Jeph Loeb
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Jeph Loeb with his son Sam |
Joseph "Jeph" Loeb III is an
American comic book writer, screen and television writer as well as television and motion picture producer. A three-time
Eisner Award Winner and five-time Wizard Award Winner, Loeb has found tremendous success at both Marvel and DC where he has guided such diverse characters as the
X-Men and
Superman as well as
Batman and
Spider-Man. He is known for his extensive use of narration boxes as monologues to reveal the inner thoughts of his characters. Much of his most celebrated work has been in collaboration with artist
Tim Sale.
In 2003, Loeb teamed with artist
Jim Lee to create the year long mystery
Batman: Hush, the highest selling DC comic in over 10 years. Hush, which spawned three lines of toys, posters and calenders, sat at the #1 spot for eleven of the twelve months it was in publication. The following year, Loeb launched
Superman/Batman which toppled "Hush"'s success, featuring artists such as
Ed McGuinness,
Michael Turner,
Pat Lee,
Carlos Pacheco and
Ian Churchill. In 2005, Loeb spun
Supergirl out of
Superman/Batman with artist Ian Churchill.
Jeph Loeb was a writer and supervising producer for
Smallville and
Lost. In 2006, he will be working on the superhero drama
Heroes, which features art by Tim Sale.
He was born in
Stamford,
Connecticut. He reportedly read his first
comic book during the summer of
1970. By winter of the same year, Jeph was apparently fascinated enough to convince his father to purchase the comic book collection of one Tom Chicarella on his behalf. Tom was from
Brooklyn,
New York City,
New York and the sold collection reportedly included every issue published by
Marvel Comics between
1961 and late 1970.
His later step-father was a vice-president at
Brandeis University,
Waltham,
Massachusetts, where Jeph met one of his mentors and greatest influences in comic book writing, the legendary
Elliot Maggin. Jeph however attended
Columbia University. He graduated with a
Bachelor of Arts and a
Master's degree in
Film. His instructors included
Miloš Forman and
Paul Schrader.
His debut in film-making was his collaboration with
Matthew Weisman in authoring the script of
Teen Wolf. The film was released on
August 23,
1985 and was a notable starring role for
Michael J. Fox.
Loeb and Weisman then collaborated in writing the script of
Commando. The film was released on
October 4, 1985 and starred
Arnold Schwarzenegger.
His next screen credit was the film
Burglar, first released on
March 20,
1987. The plot was based on the novels of
Lawrence Block about
fictional burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr. His collaborators were Weisman and
Hugh Wilson. The film was a typical for the time tough-woman
comedic role for starring actress
Whoopi Goldberg.
His second film that year was
Teen Wolf Too, a sequel of
Teen Wolf. His co-writers were Weisman and
Timothy Kring. The film was released on
November 20, 1987. The film featured
teen idol Jason Bateman and veteran actor
John Astin.
Four years later, Loeb was working on a script for THE FLASH as a feature with
Warner Brothers. While the script deal fell through, Loeb met then publisher
Jenette Kahn who asked Loeb to write a comic book for DC.
He is also a producer of the ABC TV show LOST.
The result was
Challengers of the Unknown vol. 2 #1 - #8 (March -October,
1991). The mini-series also featured notable guest appearances by
Doctor Fate (Eric and Linda Strauss),
Batman,
James Gordon,
Guy Gardner and
Lois Lane. Most notably, it was the first of many collaborations with
Tim Sale.
Jeph's most famous comic work is the Batman graphic novel
The Long Halloween, a 13 issue
limited series set in 'Year One' which he collaborated with Tim Sale. The book is considered one of the best Batman stories ever, and recommended as one of the essential Batman books. The Long Halloween was one of the 3 noted comics that influenced the recent
Batman Begins, the others being
Batman: The Man Who Falls and
Batman: Year One.
Jeph was also recruited as a writer and supervising producer for the hit show
Smallville for a number of seasons (2002-2005). Given his expertise on the Superman mythos and experience with writing the character in comics, he helped bring an authenticity to the show that fans loved. Most recently he has joined the writing staff of the popular ABC series
Lost as Supervising Producer.
As of
September 1,
2005, Loeb began an exclusive contract with Marvel. His first series will be Volume 3 of
The Ultimates, with
Joe Madureira on art.
Jeph's son, Sam Loeb, died on
June 17,
2005 at the age of 17 after a three-year long battle with cancer. At the age of 15 Sam wrote a story in issue 5 of the
Tales of the Vampires comic series with Jeph's long-term collaborator Tim Sale. In 2006, Sam's final work appeared in Superman/Batman #26 which was nearly completed before his death. His father finished the work with the help of 25 others considered royalty in the comic book industry, all of whom were friends of Sam, including
Art Adams,
Joe Casey,
John Cassaday, Joyce Chin,
Ian Churchill,
Allan Heinberg,
Geoff Johns,
Joe Kelly, Mike Kunkel,
Jim Lee,
Pat Lee,
Rob Liefeld,
Paul Levitz,
Joe Madureira, Jeff Matsuda,
Ed McGuinness,
Brad Meltzer,
Carlos Pacheco, Duncan Rouleau,
Tim Sale,
Richard Starkings,
Michael Turner,
Brian K. Vaughan, Mark Verheiden, and
Joss Whedon. The issue also featured a story titled "Sam's Story," dedicated to Sam.
Also in 2006, it was Jeph who chose his hometown of Stamford, Connecticut to be subject to superhero destruction in the opening issue of Marvel's currently on-going
crossover event,
Civil War.
Loeb currently shares his writing studio, The Empath Magic Tree House, with
Geoff Johns and
Allan Heinberg. Another writer will soon join the studio.
Challengers of the Unknown (Series 2)Superman Superman For All SeasonsSmallvilleSuperman/BatmanBatman: Legends of the Dark Knight: Halloween Specials
*Batman: The Long Halloween
*Batman: Dark Victory
*Catwoman: When in Rome
*Batman: Hush
*Daredevil: Yellow
*Soulfire
*Spider-Man: Blue
*Hulk: Gray''
*
Chronology of Loeb-Sale Collaborations
