Michael Aushenker
Encyclopedia
Michael Aushenker is an independent American
comic-book artist and creator based in Los Angeles, California
, best known for the comic book series El Gato, Crime Mangler. He has also created Chipmunks & Squirrels, Those Unstoppable Rogues, and Cartoon Flophouse (featuring the absurdist Euro-flavored bellhop strip Greenblatt the Great!), and his work has appeared in such publications as Heavy Metal (magazine)
(his "Professor Pap" series and other gag strips in the magazine's "Strip Tease" section), Duplex Planet (# 11), Instant Classics, The Stranger, Cake, and Filth.
The "El Gato, Crime Mangler" series includes The Nine Lives of El Gato, Crime Mangler (1995), ¡Holy Ghost El Gato! (1999), Futureshock: El Gato 2002 (2000), and The Nine Loves of El Gato, Crime Mangler (2003).
Aushenker freelances as a screenwriter and continues to write comic books for various companies, including Bongo Comics Group and Heroic Publishing. He wrote a two-part Liberty Girl story for the latter, the first of which was released in Liberty Comics # 1, September 2007. On September 18, 2007, El Muerto
, a film starring Wilmer Valderrama
and Tony Plana
, based on the Javier Hernandez comic book El Muerto, Aztec Zombie, was released on DVD, for which Aushenker contributed a painting on the disc's gallery section.
in Los Angeles. In 1991, he graduated from Cornell University
, where he majored in fine arts and creative writing. While attending Cornell, at the age of 19, Aushenker authored and illustrated the children's book Get That Goat! (Landmark Editions) and co-founded and co-edited Strip! magazine, a student cartoonist quarterly, with a collective that included Andrice Arp, Bishakh Som, and Howard Arey (who have since formed Hi-Horse Comics) and Patty Lin
(a writer/producer on Freaks and Geeks
and the first season of Desperate Housewives
). In 1992, following college, Caliber Press published his first comic book, a one-shot humor anthology dubbed Bound & Gagged that featured such Aushenker creations as "The Debunker" and "Stunt Nun." Soon after, Heavy metal
magazine published his humor comics in their Strip Tease section, which included Professor Pap, Bachelor Emeritus, a sci-fi gag strip.
Past jobs include a staff writer position at a community newspaper weekly, The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles (1997–2003), where he won a 2002 Simon Rockower Award for "Excellence in Personality Profiles" and interviewed subjects such as Sam Raimi
and Sarah Silverman
before they broke into the mainstream, as well as wrote articles on comic-book icons Stan Lee
, Jack Kirby
and Will Eisner
before superhero movies by said creators began to dominate Hollywood; and a stint writing movie poster copy, during which Aushenker crafted slogans for print ad campaigns for I Know What You Did Last Summer
("If you want to bury the truth, make sure it stays buried"), Eve's Bayou
("Love can lead you to a dangerous place..."), The Game
, and Space Truckers
.
In 2004, Aushenker co-wrote an unproduced feature comedy for the writing/producing team of Alfred Gough
and Miles Millar
(creators of Smallville
and screenwriters on the films Spider-Man
and Shanghai Noon
) under their deal with Disney
. He has also co-written a feature film comedy for Urban Entertainment
, the producers of "Undercover Brother
."
During the fourth season of SpongeBob SquarePants
, Nickelodeon
hired Aushenker to create episode ideas for the hit animated series.
Aushenker is a contributing writer for Back Issue Magazine
, a TwoMorrows publication devoted to comics from the 1970s and 1980s. His first article, about Marvel Comics
' short-lived The Human Fly (comics), ran in the January 2007 issue (# 20). Subsequent issues featured his articles on Son of Satan
, Captain America and the Falcon
, Deathlok the Demolisher
, and Mr. T
comics.
Aushenker is among the alternative cartoonists (along with Russ Heath
and Dean Yeagle
) appearing in a comic book convention-themed episode of the hit CBS series NUMB3RS
. The episode's original air date: November 23, 2007.
