Eclipse Comics

Eclipse Comics

Company type	Publisher
Industry	Comic books
Founded	1977
Founder	Jan Mullaney, Dean Mullaney
Headquarters	Initially Staten Island, New York; later Guerneville and Forestville, California , United States
Key people	Jan Mullaney, Dean Mullaney, Catherine Yronwode (editor-in-chief)
Products	Comic books, graphic novels, trading cards

Eclipse Comics was a United States-based publisher of comic books that operated during the 1980s and early 1990s, recognized for its pioneering role in the graphic novel sector aimed specifically at specialty comic shops. Established in 1977 by brothers Jan and Dean Mullaney, the company set itself apart by granting creators ownership rights and royalty payments, a departure from the prevailing industry standard of work-for-hire agreements.

The publisher was instrumental in launching the careers of talents such as Scott McCloud, Timothy Truman, and Chris Ware, while also releasing creator-owned projects by renowned figures like Alan Moore, Gene Colan, and Steve Gerber.

Foundation

Jan and Dean Mullaney—sons of musician Dave Mullaney—founded the enterprise originally named Eclipse Enterprises in April 1977. The inspiration for forming the company came from Dean’s awareness of the challenges faced by comic creators regarding their rights, notably those encountered by Superman’s creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Jan Mullaney, who had experience as a session keyboardist touring with bands such as the Bee Gees and Bad Company, invested an initial sum of $2,000 to start the business.

The name "Eclipse" was proposed by Sue Pollina, while Mark Gruenwald designed the initial company logo. The first headquarters of Eclipse Comics were located at 81 Delaware Street in Staten Island, New York.

Early graphic novels

Among Eclipse’s early achievements was publishing one of the first original graphic novels distributed through the then-nascent direct market of comic specialty stores: Sabre: Slow Fade of an Endangered Species, created by Don McGregor and Paul Gulacy, which debuted on September 30, 1978. Its commercial success attracted creator P. Craig Russell, who followed up with his experimental work Night Music 1 in November 1979. Eclipse also collected parody strips by Fred Hembeck and later issued McGregor’s Detectives, Inc.: A Remembrance of Threatening Green as well as Steve Gerber’s Stewart the Rat. A refined logo crafted by Tom Orzechowski became Eclipse’s enduring emblem. The profits generated from these projects helped solidify Eclipse's standing within the graphic novel market. In 1980, co-founder Dean Mullaney briefly took on co-editing duties at Comics Feature before dedicating himself exclusively to Eclipse.

Ongoing titles

Aiming to expand beyond graphic novels, the Mullaney brothers introduced Eclipse, the Magazine, a bi-monthly anthology spanning 68 pages that featured characters owned by their creators. Launched in May 1981, it marked the debut of the detective series Ms. Tree by Max Allan Collins and included Steve Ditko’s Static. Subsequent issues highlighted titles such as Steve Englehart’s Coyote, Trina Robbins’ adaptation of Dope, McGregor and Colan’s critically praised Ragamuffins, and B.C. Boyer’s Masked Man. In October 1981, Jim Starlin released his graphic novel The Price through Eclipse amidst his legal conflicts with Marvel; this enabled him to secure improved contract terms and inspired Marvel to launch its Epic Comics imprint—a name reportedly suggested by Dean Mullaney to cause confusion with Eclipse. The publisher also supported creators like Gerber via the anthology series Destroyer Duck, which was designed to raise funds for Gerber’s lawsuit against Marvel concerning character rights. The inaugural issue sold 80,000 copies, demonstrating both the commercial potential of color ongoing comics and paving the way for a 14-issue Sabre series beginning in 1982.

During the production phase of Destroyer Duck in December 1981, Dean Mullaney met Cat Yronwode, who was then working as a reporter and archivist for Will Eisner. Their relationship soon evolved into both a personal and professional partnership, with Yronwode effectively assuming the role of Eclipse’s editor-in-chief, exerting significant influence over its editorial policies and business decisions.

Expansion

While Jan Mullaney oversaw the financial operations from New York, Dean Mullaney took on the role of publisher and Catherine Yronwode served as editor-in-chief, with the team briefly moving their base to Columbia, Missouri. Collaborating with Mark Evanier and Will Meugniot, Eclipse debuted its initial ongoing superhero title, The DNAgents, followed by Eclipse Monthly, which continued existing series and introduced fresh characters. The series Ms. Tree evolved into its own standalone publication, and Yronwode brought to light the previously lost 1948 story John Law. In July 1983, Eclipse relocated its headquarters to Guerneville, California. By October 1984, Jan Mullaney departed to follow a career in music, leaving Dean as the sole publisher and Yronwode officially confirmed as editor-in-chief. Eclipse’s promotional efforts highlighted creator ownership, sophisticated content, and distinctive offerings.

