Searching for Michael Zulli

 Back in the '80's comic books shops were thriving. They were a haven for a collective of like minded individuals to gather, discuss and even argue passionately about their interests. Storylines were dissected and prophesized. Characters were deconstructed and analyzed. The art was either heralded or criticized. 

Shelves were littered with action figures and sculptures. Rare and limited resin model kits were sought after and imported Japanese kits consumed a lot of paychecks. There was also another phenomenon, underground and independent comics gained attention.

To be fair, underground comics were around since the 60's with the advent of Robert Crumb, Fritz the Cat, the Freak Brothers and more. Most of them dealt with adult content and the marijuana movement. But in the '80's independent comics began to break away from the mainstream industry and gave birth to a creativity that wasn't restrained by the industry. Titles littered the racks like Dave Sim's Cerebus, The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the very X rated Faust by David Quinn and Tim Virgil (which was banned in England and Canada), James O'Barr's The Crow and a lesser known title written by Stephen Murphy and drawn by an unknown artist, Michael Zulli called Puma Blues.

One of the covers of Puma Blues

Puma Blues was set in the not too distant future and dealt with ecological themes. It was not light reading. The artwork was unique. When I first picked it up and thumbed an issue I thought Zulli was channeling Barry Windsor Smith who was gaining popularity from his work on Marvel's Conan. But on more examination, Zulli was uniquely developing his own style, a style that distinguished him and set him apart. His detailed drawings and delicate inks impressed me and I wanted more. Unfortunately issues were hard to find and I believed they even switched publishers. I was never able to complete the 23 issue run until decades later when Dover Comics & Graphic Novels republished the collection with a 40 page conclusion. 

Excerpt from Puma Blues

When Sandman came out in 1989 Sam Keith was the beginning artist on the series. I was already obsessed with the storyline. The title went through a variety of artists and I was extremely pleased that Michael Zulli made an appearance here and there in its run. I was ecstatic that Zulli concluded the series beautifully with The Wake. 

Michael Zulli is my favorite Sandman artist. It was also not the last time Neil Gaiman and Michael Zulli would work together. Later would come The Last Temptation, featuring Alice Cooper and Creatures of the Night which featured Neil Gaiman's The Price. 

The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch.
Illustrated by Zulli, written by Gaiman

Michael Zulli has also done prints of Neal's Sandman, aka Morpheus. 

Silver point drawing of Morpheus

Painting of Morpheus

In 2011 Michael Zulli released The Fracture of the Universal Boy. A beautiful hard bound edition of surreal and at times nightmarish journey of the artist's self revelation. 

Excerpt from the Fracture of the Universal Boy

Then he dropped off the radar. 

Michael Zulli

Curious of Zulli's absence and selfishly craving more of his work, I once messaged Neil Gaiman who responded that Michael was one of his favorite people. He heard that Michael had recently married but what project or work he was involved with he didn't know. 

Like Barry Windsor Smith who disappeared from the  scene decades ago only to re-emerge with a recently released volume that is almost 400 pages, Monsters, I began to think maybe that The Fracture of the Universal Boy may have been Michael's opus. Or maybe, with hope, he is like Windsor Smith, working in seclusion on another project...so the search still goes on. 

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Listening to Midnight Syndicate

Reading The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub