Acclaimed comic book wrtier-artist Darwyn Cooke passed away on Saturday morning, May 14, 2016. Marsha Cooke, his wife, announced that he died at his home in Florida after fighting lung cancer. Cooke was 53 years old.

With equal fervor, Cooke applied his talents to all-ages tales of classic superheroes and hard-edged, noir stories, and the only uniformity in the results was quality storytelling.

In 2004’s DC: The New Frontier, he reimagined the Justice League members in retro style based on the appearances after the Golden Age and at the beginning of the Silver Age of comics.

His work appeared in the gritty Richard Stark’s Parker novels, modern Catwoman art, and Solo – for which he won an Eisner Award. Cooke was recognized five times among Canadian comic book creators for the Joe Shuster Awards.

“His take on the most iconic heroes in the world were breathtakingly direct and elegant, powerful and cool,” DC’s official press release stated.

Cooke was born in Toronto, Canada on November 16, 1962. In 1985 DC published his first comic book work, a short story in New Talent Showcase #19. Folllowing that, though, he persued a career in product design and as a magazine art director.

After answering an ad placed by Warner Bros. animator Bruce Timm, he got into animation, working as a storyboard artist in the 1990s on Batman: The Animated Series and Superman: The Animated Series. In 1999 he animated the main title design for Batman Beyond then worked as a director for Men in Black: The Series for a year.

He made a breakthrough into comics with the graphic novel, Batman: Ego, in 2000. Cooke gained a reputation and fan following for the purity of his designs for major characters.

He and writer Ed Brubaker revamped Catwoman in 2001 with the four-issue run “Trail of the Catwoman” in Detective Comics #759-762. Her costume, supporting cast, and methodology were all redeveloped. Cooke followed that up by writing and drawing the popular, critically acclaimed Catwoman: Selina’s Big Score. The way he reimagined Catwoman is still the style being used today and was an inspiration for the TV show, Gotham.

He followed that up by writing and drawing DC: The New Frontier in 2004. The six-issue miniseries told stories of what happened between the Golden and Silver Age of DC comics. Set in the 1950s, it featured Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, The Flash, and Green Lantern in a time when the Age of the Superhero was in decline until an alien presence threatens Earth.

In 2006 he worked with writer Jeph Loeb on a Batman/The Spirit crossover then drew the ongoing Spirit comic. A year later he and J. Bone won a Joe Shuster Award for “Outstanding Canadian Comic Book Artists” for Batman/The Spirit and he won “Outstanding Canadian Comic Book Cartoonist” for The Spirit.

In 2010 he provided a cover for The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #40.

His Richard Stark’s Parker: The Hunter, adapted from Donald Westlake’s The Hunter novel, was published by IDW in 2009. It was followed by other Parker novels, The Outfit in 2010, The Score in 2012, and Slayground in 2013.

From 2012 to 2013 he served as writer and artist on Before Watchmen: Minutemen and co-writer of Before Watchmen: Silk Spectre. In 2014 he released Batman Beyond, an animated short to commemorate Batman’s 75th anniversary. Most recently he worked on Vertigo’s The Twilight Children, as well as many covers.

Over the past few days Cooke’s collaborators, fans, and friends have shared their loving thoughts about the writer-artist and his contributions to comics.

“Amanda and I are devastated. We lost a best friend, and the world lost one of its greatest talents this morning. He fought a great fight up until the last minute and was surrounded by friends and family,” Jimmy Palmiotti posted on Facebook. “Although we know his art will live on forever, we will miss his warm smile and generosity to everyone around him each and every single day of our lives. He loved his life, loved his friends even more, and celebrated both to the extremes every chance he got. The lucky few closest to him understood that Darwyn always felt he was living on borrowed time, a sentiment more of us understand a little bit more right now because of this loss. There is a joy and honesty to his work that only a few artists of our generation can even come close to and knowing him the way we did, we understood this joyfulness came from the man himself. Darwyn was a best friend, a mentor, and a brother to Amanda and me. Our hearts are broken. Rest in Peace, Darwyn.”

“You are forever a giant who astonished us all with unforgettable adventures and your unmatched talent. You are the Howard Rourke of comics who never compromised your principles or work and won more Eisner Awards than anyone for it. You are fiercely devoted to your craft, but it pales in comparison to that devotion to your friends. We are heartbroken for Marsha, Dennis and your family. Without you, nothing will ever be the same, but I can see Kubert, Frazetta, Kirby, Toth, Mauldin, Raymond, Disney, Westlake and Steve McQueen all welcoming you with open arms. Darwyn,” Billy Tucci wrote. “I'm not so sure Heaven is a better place today, but it sure in hell is a lot more colorful.”

“Darwyn Cooke was at the top of the list of this generation’s great comic book creators. The purity of his line work and the sincerity of his stories showcased a clarity of vision that few among us – even those of us who truly love this art form – ever achieve,” said Steve Geppi, President and Chief Executive Officer of Diamond Comic Distributors. “To say that he will be missed is an incalculable understatement. On behalf of everyone in our family of companies, I extend my condolences to his wife, Marsha, to his extended family, and to his friends and colleagues.”

"Darwyn Cooke lived life like a character from a Micky Spillane novel, a throwback to a bygone era that was, more than occasionally, reflected in his work,” DC Comics Co-Publisher Dan DiDio said in a release. “He was both compassionate and combative, approaching everything he did with a tenaciousness and temerity that is now unheard of in a world afraid to offend. The simplistic brilliance of his art and the natural flow of his storytelling not only elevated but enhanced all projects he touched and his passion and love of comics was reflected in every panel of every page. Working with Darwyn was not without its challenges. There were times we'd spend hours arguing over story then go months without talking, but we always found our way back, drawn together by the common bond and friendship comics creates. This is an industry-wide loss that I feel personally, but the sadness is mitigated in the knowing that the beauty and grace of his art will forever stand the test of time and be a monument to all that is great about comics.”

“Beyond the sadness shared by so many in and around the comic book industry right now, the legacy of Darwyn Cooke is incredible and often inspirational stories well told by a craftsman committed to doing his best work at all times. He succeeded brilliantly. His loss at such a young age reminds us all that our time here is precious. As we can tell from the comments of those who knew him best, he was a friend, a mentor, a teacher, and he lived life as if on borrowed time. The more we understand that, the greater his legacy will become,” Melissa Bowersox, President of Geppi’s Entertainment Museum said.