Illustrator Everett Peck has passed away.
Everett Lee Peck
October 9, 1950 – June 14, 2022
Illustrator, cartoonist, animator, painter
The Peck Family has posted on social media that Everett has died.
Animation Magazine also has the sad news.
Illustrator, cartoonist, animator, writer and teacher Everett Peck — best known for his popular animated series Duckman and Squirrel Boy — died Tuesday, June 14. The sad news was shared today on Peck’s Instagram and Facebook feeds. His cause of death was not disclosed.
Peck turned his talents to animation with the late 1980s hit The Real Ghostbusters as a character designer/executive design consultant, creating most of the show’s imaginative ghosts.
At Klasky-Csupo, Peck wrote for the classic Nickelodeon cartoon, Rugrats. But his most famous work, Duckman, was already finding fans as a comic book published by Dark Horse in 1990. The concept was adapted into a critically acclaimed adult animated sitcom for USA Network, running for four seasons from 1994 to 1997 and animated at Klasky-Csupo.
After graduation he moved to New York City and made a living as an illustrator for prestigious magazines like The New Yorker, Time, Rolling Stone and Hugh Hefner’s Playboy. Peck also designed ads for companies like Honda and Nike.
In 1988 Peck created a character named ‘Duckman’ who appeared in issue #22 of Dark Horse Presents and reappeared in the 29th and 31st issue. In 1990 Dark Horse published a one-shot comic book around ‘Duckman’. It stars a disgruntled, lustful anthropomorphic duck named Eric T. Duckman who works as a private detective. He is assisted by his much brighter associate: Cornfed the piglet. Duckman rarely solved a case on his own.
Peck depicted his characters as underdogs in a tough, bitter and unsympathetic world.
Animation Insider interviews Everett in 2016:
How did you become interested in animation?
Ever since I can remember as a kid I was interested in animation. My biggest influence then was Disney and W.B. But I also liked anything the Fleisher studio did and the U.P.A stuff. I was also quite taken with other artists who who were not necessarily animators but were illustrators who occasionally lent their style to animated projects. People like Heinrich Kley, Virgil Partch, and Ronald Searle. I was also knocked out by Mad magazine, especially guys like Jack Davis, Mort Drucker, and Don Martin. Also loved Ed Roth and Basil Wolverton. All of these influences led me to a career in Illustration and in turn, to Animation.
More Everett art at the Peck website and at Salzman Art.
