Kyle John Baker (born 1965) is an American

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 comics illustrators/artists in that they produce both the litera ...

comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

writer-artist, and

animator An animator is an artist who creates images, known as frames, which give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, and video games. Animat ...

known for his

graphic novel A graphic novel is a self-contained, book-length form of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and Anthology, anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comics sc ...

s and for a 2000s revival of the series ''

Plastic Man Plastic Man (Patrick "Eel" O'Brian) is a superhero featured in American comic books first appearing in ''Police Comics'' #1, originally published by Quality Comics and later acquired by DC Comics. Created by cartoonist Jack Cole (artist), Jack Co ...

''. Baker has won numerous

Eisner Awards The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are awards for creative achievement in American comic books. They are regarded as the most prestigious and significant awards in the comic industry and often referred ...

and

Harvey Awards The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books. Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman, the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics, to be a successor to the Kirby Awards, which wer ...

for his work in the comics field.

Biography

Early life and career

Kyle Baker was born in the

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

,Nolen-Weathington, Eric. ''Modern Masters Volume 20: Kyle Baker'' (

TwoMorrows Publishing TwoMorrows Publishing is a publisher of magazines about comic books, founded in 1994 by John and Pam Morrow out of their small advertising agency in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Its products also include books and DVDs. List of maga ...

, 2008), p. 6. the son of

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

John M. Baker and high-school audiovisual-department manager Eleanor L. Baker. He has a brother and a sister. Their parents had both attended

Pratt Institute Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York. It has an additional campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The institute was founded in 18 ...

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, and their father, who, Baker said, "worked in advertising ndmade junk mail", would "draw pictures for us and entertain us." Aside from this exposure to art, Baker has said, his early artistic influences included

artist

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (; born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comics artist, comic book artist, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He grew ...

caricaturist A caricaturist is an artist who specializes in drawing caricatures. List of caricaturists * Abed Abdi (born 1942) * Abril Lamarque (1904–1999) * Al Hirschfeld (1903–2003) * Alex Gard (1900–1948) * Alexander Saroukhan (1898–1977) * Alfre ...

Jack Davis, and painter and magazine illustrator

Norman Rockwell Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of Culture of the United States, the country's culture. Roc ...

. He noted: Other influences included the

Charlton Comics Charlton Comics was an American comic-book publishing company that existed from 1945 to 1986, having begun under a different name: T. W. O. Charles Company, in 1940. It was based in Derby, Connecticut. The comic-book line (comics), line was a divi ...

artwork of

Jim Aparo James N. Aparo (; August 24, 1932 – July 19, 2005) was an American comic book artist, best known for his DC Comics work from the late 1960s through the 1990s, including on the characters Batman, Aquaman, and the Spectre (DC Comics character), Sp ...

and

Steve Ditko Stephen John Ditko. Page contains two reproductions from school yearbooks. A 1943 Garfield Junior High School yearbook excerpt lists "Stephen Ditko". A 1945 Johnstown High School yearbook excerpt lists "Stephen J. Ditko" under extracurricular ac ...

Breaking into comics

In his senior year of

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

, Baker became an intern at

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

, making photocopies and filing fan mail. "I sort of fell into Marvel because I happened to know somebody there," he said. "But I always thought I was going to do funny stuff" rather than

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

comics. He became background assistant to Marvel

inker The inker (sometimes credited as the finisher or embellisher) is one of the two line artists in traditional comic book production. After the penciller creates a drawing with pencil, the inker interprets this drawing by outlining and embellishing ...

Josef Rubinstein Josef "Joe" Rubinstein (born 4 June 1958) is a comic book artist and inker, most associated with inking Marvel Comics' ''The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe'' and the 1982 four-issue ''Wolverine (comic book), Wolverine'' miniseries by Chr ...

, and later also assisted

Vince Colletta Vincente Colletta (October 15, 1923 – June 3, 1991)Vincent Colletta

and Andy Mushynski. He cited Marvel artists

Walt Simonson Walter Simonson (born September 2, 1946) is an American comic book writer and artist, best known for a run on Marvel Comics' ''Thor'' from 1983 to 1987, during which he created the character Beta Ray Bill. He is also known for the creator-owned ...

Al Milgrom Allen L. Milgrom (born March 6, 1950) is an American comic book artist (penciller and inker), writer, and editor, primarily for Marvel Comics. He is known for his 10-year run as editor of '' Marvel Fanfare''; his long involvement as writer, penci ...

and

Larry Hama Larry Hama (; born June 7, 1949) is an People of the United States, 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 ...

and writer and editor-in-chief

Jim Shooter James Shooter (born September 27, 1951) is an American writer, editor, and publisher in the comics industry. Beginning his career writing for DC Comics at the age of 14, he had a successful but controversial run as editor-in-chief at Marvel Comic ...

as providing him art and storytelling advice.Nolen-Weathington, p. 9 Part of his duties involved

photocopying A photocopier (also called copier or copy machine, and formerly Xerox machine, the generic trademark) is a machine that makes copies of documents and other visual images onto paper or plastic film quickly and cheaply. Most modern photocopiers ...

