Comic artist Tom Palmer dead at 81

Avengers #75
(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Legendary co𒉰mic book artist Tom Palmer has passed away at the age of 81, according to a . No cause of death has been disclosed.

"We are very sad to share the ಞnews that legendary comic book inker and artist Tom Palmer passed away on August 18, 2022 at the age of 81," reads the post. "He will be remembered fondly by his loving family and his many fans."

Though he initially began his career as a penciler, Palmer is best known in the comic in🅘dustry as an inker, working alongside artists such as Neal Adams, Gene Colanꦓ, John Buscema, and John Byrne on titles including Doctor Strange, Daredevil, X-Men, and many more.

In particular, Palmer developed a reputation as one of the strongest inkers of Gene Colan's work on titles such as Doctor Strange, Daredevil, and Tomb of Dracula, mastering the art of inking Colan's notoriously in-depth pencils without losing Colan's style in the process💙. 

Palmer won several awards in his career, starting all the way back in 196🀅9 with an Alley Award from the Academy of Comic Book Arts and Sciences. He also won♈ a 1971 Comic Fan Art Award for Best Inker, a 2008 Inkwell Award for Best Finisher/Embellisher, and in 2014, Palmer was inducted into the Joe Sinnott Hall of Fame through the Inkwell Awards.

Palme♈r's son, Tom Palmer Jr., is also known in the comic book industr🌳y both for his work with Wizard Magazine in the '90s, and as an editor for DC.

I've been Newsarama's resident Marvel Comics expert and general comic book historian si🏅nce 2011. I've also been the on-site reporter at most major comic conventions such as Comic-Con International: San Diego, New York Comic Con, and C2E2. Outside of comic journalism, I am the artist of many weird pictures, and the guitarist of many ꦫheavy riffs. (They/Them)