Chris Claremont
Christopher S. Claremont[1][2] (/ˈklɛərmɒnt/; born November 25, 1950) is an American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 16-year stint on Uncanny X-Men from 1975 to 1991, far longer than that of any other writer,[3] during which he is credited with developing strong female characters as well as introducing complex literary themes into superhero narratives, turning the once underachieving comic into one of Marvel's most popular series.[4][5][6]
Chris Claremont
Christopher S. Claremont
November 25, 1950
London, England
American
Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Award: 1983, 1984, 1988, 1989, 1990
Eagle Award: 1979 and 1980
Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame (2015)
Bonnie Wilford (?–?)
Beth Fleisher (current)
2
During his tenure at Marvel, Claremont co-created numerous X-Men characters, such as Rogue, Psylocke (Betsy Braddock), Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat, Phoenix, the Brood, Lockheed, Shi'ar, Shi'ar Imperial Guard, Mystique, Destiny, Selene, Reverend William Stryker, Lady Mastermind, Emma Frost, Tessa, Siryn, Jubilee, Rachel Summers, Madelyne Pryor, Moira MacTaggert, Lilandra, Shadow King, Cannonball, Warpath, Mirage, Wolfsbane, Karma, Cypher, Sabretooth, Empath, Sebastian Shaw, Donald Pierce, Avalanche, Pyro, Legion, Nimrod, Gateway, Strong Guy, Proteus, Mister Sinister, Marauders, Purifiers, Captain Britain, Sunspot, Forge, and Gambit.
Claremont wrote many classic stories, including "The Dark Phoenix Saga" and "Days of Future Past", on which he collaborated with John Byrne.[7] He developed the character of Wolverine into a fan favorite. X-Men #1, the 1991 spinoff series premiere that Claremont co-wrote with Jim Lee, remains the bestselling comic book of all time, according to Guinness World Records. In 2015, Claremont and his X-Men collaborator John Byrne were entered into the Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame.
Early life[edit]
Claremont was born in London, England.[8][9] His father was an internist and his mother was a pilot and caterer.[5] Claremont is Jewish on his mother's side, and lived in a kibbutz in Israel during his youth.[10][11] His family moved to the United States when he was three years old,[12] and he was raised primarily on Long Island. Alienated by the sports-oriented suburbs,[5] his grandmother purchased for him a subscription to Eagle when he was a child, and he grew up reading Dan Dare, finding them more exciting than the Batman and Superman comics of the 1950s and early 1960s.[12] He read works by science fiction writers such as Robert Heinlein, as well as writers of other genres such as Rudyard Kipling and C. S. Forester.[5]
Personal life[edit]
In the mid-1970s, Claremont was married to Bonnie Wilford.[69] Following the dissolution of that marriage, he married Beth Fleisher,[4] with whom Claremont co-authored Dragon Moon. Fleisher is the cousin (through marriage) of editor Dan Raspler, who was the editor on JLA during the six-issue "Tenth Circle" story arc Claremont and John Byrne wrote in 2004.[70] Claremont and Fleisher have twin sons.[71]
