Born this day in 1930, Benjamin Franklin Thorne is best known to comic book fans (especially those who grew up during the Bronze Age of Comics, in the 1970s) as Frank Thorne, the artist who made Marvel Comics’ Red Sonja, She-Devil with a Sword, such a popular character that her adventures are still being told today, over 50 years later (via current publisher Dynamite Entertainment).
As visitors to this blog may be aware, as a reader and occasional artist I’ve been a longtime fan of Thorne’s work, from Marvel’s Sonja to Atlas Comics’ one-off Son of Dracula, to his own adult-themed creations: the sci-fi heroine Lann, Danger Rangerette, and the blond-haired Sonja stand-in, Ghita of Alizarr. Best of all, in 2002 I was able to commission a cover piece from Mr. Thorne for my Lorelei comic series.
(You can read about that, and his memorable one-day art class that I attended in 1988, “How to Draw Women the Frank Thorne Way,” in this post from 2014.)
Frank Thorne passed away on March 7, 2021 just hours ahead of his wife, Marilyn; both were 90 years old, and were married almost 70 years. Marilyn, a graduate of the Julliard School of Music, had been the organist for the Willow Grove Presbyterian Church in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, for over 60 years.
Happy birthday, Mr. Thorne, and thanks as always for the brilliant, inspiring work you created!