The company broadened its catalog with titles such as Scott McCloud's Zot! and Doug Moench's Aztec Ace. Yronwode emerged as the public spokesperson for Eclipse through her impactful columns in Comics Buyer's Guide and various Eclipse publications. Despite a downturn in the market during 1984, Eclipse endured and acquired properties from the defunct Pacific Comics, including Dave Stevens' The Rocketeer, Mr. Monster, and Somerset Holmes, along with American rights to the British anthology Warrior. Additionally, they launched the Independent Comics Group to publish anthologies like Twisted Tales, with Fred Burke joining as both editor and writer.

This partnership with Quality Communications coincided with the British Invasion in comics, introducing acclaimed works such as Axel Pressbutton, The Spiral Path, and Peter Milligan's Strange Days. Eclipse also revived Alan Moore's contentious Marvelman series—later renamed Miracleman due to legal complications. Initially priced at 75¢ as part of an experimental print run with a Finnish printer—making them the most affordable full-color comics in the direct market—they returned to a 95¢ price after quality concerns arose. Other significant additions included Timothy Truman's Scout, Larry Marder's Tales of the Beanworld, and Don Chin's satirical Adolescent Radioactive Black Belt Hamsters. To avoid intellectual property conflicts, Eclipse published Murray Ward's DC title indexes under the Independent Comic Group imprint.

Pioneering new publishing strategies, Eclipse introduced "micro-series" consisting of bi-weekly or weekly limited-run issues, produced 3-D stereoscopic books in collaboration with Ray Zone, including the official adaptation of Disney’s Michael Jackson film Captain EO, and released flexi disc records featuring theme songs for various titles. During this time, Eclipse was distributing approximately half a million comics each month, ranking as the third-largest comics publisher behind Marvel Comics and DC Comics.

Flooding

On February 14, 1986, Eclipse encountered a significant obstacle when the Russian River overflowed due to intense rainfall. The rising waters infiltrated their office space up to the second floor and impacted the residences of both Mullaney and Yronwode. Yronwode required rescue assistance via a Red Cross canoe, while Mullaney managed to preserve much of the original artwork by relocating it to the third floor. The flood resulted in the loss of the company’s stock of back issues, color separations intended for upcoming Zot! reprints, and Yronwode’s research notes for a non-fiction project on Steve Ditko. The overall damage was valued at approximately $200,000.

In spite of these setbacks, Eclipse introduced its first regular bi-weekly series, Airboy, in July 1986. Authored by the prolific Chuck Dixon, this title revived the Golden Age aviator hero initially published by Hillman Periodicals. Starting as a 16-page full-color comic priced at 50¢, Airboy achieved both critical acclaim and commercial success, leading to multiple spin-off titles. Additionally, the superhero series The New Wave adopted the bi-weekly release schedule before transitioning to monthly issues. To accommodate the increased production demands, Burke and Letita Glozer (Yronwode’s half-sister) joined the editorial team, and Beau Smith was appointed as Sales Manager.

To reduce vulnerability to future flooding events, Eclipse moved its operations to Forestville in Sonoma County, California. In July 1987, Yronwode revealed her engagement to Dean Mullaney and announced their wedding date as August 15 in Forestville, inviting readers to request invitations through her Fit to Print column.

Political comics and trading cards

From 1987 through 1993, Eclipse produced politically charged comics and trading cards in partnership with activist organizations such as the Central Committee for Conscientious Objectors and the Christic Institute. Their 1987 release, Real War Stories #1—edited by Joyce Brabner and featuring contributions from prominent creators including Mike W. Barr and Brian Bolland—offered an antiwar perspective. The series concluded with Real War Stories #2 in 1991.