In January 2008, Aushenker began writing regularly for the Lifestyle section of the Palisadian-Post, the 80-year-old official newspaper of Pacific Palisades, California. Aushenker's articles have included profiles of Seymour Cassel
, Gavin MacLeod
, Marion Ross
, and Stacy Peralta
, as well as coverage of appearances by Ray Bradbury
and Isabel Allende
and a behind-the-scenes article on Blake Edwards
' The Party
.
A new imprint, Urban Golem, began publishing a volume two of Cartoon Flophouse comic book of gag cartoons featuring Greenblatt the Great!. The comic book enjoyed its official debut at the Alternative Press Expo
in November 2008. Cartoon Flophouse Featuring Greenblatt the Great! # 2 came out at Alternative Press Expo
in October 2009, alongside another Aushenker release, the all-ages comic Silly Goose.
Aushenker is currently working on several new comics for various companies. Wildcard Ink publisher Mel Smith announced at Wonder Con in March 2008 that the Gumby
comics series will be called Gumby's Gang Starring..., and each book will spotlight a different Gumby
supporting character, including Prickle, Goo, and The Blockheads
. The first Gumby's Gang comic, focusing on Pokey, will feature art by Rafael Navarro
and is scheduled for a 2009/10 release. He also has work appearing in Australian anthologies Blackguard and Yuck!. Urban Golem has announced plans to release new collections of Professor Pap and El Gato, Crime Mangler in 2010.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
comic-book artist and creator based in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, best known for the comic book series El Gato, Crime Mangler. He has also created Chipmunks & Squirrels, Those Unstoppable Rogues, and Cartoon Flophouse (featuring the absurdist Euro-flavored bellhop strip Greenblatt the Great!), and his work has appeared in such publications as Heavy Metal (magazine)
Heavy Metal (magazine)
Heavy Metal is an American science fiction and fantasy comics magazine, known primarily for its blend of dark fantasy/science fiction and erotica. In the mid-1970s, while publisher Leonard Mogel was in Paris to jump-start the French edition of National Lampoon, he discovered the French...
(his "Professor Pap" series and other gag strips in the magazine's "Strip Tease" section), Duplex Planet (# 11), Instant Classics, The Stranger, Cake, and Filth.
The "El Gato, Crime Mangler" series includes The Nine Lives of El Gato, Crime Mangler (1995), ¡Holy Ghost El Gato! (1999), Futureshock: El Gato 2002 (2000), and The Nine Loves of El Gato, Crime Mangler (2003).
Aushenker freelances as a screenwriter and continues to write comic books for various companies, including Bongo Comics Group and Heroic Publishing. He wrote a two-part Liberty Girl story for the latter, the first of which was released in Liberty Comics # 1, September 2007. On September 18, 2007, El Muerto
El Muerto (film)
El Muerto is a live-action independent film adaptation of the comic book series, El Muerto: The Aztec Zombie created by Javier Hernandez...
, a film starring Wilmer Valderrama
Wilmer Valderrama
Wilmer Eduardo Valderrama is an American actor and television personality, known for the role of Fez in the sitcom That '70s Show, hosting the MTV series Yo Momma, and voicing the character of Manny in the children's show Handy Manny.-Early life:Valderrama was born in Miami, Florida the son of...
and Tony Plana
Tony Plana
Tony Plana is a Cuban-American actor and director. He is well known for playing Betty Suarez's father, Ignacio Suarez, on the ABC show Ugly Betty.-Personal life:...
, based on the Javier Hernandez comic book El Muerto, Aztec Zombie, was released on DVD, for which Aushenker contributed a painting on the disc's gallery section.
Biography
Aushenker graduated from Fairfax High SchoolFairfax High School (Los Angeles)
Fairfax High School is a Los Angeles Unified School District high school located in Los Angeles, USA, near the border of West Hollywood in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles...
in Los Angeles. In 1991, he graduated from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, where he majored in fine arts and creative writing. While attending Cornell, at the age of 19, Aushenker authored and illustrated the children's book Get That Goat! (Landmark Editions) and co-founded and co-edited Strip! magazine, a student cartoonist quarterly, with a collective that included Andrice Arp, Bishakh Som, and Howard Arey (who have since formed Hi-Horse Comics) and Patty Lin
Patty Lin
Patty Lin is an American television screenwriter and producer. She is a graduate of Cornell UniversityShe has written episodes for the television series Friends, Freaks and Geeks, Martial Law, Citizen Baines , Desperate Housewives, Leap of Faith and Breaking Bad.She has served as producer for a...
