Steve Leialoha (born January 27, 1952) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

comics artist 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 ...

whose work first came to prominence in the 1970s. He has worked primarily as an

inker The inker (sometimes credited as the finisher or embellisher) is one of the two line artists in traditional comic book production. The penciller creates a drawing, the inker outlines, interprets, finalizes, retraces this drawing by using a pencil ...

, though occasionally as a

penciller A penciller (or penciler) is an artist who works on the creation of comic books, graphic novels, and similar visual art forms, with a focus on the initial pencil illustrations, usually in collaboration with other artists, who provide inks, colors ...

, for several publishers, including

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Comics'' in ...

and later

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. ( doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with the ...

Early life

Steve Leialoha was born in San Francisco, California, the son of a

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, First Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians) ( haw, kānaka, , , and ), are the indigenous ethnic group of Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawa ...

father. He began reading comics as a child, explaining, "My dad would always give me comics. I mean, he would like to read all sorts of stuff, and he would pass everything along to me. Harvey comics and that kind of thing, when I was six or seven. As I got older, the Marvel Age, which I think of starting like in 1962, I was ten, which is certainly a good age for reading that stuff."

Career

Steve Leialoha's career began in 1975 with the early independent comic book ''

Star*Reach ''Star Reach'' (also spelled ''Star*Reach'') was an American science fiction and fantasy comics anthology published from 1974 to 1979 by Mike Friedrich Mike Friedrich (; born March 27, 1949) is an American comic book writer and publisher be ...

'', drawing the five-page story "Wooden Ships on the Water", adapted by writer

Mike Friedrich Mike Friedrich (; born March 27, 1949) is an American comic book writer and publisher best known for his work at Marvel and DC Comics, and for publishing the anthology series '' Star*Reach'', one of the first independent comics. He is also an a ...

from the

song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetiti ...

David Crosby David Van Cortlandt Crosby (born August 14, 1941) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of both the Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash. Crosby joined the Byrds in 1964. They got ...

Stephen Stills Stephen Arthur Stills (born January 3, 1945) is an American musician, singer and songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. As both a solo act and member of two successful bands, Stills has co ...

, and

Paul Kantner Paul Lorin Kantner (March 17, 1941 – January 28, 2016) was an American rock musician. He is best known as the co-founder, rhythm guitarist, and vocalist of Jefferson Airplane, a leading psychedelic rock band of the counterculture era. He cont ...

, in issue #3 (Sept. 1975). He continued to contribute to ''Star*Reach'' and the same publisher's ''Quack'' for four years. Leialoha freelanced as a regular contributor to Marvel from 1976 to 1988, working on such series as ''

Warlock A warlock is a male practitioner of witchcraft. Etymology and terminology The most commonly accepted etymology derives '' warlock'' from the Old English '' wǣrloga'', which meant "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver" and was given special applicati ...

'', ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has been expanded into various film ...

'', ''

Spider-Woman Spider-Woman is the code name of several fictional characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first and original version is Jessica Drew (later impersonated by Veranke), the second version is Julia Carpenter, and the third vers ...

'', the

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the Si ...

title ''

Marvel Team-Up ''Marvel Team-Up'' is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series featured two or more Marvel characters in one story. The series was originally published from March 1972 through February 1985, and featured Spider-Man as ...

'', the '' Firestar''

limited series Limited series may refer to: *Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series *Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered *Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...

, ''

New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, subs ...

'' and ''

Howard the Duck Howard the Duck is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Steve Gerber and artist Val Mayerik. Howard the Duck first appeared in ''Adventure into F ...

''. He and writer

J. M. DeMatteis John Marc DeMatteis (; born December 15, 1953) is an American writer of comic books, television and novels. Biography Early career J. M. DeMatteis's earliest aspirations were to be a rock musician and comic book artist. He began playing in ban ...

co-created "Greenberg the Vampire" in ''

Bizarre Adventures ''Marvel Preview'' is a black-and-white comics magazine published by Magazine Management for fourteen issues and the affiliated Marvel Comics Group for ten issues. The final issue additionally carried the imprint Marvel Magazines Group. Publica ...

'' #29 (Dec. 1981). Leialoha was one of the artists on ''

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939. I ...

'' #400 (Oct. 1986) and in the 1990s, he began working at DC Comics on

and other characters; at

Harris Comics Harris Publications Inc. was an American special interest media company, operating over 75 brands with print, digital, mobile and live event platforms prior to its sale to Athlon Media in 2016. It produced magazines that educate, entertain, inf ...

