J. M. DeMatteis
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John Marc DeMatteis (born December 15 1953) is an American writer of comic books. A follower of the Indian guru Meher Baba, DeMatteis is known both for infusing superhero comics with spiritual concerns, and for his humorous touch.
DeMatteis began as a music critic before getting his start in comic books at DC Comics in the late 1970s, when he contributed to the company's line of horror comics. He began writing for Marvel Comics in the late 1970s on the The Defenders, and had a lengthy run on Captain America, paired with penciler Mike Zeck). In 1987, DeMatteis and Zeck re-teamed for the 6-part Kraven's Last Hunt story arc that ran throughout Marvel's (then three) Spider-Man titles (the story would prove to be controversial, due to Kraven the Hunter's shotgun suicide in the penultimate installment). DeMatteis also wrote the graphic novel Moonshadow for Marvel's Epic line, illustrated by Jon J. Muth. With Muth he also adapted Dracula as a stand alone graphic novel. He followed that with Blood: A Tale a hallucinatory vampire tale drawn by Kent Williams. DeMatteis also wrote the 1986 Dr. Strange graphic novel Into Shambhala.
Moving back to DC, DeMatteis took over from Gerry Conway as writer of Justice League of America. When that title was cancelled in the wake of the Crisis on Infinite Earths, DeMatteis stayed through its relaunch as Justice League International, scripting over the plots of Keith Giffen.
JLI took such second-string DC characters as Martian Manhunter, Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Mister Miracle, Captain Atom, and Power Girl, and turned the then-current preoccupation with "grim 'n' gritty" superheroes on its head. The lighthearted series, whose genre came to be known as bwa ha ha, emphasised the absurd aspects of people with strange powers, wearing colorful costumes, volunteering to fight evildoers. While the League had its serious side and often faced world-threatening villains, it also featured such characters as the lovably inept G'nort, the worst Green Lantern in the Corps; Mr. Nebula, the interplanetary decorator; the Injustice League, a bunch of bumbling losers; and a flock of homicidal penguins who had been hybridized with piranhas.
Paradoxically, by not taking their characters seriously, DeMatteis and Giffen made them seem much more human and well-rounded than the usual superheroes.
DeMatteis stayed with JLI for five years, often scripting its spin-offs (such as a Mister Miracle solo title, or a European branch of the Justice League). Back at Marvel, DeMatteis succeeded Gerry Conway as writer of The Spectacular Spider-Man in 1991, taking the series into a more grim, psychological direction in the vein of Kraven's Last Hunt. In collaboration with regular artist Sal Buscema, DeMatteis's most notable story arc was The Child Within (#178-184) featuring the return of the Harry Osborn Green Goblin and Vermin. Spider-Man's battle with the Goblin continued in the The Osborn Legacy in #189 and came to an end when Harry was killed off in The Best Of Enemies! (#200). In the mid 1990s, DeMatteis took over from David Michelinie as writer of The Amazing Spider-Man for a run that included the apparent death of Peter Parker's Aunt May and the beginnings of the "Clone Saga" arc. DeMatteis as well worked on such characters as Doctor Strange, Daredevil, Man-Thing, and the Silver Surfer.
He continued to write for DC, contributing tales of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman; redefining The Spectre, through the character of Hal Jordan, as a spirit of redemption rather than of vengeance; and in 2003, with Giffen, revived the JLI for the miniseries, Formerly Known as the Justice League. The series won Giffen, DeMatteis and artist Kevin Maguire an Eisner Award. The team followed this with "I Can't Believe It's Not The Justice League" and, at Marvel, a five-issue run on The Defenders. DeMatteis and Giffen are currently at work on an original superhero comedy, Hero Squared, for Boom! Studios.
DeMatteis wrote an autobiographical, digest-sized miniseries Brooklyn Dreams, published by DC. In 1996 he began work on the ongoing series Seekers Into The Mystery which lasted 15 issues and told the story of Lucas Hart, a Hollywood writer on a journey of self-discovery and search for universal truths. He later teamed with veteran artist Mike Ploog on the CrossGen fantasy Abadazad (May 2004). Ploog and DeMatteis announced they were collaborating again the following year on a five-issue miniseries, Stardust Kid, from the Image Comics imprint Desperado Publishing. The series will be moving to Boom! Studios in 2006. DeMatteis and Ploog are currently bringing Abadazad back as a series of illustrated fantasy novels, published by Disney's Hyperion Books For Children. The first two books in the series—Abadazad: The Road to Inconceivable and Abadazad: The Dream Thief—will be released in June of 2006.
DeMatteis has also written for television, having scripted episodes of the 1980s incarnation of The Twilight Zone, as well as the syndicated series The Adventures of Superboy and Earth: Final Conflict, as well as for the animated series Justice League Unlimited, among others. He has written screenplays for Twentieth Century Fox, Disney Feature Animation and directors Chris Columbus and Dean Devlin.
Also a musician, DeMatteis released one album in the late 1990s.