, and he would take copies of

John Buscema John Buscema ( ; born Giovanni Natale Buscema, ; December 11, 1927 – January 10, 2002)Social Se ...

penciling home on which to practice inking. While working for Marvel, Baker attended the

School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by Silas ...

, in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

, studying

graphic design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art that involves creating visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdisciplinary branch of ...

and

printmaking Printmaking is the process of creating work of art, artworks by printing, normally on paper, but also on fabric, wood, metal, and other surfaces. "Traditional printmaking" normally covers only the process of creating prints using a hand proces ...

,Nolen-Weathington, p. 11 but dropped out after two years. Through that connection, however, he began freelancing with famed graphic designer

Milton Glaser Milton Glaser (June 26, 1929June 26, 2020) was an American graphic designer, recognized for his designs, including the I Love New York logo; a 1966 poster for Bob Dylan; the logos for DC Comics, Stony Brook University, Brooklyn Brewery; and his ...

, an SVA instructor, assisting him on a set of

children's books A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''chi ...

. Baker's first credited work at Marvel is penciling the half-page entry "Kid Commandos" in ''

The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe The ''Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe'' is an encyclopedic Guide book, 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 b ...

'' #13 (February1984). After a handful of inking assignments on issues of ''

Transformers ''Transformers'' is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Tomy, Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the heroic Autobots and the villainous Decepticons, two Extraterrestrials in fiction, alien robot fac ...

'', '' The Avengers Annual'' #14 (1985) and elsewhere, Baker made his professional story-illustration debut as penciler and inker of the publisher Lodestone Comics' ''Codename: Danger'' #2 (October 1985), with a 23-page story written by Brian Marshall,

Mike Harris Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a retired Canadian politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. Taking the PC ...

, and Robert Loren Fleming. Cover penciling and more interior inking for Marvel and occasionally DC followed. His first story penciling for one of the two major comics companies was the three-issue ''

Howard the Duck Howard the Duck is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Steve Gerber, based very loosely on his college friend Howard Tockman, and artist Val Mayerik. Howard the Duck firs ...

: The Movie'' (December 1986 - February 1987), adapting the 1986 film ''

'', and which he self-inked. During this time, Baker also attempted to sell humor spot illustrations, but was rejected by the major

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

syndicates A syndicate is a self-organizing group of individuals, companies, corporations or entities formed to transact some specific business, to pursue or promote a shared interest. Etymology The word ''syndicate'' comes from the French language, Fren ...

. Jim Salicrup, a Marvel editor, did commission him "to write a few one-panel gags about he superhero teamthe

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 (September 1963). Although initial ...

", titled "It's Genetic" and appearing in the Marvel-produced fan magazine ''

Marvel Age ''Marvel Age'' was a promotional comic book-sized magazine from Marvel Comics published from 1983 to 1994. Basically a comic-length edition of the Bullpen Bulletins page, ''Marvel Age'' contained previews of upcoming Marvel comics, as well as i ...

''.Nolen-Weathington, pp. 106-107

First graphic novel

At the recommendation of freelance artist Ron Fontes, an editor at the Dolphin imprint of the publishing house Doubleday expressed interest in Baker's sample strips of the character Cowboy Wally, "and asked if I had any more. I lied and said I did." This led to the 128-page

''Cowboy Wally''. "The character of Noel was pretty much based on me," Baker said in 1999. "I lie all the time. The first part of the books is the collected strips, and the other three chapters were written for the book. "It didn't sell many copies," Baker said, "but at least it convinced DC omicsI should be allowed to draw, not just ink." Baker went on to draw DC's 1980s comics revival of the

pulp fiction ''Pulp Fiction'' is a 1994 American independent crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino from a story he conceived with Roger Avary.See, e.g., King (2002), pp. 185–7; ; It tells four intertwining tales of crime and violence ...

hero ''

The Shadow The Shadow is a fictional character created by American magazine publishers Street & Smith and writer Walter B. Gibson. Originally created to be a mysterious radio show narrator and developed into a distinct literary character in 1931 by Gibs ...

