Fanzine and fine artist John Fantucchio has died

Fantucchio's art, possibly for Gary Groth's first Metro Con

It's being reported on Facebook that Arlington's John Fantucchio passed away yesterday, August 4th, at age 78. He was at Virginia Hospital Center after suffering a stroke.

Big Planet Comics founder Joel Pollack writes, "John Fantucchio was my mentor when I was 16. He taught me about the great strip artists Alex Raymond and Hal Foster, as well as illustrators such as Maxfield Parrish, N.C. Wyeth, and Howard Pyle. I'm happy that we rekindled our friendship in the last five years."

Joel noted that Fantucchio's influence wasn't limited to him. "John's nephew, Rick Lowell, owns Casablanca Comics, Maine's coolest comics stores!, in Portland, ME, and counts John as a mentor, as well." Fantucchio eventually left the fan community and made a name for himself as a fine artist.

Joel took me to meet John, who coincidentally lived right around the corner from Richard Thompson, and we had a great time looking at his paintings and his collectibles. John had a fondness for the Shadow just like me. He wasn't all that interested in revisiting his fanzine days, so we never did an interview, but he does have several mentions on ComicsDC, mostly about his later career.

John is survived by his wife Mary.