(a writer/producer on Freaks and Geeks
Freaks and Geeks
Freaks and Geeks is an American teen comedy-drama television series, created by Paul Feig and executive produced by Judd Apatow, that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 television season...
and the first season of Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
). In 1992, following college, Caliber Press published his first comic book, a one-shot humor anthology dubbed Bound & Gagged that featured such Aushenker creations as "The Debunker" and "Stunt Nun." Soon after, Heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
magazine published his humor comics in their Strip Tease section, which included Professor Pap, Bachelor Emeritus, a sci-fi gag strip.
Past jobs include a staff writer position at a community newspaper weekly, The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles (1997–2003), where he won a 2002 Simon Rockower Award for "Excellence in Personality Profiles" and interviewed subjects such as Sam Raimi
Sam Raimi
Samuel Marshall "Sam" Raimi is an American film director, producer, actor and writer. He is best known for directing cult horror films like the Evil Dead series, Darkman and Drag Me to Hell, as well as the blockbuster Spider-Man films and the producer of the successful TV series Hercules: The...
and Sarah Silverman
Sarah Silverman
Sarah Kate Silverman is a Jewish American comedian, writer, actress, singer and musician. Her satirical comedy addresses social taboos and controversial topics such as racism, sexism, and religion....
before they broke into the mainstream, as well as wrote articles on comic-book icons Stan Lee
Stan Lee
Stan Lee is an American comic book writer, editor, actor, producer, publisher, television personality, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics....
, Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby , born Jacob Kurtzberg, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor regarded by historians and fans as one of the major innovators and most influential creators in the comic book medium....
and Will Eisner
Will Eisner
William Erwin "Will" Eisner was an American comics writer, artist and entrepreneur. He is considered one of the most important contributors to the development of the medium and is known for the cartooning studio he founded; for his highly influential series The Spirit; for his use of comics as an...
before superhero movies by said creators began to dominate Hollywood; and a stint writing movie poster copy, during which Aushenker crafted slogans for print ad campaigns for I Know What You Did Last Summer
I Know What You Did Last Summer
I Know What You Did Last Summer is a 1997 American horror film. The film stars Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe and Freddie Prinze Jr. The screenplay was written by Kevin Williamson, writer of Scream, and very loosely based on Lois Duncan's popular novel of the same title...
("If you want to bury the truth, make sure it stays buried"), Eve's Bayou
Eve's Bayou
Eve's Bayou is a 1997 American drama film written and directed by Kasi Lemmons, who made her directorial debut with this feature. Samuel L...
("Love can lead you to a dangerous place..."), The Game
The Game (film)
The Game is a 1997 neo-noir psychological thriller film directed by David Fincher, starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn, and produced by Polygram. It tells the story of an investment banker who is given a mysterious gift: participation in a game that integrates in strange ways with his life...
, and Space Truckers
Space Truckers
Space Truckers is a 1996 American comedy science-fiction film written and directed by Stuart Gordon. It was filmed at Ardmore Studios, County Wicklow, Ireland....
.
In 2004, Aushenker co-wrote an unproduced feature comedy for the writing/producing team of Alfred Gough
Alfred Gough
Alfred Gough III is an American screenwriter and producer.-Early life and career:Born in Leonardtown, Maryland, Gough graduated from St. Mary's Ryken High School and The Catholic University of America...
and Miles Millar
Miles Millar
-Early life and Career:Millar was educated at Claremont Fan Court School, and is a graduate of Christ's College, Cambridge, where he was Chairman of Cambridge University Conservative Association.....
