Kevin Eastman

• Born: May 30, 1962
• Place of Birth: Portland, Maine

Biography

Kevin Eastman was born on May 30, 1962, in Portland, Maine, the son of Kim Eastman, a tool and die maker, and Sandra Eastman, a nurse. He grew up in Groville, Maine, with three sisters, Marlene, Judy, and Maryann. Eastman began drawing with crayons at an early age and was a fan of comic books from childhood. A mostly self-taught artist, although he briefly studied at the Portland School of Art, Eastman first published work in the minicomics Comix Wave and Goodies in the early 1980s.

In 1982, Eastman was working at a lobster restaurant in Maine when he met fellow artist and advertising illustrator, Peter Laird. The two men became fast friends around their common artistic interests and formed Mirage Studios to market their work. One day, while sketching cartoons together, Eastman and Laird conceived the character of an anthropomorphic masked terrapin carrying nunchucks. This small germ of an idea quickly grew into a full-blown inspiration and eventually metamorphosed into the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Eastman and Laird worked up a complete comic book featuring the shelled quartet, named Raphael, Donatello, Leonardo, and Michelangelo after favorite Renaissance artists. Using tax refunds, personal savings, and loans from relatives, the two printed up copies of the comic book in 1984. The first printing sold out, as did subsequent printings of fifty thousand additional copies.

The original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, fifteen comics, plus several features on individual characters between 1984 and 1988, was an immediate hit, leading to a television series in 1987, video games, made-for-television movies, motion pictures, action figures, toys, and more. Almost overnight, Mirage Studios expanded to accommodate the deluge, with additional artists and writers (Mark Martin, Mark Bode, Jim Lawson, Rick Veitch, and others) hired to handle the demand since Eastman and Laird were too wrapped up in the business to regularly draw their creations. Though Laird and Eastman became instant millionaires, overseas licensing agreements and frivolous lawsuits from others claiming plagiarism became a nightmare.

While the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic book series continued until 1993, and reprints, spin-offs, and other related releases continue to be created in the twenty-first century. Eastman was not as devoted to the money-making franchise as Laird. In 2000, he sold his share of the intellectual property rights to the series to Laird and continued to pursue other ventures.

In the early 1990s, Eastman founded Tundra Publishing, intending it to be the Apple Records of comics, a vehicle for printing outstanding work from various artists. However, Tundra overextended itself and, after multimillion-dollar losses, merged with Kitchen Sink Press in 1993 after publishing Eastman’s murky Melting Pot. A more successful venture for Eastman at the time was his purchase of the adult fantasy and science-fiction publication Heavy Metal, which he publishes, edits, illustrates, and writes. He also produced an animated film on video based on the magazine F.A.K.K. 2: Heavy Metal 2000. Another of his investments was the Words and Pictures Museum, a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to the collection, preservation, and study of graphic fantasy illustration. Originally located in a building in Northampton, Massachusetts, the museum has been a virtual internet presentation since 1999.

Despite the early buyout, which was completed in 2008, Eastman returned to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in 2011, again working as a writer and artist on the comic series. He also served as an advisor on the film series reboot of the same name in 2014. In 2019, Eastman released a teaser ad for a new project called Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin. The first comic book in the miniseries was released in October 2020. The project was massively successful, and in 2023, Eastman told Rolling Stone of his intentions to release a third installment of the miniseries. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin - Lost Years was published in 2023 and was followed byTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II - Re-Evolution in 2024. A role playing video game and a live action movie were both in development as of 2024. All of these latest installments of the Ninja Turtle saga are based on a story Eastmay and Laird conceived in the early days of their partnership.

Bibliography

Cruz, Christopher, et al. “Kevin Eastman Teases TMNT Sequel ‘The Last Ronin 2.’” Rolling Stone, 14 Feb. 2023, www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/kevin-eastman-teases-the-last-ronin-2-1234676877/. Accessed 16 Oct. 2024.

Eastman, Kevin. "A Life In Comics: Kevin Eastman Interview." Previews World, 21 May 2019, www.previewsworld.com/Article/226884-A-Life-In-Comics-Kevin-Eastman-Interview. Accessed 16 Oct. 2024.

Eastman, Kevin. Interview. By Guiseppe Castellano. The Illustration Department, illustrationdept.com/podcast/kevin-eastman. Accessed 16 Oct. 2024.

Groth, Gary. "The Kevin Eastman Interview Part 1." The Comics Journal, 3 Jan. 2012, www.tcj.com/the-kevin-eastman-interview-part-i. Accessed 16 Oct. 2024.

Kit, Borys. "Live-Action, R-Rated ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Movie in the Works From Producer Walter Hamada (Exclusive)." Hollywood Reporter, 11 Apr. 2024, www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-last-ronin-movie-1235871493/. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.

"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin #1 Is Over 130,000 Copies Ordered and Gets a Second Printing." Graphic Policy, 15 Oct. 2020, graphicpolicy.com/2020/10/15/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-the-last-ronin-1-is-over-130000-copies-ordered-and-gets-a-second-printing. Accessed 16 Oct. 2024.