Editing Mike Dringenberg

{{Short description|American comics artist|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{Infobox comics creator
| image         = Cinnamon+Dringenberg.jpg
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| caption       = Dringenberg (left) with friend Cinamon Hadley, on whom [[Death (DC Comics)|Death]] was modeled
| birth_name    = 
| birth_date    = {{birth year and age|1965}}
| birth_place   = [[Laon]], France
| death_date    = 
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| nationality   = American
| cartoonist    = 
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| art           = 
| pencil        = y
| ink           = y
| edit          = 
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| alias         = 
| signature     = 
| notable works = ''[[The Sandman (Vertigo)|The Sandman]]''
| awards        = 
| website       = 
}}

'''Mike Dringenberg''' (born {{circa|1965}}) is an [[Americans|American]] [[comics artist]] best known for his work on [[DC Comics]]/[[Vertigo (DC Comics)|Vertigo]]'s ''[[The Sandman (Vertigo)|Sandman]]'' series with writer [[Neil Gaiman]].

==Early life==
Mike Dringenberg was born in [[Laon]], [[France]] and raised in [[Germany]] before moving to the United States with his family in the late 1960s.   Initially living in [[New Jersey]] and [[Florida]], his father's career eventually took the family to Utah, where Mike attended high school.  He later studied illustration and graphic design at the [[University of Utah]] from 1983 to 1987, where he began illustrating comics and working professionally even before graduating.  During a break between his freshman and sophomore years, he briefly worked as an animation assistant at [[Sullivan Bluth Studios]], where he was probably best remembered for using up all the copier toner to make reading copies of his [[Cerebus]] collection.<ref name=Lambiek>{{cite web|author=Kousemaker, Kees|author-link=Kousemaker, Kees|url= https://www.lambiek.net/artists/d/dringenberg_mike.htm|title= Mike Dringenberg|date= February 4, 2011|publisher= [[Lambiek Comiclopedia]]|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20131030024620/http://www.lambiek.net/artists/d/dringenberg_mike.htm|archivedate= October 30, 2013|url-status= live|df=mdy-all|accessdate=December 10, 2019}}</ref>

==Career==
Dringenberg's first work in the comics industry was the story "A Tale Of... Lenny's Casino & Grill" in ''Kelvin Mace'' #1 (Dec. 1985) published by [[Vortex Comics]].<ref name="GCD">{{gcdb|type=credit|search= Mike+Dringenberg|title= Mike Dringenberg}}</ref> His other early work in the 1980s for publishers such as [[Eclipse Comics]] included ''[[Alien Worlds]]'', ''Enchanter'', and ''[[Total Eclipse (comics)|Total Eclipse]]''.<ref name=Lambiek/> He worked on ''[[Adolescent Radioactive Blackbelt Hamsters]]'', a parody of ''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]]'', which itself was a parody of many then-current comic books, and ''Shock the Monkey''.<ref name="GCD" /> His mainstream work includes DC's ''[[Doom Patrol]]'' with writer [[Grant Morrison]], where he co-created [[Flex Mentallo]]; the fantasy card game ''[[Magic: The Gathering]]''; and White Wolf Publishing's card game ''[[Vampire: The Eternal Struggle]]''.

