Breathtaker Graphic Novel Gets a Music Video

Mark Wheatley expands on epic collaboration with Mark Hempel

Baltimore, Maryland – Not only does the long-awaited remastered edition of Mark Wheatley and Marc Hempel’s acclaimed graphic novel, Breathtaker, finally have a scheduled 2020 release date from Titan Comics, it’s accompanied by a brand new comic book, a museum-quality traveling exhibit, and now a music video as well. The vide debuts on Diamond Comic Distributors’ PreviewsWorld YouTube channel on Thursday, March 12, and goes into wider release after that.

Wheatley and Hempel co-created the ground-breaking graphic novel and many other projects over the years, and as it turns out they’re still breaking ground with new ideas associated with Breathtaker. As Titan gears up for the highly anticipated release of the graphic novel and a brand new comic book, the Breathtaker music video has just been released. Not only did Wheatley write and record the music, he also animated the music video.

“I love the possibility the Breathtaker track and music video represent: creatives leveraging technology (and their own talent) to spread their storytelling, in this instance beyond the pages of the original book but with the same impulses. Cinematic, lush, with tragedy lurking just below the surface, Breathtaker the song is the perfect companion piece to Wheatley and Hempel’s visionary approach to Breathtaker the story, as well as a soaring, prog-rock anthem that stands on its own,” said Feast of the Seven Fishes writer/director Robert Tinnell, whose own music video experience ranges from directing Paula Abdul’s iconic “Straight Up” to rising alt-country singer Charles Wesley Godwin’s “Coal Country.”

“I have been recording music for longer than Breathtaker has existed,” said Wheatley, “In fact I turned down offers from two major recording labels for multi-album contracts to concentrate on creating comics and illustration.” Shortly after he began his first monthly comic book series, Mars (also created with Hempel), the demo tapes he had been submitting to the music industry for about five years finally resulted in offers from Capital and Columbia A&R reps.

Listed on page 369 in the March edition of PREVIEWS from Diamond Comic Distributors [item #MAR202123] is the remastered, hardcover Breathtaker collected edition, Breathtaker: Make Way For the Man #138 (with choices of the Marc Hempel cover [MAR202124] or the Michael Avon Oeming cover [MAR202124]), the first new Wheatley-Hempel collaboration in more than two decades.

The Breathtaker music video is a theme song for the graphic novel, running just slightly more than four minutes. Between the visuals, animation and the music, the tune introduces the extreme conflicting emotions that Chase Darrow, the Breathtaker, is faced with during the story of the graphic novel. From the lows of death, loss of love to the highs to be found in the power of new love. And after all, Breathtaker has always been about love, death, sex and power. In many ways, Breathtaker was a pinnacle of Hempel and Wheatley’s earlier original collaborations. With innovative projects like Mars, Jonny Quest, Tarzan, and Blood of the Innocent already behind them, writer-artists Wheatley (Radical Dreamer, EZ Street) and Hempel (The Sandman: The Kindly Ones, Gregory) turned their attention to this project in 1990. They never dreamed they would revisit it and find the spark of new material in it 30 years later.

Their resulting creation, Chase Darrow, was a dynamic woman, sought after by many men, and seemingly lethal to all of them, causing them to age rapidly and die (though to be fair, they died happy). Originally serialized as a four-issue, Prestige format mini-series, Breathtaker became an highly-praised, best-selling trade paperback for DC’s Vertigo imprint. And it contained story elements that lent itself perfectly to the new musical effort.

“I had really wanted to agree to release some albums of my music, but I had already signed contracts for monthly comic books. And that takes more than all your time. Over the years since I’ve worked on a few professional recording gigs, recording soundtracks for TV ads, radio, etc. But most of my music skills have been dedicated to presenting Insight Studios projects,” Wheatley said.

Beyond the graphic novel and new comic from Titan, and the music video, Wheatley and Hempel’s Insight Studios Group will mount the “Breathtaker Exhibition,” which will initially appear at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Massachusetts and at McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland. The exhibition explores the creative and physical processes that were undertaken during the original production of the comic Breathtaker in the 1990s, as well as how the work was re-adapted, tweaked and in some cases reworked by the artists during the preparation stages for the Titan Comics re-release.

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About Mark Wheatley

Mark Wheatley holds the Eisner, Inkpot, Golden Lion, Mucker, Gem and Speakeasy awards and nominations for the Harvey award and the Ignatz award. He is also an inductee to the Overstreet Hall of Fame. His work has often been included in the annual Spectrum selection of fantastic art and has appeared in private gallery shows, The Norman Rockwell Museum, Toledo Museum of Art, Huntington Art Museum, Fitchburg Art Museum, James A. Michener Art Museum and the Library of Congress where several of his originals are in the LoC permanent collection. He has designed for Lady Gaga, created set pieces for The Black Eyed Peas, contributed designs for ABC’s Beauty and the Beast, and Square Roots, as well as Super Clyde, The Millers and 2 Broke Girls on CBS. Several of his original graphic novels have been optioned for motion pictures with Blood of the Innocent currently in pre-production. His most recent print projects include Songs of Giants, Doctor Cthulittle, Tarzan and the Dark Heart of Time, Swords Against the Moon Men, The Philip Jose Farmer Centennial Collection, Mine! and Wild Stars. Past creations include Return Of The Human, Ez Street, Lone Justice, Mars, Breathtaker, Black Hood, Prince Nightmare, Hammer Of The Gods, Blood Of The Innocent, Frankenstein Mobster, Miles The Monster, Skultar And Titanic Tales. His interpretations of established characters such as Tarzan, Dick Tracy, The Green Hornet, The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen, Jonny Quest, Dr. Strange, The Flash, Captain Action, Argus, The Spider, Stargate Atlantis, The Three Stooges, Doctor Who and Torchwood have brought them to life for a new generation of readers. He has written for TV, illustrated books, designed cutting-edge role-playing games, hosted a weekly radio program, and was an early innovator of the on-line daily comic strip form.