'', beginning with ''The Shadow Annual'' #2 (1988), followed by the monthly series from issue #7 to the final issue, #19 (February 1988 - January 1989). He did assorted other DC work including '' Justice, Inc.'' In 1990, Baker and writer

Len Wein Leonard Norman Wein (; June 12, 1948 – September 10, 2017) was an American comic book writer and editor best known for co-creating DC Comics' Swamp Thing and Marvel Comics' Wolverine (character), Wolverine, and for helping revive the Marvel sup ...

produced three issues of ''

Dick Tracy ''Dick Tracy'' is an American comic strip featuring Dick Tracy, a tough and intelligent police detective created by Chester Gould. It made its debut on Sunday, October 4, 1931, in the '' Detroit Mirror'', and was distributed by the Chicago T ...

'' for

The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was founded on October 16 ...

's Hollywood Comics, the first two issues containing original stories, the third an adaption the 1990 ''

'' film. He began scripting comics around this time: Baker penciled and inked

First Comics First Comics is an American comic book publisher that was active from 1983 to 1991 and then from 2011 to present (stylized as 1First Comics), known for titles like '' American Flagg!'', '' Grimjack'', ''Nexus'', ''Badger'', '' Dreadstar'', and '' ...

' ''

Classics Illustrated ''Classics Illustrated'' is an American comic book/magazine series featuring adaptations of literary classics such as '' Les Misérables'', ''Moby-Dick'', ''Hamlet'', and '' The Iliad''. Created by Albert Kanter, the series began publication ...

'' #3 & 21 (February 1990 & March 1991), adapting, respectively, '' Through the Looking Glass'' and ''

Cyrano de Bergerac Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac ( , ; 6 March 1619 – 28 July 1655) was a French novelist, playwright, epistolarian, and duelist. A bold and innovative author, his work was part of the libertine literature of the first half of the 17th ce ...

''. While

Peter David Peter Allen David (September 23, 1956 – May 24, 2025), often abbreviated PAD, was an American writer of comic books, novels, television, films, and video games.Buxton, Marc (March 29, 2014)"From 'Future Imperfect' to '2099': Peter David's Grea ...

scripted the latter, Baker himself wrote the adaptation of the

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet, mathematician, photographer and reluctant Anglicanism, Anglican deacon. His most notable works are ''Alice ...

work. "I'd never planned to become a writer," Baker said in 1999. "I wrote short gags, like the kind you see in the newspapers and Cowboy Wally, but not stories. I only learned to write stories because people kept paying me to write them. In the years 1991-1994, 90 percent of my income was from writing, and I received very few offers to draw. I figured I should learn to write."

''Why I Hate Saturn'', commercial illustration

Baker achieved recognition and won an

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are awards for creative achievement in American comic books. They are regarded as the most prestigious and significant awards in the comic industry and often referred ...

for his 1990 graphic novel ''Why I Hate Saturn'', published by the DC Comics imprint Piranha Press. Baker said in 1999 of his breakthrough work: Baker's cartoons and

caricatures A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...

began appearing in ''

BusinessWeek ''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'' (and before that ''Business Week'' and ''The Business Week''), is an American monthly business magazine published 12 times a year. The magazine debuted in New York City in Septembe ...

, Details,

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...

Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists and fans of guitar-based music and trends. The magazine has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original a ...

, Mad, National Lampoon,

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

, Us,

Vibe Vibe, alternatively '' vibes,'' is short for ''vibration''. A "vibe" is an emotional reaction to the aura or energy felt to belong to a person, place or thing. Vibe may also refer to: People * DJ Vibe (born 1968), Portuguese DJ * Lasse Vibe (b ...

'', and ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...

''. He spent three years illustrating the weekly strip "Bad Publicity" for ''

'' magazine.

Animation

Baker's animation has appeared on

BET Black Entertainment Television (BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting Black American audiences. It is the flagship channel of the BET Media Group, a subsidiary of Paramount Global's CBS Entertainment Group. Originally launched ...

and

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

, and in animated ''

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American media franchise produced and distributed by Warner Bros. The franchise began as a series of animated short films that originally ran from 1930 to 1969, alongside its spin-off series ''Merrie Melodies'', during t ...

'' projects, including the animated feature '' Looney Tunes: Back in Action''. Baker was "guest art director" for Cartoon Network's '' Class of 3000'', and

storyboard A storyboard is a graphic organizer that consists of simple illustrations or images displayed in sequence for the purpose of pre-visualizing a motion picture, animation, motion graphic or interactive media sequence. The storyboarding proce ...

ed the ''Class of 3000'' Christmas special. in 1994, Baker directed an animated video featuring the

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

singer

KRS-One Lawrence "Kris" Parker (born August 20, 1965), better known by his stage names KRS-One (; an abbreviation of "Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone") and Teacha, is an American rapper from the Bronx. He rose to prominence as part of the ...

, called "Break The Chain". Marvel Comics had published ''Break the Chain'' as a comic book packaged with a read-along

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

audiocassette. That same year and next, he contributed to the four-issue

Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, manga and Artist's book, art book publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon, by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, O ...

humor anthology ''Instant Piano'' (December 1994 - June 1995), including drawing the cover of the premiere. For another anthology, DC's ''

Elseworlds Elseworlds is the publication imprint (trade name), imprint for American comic books produced by DC Comics for stories that take place outside the DC Universe Canon (fictional), canon. Elseworlds publications are set in alternate realities that ...

80-Page Giant'' #1 (August 1999), Baker drew,

colored ''Colored'' (or ''coloured'') is a racial descriptor historically used in the United States during the Jim Crow era to refer to an African American. In many places, it may be considered a slur. Dictionary definitions The word ''colored'' wa ...

, lettered and with his wife, teacher Elizabeth Glass, whom he married July 18, 1998, wrote the 10-page parallel universe story " Letitia Lerner, Superman's Babysitter". It would win a "Best Short Story"

despite DC destroying all copies intended for the

North American North America is a continent in the Northern and Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea, and to the sou ...

market after deeming some of the content unsuitable, though copies were still distributed in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. Baker said in 1999 he was writing a Christmas movie for

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

, titled ''U Betta Watch Out'', and was animating a

TV-movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a terrest ...

title ''Corey Q. Jeeters, I'm Telling on You''. At this point in his career, Baker stated in an interview, "Nobody tells me what to write or how to draw. Only an idiot would dare tell Kyle Baker how to make a good cartoon. Hollywood and the magazine world are full of idiots. They water my stuff down and make it unfunny." English-language version of interview from Italian web magazine ''Rorscharch''. He is credited with writing and storyboarding on the "Phineas and Ferb" television episodes "Candace Loses Her Head" and "Are You My Mummy?".

2000s

Baker drew writer Robert Morales' Marvel Comics miniseries ''

Truth Truth or verity is the Property (philosophy), property of being in accord with fact or reality.Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionarytruth, 2005 In everyday language, it is typically ascribed to things that aim to represent reality or otherwise cor ...

'' #1-7 (January–July 2003), a

Captain America Captain America is a superhero created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby who appears in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in '' Captain America Comics'' #1, published on December 20, 1940, by Timely C ...

storyline with parallels to the Tuskegee experiment. He also wrote and drew all but two issues (#7 and #12) of the 20-issue comedic adventure series ''

'' vol. 4 (February 2004 - March 2006), starring the

Golden Age of Comic Books The Golden Age of Comic Books describes an era in the history of American comic books from 1938 to 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published and rapidly increased in popularity. The superhero archetype was created and ma ...

created by Jack Cole for

Quality Comics Quality Comics was an American comic book publishing Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, ...

. Baker contributed to the

series '' The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist'', a spin-off of

Michael Chabon Michael Chabon ( ; born May 24, 1963) is an American novelist, screenwriter, columnist, and short story writer. Born in Washington, D.C., he spent a year studying at Carnegie Mellon University before transferring to the University of Pittsburgh, ...

's novel, ''

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay ''The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay'' is a 2000 novel by American author Michael Chabon. A historical fiction novel, it follows the lives of two Jewish cousins, Josef "Joe" Kavalier, a Czech artist and magician who escapes Nazi-occupied ...

''. In 2006, his company, Kyle Baker Publishing, serialized a four-part comic book series about

Nat Turner Nat Turner (October 2, 1800 – November 11, 1831) was an enslaved Black carpenter and preacher who led a four-day rebellion of both enslaved and free Black people in Southampton County, Virginia in August 1831. Nat Turner's Rebellion res ...

, and published the series ''The Bakers'', based on his family life, in two anthologies, ''Cartoonist'' and ''Cartoonist Vol. 2: Now with More Bakers''. He has also continued to provide comics material sporadically to Marvel, DC and

Image Comics Image Comics is an independent American American comic book, comic book publisher and is the third largest direct market comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry by market share. Its best-known publications include ''Spawn (comics) ...

through at least 2010. In 2007 and 2008,

published Baker's six-issue

miniseries ''Special Forces'', a teen-soldier military

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of exposin ...

that criticizes the exhortation of felons and disabled Americans into military service. ''The New York Times'' reviewed the 2009 trade-paperback collection of the first four issues, calling it "the harshest, most serrated satire of the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

yet published." In 2008, Watson-Guptill published ''How to Draw Stupid and Other Essentials of Cartooning'', Baker's art instruction book. That same year, Baker hosted the comics industry's

Harvey Award The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books. Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman, the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics, to be a successor to the Kirby Awards, which were ...

s. In 2010, he became regular artist on

' mature-audience

MAX Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (American dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (British dog), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of the OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

- imprint series, '' Deadpool Max''.