[[File:Death (DC Comics character).png|thumb|left|[[Death (DC Comics)|Death]], from ''[[The Sandman (Vertigo)|The Sandman]]'' #8 (Aug. 1989), drawn by Mike Dringenberg and inker [[Malcolm Jones III]]. ]]<!-- FAIR USE of Death1.png: see image description page at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Death1.png for rationale -->
Dringenberg came to prominence for his work on ''[[The Sandman (Vertigo)|The Sandman]]'', where he started as the series' [[inker]] over pencil art by [[Sam Kieth]] but switched to pencilling when Kieth left after the fifth issue.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Manning|first1= Matthew K.|last2=Dolan|first2=Hannah, ed.|chapter= 1980s|title = DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle|publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]]|year=2010|location= London, United Kingdom|isbn= 978-0-7566-6742-9|page= 238|quote = ''The Sandman'' saw a variety of artists grace its pages. Sam Kieth drew the first few issues, followed by Mike Dringenberg, Chris Bachalo, Michael Zulli, Kelley Jones, Charles Vess, Colleen Doran, and Shawn McManus, among others.}}</ref><ref>Tousley, Nancy (October 12, 1991). "Artist draws a 'cinema for the page'", ''[[Calgary Herald]]'', p. B9.</ref> He drew eleven issues, all but one inked by [[Malcolm Jones III]], and his understated, realistic style did much to establish the tone of the series. He co-created the popular character [[Death (DC Comics)|Death]],<ref>Manning "1980s" in Dolan, p. 240: "Neil Gaiman, aided by penciller Mike Dringenberg, introduced the character Death to a fascinated readership...Death was an instant hit and arguably became more popular than the Sandman himself."</ref> whom he based on his then muse, Cinamon Hadley, whom he knew from the dance clubs in [[Salt Lake City]], Utah.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.slugmag.com/lifestyle/cinamon-the-high-cost-of-being-death/|title= Cinamon: The High Cost of (Being) Death|first= Madelyn|last= Boudreaux|date= May 3, 2011|work= [[SLUG Magazine]]|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20160403225412/http://www.slugmag.com/lifestyle/cinamon-the-high-cost-of-being-death/|archivedate= April 3, 2016|url-status= live|df=mdy-all|quote= Death (or rather, the woman who inspired her appearance) also happens to be a Salt Lake City native.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.sltrib.com/artsliving/arts/2018/01/23/the-life-of-death-remembering-utah-ballerina-goth-queen-and-comic-book-character-cinamon-hadley/|title= The life and death of Utah's 'otherworldly' Cinamon Hadley — ballerina, goth queen and comic book character|first= Eric|last= Walden|date= January 23, 2018|newspaper= [[The Salt Lake Tribune]]|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20180123190045/https://www.sltrib.com/artsliving/arts/2018/01/23/the-life-of-death-remembering-utah-ballerina-goth-queen-and-comic-book-character-cinamon-hadley/|archivedate= January 23, 2018|url-status= live|df= mdy-all}}</ref> Gaiman had imagined her looking like [[Louise Brooks]] or [[Nico]], but ultimately preferred Dringenberg's version.<ref>{{cite book|last = Bender|first = Hy|title = The Sandman Companion|publisher = DC Comics|year = 1999|pages = 237–241|isbn = 978-1563894657}}</ref> Dringenberg stated in a 2014 interview that "None of the characters are direct renderings of individual people; they're composites emerging from my memories; case in point, while my friend Cinamon was a primary visual inspiration for Death, she never actually posed for me as the character while I worked on the series. Most of the time, my girlfriend Givette and my friends McAnn and Nyssa actually posed and they each brought their own personalities to the task."<ref>{{cite news |url= http://blogs.sfweekly.com/exhibitionist/2014/04/the_sandman_speaks_neil_gaiman.php|title= ''The Sandman'' Speaks: Neil Gaiman and Mike Dringenberg on the Glories of Their Graphic Novel|first= Jonathan|last= Curiel|date= April 18, 2014|newspaper= [[SF Weekly]]|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20140426232832/http://blogs.sfweekly.com/exhibitionist/2014/04/the_sandman_speaks_neil_gaiman.php|archivedate= April 26, 2014|url-status= live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> He also co-created [[Delirium (DC Comics)|Delirium]], [[Despair (DC Comics)|Despair]], and [[Desire (DC Comics)|Desire]], basing their androgynous appearance on the work of [[Patrick Nagel]], and had a hand in much of the character design apparent in the early series.

Dringenberg's work appears in the ''Sandman'' collections "[[The Sandman: Preludes & Nocturnes|Preludes and Nocturnes]]", "[[The Sandman: The Doll's House|The Doll's House]]" and "[[The Sandman: Season of Mists|Season of Mists]]".  He is credited in every printing as being one of the series' creators, as he is responsible for the iconic representation of many of the principal characters.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2013/01/07/comics-you-should-own-sandman/|title= Comics You Should Own – ''Sandman''|first= Greg|last= Burgas|date= January 7, 2013|website= [[Comic Book Resources]]|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20140410022316/http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2013/01/07/comics-you-should-own-sandman/|archivedate= April 10, 2014|url-status= live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> In 2008, he was one of the artists for [[Tori Amos]]' ''[[Comic Book Tattoo]]'' [[comics anthology|anthology]] [[graphic novel]].<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.cbr.com/shes-your-comics-tori-amos-comic-book-tattoo/|title= She's Your Comics: Tori Amos' ''Comic Book Tattoo''|first= Andy|last= Khouri|date= April 3, 2008|website= Comic Book Resources|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20160921160531/http://www.cbr.com/shes-your-comics-tori-amos-comic-book-tattoo/|archivedate= September 21, 2016|url-status= live|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

