Howard Mackie got his start at Marvel during the late 1980s as an editor and then a writer. One of his first series as full-time scribe was 1990’s massively popular Ghost Rider, which introduced the alter ego Danny Ketch to the mythos of the Spirit of Vengeance. He also wrote prolifically in the Spider-Man and X-Men titles of the ’90s.
After a stint on Incredible Hulk with writer Peter David, artist Todd McFarlane moved to Amazing Spider-Man, where he and writer David Michelinie introduced Venom. Achieving a devoted following with his then-experimental style of unconventional panel layouts, extreme close-ups and other innovations, McFarlane became both writer and artist on a new series, titled simply Spider-Man. He later joined several fellow industry prodigies to form Image Comics. McFarlane’s major contribution was Spawn, the demonic mercenary whose first-issue sales of 1.7 million copies remain a benchmark for an independent. His other industry credits include DC’s Infinity Inc. and “Batman: Year Two” in Detective Comics. He has earned the Inkpot Award, the National Cartoonists Society’s Award for Best Comic Book and the NFL’s Artist of the Year Award for designing the Baltimore Ravens’ program covers. In addition to the Image subsidiary Todd McFarlane Productions, he heads McFarlane Toys and Todd McFarlane Entertainment, and is producer of a Spawn film and an award-winning animated series.
Roy Thomas joined the Marvel Bullpen as a writer and editor under Stan Lee, scripting key runs of nearly every title of the time: Amazing Spider-Man, Avengers, Daredevil, Doctor Strange, Sub-Mariner, Thor, X-Men and more. He wrote the first 10 years of Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian and Savage Sword of Conan; and launched such series as Defenders, Iron Fist, Invaders and Warlock. At DC, he developed All-Star Squadron, Infinity Inc. and related titles, proving instrumental in reviving the Golden Age Justice Society of America. Thomas later became editor of Alter Ego, a magazine devoted to comic-book history, and co-scripted the sword-and-sorcery films Fire and Ice and Conan the Destroyer.
Javier Saltares created a name for himself as both an inker and a pencil artist. His comics career started on New Universe titles such as Psi-Force, Justice and D.P. 7 — but in 1990, with penciler and future brother-in-law Mark Texeira, Saltares helped create the intense visual style that made Ghost Rider one of the most popular comics of the decade. In recent years, after a turn drawing G.I. Joe for Devil’s Due, Saltares returned to Marvel, re-teaming with Texeira on Wolverine and the Ghost Rider revival by writer Daniel Way.
Mark Texeira worked on Marvel’s New Universe titles, including Psi-Force and Kickers, Inc., and other books — but his reputation caught fire in the early 1990s as a revamped Ghost Rider returned the character to fan-favorite status. Texeira helped introduce Black Panther to Marvel Knights in an acclaimed run, and his art has long been a regular sight for Marvel readers — particularly on gritty characters like Wolverine, Moon Knight, Punisher and a return to Ghost Rider.
Larry Stroman penciled X-Factor during the early ’90s before beginning work on his creator-owned title Tribe. His work on notable comics characters includes Uncanny X-Men, Black Panther and the Heroes Reborn version of Iron Man for Marvel; DC’s Darkstars; and Wildstorm’s WildC.A.T.s. Stroman recently returned to the pages of X-Factor, re-teaming with author Peter David for a well-received story arc.