Bibliography

Early work

*'' Codename: Danger'' #2: "From the Halls of Montezuma ..." (a, with Robert Loren Fleming,

and Brian Marshall,

Lodestone Lodestones are naturally magnetization, magnetized pieces of the mineral magnetite. They are naturally occurring magnets, which can attract iron. The property of magnetism was first discovered in Ancient history, antiquity through lodeston ...

, 1985) *'' The Cowboy Wally Show'' (w/a,

, 128 pages, Doubleday, 1988, ) *'' Asylum'' #2: "Death Disenchanted" (a, with Fred Schiller, New Comics Group, 1989) *''

'' #1-3 (a, with John Francis Moore and

Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

, 1990) *''

'' ( Berkley Publishing): **'' Lewis Carroll: Through the Looking-Glass'' (w/a, in #3, tpb, 48 pages, 1990, ) **'' Edmond Rostand: Cyrano De Bergerac'' (a, with

, in #21, tpb, 48 pages, 1991, )

Marvel Comics

*''

Marvel Super Special ''Marvel Comics Super Special'' was a 41-issue series of one-shot (comics), one-shot comic-magazines published by American company Marvel Comics from 1977 to 1986. They were cover-priced $1.50 to $2.50, while regular color comics were priced 30 cen ...

'' #41: "Howard the Duck: The Movie" (a, with

Danny Fingeroth Daniel Fingeroth (; born September 17) is an American comic book writer and editor, best known for a long stint as group editor of the Spider-Man books at Marvel Comics. Early life Fingeroth was born in New York City, New York. Career As a write ...

, 1986) *''

Nightmask Nightmask is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He was created by writer Archie Goodwin, and first appeared in ''Nightmask'' #1 (November 1986), a series which was published under Marvel's New Uni ...

'' #11: "Nightmare in New Orleans" (a, with Roy and Dann Thomas, 1986) *''

What The--?! ''What The--?!'' is a Marvel Comics comic book series self-parodying the Marvel Universe as well as characters from the DC Comics Universe. Similar in vein to the 1960s series '' Not Brand Echh'', it was billed as "The Marvel mag of mirth and mayh ...

'' #3-4: "Mutant Beach Party!" (a, with

Kurt Busiek Kurt Busiek ( ; born September 16, 1960) is an American comic book writer. His work includes the '' Marvels'' limited series, his own series titled '' Astro City'', a four-year run on '' The Avengers, Thunderbolts,'' and ''Superman.'' Early lif ...

, 1988) *'' Classic X-Men'' #38: "Strangers on a Lift" (a, with Ann Nocenti, 1989) *''

Critical Mass In nuclear engineering, critical mass is the minimum mass of the fissile material needed for a sustained nuclear chain reaction in a particular setup. The critical mass of a fissionable material depends upon its nuclear properties (specific ...

'' #2: "St. George: A Knight without Armor" (a, with D. G. Chichester and Margaret Clark,

Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

, 1990) *'' Clive Barker's Hellraiser'' #7: "Clowning Around" (a, with D. G. Chichester, Epic, 1991) *'' Damage Control'' #1: "The Sure Thing" (a, with Dwayne McDuffie, 1991) *'' Epic Lite'' #1: "Al Space" (w/a, Epic, 1991) *'' Break the Chain'' (a, with

, one-shot, Marvel Music, 1994) *'' Truth: Red, White & Black'' #1-7 (a, with Robert Morales, 2003) *'' Marvel Romance Redux: Restraining Orders are for Other Girls'': "My Magical Centaur!" (w, with

Don Heck Donald L. HeckDonald L. Heck
at the Social Security Death Index. Retrieved on Septem ...

, 2006) *'' X-Men Fairy Tales'' #2: "The Friendship of the Tortoise and the Eagle" (a, with C. B. Cebulski, 2006) *

Deadpool Deadpool is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Fabian Nicieza and Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (December 1990). In his comic book appearances, Deadpool is ...

: **''

'' #900: "One Down" (a, with Charlie Huston, 2009) **'' Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth'' (a, with Victor Gischler): *** ''Deadpool: Merc With a Mouth'' (hc, 328 pages, 2010, ; tpb, 2011, ) incl **'' Prelude to Deadpool Corps'' #5 (a, with Victor Gischler, 2010) **'' DeadpoolMAX'' (a, with

David Lapham David Lapham is an American comic book writer, artist, and cartoonist, best known for his work on the independent comic book ''Stray Bullets (comics), Stray Bullets''. Career David Lapham started his career in 1990 as a penciller at Valiant Co ...

and Shawn Crystal, 2010–2012)

DC Comics

*''

'' #8-19, ''Annual'' #2 (a, with Andrew Helfer, 1988–1989) *''

Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/Comic anthology, magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as Detective Comics Inc., which later merged into National ...

