, 2004). "Endless Nights wins Eisner Awards". The Oklahoman. p. 11D
  28. ^ Price, Matthew. (July 29, 2005). "Eisner awards honor comic book excellence". The Oklahoman. p. 13D
  29. ^ Gold, Mike (May 29, 2011). "National Cartoonist Society Winners Announced". ComicMix. Archived from the original on August 15, 2011.
  30. ^ "Friends of Lulu 1998 Lulu Awards". Hahn Library Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012.
  31. ^ "Friends of Lulu 1999 Lulu Awards". Hahn Library Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012.
  32. ^ "Jill Thompson receives National Cartoonists Society Award". Dark Horse Comics. June 2, 2011. Archived from the original on March 14, 2013.
  33. ^ a b "2000 Will Eisner Comic Industry Award Nominees and Winners". Hahn Library Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013.
  34. ^ a b "2001 Will Eisner Comic Industry Award Nominees and Winners". Hahn Library Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013.
  35. ^ a b "2004 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards". Hahn Library Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013.
  36. ^ "2005 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards". Hahn Library Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on September 22, 2013.
  37. ^ "2007 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards". Hahn Library Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013.
  38. ^ a b c "1998 Will Eisner Comic Industry Award Nominees". Hahn Library Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013.
  39. ^ Manning, Shaun (June 25, 2010). "Behind the Beasts of Burden HC". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on January 6, 2014.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jill Thompson.
Preceded by Wonder Woman vol. 2 artist
1990–1992 		Succeeded by
Preceded by The Sandman artist
1992–1993 		Succeeded by
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