Jim Shooter Passes Away

Comic book writer Jim Shooter has passed away from cancer. He's best known for his tenure as Editor in Chief of Marvel Comics from 1978 - 1987. Almost all the stories you love from the Marvel films were conceptualized in some way from creators during his tenure as editor. There's too much to say about his contributions to the comic book world and pop culture.

On a personal note, I was invited on a ride along to film him in his limo, as he toured Long Island comic shops on Free Comic Book Day in 2011. It was one of the coolest experiences I ever had. I showed up wearing my Secret Wars t-shirt (one of my favorite stories), completely forgetting he wrote the mini-series. He complimented my shirt and it jogged my memory that he was the writer. I played it off that it was worn on purpose. 

The rule “never meet your heroes” certainly didn’t apply to Jim Shooter. He was nothing but gracious and kind. He had a wealth of knowledge and spent the day telling stories about his career in comics. At the end of the day he signed a couple of my trade paperbacks that he wrote. An unforgettable experience. 

As the years went on I’d continue to run into him at cons. He was always incredibly awesome, would share insight on how he wrote and techniques he used. As I learned more about him, I discovered he was a generous mentor to anyone who wanted to break into comics. He’d give honest feedback to people who approached him. There are a lot of creators out there who credit their career to Jim Shooter. Not only have we lost a great creator, we also lost a great person. 

Praying for Jim Shooter and his family.

Written by
Joseph Ammendolea
Owner/President
“I Like To Play With Toys” Productions®
ILikeToPlayWithToysProductions@Yahoo.com

Here’s some clips from that ride along on Free Comic Book Day.