Frank Thorne's net worth, biography, fact, career, awards and life story

Frank Thorne Wiki – Frank Thorne Biography

Frank Thorne, a legendary comic book artist best known for his work on Marvel’s Red Sonja, Thorne was known as one of the pioneers of cosplay. He began his career drawing for Standard Comics in 1948, according to CBR. His work also included newspaper and comic strips, such as Perry Mason, Flash Gordon, and The Green Hornet. Red Sonja’s solo series aired in 15 issues from January 1977 to May 1979.

He later went on to create various erotic fantasy comics, writing and illustrating Moonshine McJugs for Playboy, Lann for Heavy Metal, and Danger Rangerette for National Lampoon. He created the Ribit miniseries for Comico and several graphic novels for Fantagraphics Books, including Ghita of Alizarr, The Iron Devil, and The Devil’s Angel.

Thorne never stopped drawing. Comic Book Historians spoke to him for an hour-long podcast interview in 2019. She spoke about his success over the years and his early podcast work.

He said that people commented on the attractiveness of the women he drew, and when he found success with Red Sonja, he discovered his niche. He had discussions after the second issue of Red Sonja was published, which he described during the interview.

He won several awards, including a National Cartoonists Society Award in 1963, a San Diego Inkpot Award in 1978, and a Playboy Publishing Award. His work on Red Sonja was compiled into his own book, Red Sonja: Art Edition by Frank Thorne.

Frank Thorne Age

Frank Thorne was 90 years old.

Cause of Death

He died at the age of 90, along with his wife, Marilyn. Thorne and his wife died about six hours apart, according to fellow comic book artist Walter Simonson. The cause of death was not immediately known.

Simonson wrote a moving tribute to Thorne and shared one of the artist’s oldest comics. He was a fan of Thorne long before he became a comic book artist himself and became friends with Thorne and his wife over the years.

“Frank Thorne and his wife Marilyn left the port for the last time today, about six hours apart. It seems very appropriate that they do it together, “he wrote.

Simonson wrote about his fandom for Thorne’s work while he was growing up. His mother unwittingly dropped some of his comics as he got older, including illustrations of Thorne in John Houston’s Moby Dick adaptations and Disney’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. She went out of her way to replace them and was able to do so.

Simonson shared a panel from one of Thorne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea comics and wrote that it seemed to “sum up the romance, mystery, and danger of the story in a single drawing.”

His post read:

Frank Thorne and his wife Marilyn left the port for the last time today, about six hours apart. It seems very appropriate that they do it together. They were a lovely couple. We have had the great privilege of meeting you for the past decade thanks to the kind sponsorships of John and Cathy Workman. Frank was a comic book wizard in many ways and one of the first artists whose work I loved long before I knew who he was or could name his comics. That is the reason why he used the nautical allusion above, rather than something related to magicians or barbarian women. At some point in my early adult life, I found out that my mom had thrown out a bunch of old comics from my childhood. As the years passed and my profession manifested, she apologized for more than once to me, but I did not worry and told her please do not worry about her. She was just doing a mom’s job. However, there were two comics that were missing that I made a successful effort to replace. One was an adaptation of John Houston’s Moby Dick; the other was an adaptation of Disney’s 20,000 Under the Sea. I didn’t see either movie until I was older, but I loved both comics. At some point, I knew they were all drawn by Frank. For that alone, I would have loved him. Of course, he continued to create much more wonderful work. I have reproduced one of my favorite panels in the world below, from the 20,000 Leagues comic. I couldn’t tell you why. Perhaps it is because it seemed to me to sum up the romance, mystery and danger of the story in a single drawing. That is a gift. He was terribly modest about his work, but I was a huge fan, followed him over the years, and it was a pleasure for me and Weezie to meet him and his wife. Good luck, Frank and Marilyn. Thanks for the work and friendship. I’m glad they could go together.

Vanguard Productions shared a photo of Thorne and others in an announcement of his death on March 7, 2021. The post summarized his extensive work.

“Very sad that Frank Thorne passed away today (06/16/1930 – 07/03/2021). Artist Perry Mason, Flash Gordon, Jungle Jim, Green Hornet, Tom Corbett Space Cadet, Tomahawk, Mighty Samson, Enemy Ace, Red Sonja, Heavy Metal, National Lampoon and Ghita from Alizarr was shortly followed by his loving wife Marilyn, ” Vanguard Productions wrote.

Otomic book writer Paul Levitz also shared a tribute to Thorne on Facebook.

He wrote:

He says goodbye to Frank Thorne, an artist who gradually developed his style towards an increasingly personal expression. I had the pleasure of working with Frank in his last days in DC, when he did a magnificent job for the mystery titles, and came up in pencil for Jim Aparo in The Specter, carefully blending his narrative approach with Jim’s.

But Frank had the best moment of his career in Marvel’s RED SONJA, whom he made powerful and sexy. He was probably the first mainstream [entertainer] who reveled in the [cosplay] becoming the magician who performed with Wendy Pini’s Sonja show after show. A man of talent, charm, and great wit. Bon voyage Frank, you will be remembered for a long time.