(creators of Smallville
Smallville (TV series)
Smallville is an American television series developed by writers/producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar based on the DC Comics character Superman, originally created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The television series was initially broadcast by The WB Television Network , premiering on October...
and screenwriters on the films Spider-Man
Spider-Man (film)
Spider-Man is a 2002 American superhero film, the first in the Spider-Man film series based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. It was directed by Sam Raimi and written by David Koepp...
and Shanghai Noon
Shanghai Noon
Shanghai Noon is a 2000 American martial arts action comedy western film starring Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson. The film, marking the directorial debut of Tom Dey, was written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar....
) under their deal with Disney
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
. He has also co-written a feature film comedy for Urban Entertainment
Urban Entertainment
Urban Entertainment Group is a production company that produces African American films. Most of their releases are direct-to-video, and are released to DVD by Warner Bros. through their Warner Home Video label....
, the producers of "Undercover Brother
Undercover Brother
Undercover Brother is a 2002 American comedy film starring Eddie Griffin and directed by Malcolm D. Lee. The screenplay is by Michael McCullers and co-executive producer John Ridley, who created the original internet animation characters. It spoofs blaxploitation films of the 1970s as well as a...
."
During the fourth season of SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants is an American animated television series, created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg. Much of the series centers on the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the underwater city of "Bikini Bottom"...
, Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
hired Aushenker to create episode ideas for the hit animated series.
Aushenker is a contributing writer for Back Issue Magazine
Back Issue Magazine
Back Issue is an American magazine published by TwoMorrows Publishing, based in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 2003 and published eight times yearly, it features articles and art about comic books of the 1970s to the 1990s....
, a TwoMorrows publication devoted to comics from the 1970s and 1980s. His first article, about Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
' short-lived The Human Fly (comics), ran in the January 2007 issue (# 20). Subsequent issues featured his articles on Son of Satan
Daimon Hellstrom
Daimon Hellstrom, also known as the Son of Satan and Hellstorm, is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe.-Publication history:He first appeared in Ghost Rider Daimon Hellstrom, also known as the Son of Satan and Hellstorm, is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics...
, Captain America and the Falcon
Captain America and the Falcon
Captain America and the Falcon was a comic book series published for fifteen issues in 2004 and 2005 by Marvel Comics. The series' title is a reuse of the cover title of Captain America's solo series during a period in which the Falcon was given second billing on the front cover...
, Deathlok the Demolisher
Deathlok
Deathlok is a fictional cyborg published by Marvel Comics. He first appeared in Astonishing Tales #25 , and was created by Rich Buckler and Doug Moench...
, and Mr. T
Mr. T
Mr. T is an American actor known for his roles as B. A. Baracus in the 1980s television series The A-Team, as boxer Clubber Lang in the 1982 film Rocky III, and for his appearances as a professional wrestler. Mr. T is known for his trademark African Mandinka warrior hairstyle, his gold jewelry,...
comics.
Aushenker is among the alternative cartoonists (along with Russ Heath
Russ Heath
Russell Heath, Jr. is an American artist best known for his comic book work — particularly his DC Comics war stories for several decades and his 1960s art for Playboy magazine's Little Annie Fanny featurettes — and for his commercial art, two pieces of which, depicting Roman and...
and Dean Yeagle
Dean Yeagle
Dean Yeagle is an accomplished animator, known for his character 'Mandy', who has frequented the pages of Playboy Magazine.As a young Disney fan, Yeagle set his sights on becoming an animator for Disney around the age of 10...
) appearing in a comic book convention-themed episode of the hit CBS series NUMB3RS
NUMB3RS
Numb3rs is an American television drama which premiered on CBS on January 23, 2005, and concluded on March 12, 2010. The series was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, and follows FBI Special Agent Don Eppes and his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes , who helps Don solve crimes...
. The episode's original air date: November 23, 2007.
In January 2008, Aushenker began writing regularly for the Lifestyle section of the Palisadian-Post, the 80-year-old official newspaper of Pacific Palisades, California. Aushenker's articles have included profiles of Seymour Cassel
Seymour Cassel
Seymour Joseph Cassel is an American actor.He first came to prominence in the 1960s in the pioneering independent films of writer/directorJohn Cassavetes...