'' #610: "Phantom Stranger: Kenny and the Demon!" (a, with Paul Kupperberg, 1988) *'' Justice, Inc.'' #1-2 (a, with Andrew Helfer, 1989) *'' Why I Hate Saturn'' (w/a, graphic novel, 200 pages, Piranha Press, 1990, ) *'' Justice League America'' #50: "Ktrrogarrx!" (w/a, 1991) *'' Fast Forward'' #2: "Lester Fenton & the Walking Dead" (w/a, Piranha Press, 1992) *'' Elseworlds 80 Page Giant'': "Letitia Lerner, Superman's Babysitter" (w/a, with Liz Glass, 1999) *'' Batman: Gotham Knights'' #11: "Snow Job!" (a, with Bob Kanigher, 2001) *'' Just Imagine Stan Lee with

John Buscema John Buscema ( ; born Giovanni Natale Buscema, ; December 11, 1927 – January 10, 2002)Social Se ...

Creating Superman'': "On the Street" (a, with

Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...

and Michael Uslan, co-feature, 2001) collected in ''Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating the DC Universe Volume 1'' (tpb, 216 pages, 2002, ) *''

9-11 The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

Volume 2'' (graphic novel, 224 pages, 2002, ): ** "Still Life" (a, with

Ed Brubaker Ed Brubaker (; born November 17, 1966) is an American comic book writer, cartoonist and screenwriter who works primarily in the crime fiction genre. He began his career with the semi-autobiographical series '' Lowlife'' and a number of serials i ...

) ** "The Call" (a, with Eddie Berganza) ** "What We Learned Today" (a, with Eddie Berganza) *''

'' vol. 4, #1-6, 8-11, 13-20 (2004-2006) (w/a) *'' The Spirit'': #7 (2007); vol. 2, #2 (2010) **"N.I.M.B.Y" (a, with

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 science fiction, New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. His published wo ...

) *'' Countdown'' #23: "The Origin of Mr. Mxyzptlk" (a, with Scott Beatty, co-feature, 2007) *'' Wednesday Comics'' #1-12: "Hawkman" (w/a, 2009) * '' MAD'': "The All-Time Pantheon of Oddball Music Fans" (a, with Mike Snider, in #343, 1996) * '' MAD'': "Joey Buttafuoco's Guide to Chivalry" (a, with C. J. Burke, in #356, 1997) *'' Gen¹³: Carny Folk'': "Sideshow on the Edge of Forever" (a, with

John Arcudi John Arcudi is an American comic book writer, best known for his work on '' The Mask'' and '' B.P.R.D.'' and his series '' Major Bummer''. Early life Arcudi grew up in Buffalo, New York. He attended Columbia University as an English major and ...

, one-shot,

Wildstorm Wildstorm Productions (stylized as WildStorm) is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee and Brandon Choi to publish through Image Comics, Wildstorm became a publishing imprint of DC C ...

, 2000) *'' ABC Special'': "Spectors from Projectors" (a, with

Alan Moore Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including ''Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', ''The Ballad of Halo Jones'', Swamp Thing (comic book), ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman: The Killing Joke' ...

, 2001) *'' Tom Strong'' #13: "The Family Strong and the Tower at Time's End!" (a, with Alan Moore,

Chris Sprouse Chris Sprouse (born July 30, 1966) is an American comics artist. Sprouse has worked for multiple publishers and has won two Eisner Awards for his work on '' Tom Strong'', a series he created with writer Alan Moore. Early life Chris Sprouse was b ...

, Russ Heath Jr. and Peter Poplaski, 2001)

Vertigo

*'' You are Here'' (w/a, graphic novel, 160 pages, 1998, ) *'' V2K: I Die at Midnight'' (w/a, one-shot, 2000) *''

King David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Damas ...

'' (w/a, graphic novel, 104 pages, 2002, ) *'' Undercover Genie'' (w/a, a collection of short strips and illustrations from non-comics publications, 128 pages, 2003, ) *''

House of Mystery ''The House of Mystery'' is the name of several horror comics, horror, fantasy comics, fantasy, and mystery fiction, mystery comics anthology, comics anthologies published by DC Comics. It had a companion series, ''The House of Secrets (DC Comi ...

'' #10: "Fig's Adventure in Stuffytown" (a, with

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

and Bethany Keele, 2010) *''

Mystery in Space ''Mystery in Space'' is the name of two science fiction American comic book series published by DC Comics, and of a standalone Vertigo anthology released in 2012. The first series ran for 110 issues from 1951 to 1966, with a further seven issues ...

'': "The Dream Pool" (a, with

Kevin McCarthy Kevin Owen McCarthy (born January 26, 1965) is an American politician who served as the List of speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 55th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from January until he was Remova ...

