| Mike Curtis | |
|---|---|
 | |
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Born: |
1953 |
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Place of Birth: |
Tennessee |
Mike Curtis is the current writer of the Dick Tracy comic strip. He and the current creative team (Joe Staton, Shelley Pleger, and Shane Fisher) began producing the strip in 2011.
Curtis is a long-time comic book fan and has written for many popular titles, including Casper the Friendly Ghost, Richie Rich, and his own creation Shanda the Panda. He often collaborates with his wife Carole.
In addition to Dick Tracy, Mr. Curtis is also a self-proclaimed fan of Superman, Batman, and Doctor Who. He claims to have the 3rd largest collection of Superman memorabilia in the United States, and his wife owns a life-sized model TARDIS.
Curtis is also horror/monster movie enthusiast. In this capacity, he befriended Sara Karloff (daughter of the famous film actor Boris Karloff who played Gruesome).
Curtis is engaged with his fanbase, and frequently posts at the Dick Tracy Yahoo Group and Facebook Fan Page.
Curtis has stated that he often listens to popular music while writing, and will sometimes take inspiration from what he is listening to.
Mr. Curtis is the only writer of Dick Tracy to have a background that includes working in professional law enforcement. He often consults with Sgt. Jim Doherty of the Railroad Police to maintain verisimilitude in the strip.
Notable Original Characters[]
The following new characters were introduced to the strip during Curtis' time:
- Doubleup
- Thunderchild
- Cueball & Screwball
- Blackjack
- Flakey Biscuits
- Hot Rize
- Blaze Rize
- Mr. Crime II
- Abner Kadaver
- Stiletta Jones, aka Mrs. Flattop
- Jerry King
- George Tawara
- Sweatbox
- Jumbler
- Dr. S. Tim Sail
- Stellaluna & Retik
- Attitude Plenty
- FBI Agent Fritz Ann Dietrich
- Silver Nitrate and his sister Sprocket
- Tabby Angus
- The Black Hearts, and their operatives Méliès, Venus, Apollo, and the Munro Brothers.
- Agate Aggie
Notable Events[]
Curtis, in costume
Several significant events have occurred in the strip during Curtis' time, including:
- The deaths of Wormy, Thistle Dew, Flyface, Willie the Fifth, Big Frost, Panda, Lt. Teevo, Measles, and others.
- The revival of Mumbles, B-B Eyes, Notta Chin Chillar, Purdy Fallar, and Mr. Bribery.
- The long-running mystery of the "new" Moon Maid.
- The development of Honeymoon Tracy as a more prominent character.
- The introduction of the Wrist Wizard.
- Pat Patton returning to his role as Police Chief.
- Dick Tracy's 80th Anniversary story, which recounted his origin.
- The return of Lee Ebony and Johnny Adonis, as well as establishing Tess Tracy as a member of the Tracy Agency.
- Many crossovers, both overt and surreptitious, with other comic strips and comic book characters, including the resolution of the unfinished plot-line of Little Orphan Annie.
- Incorporating character from other forms of Tracy media, such as Cueball and Gruesome.
- "Guest" appearances by real-life celebrities.
- The first-ever e-book publication of a collection of Dick Tracy strips in the form of Calling Dick Tracy! Vol. 1.
Awards[]
- In 2013, Mike Curtis and the Tracy creative team received the Harvey Award for Best Syndicated Strip or Panel. They won the same award again in 2014 and 2015 as well, and they were nominated in 2016.