Legendary Marvel and DC Artist Carlos Pacheco Dead at 60

Acclaimed comic book artist Carlos Pacheco has died following a battle with ALS. He was 60 years old. Pacheco, who is from Spain and started his career doing Spanish editions of Marvel comics, became a fixture in the American comics market in the mid-’90s before becoming one of the most beloved artists in comics, with runs on titles like The Avengers and Superman. He reveled his diagnosis earlier this year, announcing his retirement and telling fans that his final published work would be a cover he did for an issue of Damage Control featuring Ant-Man and the Wasp.

The news broke earlier today that Pacheco had passed away, but soon after, those reports were said to be premature. Moments ago, Marvel Comics issued a tribute to Pacheco on their official Twitter account, confirming that the artist had passed away.

“We mourn the loss of a dear part of the Marvel family, comic artist & writer Carlos Pacheco,” Marvel wrote. “His legacy of iconic designs and storytelling like Avengers Forever, Fantastic Four, X-Men, Excalibur, Captain America, and more will be remembered. Our thoughts are with his loved ones.”

“I’m so very saddened by the loss of Carlos Pacheco,” Image Comics co-founder Rob Liefeld added. “His immense talent brightened every comic he illustrated. Such a beautiful and kind man. Rest In Peace, Carlos. Gone way too soon.”

Per Johns Hopkins, “Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a progressive neuromuscular disease. ALS is characterized by a progressive degeneration of motor nerve cells in the brain (upper motor neurons) and spinal cord (lower motor neurons). When the motor neurons can no longer send impulses to the muscles, the muscles begin to waste away (atrophy), causing increased muscle weakness. ALS does not impair a person’s intellectual reasoning, vision, hearing or sense of taste, smell and touch. In most cases, ALS does not affect a person’s sexual, bowel or bladder functions.”

In June, writer and frequent Pacheco collaborator Kurt Busiek revealed that Arrowsmith: Beyond Borders had been delayed due to health issues suffered by both men. It came out later that Pacheco had suffered paralysis in his right leg, and had undergone spinal surgery — but earlier this month, the artist revealed that he had been diagnosed with ALS, and expected the paralysis and other issues to get worse, not better.

Earlier this year, Pacheco riffed on one of his most famous covers, providing a fundraiser cover for La Borinqueña that homaged his own famous cover to Superman #654, in an issue that was sold to benefit victims of a hurricane in Puerto Rico.

Our condolences go out to Mr. Pacheco’s family, friends, fans and collaborators during this difficult time.