, one-shot, 2012)

Kyle Baker Publishing

*'' The New Baker'': "The Cartoon Issue" (w/a, one-shot, 2003) *'' The Bakers: Do These Toys Belong Somewhere?'' (hc, 96 pages, 2006, ) collects: **''Cartoonist'' (w/a): *** ''Volume 1'' (tpb, 128 pages, 2004, ) *** ''Volume 2: Now with More Bakers'' (tpb, 128 pages, 2005, ) **''The Bakers'' (w/a, one-shot, 2005) *''

'' #1-4 (w/a, 2005)

Other publishers

Dark Horse A dark horse is a previously lesser-known person, team or thing that emerges to prominence in a situation, especially in a competition involving multiple rivals, that is unlikely to succeed but has a fighting chance, unlike the underdog who is exp ...

: *'' The Residents: Freak Show'': "Everyone Comes Here, Nobody Laughs When They Leave" (w/a, graphic novel, 80 pages, 1992, ) *'' Instant Piano'' #1-4 (w/a, 1994–1995) *'' Michael Chabon Presents: The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist'' #1: "Sequestered" (a, with Kevin McCarthy, 2004) *'' The Bakers Meet Jingle Belle'' (a, with

Paul Dini Paul McClaran Dini (; born August 7, 1957) is an American writer, animator, and comic book artist. He has served as a producer and writer for several Warner Bros. Animation/DC Comics animated series, most notably ''Batman: The Animated Series' ...

, one-shot, 2006) *''

Creepy Creepiness is the state of being creepy, or causing an unpleasant feeling of fear or unease to someone and/or something. Certain traits or hobbies may make people seem creepy to others; interest in horror or the macabre might come across as 'c ...

'' #8: "Loathsome Lore" (a, with Dan Braun, 2012) *'' Birth of a Nation: A Comic Novel'' (a, with

Reginald Hudlin Reginald Alan Hudlin (born December 15, 1961) is an American director, screenwriter, and producer. Along with his older brother Warrington Hudlin, he is known as one of the Hudlin Brothers. From 2005 to 2008, Hudlin was President of Entertainmen ...

and

Aaron McGruder Aaron Vincent McGruder (born May 29, 1974) is an American writer, cartoonist, and producer best known for creating ''The Boondocks'', a Universal Press Syndicate comic strip and its animated TV series adaptation. Early life and education Aaron ...

, graphic novel, 144 pages,

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

, 2004, ) *'' Bart Simpson's Treehouse of Horror'' #12: "Blood Curse of the Evil Fairies!" (w/a, Bongo, 2006) *'' Goosebumps Volume 3'': "The Horror at Camp Jellyjam" (w/a, graphic novel, 144 pages, Graphix, 2007, )

Image An image or picture is a visual representation. An image can be Two-dimensional space, two-dimensional, such as a drawing, painting, or photograph, or Three-dimensional space, three-dimensional, such as a carving or sculpture. Images may be di ...

: *''

Special Forces Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

'' #1-4 (w/a, 2007–2009) *'' The Bakers: Babies and Kittens'' (w/a, hc, 96 pages, 2008, ) *'' Rocketeer Adventures 2'' #3: "Butchy Saves Betty" (w/a,

IDW Publishing IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW) and is recognized as the fifth-largest comic ...

, 2012)

Covers only

*''

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 ...

'' #9 (

Marvel Marvel may refer to: Business * Marvel Entertainment, an American entertainment company ** Marvel Comics, the primary imprint of Marvel Entertainment ** Marvel Universe, a fictional shared universe ** Marvel Music, an imprint of Marvel Comics ...

, 1985) *'' The Spectacular Spider-Man'' #112 (Marvel, 1986) *''

'' #43, 83 (Marvel, 1986–1990) *''

The Amazing Spider-Man ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' is an ongoing American superhero American comic book, comic book series featuring the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man as its title character and main protagonist. Being in the Earth 616, mainstream continuity of t ...

'' #287 (Marvel, 1987) *'' The Greatest Joker Stories Ever Told'' hc (

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

, 1988) *''

'' #603 (DC Comics, 1988) *''

'' #1, 4 (

, 1990) *''

Challengers of the Unknown The Challengers of the Unknown is a fictional group of adventurers appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The quartet of adventurers explored paranormal occurrences while facing several fantastic menaces. The characters' provenance is ...

'' #3 (DC Comics, 1991) *'' Monster Menace'' #1 (Marvel, 1993) *'' Marvel Tales'' #282 (Marvel, 1994) *''

Doom Patrol Doom Patrol is a superhero team from DC Comics. The original Doom Patrol first appeared in ''My Greatest Adventure'' #80 (June 1963), and was created by writers Arnold Drake and Bob Haney, along with artist Bruno Premiani. Doom Patrol has appear ...

