Posted in: Comics, Marvel Comics | Tagged: burbank, david bogart, David Macho, jimmy palmiotti, los angeles, new york, nick Lowe, rob liefeld, Sven Larsen, tom brevoort
Go West, Old Men… Who Is Leaving Marvel And Who Is Staying?
Go West, Old Men… Who Is Leaving Marvel And Who Is Staying? The decisions have been made and for some, it’s a surprising one
Article Summary
- David Bogart is retiring from Marvel after 25 years as the publisher’s New York-to-Los Angeles move reshapes staff.
- Marvel insiders say most staffers are heading west, with Tom Brevoort and Nick Lowe among notable movers.
- Sven Larson calls “decision day” agonizing, saying joining Marvel in LA feels like starting at a new company.
- David Bogart drew both harsh criticism and heartfelt praise, with creators recalling his support behind the scenes.
Yesterday, I broke the news that David Bogart was retiring from Marvel Comics after twenty-five years, as Marvel plans to move from New York to Los Angeles and David… doesn’t. But talking to a lot of people, the biggest surprise is that most Marvel Comics staffers are making the move. When DC Comics did similar a decade ago, they lost around half of their staff. With Marvel, the vast majority are packing up their lives and loves and heading to California. That includes the likes of Senior VP and Executive Editor Tom Brevoort and Spider-Man Group Editor Nick Lowe, who, it seems, were considered most likely to stay in New York given their ties. I understand that there were some aggressive moves on Marvel Comics’ part to keep certain people. I am also aware that Marvel Comics did not expect so many to take the moving deal as did. And in some cases, possibly wishes they hadn’t. But that’s office politics for you. Marvel Studios, you have more Burbank desk space to get ready for the summer of 2027.
Sven Larsen, Vice President, Licensed Publishing at Marvel, told us, “It’s what’s become known as ‘Decision day’ around the Marvel offices, the day when we have to let HR know whether we’re moving to LA or not. And it’s an agonizing day for all of us, no matter what the decision. One commenter on an earlier post thought that I was being insensitive to people’s struggles with this decision. The truth couldn’t be further from that. For the last three months, my colleagues and I have struggled with this. We’ve sat in each other’s offices, decamped to coffee bars and restaurants, and debated it endlessly. Every person’s journey is their own, and my heart breaks for people having to choose between family and roots and a job and a place they love. Unless you’re “in the bubble” or the spouse or family of someone who is, I think it’s hard to fully comprehend how impactful this is on all of us. I won’t use the cliche that “we’re a family” but I will paraphrase the line from TED LASSO “ain’t no place like this place, anyplace”. That doesn’t mean that we’ve been living in some idyllic worker’s paradise (far from it). But we’ve been doing this together for a long time. There’s a bond between us and a lot of mutual love, friendship and respect. And today is the end of all that. Because this group won’t be together any more. As I told my team weeks ago, “You can’t think of us as moving with Marvel Comics. You have to think of it as joining a new company that happens to be called Marvel Comics.” It’s like graduating high school and going to a local college. A bunch of people from your old high school may be there. But it’s a completely different experience. So pour one out for this era of Marvel. And pour one out for comic book publishing in New York City. 90+ years is not a bad run. BTW, in case you’re wondering, Monica and I have made the tough decision to move to CA. I’ll talk more about that later. Today, my focus is all on NYC and endings. New beginnings can wait till tomorrow.”
As for David Bogart, as I predicted, Rob Liefeld was first off the blocks, posting “Comic books most despised executive exits business. Likely with a golden parachute. The enemy of all talent.” Most despised? Not everyone feels that way… Jimmy Palmiotti posted, “David has always been a stand-up guy, a good friend and helped Amanda and me over the years above and beyond. Good guy put in a hard position over the years- part of the job, but in the end, he deserves the best, and I hope they are taking good care of him. He will be missed.” And David Macho posted “There is (or was, I honestly don’t know anymore) a place named Au Bon Pain near Marvel’s offices (not the current ones, but that’s another story) where David Bogart and I had a tradition. Every time I went to New York, we’d meet there before my meetings with editors to talk about work… but not really. That would take us 15 minutes, and then we’d talk about life, our families, and beyond. I miss those days, I miss those talks, and I’m gonna miss David. Of course, we had our arguments over the years (especially the first ones), but I’ve always considered him a decent man, a good man. With him retiring, C.B. moving to Asia, and Dan B. also out, and of course, the move west… it’ll certainly be a new Marvel, but let me ask you something, all of you, something I also asked for when DC moved to California. Celebrate the ones moving with the company and be happy we can still work with them, enjoy comics with them, but let’s never forget about the people who will not, have decided to stay, or to retire, and please, let’s thank them for all their work and how they helped the creators (I could give you several examples of David, never wanting the limelight, doing exactly that) and pushing comics and losing sleep many nights for the artform we all love, and believe me, no one loves them more than these guys. David, I’ll miss our coffees, my friend.”
As well as tales of arranged screenings, set visits for Bill Mantlo, Chris Weston, Jim Starlin, Dan Slott, Mark Bagley, Matt Fraction, Ryan North, Sara Pichelli, Alan Davis, Roy Thomas, Heather Davis, Chip Zdarsky,Tom DeFalco and more… with Robert Greenberger publicly crediting Bogart regarding Peter David “sticking with him and keeping him under insurance under Disney”. More details to come, as they are shared…
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