Comic, Manga Letterer Dave Lanphear Dies at 58
Comic book and manga letterer Dave Lanphear died on August 18 from complications related to diabetes, according to a Bleeding Cool report that his sister Tera Lanphear first shared on Facebook on August 22. He was 58. Lanphear was an award-winning cartoonist, letterer, art director, and story producer. He was born on June 5, 1968, and worked as a newspaper illustrator from 1985 to 1989. He joined Comicraft in 1994, where he helped advance digital lettering techniques, then left in 1999 to lead the lettering department at CrossGen Entertainment. He later co-founded Artmonkeys Studios and worked as a freelance letterer. His comic credits span Marvel, DC, Image, Valiant, Malibu, and Dynamite, with work on titles like Batman: The Long Halloween, Superman '78, Mighty Avengers, and Wonder Woman. In manga, he lettered Beyblade, Bleach, Densha Otoko, and Oyayubihime Infinity. He won two Eisner Awards in 2011 for Return of the Dapper Men and Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard, and was nominated for Harvey Awards as Best Letterer in 2012 and 2014. Comic-Con International posted condolences on Thursday, noting his prolific work across major publishers.