Dringenberg is an illustrator of book jackets and CD covers, most notably for various books by [[J. R. R. Tolkien]], [[Kij Johnson]], [[Charles de Lint]], [[Kage Baker]]. He drew interior illustrations and chapter decorations for [[Sharyn November]]'s ''Firebirds Soaring'' (2009).{{citation needed|date=December 2019}}  Mike has illustrated several album and CD covers for San Francisco's [[Big City Orchestra]]. He has also contributed artwork for a number of [[Magic: The Gathering]] cards, from 1996's ''Mirage'' to 2008's ''Eventide''.

==Personal life==
Dringenberg lived in [[Salt Lake City, Utah]] for many years before moving to the greater [[Portland, Oregon]] area, where he currently resides.<ref name=Lambiek/>

==Bibliography==
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}

===Acclaim Comics===
* ''[[Arabian Nights (Magic: The Gathering)|Arabian Nights on the World of Magic: The Gathering]]'' #1–2 (covers only) (1995–1996)
* ''[[Homelands (Magic: The Gathering)|Homelands on the World of Magic: The Gathering]]'' #1 (text story) (1996)

===Dark Horse Comics===
* ''[[Dark Horse Presents]]'' #85 (1994)

===DC Comics===
* ''[[Doom Patrol]]'' vol. 2 #42 (1991)
* ''[[The Sandman (Vertigo)|The Sandman]]'' #1–4 (inker); #6–11, 14–16, 21, 28 (penciller) (1989–1991)
* ''[[Who's Who in the DC Universe]]'' #5 ([[Dream (comics)|Dream]] illustration), #8 ([[Death (DC Comics)|Death]] illustration), #15 ([[The Dreaming (comics)|The Dreaming]] and [[Endless (comics)|Endless]] illustrations) (1990–1992)

===Eclipse Comics===
* ''[[Adolescent Radioactive Black Belt Hamsters]]'' #3 (inker); #5 (cover only); #9 (one page only) (1986–1988)
* ''[[Alien Worlds]]'' vol. 2 #1 (1988)
* ''Clint'' #1–2 (1986–1987)
* ''[[Total Eclipse (comics)|Total Eclipse]]'' #1 ([[Prowler (Eclipse Comics)|Prowler]] backup story) (1988)

===Entity-Parody===
* ''Enchanter: Prelude to Apocalypse'' #1–3 (1993)

===IDW Publishing===
* ''Hero Comics'' #1 (2011)

===Image Comics===
* ''[[Comic Book Tattoo]]'' #1 (2008)
* ''[[Spawn (comics)|Spawn]]'' #34 (one page [[Violator (comics)|Violator]] illustration) (1995)

===Marvel Comics===
* ''[[Daredevil (Marvel Comics series)|Daredevil]]'' #339–340, 342–343 (covers only) (1995)
* ''[[Doctor Strange (comic book)|Doctor Strange]], Sorcerer Supreme'' #81 (one page only) (1995)
* ''Shadows & Light'' #3 (one page only) (1998)
* ''[[Strange Tales]]: Dark Corners'' #1 (1998)
* ''[[Age of Apocalypse|X-Universe]]'' #2 (two pages only) (1995)

===Vortex Comics===
* ''Kelvin Mace'' #1 (1985)
{{div col end}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
*{{comicbookdb|type=creator|id=853}}
*[http://www.mikesamazingworld.com/mikes/features/creator.php?creatorid=1596 Mike Dringenberg] at Mike's Amazing World of Comics
*[http://www.maelmill-insi.de/UHBMCC/namd27.htm#N1947 Mike Dringenberg] at the Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics Creators

{{S-start}}
{{succession box|title= ''[[The Sandman (Vertigo)|The Sandman]]'' inker|before= n/a|
after= [[Malcolm Jones III]]|years= 1989}}
{{succession box|title= ''The Sandman'' penciller|before= [[Sam Kieth]]|
after= [[Stan Woch]]|years=1989–1991}}
{{S-end}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dringenberg, Mike}}
[[Category:1960s births]]
[[Category:20th-century American artists]]
[[Category:21st-century American artists]]
[[Category:American album-cover and concert-poster artists]]
[[Category:American comics artists]]
[[Category:Artists from Utah]]
[[Category:Comics inkers]]
[[Category:DC Comics people]]
[[Category:French emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:American game artists]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]