R.I.P Frank Franzetta 1928-2010

By Eric Walkuski

Posted 16 years ago

Last Updated on July 23, 2021

We’re unfortunately a little late on this, only because news has been fast and furious the last couple days, but it’s time we took a brief moment to mourn the death of artist Frank Franzetta, the legendary painter best known for his work on countless sword-and-sorcery covers. He was 82.

Franzetta’s covers for Edgar Rice Burroughs books, specifically the Conan the Barbarian series and Tarzan, are known the world over, as are his depictions of Vampirella, Tolkien’s LORD OF THE RINGS characters. He also drew up many covers for Creepy and Eerie in the 60s. In 1983, he worked alongside Ralph Bakshi on the feature FIRE AND ICE, which while a commercial flop is a cult favorite. In 2003, he was the subject of a documentary, FRANZETTA: PAINITNG WITH FIRE.

About the Author

Eric Walkuski

Film Critic

10,340 Articles Published

Favorite Movies: Jaws, Star Wars Trilogy, Aliens, Citizen Kane, The Third Man, Dawn read more of the Dead ('78), The Texas Chainsaw Massacre ('74), Fargo, Miller's Crossing, Reservoir Dogs, The Manchurian Candidate ('62), Taxi Driver, Back to the Future, Stand by Me, Shaun of the Dead, Boogie Nights, La Dolce Vita, 12 Angry Men, The Birds, Touch of Evil

Likes: Film, Beer (who the hell DOESN'T around here?!), writing, NY Mets, read more The Jets, Girls who love film AND beer (at the same time), Jazz, Deadwood, The Wire, The Office, The Twilight Zone, Cormac McCarthy, Graham Greene, Stephen King, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Scorsese, Spielberg, Halloween season, Marvel movies, Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, Ash vs Evil Dead, Game of Thrones, Edgar Allen Poe, Mother Nature

The comment section exists to allow readers to discuss the article constructively and respectfully, focused on the topic at hand.

What’s Not Allowed

Abusive language, insults, or harassment toward other users or staff.
Hate speech of any kind is strictly prohibited.
Bickering, bullying, personal attacks, or baiting others to argue
Extended off-topic debates, especially those centered on politics or religion rather than the article topic
No AI content or SPAM