Photo courtesy of Paul Kupperberg
Archie Comics announced last month that longtime artist Tim Kennedy passed away. Nothing else was disclosed about the death of Kennedy, who worked almost exclusively for Archie with his twin brother, Pat, for over three decades, creating books like “Archie: The Married Life,” “Jughead: The Hunger,” and “Archie Meets Riverdale.”
Tim and Pat Kennedy studied at the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art, where they graduated in 1985. They started working at Archie in 1989, where they regularly collaborated together on the publisher’s regular, kid-friendly titles, as well as the darker, more recent takes on the company’s beloved characters. The brothers, and writer Paul Kupperberg, would gain national attention in 2014 for killing off Archie Andrews in the penultimate issue of “Life With Archie,” which followed an adult version of the teen.
In a statement, Archie president/editor-in-chief Mike Pellerito praised the versatility of “the Fabulous K” brothers’ work, commenting, “The range of work during their career has been nothing short of truly fabulous. Beyond the gorgeous art, Tim and Pat were the most humble and funny pair of brothers I have ever met. The loss of Tim at far too young an age is so very sad. My deepest condolences to Pat, and the rest of their family, friends and countless fans.” Kupperberg tweeted, “No matter what I threw their way, whether it was Archie or funny animal or romance, they always delivered 200%. My condolences to Pat and his family.”
Fellow Archie regular Dan Parent said Kennedy “inspired me greatly. He will be missed.” Frank Tieri, who penned “Jughead: The Hunger” and “Jughead: The Hunger vs. Vampironica,” commented “Tim’s energetic & often terrifying artwork was a big reason why those books were a success. A great loss for Archie Horror. RIP.”
At the time of writing, Tim’s final comics will appear in March’s “Betty and Veronica Jumbo Comics Digest” #312, and “World of Archie Jumbo Comics Digest” #128.
