Influential Comic Book Artist, Nick Cardy, Dies

By James Robert Shaw (The Wind up Geek)

Nick Cardy, famed DC comic book artist and war veteran passed away in Florida’s Sarasota Memorial Hospital, he was 93.

According to Comicbook.com, The Perhapanauts artist Craig Rosseau told fans two days ago via Facebook that Cardy had been admitted to the Intensive Care Ward, and asked for thoughts and prayers. Later, The Perhapanauts writer Todd Dezago shared a status from his niece, who said that Cardy’s heart and lungs had fluid in them. According to Dezago’s niece, Dezago has flown down to the Sarasota Memorial Hospital to see Cardy.

At about 7pm PST today, Eisner Award-winning comic book writer and editor, Mark Waid, tweeted:

“RIP Nick Cardy, a great man, a good soul, and a breathtaking artist. Lucky to have known him.”

The New York native admitted he had no formal education because his family were poor. Yet it was at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art where Cardy learned of the great artists of their day. He was particularly influenced by the Renaissance artists Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, and the Baroque artist, Rembrandt.

During World War II, Cardy made intricate sketches and watercolours during his three years of driving a military tank through Europe.

“..I did a lot of sketches in a 3×5 notebook. I had about 20 of those in my backpack. Whenever I saw something I drew it and I tore the pages out and put them in cellophane to keep them.” said Cardy in a phone interview with Katherine Brooks of the Huffington Post.

That experience was published earlier this year by Titan Books, it was titled “Nick Cardy: The Artist at War.”

After the war, Cardy started work in the mid-1950’s at DC Comics. It was at DC he made his mark by working on such notable titles as Aquaman, Teen Titans, Detective Comics, Action Comics, Wonder Woman and many of DC’s popular horror series.

Even though he was paid $60-65 for his comic work during his early years with DC, in 2000, one of his original comic works was sold at auction for $19, 000.

In the mid-1970’s Cardy left comic books behind for the more lucrative work of magazine art and ad illustrations.

In 2005, he was inducted into the comic book industry’s Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame.

Source(s): Russ Burlingame, Comicbook.com, Huffington Post, Mark Waid, Katherine Brooks.

See what others have tweeted about Nick Cardy: