Gahan Allen Wilson (February 18, 1930 – November 21, 2019) was an American author,

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and g ...

and illustrator known for his cartoons depicting horror-fantasy situations.

Biography

Wilson was born in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...

, and was inspired by the work of the satiric '' Mad'' and ''

Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pu ...

'' cartoonists, and 1950s science fiction films. His cartoons and prose fiction appeared regularly in ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's Lifestyle magazine, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from H ...

'', ''

Collier's ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened in 1905 to ''Coll ...

'' and ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' for nearly 50 years. He published cartoons and film reviews for ''

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Boucher ...

''. From 1992 through end of publication, he prepared all the front covers for the annual book ''Passport to World Band Radio''. Wilson was a movie review columnist for '' The Twilight Zone Magazine'' and a book critic for ''

Realms of Fantasy ''Realms of Fantasy'' was a professional bimonthly fantasy speculative fiction magazine published by Sovereign Media, then Tir Na Nog Press, and Damnation Books, which specialized in fantasy fiction (including some horror), related nonfiction (wit ...

'' magazine. Wilson wrote and illustrated a short story for

Harlan Ellison Harlan Jay Ellison (May 27, 1934 – June 28, 2018) was an American writer, known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. Robert Bloch, the author of '' Psycho'' ...

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically cate ...

Again, Dangerous Visions ''Again, Dangerous Visions'' (1972) is a science fiction short story anthology, edited by American author Harlan Ellison. It is the follow-up to ''Dangerous Visions'' (1967), also edited by Ellison. Cover art and interior illustrations are by Ed ...

'' (1972). He also contributed short stories to other publications; including "M1" and "The Zombie Butler" both of which appeared in ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' and were reprinted in ''Gahan Wilson's Cracked Cosmos'' (1975). In 1975 he designed a small trophy, a bust of H. P. Lovecraft, to be given to winners of the

World Fantasy Award The World Fantasy Awards are a set of awards given each year for the best fantasy fiction published during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by the World Fantasy Convention, the awards are given each year at the eponymous ann ...

; the bust was retired following the 2015 awards amid complaints about Lovecraft's history of racism. A new statuette designed by

Vincent Villafranca Vincent Villafranca (born January 25, 1969) is an American sculptor. He creates bronze sculptures ranging from traditional wildlife imagery to futuristic science-fiction-based imagery. Biography Early life and education Vincent Villafranca was ...

depicting a tree in front of a full moon was released in 2017. Wilson created a computer game, ''Gahan Wilson's The Ultimate Haunted House'', with Byron Preiss. He wrote the 1992 animated short ''Diner''. In 2009, Fantagraphics Books released ''Gahan Wilson: 50 Years of Playboy Cartoons'', a slipcased, three-volume collection of Wilson's cartoons and short stories for that magazine. A collection of his work, ''Fifty Years of Gahan Wilson'', was published in 2010.

Awards

In 2005, Wilson was recognized with a lifetime achievement award from the World Fantasy Awards. He received the World Fantasy Convention Award (in the form of the bust of H. P. Lovecraft that he had designed as the award trophy in 1975) in 1981. He also received the

National Cartoonists Society The National Cartoonists Society (NCS) is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the ...

's Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005. Wilson is the subject of a feature-length documentary film, ''Gahan Wilson: Born Dead, Still Weird'', directed by Steven-Charles Jaffe. He was an influence on later alternative cartoonists, including Gary Larson, John Callahan and

Bill Plympton Bill Plympton (born April 30, 1946) is an American animator, graphic designer, cartoonist, and filmmaker best known for his 1987 Academy Awards-nominated animated short '' Your Face'' and his series of shorts featuring a dog character starting wit ...

Personal life

Wilson was married to author Nancy Winters (née Nancy Dee Midyette) from 1966 until her death in March 2019.Gahan Wilson is Suffering from Advanced Dementia
by D.D. Degg, at ''The Daily Cartoonist''; published March 3, 2019; retrieved March 3, 2019 In 2019, Wilson's stepson Paul Winters announced that Wilson was suffering from advanced

dementia Dementia is a disorder which manifests as a set of related symptoms, which usually surfaces when the brain is damaged by injury or disease. The symptoms involve progressive impairments in memory, thinking, and behavior, which negatively affe ...

. Wilson died from complications of dementia on November 21, 2019, in

Scottsdale, Arizona , settlement_type = City , named_for = Winfield Scott , image_skyline = , image_seal = Seal of Scottsdale (Arizona).svg , image_blank_emblem = City of Scottsdale Script Logo.svg , nic ...

Bibliography

*''Gahan Wilson's Graveside Manner'' (1965) *''The Man in the Cannibal Pot'' (1967) *''I Paint What I See'' (1971) *''●'' (1972) in Harlan Ellison (Ed.), ''Again, Dangerous Visions 2'', Signet, New York, 1972 *''Playboy's Gahan Wilson'' (i) (1973) *''Gahan Wilson's Cracked Cosmos'' (1975) *''The Weird World of Gahan Wilson'' (1975) *''And Then We'll Get Him!'' (1978) *''Nuts'' (strip collection) (1979) *''Playboy's Gahan Wilson'' (ii) (1980) *''Is ''Nothing'' Sacred?'' (1982) *''Gahan Wilson's America'' (1985) *''Eddy Deco's Last Caper'' (1987) *'' Everybody's Favorite Duck'' (1988) *'' A Night in the Lonesome October'' (1993) (illustrated by Gahan Wilson; written by

Roger Zelazny Roger Joseph Zelazny (May 13, 1937 – June 14, 1995) was an American poet and writer of fantasy and science fiction short stories and novels, best known for ''The Chronicles of Amber''. He won the Nebula Award three times (out of 14 nomin ...

) *''Classics Illustrated: Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven and Other Poems'' (1990) *''Still Weird'' (1994) *''The Big Book of Weirdos'' (1995) *''Even Weirder'' (1996) *''The Big Book of Freaks'' (1996) *''The Cleft and Other Odd Tales'' (1998) (stories and illustrations by Gahan Wilson) *''Gravediggers' Party'' (2002) *''Monster Party'' (2003) *''The Best of Gahan Wilson'' (2004) *''Pop Art'' (2007) (illustrated by Gahan Wilson; written by Joe Hill. 52 hard covers signed by Mr. Hill, limited edition lettered from A to Z. Rare.) *''Gahan Wilson: 50 Years of Playboy Cartoons'' (2010) (slipcased three-volume set containing all of Wilson's cartoons for Playboy) *''Nuts: A Graphic Novel by Gahan Wilson'' (2011) (collects his entire ''Nuts'' comic strip, Fantagraphics) *''Gahan Wilson Sunday Comics'' (2013) (Publication Date: September 7, 2013) *''Gahan Wilson's Out There'' (2016) (collects material 1964–1981 from Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction)

Children's fantasy

* Matthew Looney series written by

Jerome Beatty Jr. Jerome M. Beatty Jr. (December 9, 1916 – July 31, 2002) was a twentieth-century American author of children's literature. He was also an accomplished feature writer for magazines. Beatty served in the United States Army, achieving the rank of ...

, illustrated by Gahan Wilson: ** ''Matthew Looney's Voyage to the Earth'' (1961) ** ''Matthew Looney's Invasion of the Earth'' (1965) ** ''Matthew Looney in the Outback'' (1969) ** ''Matthew Looney and the Space Pirates'' (1972) ** ''Maria Looney on the Red Planet'' (1977) ** ''Maria Looney and the Cosmic Circus'' (1978) ** ''Maria Looney and the Remarkable Robot'' (1978) * ''Bob Fulton's Amazing Soda-pop Stretcher: An International Spy Story'' (1963) written by Jerome Beatty Jr., illustrated by Gahan Wilson * ''Harry, the Fat Bear Spy'' (1973) * ''Harry and the Sea Serpent'' (1976) * ''The Bang Bang Family'' (1974) * '' Spooky Stories for a Dark and Stormy Night'' (1994) * ''Didn't Didn't Do It'' (2007) written by

Bradford Morrow Bradford Morrow (born April 8, 1951) is an American novelist, editor, essayist, poet, and children's book writer. Professor of literature and Bard Center Fellow at Bard College, he is the founding editor of '' Conjunctions'' literary magazine. ...

, illustrated by Gahan Wilson

Books edited by Gahan Wilson

* ''Gahan Wilson's Favorite Tales of Horror'' (1976) * ''The First

s'' (1977)

References

Sources

Some bibliographical information derived from ''

The Encyclopedia of Fantasy ''The Encyclopedia of Fantasy'' is a 1997 reference work concerning fantasy fiction, edited by John Clute and John Grant. Other contributors include Mike Ashley, Neil Gaiman, Diana Wynne Jones, David Langford, Sam J. Lundwall, Michael S ...

'' ed.

John Clute John Frederick Clute (born 12 September 1940) is a Canadian-born author and critic specializing in science fiction and fantasy literature who has lived in both England and the United States since 1969. He has been described as "an integral part ...

and John Grant.

External links

*
Lambiek: Gahan Wilson

Audio recording
of Mr. Wilson as moderator and participant in panel discussion at the First World Fantasy Convention in 1975. *
Entry at isfdb.org
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Gahan 1930 births 2019 deaths 20th-century American artists American comic strip cartoonists American children's book illustrators Artists from Evanston, Illinois Deaths from dementia in Arizona Horror artists Male speculative fiction editors National Lampoon people Playboy cartoonists School of the Art Institute of Chicago alumni The New Yorker cartoonists World Fantasy Award-winning artists Weird fiction writers