In 1988, Eclipse broke new ground by launching political trading cards with the Iran-Contra Scandal set, which contained text by Paul Brancato paired with artwork by Salim Yaqub. This initiative's success paved the way for additional provocative card sets that enhanced Eclipse’s market presence and drew mainstream attention. Among these were:

• Friendly Dictators Trading Cards (1989) created by Dennis Bernstein, Laura Sydell, and Bill Sienkiewicz.
• Bush League Trading Cards (1990), developed by Brancato and Yaqub.
• Savings & Loan Scandal Trading Cards (1991) from Bernstein, Sydell, and Stewart Stanyard.
• Coup D'Etat – The Assassination of John F. Kennedy Trading Cards (1991), produced by Brancato and Sienkiewicz to coincide with renewed interest sparked by Oliver Stone’s film JFK.
• Crime and Punishment Trading Cards (1992), crafted by Bruce Carroll and Bill Lignante to spotlight notable criminal cases.
• AIDS Awareness Trading Cards (1993), designed to educate on HIV/AIDS through combining informative content with images of victims including celebrities.

Eclipse also issued less contentious sets such as The Comedy Channel presents the Rock Bottom Awards, baseball bloopers, James Bond themes, country music subjects, and National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon.

The 1992 release of the True Crime trading card series—covering figures from mafia bosses like Al Capone to serial killers including Jeffrey Dahmer—provoked considerable controversy. Media scrutiny led to accusations of sensationalism and prompted legislative attempts to ban these cards in several states. Despite facing backlash that included hate mail, Eclipse leveraged this attention by issuing companion albums in 1993: True Crime Vol 1 – G-Men & Gangsters and True Crime Vol 2 – Serial Killers & Mass Murderers. Subsequently, Eclipse expanded this niche with a two-issue True Crime Comics series along with a special edition titled True Crime Comics Special.

Setbacks

Eclipse's creator-owned approach faced commercial challenges; with a limited number of proprietary titles, the company depended largely on freelance talent to maintain popular series. Fill-in issues and spin-off projects required approval from creators, who retained the rights to transfer their work elsewhere once contracts expired. After losing a lawsuit concerning Howard the Duck, Gerber discontinued Destroyer Duck and returned to Marvel as a freelance contributor. The series Aztec Ace was terminated due to difficulties in securing consistent artists. Scott McCloud’s participation in the Creator's Bill of Rights contributed to delays in the release of the award-winning Zot!. Dave Stevens relocated the serialization of Rocketeer to Comico. When Mark Evanier moved to DC Comics, both DNAgents and its spin-off Crossfire came to an end. Ty Templeton ceased work on Stig's Inferno after accepting opportunities related to Booster Gold. The progress of Miracleman was greatly hindered by health problems affecting artist John Totleben.

Although titles such as Airboy and Scout maintained steady sales, Eclipse’s venture into superhero comics—including series like The New Wave, Kurt Busiek’s The Liberty Project, Tim Truman’s The Prowler, and Chuck Dixon’s Strike!—achieved only modest results. Between 1987 and 1988, Eclipse’s share of the market dropped from approximately 8% to 3.6%, allowing competitors like First Comics to surpass it. The emergence of Dark Horse Comics, which also acquired titles such as Mr. Monster, further diminished Eclipse’s standing in the industry.

To adapt, Eclipse expanded into non-fiction publishing; Yronwode and Robbins co-wrote Women and the Comics, a groundbreaking work spotlighting female comic creators that attracted attention from both mainstream media and fan communities.

Eclipse International

In 1988, Eclipse introduced Eclipse International as part of its strategy to broaden its portfolio by publishing international material, aiming at the expanding U.S. market for manga and anime. Collaborating with Viz Communications, a subsidiary of Shogakukan, Eclipse secured licenses for titles like Area 88, Kamui, and Mai, the Psychic Girl, all translated by Toren Smith's Studio Proteus. These releases found commercial success, followed by additional titles such as Appleseed. However, plans to publish Lum * Urusei Yatsura were abandoned due to unexpected complications. Later that year, Viz launched its own U.S. publishing division, terminating its agreement with Eclipse; nonetheless, Eclipse continued working with Studio Proteus on imports including Dominion, What's Michael?, and The Lost Continent. The company also commissioned Adam Warren to produce an English adaptation of Dirty Pair.

At the same time, Eclipse collaborated with British publisher Acme Press to distribute comics within the U.S. market. Notable publications included Power Comics, a four-issue superhero series illustrated by Dave Gibbons and Brian Bolland; Aces, a five-issue black-and-white anthology set in the Jazz Age; licensed James Bond comics such as the official adaptation of the film Licence to Kill and the original mini-series James Bond: Permission to Die, both drawn by Mike Grell; and Grant Morrison and Ian Gibson’s mini-series Steed and Mrs. Peel. Additionally, Eclipse released Eddie Campbell’s critically acclaimed graphic novel collection The Complete Alec, which earned the 1991 UK Comic Art Award for Best Graphic Novel Collection. This distribution partnership ended in 1992.

