This week the news in the comics world was really dominated by a single topic, the passing of legendary penciler and writer George Pérez. While this news was not unexpected after Pérez announced last year that he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, the expectation does not make the hurt any less.
George Pérez passed away on Friday, May 6, 2022 at the age of 67 after a short fight with pancreatic cancer. He was surrounded by family and loved ones and passed away painlessly. The fact that he passed away on a day that so many that were touched by his work would be preoccupied with participating in Free Comic Book Day did not go unnoticed, and surely for many, it took some of the sting out of the news.
Pérez had been a fixture in mainstream U.S. comics for nearly 50 years, leaving his mark on almost every major character in DC and Marvel’s universes. His work sparked joy in millions of people whether they knew it or not because his creations were the basis for things like Infinity War, the Teen Titans cartoons, and CW’s Crisis on Infinite Earths. In comics, he was best known for tackling books that other artists tended to shy away from — the team book. Pérez loved to draw vast casts, whether it be in the pages of New Teen Titans, Avengers, or epic universe-defining crossovers like Crisis on Infinite Earths and The Infinity Gauntlet.
But most of all, the thing I’ll remember about George Pérez is how kind of a man he was. I had the fortune of meeting him twice, both at Denver Comic Con. He was a man who would sign as many comics as you brought him, sometimes getting distracted by the contents of those comics and telling his fans stories about them. He was always happy to take pictures with fans too, especially those who were in cosplay. The man loved cosplayers and their passion. He woefully undercharged for his convention sketches, because his time with fans was more valuable to him than the money he could have made on a five-minute sketch. When I got my sketches from him he told me that he charged $40 for them because his fans did not accept that he had been only charging $20 and kept giving him $40 anyway. He refused to go higher than that because he didn’t want to break $20s that people got from the ATM.
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Me and George Perez at Denver Comic Con 2014 Eight years ago today as I’m writing this on Sunday morning, I got my first tattoo, a George Pérez drawn Supergirl on my calf. I excitedly shared it on his fan page that day, and a month later at Denver Comic Con, I got to show him. He excitedly exclaimed, “Oh you’re the one with the leg!”
Pérez passed away only eight days after the industry lost another art titan in Neal Adams, and the loss of both in such a short time is gutting.
Rest peacefully George, you’ll live on through your work forever, and our memories of you will continue to bring us happiness. Thank you for a brilliant life.
