Gone Too Soon: Richard Matheson

Legendary science-fiction, horror and suspense writer Richard Matheson passed away Sunday, June 23, after a long illness. He was 87.

Others far more qualified than I will be writing lengthy eulogies and tributes to Mr. Matheson, and I encourage you to seek them out. Best known for works like I AM LEGEND and WHAT DREAMS WILL COME, not to mention many, many scripts for Rod Serling’s landmark TWILIGHT ZONE television series (including perhaps the series’ most famous episode, “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” starring William Shatner), Matheson was a writer of remarkable craft, heart and wonder, imbuing even his darkest stories with a humanity that shone through.

Along with Stan Lee, John Irving and Harlan Ellison, Richard Matheson was one of the writers that made me want to be a writer.

And in one of those rare instances of universal serendipity, I got to kick off my writing career by adapting one of Matheson’s short stories for DOOMED, IDW’s horror anthology series back in 2007.

So with gratitude to IDW CCO Chris Ryall, I’d like to present here my first work in comics, Richard Matheson’s “Crickets,” adapted by me and artist Mike Hoffman. We did our best to keep as much Matheson on the page as possible.

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Welcoming the Future, Treasuring the Past.