Vampirella Vampirella () is a fictional vampire superheroine created by Forrest J Ackerman and comic book artist Trina Robbins in Warren Publishing's black-and-white horror comics magazine ''Vampirella'' #1 (Sept. 1969), a sister publication of '' Cre ...

; and at Claypool Comics on ''Soulsearchers and Company''. He inked part of the '' World's End'' story arc in

Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gra ...

's '' The Sandman'' series. The following decade, he became the regular inker on most of the issues of the DC/

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition where a person has the sensation of movement or of surrounding objects moving when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. This may be associated with nausea, vomiting, sweating, or difficulties w ...

series '' Fables'', penciled by Mark Buckingham, for which they won the

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are List of Eisner Award winners, prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Acad ...

for "Best Penciller/Inker Team" in 2007.

Personal life and tributes

Leialoha lives in San Francisco with his partner, comics artist Trina Robbins. Writer

Larry Hama Larry Hama (; born June 7, 1949) is an American comic-book writer, artist, actor, and musician who has worked in the fields of entertainment and publishing since the 1960s. During the 1970s, he was seen in minor roles on the TV shows ''M*A*S*H' ...

named the G.I. Joe character Edward Leialoha (code name

Torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, ...

) after Steve Leialoha.

Bibliography

Claypool Comics

*'' Elvira, Mistress of the Dark'' #100 (2001) *''Soulsearchers and Company'' #4–5, 7–8, 10–13, 15–22, 25–26, 28–46, 48–50 (1993–2001)

Comico

*''

Fish Police ''Fish Police'' is a comic book series by American cartoonist Steve Moncuse. The plot centers on law and crime in a fictional underwater metropolis with the protagonist, Inspector Gill, trying to solve various crimes, often Mafia-related, while a ...

'' #10 (1988) *''

Jonny Quest ''Jonny Quest'' is a science fiction-adventure media franchise that revolves around the titular boy named Jonny Quest, who accompanies his scientist father on extraordinary adventures. The franchise started with a 1964–1965 television serie ...

'' #4 (1986)

Dark Horse Comics

*''

Dark Horse Presents ''Dark Horse Presents'' was a comic book published by American company Dark Horse Comics from 1986. Their first published series, it was their flagship title until its September 2000 cancellation. The second incarnation was published on MySpace, r ...

'' #113–118 (1996–1997) *''GoGirl!'' #1 (2002) *''Jonny Demon'' #1–3 (1994)

DC Comics

*'' 9-11 – The World's Finest Comic Book Writers & Artists Tell Stories to Remember'' Volume 2 (2002) *''

Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/ magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics Publications ...

'' #694 (1993) *'' Armageddon: The Alien Agenda'' #1 (1991) *''

'' #400, ''Annual'' #15 (1986–1991) *''

Chronos Chronos (; grc-gre, Χρόνος, , "time"), also spelled Khronos or Chronus, is a personification of time in pre-Socratic philosophy and later literature. Chronos is frequently confused with, or perhaps consciously identified with, the Tit ...

'' #1–4, 6–7, 9–11 (1998–1999) *''DCU Heroes Secret Files'' #1 (1999) *''

Detective Comics ''Detective Comics'' is an American comic book series published by Detective Comics, later shortened to DC Comics. The first volume, published from 1937 to 2011 (and later continued in 2016), is best known for introducing the superhero Batman i ...

'' #629 (1991) *'' Fly Annual'' #1 (1992) *'' Heroes Against Hunger'' #1 (1986) *''

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' (sometimes referred to as ''HG2G'', ''HHGTTG'', ''H2G2'', or ''tHGttG'') is a comic science fiction, comedy science fiction franchise created by Douglas Adams. Originally The Hitchhiker's Guide to th ...

'' #1–3 (1993) *''

Justice League International Justice League International (JLI) is a fictional DC comics superhero team that succeeded the original Justice League from the late 1980s to the early 2000s. The team enjoyed several comic books runs, the first being written by Keith Giffen and ...

'' #13–15 (1988) *''

'Mazing Man Mazing Man is the title character of a comic book series created by Bob Rozakis and Stephen DeStefano and published by DC Comics. The series ran for twelve issues in 1986, with additional special issues in 1987, 1988, and 1990. Additionally, a 'Ma ...

Special'' #2 (1988) *''Restaurant At The End Of The Universe '' #1–3 (1994) *'' Shadow Strikes'' #28 (1992) *''

Tom Strong's Terrific Tales ''Tom Strong'' is a comic book created by writer Alan Moore and artist Chris Sprouse, initially published bi-monthly by America's Best Comics, an imprint of DC Comics' Wildstorm division. Tom Strong, the title character, is a "science hero", wi ...