Total Eclipse

As Eclipse neared its tenth year, it introduced Total Eclipse, a company-wide crossover event modeled after DC’s Crisis on Infinite Earths. Since the majority of characters were creator-owned, individual permissions had to be secured, with many granted. The project involved substantial investment, including hiring Marv Wolfman, the writer behind Crisis, and commissioning cover art from Bill Sienkiewicz. Despite marketing efforts such as custom plastic bags distributed to retailers, Total Eclipse encountered delays and ultimately failed both commercially and critically. This setback halted plans to revive series like Strike! and The New Wave. Production difficulties soon caused flagship titles like Airboy to pause after 50 issues, while Scout was left incomplete before its intended third series. By late 1989, Eclipse redirected its efforts away from mainstream comics toward 'special projects', including trading card ventures.

Decline and closure

Following the disappointing outcome of Total Eclipse, Eclipse largely withdrew from superhero comics, maintaining only ongoing titles such as Zot! (which concluded in 1991) and Miracleman. The company shifted its focus to literary adaptations, producing mini-series, graphic novels, and one-shots based on works like J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonflight, and writings by Clive Barker. Additionally, Eclipse emphasized collected editions alongside occasional releases such as Truman’s revival of the pulp character The Spider, as well as satirical comics like X-Farce (a spoof of Rob Liefeld’s X-Force) and Loco vs. Pulverine (drawing inspiration from Lobo and Wolverine), though these had limited commercial success. Planned projects including a new Aztec Ace mini-series and horror titles under the Eclipse F/X imprint never came to fruition.

By 1991, Eclipse commanded roughly 1% of the comic book market, trailing behind competitors such as Malibu, Valiant, and Image. With a distribution network largely dependent on specialty comic shops rather than mass-market retailers, Eclipse was among numerous smaller publishers severely impacted by the contraction of the direct market following the speculator boom. The company also struggled due to an unfavorable contract with book publisher HarperCollins.

Bankruptcy

Eclipse encountered significant turmoil after the 1993 divorce of founders Mullaney and Yronwode, amid reports of erratic conduct and alleged misappropriation of company funds by Mullaney. Financial difficulties prevented the printing of completed issues such as Miracleman #25 and Miracleman Triumphant #1 because printers refused to extend credit. The company’s final publication was its Spring 1993 catalog; it ceased operations in 1994 and officially filed for bankruptcy in 1995.

Assets

Todd McFarlane purchased Eclipse’s intellectual property for $25,000, acquiring mainly the rights to Airboy characters along with anthology trademarks. Although initially thought to include a two-thirds ownership stake in Miracleman, it was later clarified that Eclipse had never formally licensed these characters from creator Mick Anglo.

Compensation Issues with Creators

Following his departure from Eclipse in 1988, manga translator Toren Smith conducted an audit of the company's financial records, revealing the existence of dual accounting methods designed to evade payment of promised royalties. This discovery resulted in a substantial legal judgment against Eclipse, which played a role in the company's financial struggles.

Several prominent creators, including Garry Leach, Dez Skinn, Alan Davis, Neil Gaiman, Mark Buckingham, Dave Stevens, and Mike Deodato, have publicly claimed that they were either not compensated or received insufficient payment for their contributions to Eclipse. Additionally, Alan Davis reported that some of his work was published without his authorization.

Legal Disputes

In 1992, Kenneth Bianchi, a convicted serial murderer known as one half of the Hillside Strangler pair, filed an $8.5 million lawsuit against Yronwode for using his likeness on a trading card, asserting it as his trademark. The court dismissed the suit, with the judge reasoning that if Bianchi had truly used his image as a trademark during his criminal activities, he would not have hidden it from law enforcement.

Eclipse also faced legal challenges when Nassau County in New York confiscated a series of crime-themed trading cards under a local ordinance that prohibited sales to minors. With representation from the American Civil Liberties Union and testimony from Yronwode, Eclipse successfully contested the ordinance at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, which ruled in favor of the company.

See also

• 1977 in comics

External links

• Total Eclipse Blog