www.willeisner.com/ reports that cartoonist Will Eisner passed away on January 3rd, 2005 at the age of 87 following quadruple bypass heart surgery. The surgery was performed on December 22, and was deemed successful at that time.

William Erwin Eisner was born in Brooklyn, New York on June 3, 1917, as the son of Jewish immigrants. He went to school at De Witt Clinton High School in the Bronx, and his first drawings were published in the school's newspaper. He made his debut in comics in 1936, when WOW What a Magazine! published his first work, "Karry" and "The Flame."

Best known for “The Spirit,” Eisner was a pioneer in newspaper comics, comic books and graphic novels for nearly 70 years. His most recent graphic novel, Fagin The Jew, was published by Doubleday in September 2003, and one more novel, The Plot is scheduled for release this year.

The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards were established in 1987 by the San Diego Comic Convention, and he attended the anual ceremony to personally hand the trophies to the winners.

Posted January 4, 2005