'' #9 (2004) *'' Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe'' #4, 11, 19 (1985–1986) *''Who's Who Update '88'' #2 (1988)

Paradox Press

*''

Big Book of Death ''The Big Book Of'' is a series of graphic novel anthologies published by American company DC Comics imprint Paradox Press. Publication history The ''Big Books'' were published between 1994 and 2000. Just over half of them (ten out of seventeen) ...

'' (1995) *''Big Book of Grimm'' (1999) *''Big Book of Little Criminals'' (1996) *''Big Book of Losers'' (1997) *''Big Book of the Unexplained'' (1997) *''Big Book of Weirdos'' (1995)

Vertigo

*''

The Dreaming The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Gillen, quickly adopted by his co ...

'' #24, 47, 56 (1998–2001) *'' Fables'' #1–3, 5–10, 14–17, 19–21, 23–27, 30–33, 36–38, 40–45, 48–50, 52–56, 60–61, 63, 65–69, 71–75, 88–91, 94–98, 100, 102–106, 108–112, 114–121, 125–129, 131–135, 139–150 (2002–2015) *''

Jack of Fables ''Jack of Fables'' is a spin-off comic book series of ''Fables'' written by Bill Willingham and Lilah Sturges and published by DC Comics' Vertigo imprint. The story focuses on the adventures of Jack Horner, a supporting character in the main ...

'' #6, 11, 20, 22, 25, 38 (2007–2009) *''

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

'' #1–6 (1998) *'' Sandman Presents: Deadboy Detectives'' #1–4 (2001) *'' Sandman Presents: Petrefax'' #1–4 (2000) *''

The Unwritten ''The Unwritten'' is an American comic book written by Mike Carey with art by Peter Gross. Published by the Vertigo imprint of DC Comics, the book follows Tom Taylor, who was the inspiration for a series of hugely successful children's fantasy ...

'' #50 (2013) *''Vertigo Secret Files & Origins: Swamp Thing'' #1 (2000) *''Vertigo: First Offenses'' #1 (2005) *''Vertigo: Winter's Edge'' #1 (1998)

Marvel Comics

*''

Alpha Flight Alpha Flight is a fictional team of Canadian superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The characters premiered in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #120 (April 1979), and were created to serve as part of the X-Men member W ...

'' #48 (1987) *'' Amazing High Adventure'' #1 (1984) *''

'' #29 (1981) *''

Captain America Captain America is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by cartoonists Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, the character First appearance, first appeared in ''#Golden Age, Captain America Comics'' #1 (cover ...

'' #221, 290 (1978–1984) *'' Captain Justice'' #1–2 (1988) *'' Captain Marvel'' #49 (1977) *''

Conan the Barbarian Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including '' Conan the Barbarian'' and ''Conan the Destroyer''), ...

'' #155 (1984) *''

Coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecological nich ...

'' #1–2, 7–8 (1983–1984) *''

Daredevil Daredevil may refer to: * A stunt performer Arts and media Comics * Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro * Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superhero ...

'' #154, 238 (1978–1987) *''

Doctor Strange Doctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Ditko, the character first appeared in ''Strange Tales'' #110 (cover-dated July 1963). Doctor Strange serves as Sorce ...

'' vol. 2 #62, 67 (1983–1984) *''

Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in ''The Fantastic Four'' #1 (cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first s ...

'' #296 (1986) *''Fantastic Four Roast'' #1 (1982) *'' Firestar'' #1–4 (1986) *'' Further Adventures of Indiana Jones'' #21 (1984) *'' G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero'' #21, 26 (1984) *''

Ghost Rider Ghost Rider is the name of multiple antiheroes and superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Marvel had previously used the name for a Western character whose name was later changed to Phantom Rider. The first s ...

'' #35, 56 (1979–1981) *'' Heroes for Hope'' #1 (1985) *''

'' #1–13 (1976–1977) *''

Marvel Comics Presents ''Marvel Comics Presents'' was an American comic book anthology series published by Marvel Comics originally from 1988 to 1995. It returned for a second volume in 2007–2008, and a third volume that started in 2019. Volume 1 The first volume ...

'' #82 (1991) *''

Marvel Fanfare ''Marvel Fanfare'' was an anthology comic book series published by American company Marvel Comics. It was a showcase title featuring a variety of characters from the Marvel universe. Volume one ''Marvel Fanfare'' featured characters and settings ...