'' #76-87 (

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition in which a person has the sensation that they are moving, or that objects around them are moving, when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. It may be associated with nausea, vomiting, perspira ...

, 1994–1995) *'' Dr. Strange vs.

Dracula ''Dracula'' is an 1897 Gothic fiction, Gothic horror fiction, horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. The narrative is Epistolary novel, related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist and opens ...

'' #1 (Marvel, 1994) *'' Showcase '94'' #4 (DC Comics, 1994) *'' 2099 Unlimited'' #5-6 (Marvel, 1994) *'' Gen¹³'' #40 (

, 1999) *''

The Comics Journal ''The Comics Journal'', often abbreviated ''TCJ'', is an American magazine of news and criticism pertaining to comic books, comic strips and graphic novels. Known for its lengthy interviews with comic creators, pointed editorials and scathing r ...

'' #219 (

Fantagraphics Books Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and (formerly) the Erotic comics, erotic Eros Comix imprint. They have managed sev ...

, 2000) *'' Peter Parker: Spider-Man'' #42-43 (Marvel, 2002) *'' Back Issue'' #8 ( TwoMorrows, 2005) *'' Tales from the Crypt'' #1 ( Papercutz, 2007)

Awards

, Best Writer/Artist: Humor: **1999 - Kyle Baker, ''You Are Here'' (

) **2000 - Kyle Baker, ''I Die at Midnight'' (DC/Vertigo); " Letitia Lerner, Superman's Babysitter" in ''

80-Page Giant'' #1 (DC) **2004 - Kyle Baker, ''

'' (DC); ''The New Baker'' (Kyle Baker Publishing) **2005 - Kyle Baker, ''Plastic Man'' (DC); ''Kyle Baker, Cartoonist'' (Kyle Baker Publishing) **2006 - Kyle Baker, ''Plastic Man'' (DC); ''The Bakers'' (Kyle Baker Publishing) *Eisner Award, Best Short Story: **2000 - "Letitia Lerner, Superman's Babysitter" by Kyle Baker in ''Elseworlds 80-Page Giant'' (DC) *Eisner Award, Best New Series: **2004 - ''Plastic Man'', by Kyle Baker (DC) *Eisner Award, Best Title for Younger Readers/Best Comics Publication for a Younger Audience: **2005 - ''Plastic Man'', by Kyle Baker and

Scott Morse Scott Morse (sometimes known as C. Scott Morse or C. S. Morse) is an American animator, filmmaker, and comic book artist/writer. Much of Morse's published work consists of stand-alone graphic novels, although he is perhaps best known for his ...

(DC) *

, Best Graphic Album of Original Work: **1991 - '' Why I Hate Saturn'' by Kyle Baker ( Piranha Press) **1999 - ''You Are Here'' by Kyle Baker (

Paradox Press Paradox Press was a division of DC Comics formed in 1993 after editor Mark Nevelow departed from Piranha Press. Under the initial editorship of Andy Helfer, Andrew Helfer and Bronwyn Carlton, the imprint was renamed. Paradox was best known for pu ...

) **2014 - '' The Fifth Beatle: The Brian Epstein Story'', with

Vivek Tiwary Vivek J. Tiwary (born May 15, 1973) is an American author and theater producer. Early life and education Vivek J. Tiwary was born in New York City to immigrant parents from India. He graduated from New York's Collegiate School high school and, ...

& Andrew C. Robinson (Dark Horse) *Harvey Award, Best New Series: **2005 - ''Plastic Man'', by Kyle Baker (DC) *Harvey Award, Special Award for Humor: **2005 - ''Plastic Man'', by Kyle Baker (DC) **2006 - ''Plastic Man'', by Kyle Baker (DC) *Harvey Award, Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Work **2009 - ''Nat Turner'' (Abram Books) *2006

Glyph Comics Awards The Glyph Comics Awards is an annual award ceremony for comic creators who are people of color. The ceremony was initiated with the goal of inspiring young writers from diverse backgrounds to participate in the comics industry. The awards are ...

Story of the Year Story of the Year is an American rock band formed in St. Louis, Missouri, Story of the Year at Allmusic.comAccessed May 17, 2007. in 1995 under the name 67 North. The band eventually changed their name to Big Blue Monkey in 1998, and then subs ...

- ''

'', Kyle Baker, writer and artist ** Best Artist: Kyle Baker, ''Nat Turner'' ** Best Cover: ''Nat Turner'' #1, Kyle Baker, illustrator *2007 Glyph Comics Awards ** Best Artist: Kyle Baker, ''The Bakers'' *2008 Glyph Comics Awards ** Best Artist: Kyle Baker, ''Nat Turner: Revolution''