Cartoonist J.P. Morgan passes away

Sad news from Roy Calbeck: J.P. Morgan, creator of Fission Chicken, has passed away at 53.

John Patrick Morgan was one of the earliest contributors to Furry Fandom's lineup of comics and art. During the Black-and-White Comics Boom of the '80s, the runaway success of 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' paved the way for anthropomorphic comic books and this very fandom was born. It had existed for some time as a very small underground phenomenon, but the larger medium of comic books catapulted cartoonists willing to hop on board into the limelight, and John was one of those. His 'Sixties Underground' style gave his work a borderline psychadelic quality, contrasting humorously with the title character's hardnosed attitude.

The Chicken of Wrath appeared in anthropomorphic anthology comics such as Fantagraphics' 'Critters', as well as legendary fanzines like 'Rowrbrazzle', where John rubbed shoulders with the likes of Stan Sakai ('Usagi Yojimbo') and a great many of the talents who made up early Furry Fandom. Eventually 'Fission Chicken' became its own actual comic book and later an online webcomic (linked above).

With a keen wit and quirky styles of both writing and art, 'J.P.' will be greatly missed by those who knew him and had the good fortune to enjoy his work. He was a gift to us all...as was his final work, 'Armageddon Creeped Out', which he completed and posted to his site just days before he passed.

Check it out. It's well worth reading, and he'd be happy to know that even now he's gone, his work continues to entertain."