'' #45 (1989) *'' Marvel Super-Heroes'' vol. 2 #7 (1991) *''

'' #81–85 (1979) *'' Marvel Treasury Edition'' #28 (

Superman and Spider-Man ''Superman and Spider-Man'' is an intercompany comic book jointly published by DC Comics and Marvel Comics in July 1981. Number 28 (and final) in the ''Marvel Treasury Edition'' series, it is a "sequel" to 1976's '' Superman vs. the Amazing Spider ...

) (1981, background inker) *'' Ms. Marvel'' #14 (1978) *''

'' #32–34 *'' Night Thrasher'' #17 (1994) *''

Nova A nova (plural novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", which is Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. Causes of the dramat ...

'' #22–23 (1978–1979) *''

Official Handbook Of The Marvel Universe The ''Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe'' is an encyclopedic guide which details the fictional universe featured in Marvel Comics publications. The original 15-volume series was published in comic book format in 1982, followed by sporadic ...

'' #2, 5, 10 (1983) *''Official Handbook Of The Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition'' #6, 12 (1986) *'' Power Man and Iron Fist'' #60 (1979) *'' Rom'' #66 (1985) *''

Secret Wars II ''Secret Wars II'' is a nine-issue comic book limited series and crossover published from 1985 to 1986 by Marvel Comics. The series was written by Marvel's then editor-in-chief Jim Shooter and primarily pencilled by Al Milgrom. The series was a ...

'' #1–9 (1985–1986) *'' Sensational She-Hulk'' #12 (1990) *''

Sergio Aragonés Sergio Aragonés Domenech ( , ; born September 6, 1937) is a Spanish/Mexican cartoonist and writer best known for his contributions to '' Mad'' magazine and creating the comic book '' Groo the Wanderer''. Among his peers and fans, Aragonés is ...

Massacres Marvel'' #1 (1996) *''

The Spectacular Spider-Man ''The Spectacular Spider-Man'' is a comic book and magazine series starring Spider-Man and published by Marvel Comics. Following the success of Spider-Man's original series, ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', Marvel felt the character could support ...

'' #44 (1980) *''

'' #7, 25–26, 28, 30–46 (1978–1982) *''

'' #2–5, 95, 105, ''Annual'' #1 (1977–1986) *'' Steeltown Rockers'' #3, 5 (1990) *''

Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...

'' #189, 192, 194, 217, 250, 253–255, ''Annual'' #7–8 (1983–1989) *''

Untold Tales of Spider-Man ''Untold Tales of Spider-Man'' is an American comic book series starring Spider-Man published by Marvel Comics for 26 issues (#1–25, with a #-1 issue (July 1997) added between issues #22 (June 1997) and 23 (August 1997)) and two ''Annual''s (''A ...

: Strange Encounters'' #1 (1998) *''

'' #9–14 (1975–1976) *''

Web of Spider-Man ''Web of Spider-Man'' is the name of two different monthly comic book series starring Spider-Man that have been published by Marvel Comics since 1985, the first volume of which ran for 129 issues between 1985 and 1995, and the second of which ran ...

'' #33 (1987) *''

X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...

'' #200 (2010)

Awards

*1986: Won

Inkpot Award The Inkpot Award is an honor bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International. It is given to professionals in the fields of comic books, comic strips, animation, science fiction, and related areas of popular culture, at CCI's annual conv ...

*2003: Won

for "Best New Series" and "Best Serialized Story" for ''Fables'' #1–5: "Legends in Exile" with

Bill Willingham William Willingham (born 1956) is an American writer and artist of comics, known for his work on the series '' Elementals'' and '' Fables''. Career William Willingham was born in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. During his father's military career the f ...

and Lan Medina. *2005: Won Eisner Award for "Best Serialized Story", for ''Fables'' #19–27: "March of the Wooden Soldiers" with Willingham and Mark Buckingham. *2006: Won Eisner Award for "Best Serialized Story", for ''Fables'' #36–38, 40–41: "Return to the Homelands" with Willingham and Buckingham. *2007: Won Eisner Award for "Best Artist/Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team", for ''Fables'' with Buckingham.

References

External links

*
Steve Leialoha
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics

at the Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics Creators {{DEFAULTSORT:Leialoha, Steve 1952 births 20th-century American artists 21st-century American artists American comics artists Artists from the San Francisco Bay Area Comics inkers DC Comics people Eisner Award winners for Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team Fables (comics) Inkpot Award winners Living people Marvel Comics people Native Hawaiian people People from Pacifica, California