, Gavin MacLeod
Gavin MacLeod
Gavin MacLeod is an American actor most notable for playing Happy Haines on McHale's Navy, Murray Slaughter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Captain Merrill Stubing on The Love Boat...
, Marion Ross
Marion Ross
Marion Ross is an American actress best known for her role as Marion Cunningham on the television series Happy Days from 1974 to 1984.-Early life:...
, and Stacy Peralta
Stacy Peralta
Stacy Peralta is an American director and entrepreneur. Peralta was previously a professional skateboarder and surfer with the professional skateboarding group, the Z-Boys.-Early life:...
, as well as coverage of appearances by Ray Bradbury
Ray Bradbury
Ray Douglas Bradbury is an American fantasy, horror, science fiction, and mystery writer. Best known for his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 and for the science fiction stories gathered together as The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man , Bradbury is one of the most celebrated among 20th...
and Isabel Allende
Isabel Allende
Isabel Allende Llona is a Chilean writer with American citizenship. Allende, whose works sometimes contain aspects of the "magic realist" tradition, is famous for novels such as The House of the Spirits and City of the Beasts , which have been commercially successful...
and a behind-the-scenes article on Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards was an American film director, screenwriter and producer.Edwards' career began in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon turned to writing radio scripts at Columbia Pictures...
' The Party
The Party (film)
The Party is a 1968 comedy film directed by Blake Edwards, starring Peter Sellers and Claudine Longet. The film has a very loose structure, and essentially serves as a series of set pieces for Sellers's improvisational comedy talents...
.
A new imprint, Urban Golem, began publishing a volume two of Cartoon Flophouse comic book of gag cartoons featuring Greenblatt the Great!. The comic book enjoyed its official debut at the Alternative Press Expo
Alternative Press Expo
The Alternative Press Expo or APE, as it is more commonly known, is a comics convention. It was founded in 1994 by Dan Vado as an event for self-publishers, independent publishers and alternative cartoonists to showcase their books. It was originally held in San Jose, California. Comic-Con...
in November 2008. Cartoon Flophouse Featuring Greenblatt the Great! # 2 came out at Alternative Press Expo
Alternative Press Expo
The Alternative Press Expo or APE, as it is more commonly known, is a comics convention. It was founded in 1994 by Dan Vado as an event for self-publishers, independent publishers and alternative cartoonists to showcase their books. It was originally held in San Jose, California. Comic-Con...
in October 2009, alongside another Aushenker release, the all-ages comic Silly Goose.
Aushenker is currently working on several new comics for various companies. Wildcard Ink publisher Mel Smith announced at Wonder Con in March 2008 that the Gumby
Gumby
Gumby is a green clay humanoid character created and modeled by Art Clokey, who also created Davey and Goliath. Gumby has been the subject of a 233-episode series of American television as well as a feature-length film and other media...
comics series will be called Gumby's Gang Starring..., and each book will spotlight a different Gumby
Gumby
Gumby is a green clay humanoid character created and modeled by Art Clokey, who also created Davey and Goliath. Gumby has been the subject of a 233-episode series of American television as well as a feature-length film and other media...
supporting character, including Prickle, Goo, and The Blockheads
The Blockheads
The Blockheads are an English rock and roll band. Originally fronted by vocalist Ian Dury as Ian Dury and the Blockheads, the band has continued to perform since Dury's death in 2000. Current members include Chaz Jankel , Norman Watt-Roy , Mick Gallagher , John Turnbull and Davey Payne...
. The first Gumby's Gang comic, focusing on Pokey, will feature art by Rafael Navarro
Rafael Navarro
Rafael Navarro is an independent American comic-book artist best known for creating the Xeric Award winning series, Sonambulo, which cleverly blends elements of Lucha Libre and the noir genre. He has collaborated with Keith Rainville and has had work featured in Rainville's From Parts Unknown...
and is scheduled for a 2009/10 release. He also has work appearing in Australian anthologies Blackguard and Yuck!. Urban Golem has announced plans to release new collections of Professor Pap and El Gato, Crime Mangler in 2010.