Kim Thompson
| Kim Thompson | |
|---|---|
Kim Thompson by Michael Netzer
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| Born |
September 25, 1956 Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Died | June 19, 2013 (aged 56) Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Area(s) | Editor, Publisher |
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Notable works
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The Comics Journal Fantagraphics Books |
Kim Thompson (September 25, 1956 – June 19, 2013) was an American comic book editor, translator, and publisher, best known as vice president and co-publisher of Seattle-based Fantagraphics Books. Along with co-publisher Gary Groth, Thompson used his position to further the cause of alternative comics in the American market. In addition, Thompson made it his business to bring the work of European cartoonists to American readers.
Kim Thompson was born in Denmark in 1956. Child of a government contractor father, Thompson spent much of his youth in Europe, living in West Germany and the Netherlands. His mother is Danish, and Thompson grew up speaking the language, a skill which aided his later career as a translator of European comic books. (He was also fluent in French.)
Thompson developed an interest in comics early in life, some of his favorites being the works of André Franquin, Maurice Tillieux, and Jacques Tardi. As a young man, Thompson was a frequent contributor to American superhero comic book letter columns, with letters published in (among others) Amazing Spider-Man, Captain America, Conan the Barbarian, Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, Marvel Spotlight, and Marvel-Two-in-One. Early writing work by Thompson was published in the comics fanzine Omniverse in 1979.
Thompson moved to the United States in 1977, and soon met Groth through a mutual friend. He joined Fantagraphics' staff in that year, and soon became a co-owner with Groth. In 1978, Thompson saved Fantagraphics from bankruptcy by pouring his inheritance into the company's financial coffers.
Thompson was a regular contributor to the industry magazine The Comics Journal (which is published by Fantagraphics) since 1977. Although soft-spoken in person, as a writer Thompson did not shy from controversy. Even though he personally reviewed Dave Sim's long-running self-published comic Cerebus in early issues of The Comics Journal, Thompson (along with Groth) later took Sim to task in its pages for Sim's controversial statements about feminism and self-publishing.
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