Creators aroundtheInternet are reporting the same thing, and The Beat has confirmed with his agent: That
legendary artist Frank Frazetta has passed away at the age of 82.
Frazetta was well-known for his dynamic, rugged art on seminal comics
characters ranging from Conan the Barbarian to Shining Knight to
Vampirella. One of Frazetta's most iconic images -- the Death Dealer,
painted in 1973 -- eventually was used in comics, novels, and even
a CD.
Additionally, Frazetta also hit Hollywood, most notably for the
animated 1983 feature Fire and Ice. He also drew movie posters for
What's New, Pussycat?, Hotel Paradiso and the Gauntlet, among many
others.
Yet the Frazetta family's personal life has also been tumultous at
best -- recently, his son Frank Jr. was arrested for driving a backhoe
into the Frazetta Art Gallery, attempting to take $20 million in paintings. Frank Jr. had said that
he had the power of attorney over his father's estate -- the charges
were eventually dropped.
"My son is an alien," Frazetta told the Ponoco Record in March. "There's no telling what
he'll do. He's been like that for, I don't know, how many years. We
played baseball in the old days. He always chose the opposite side from
me."
While there is no word as to how Frazetta died, he had suffered from a
number of health conditions in recent years, including a thyroid
condition and several debilitating strokes. 'Rama readers, feel free to
give your thoughts on the creator in the comments section below.