About Marc Hempel

In addition to his collaboration with Neil Gaiman on the climactic story arc “The Kindly Ones” in The Sandman, artist and writer Marc Hempel is also known for his critically acclaimed work with Mark Wheatley in the titles Breathtaker, Mars, and Blood of the Innocent. His own creations Gregory and Tug & Buster have been nominated for Harvey and Eisner Awards, and his humor anthology Naked Brain was named Best Comic Book in the Baltimore City Paper. Hempel’s art has also appeared in Marvel Fanfare, Epic Illustrated, Heavy Metal, Jonny Quest, Tarzan the Warrior, Clive Barker’s Hellraiser, Flinch, My Faith in Frankie, The Dreaming, Lucifer, and Disney Adventures. He has created advertising art for print and television, character design for HBO Animation, CD art for the Nashville band Swamp Rat, drew an episode of the online strip Munden’s Bar for ComicMix.com, illustrated a 21-page story for Michael Chabon’s The Escapist: Pulse-Pounding Thrills, and has contributed to both MAD magazine and Nickelodeon Magazine. Marc’s range of work includes a full-page comic strip for the lavish hardcover, Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream, as well as art for SpongeBob Comics and the Planned Parenthood benefit book, Mine! He is the recipient of the Speakeasy Award and the Inkpot Award. Originally from the Chicago area, Marc currently resides in Baltimore, Maryland.

About Norman Rockwell Museum

Founded in 1969 with the help of Norman and Molly Rockwell, Norman Rockwell Museum is dedicated to the enjoyment and study of Rockwell’s work and his contributions to society, popular culture, and social commentary. The Museum, which is accredited by the American Association of Museums, is the most popular year-round cultural attraction in the Berkshires. Norman Rockwell Museum is dedicated to education and art appreciation inspired by the legacy of Norman Rockwell. The museum preserves, studies and communicates with a worldwide audience the life, art and spirit of Norman Rockwell and the field of illustration. The museum is a gathering place for reflection, involvement, and discovery through the enjoyment of the artist’s work. Norman Rockwell’s unique contributions to art and society, popular culture and social commentary influence the museum’s programs and interpretations.

About McDaniel College

McDaniel College, founded in 1867 and nationally recognized as one of 40 “Colleges That Change Lives,” is a four-year, independent college of the liberal arts and sciences offering more than 70 undergraduate programs of study, including dual and student-designed majors, plus 25 highly regarded graduate programs. Its personalized, interdisciplinary, global curriculum and student-faculty collaboration develop the unique potential in every student. A diverse, student-centered community of 1,600 undergraduates and 1,400 graduate students, McDaniel offers access to the resources of Baltimore and Washington, D.C., and is the only American college with a European campus in Budapest, Hungary. www.mcdaniel.edu

The Breathtaker Exhibition

Wheatley, Hempel Team with Titan, Norman Rockwell Museum

[Baltimore, Maryland] – In conjunction with the Norman Rockwell Museum and Titan Comics, Insight Studios Group’s Mark Wheatley and Marc Hempel are preparing to mount the “Breathtaker Exhibition,” a multi-city touring display of nearly 100 pieces of original art, script pages, preliminary designs and drawings from their seminal graphic novel, Breathtaker.

“This exhibition highlights a major work in the history of the graphic novel,” said Martin W. Mahoney, Director of Collections and Exhibitions for the Normal Rockwell Museum. “Breathtaker marks a major tipping point in the graphic novel, a point when major publishing houses were just beginning to see the power that these works could convey. A time when the major comic publishers DC and Marvel were starting to look at how they could invest in the graphic novel and add it to their respective lineups.”

With innovative projects like Mars, Jonny Quest, Tarzan, and Blood of the Innocent already behind them, writer-artists Wheatley (Radical Dreamer, EZ Street) and Hempel (The Sandman: The Kindly Ones, Gregory) turned their attention to another collaboration in 1990. Their resulting creation, Chase Darrow, was a dynamic woman, sought after by many men, and seemingly lethal to all of them, causing them to age rapidly and die (though to be fair, they died happy.)

Upon its original release reaction was strong and swift, in terms of both sales and critical acclaim, including support from other creators. Thor and Ragnarok writer-artist Walt Simonson said, “Breathtaker is the sound of breaking glass in the morning, the smell of diesel oil in the afternoon, the frisson of violence in the evening, and the delight of love and death at night. This is why I read comic books,” while Sandman creator and acclaimed novelist Neil Gaiman said, “Breathtaker proves itself something utterly odd and new. Powerful art, vibrant coloring, a new, quirky story told in a different way.”

Breathtaker, was edgy, compelling stuff, published in four 48-page, Prestige format issues by DC Comics and then collected in 1994 into one volume under their Vertigo imprint. When it was done, Hempel and Wheatley went onto other projects, and that was that. Except that it wasn’t. Both creators continued to hear from fans and the appeal of the story didn’t diminish over the 20 years since its original release. Now, Titan Comics will publish a lavish, painstakingly restored new edition of the work.

“Titan are thrilled to be able to be bring this outstanding title back into publication. We believe that both the remastered edition and exhibition will not only prove to be a joy of rediscovery for existing fans, but also bring a whole new generation of fans into the Breathtaker world,” said Darryl Tothill, Titan’s magazine and comics Publishing Director.

The exhibition explores the creative and physical processes that were undertaken during the original production of the comic Breathtaker in the 1990s, as well as how the work was re-adapted, tweaked and in some cases reworked by the artists during the preparation stages in 2014-2016 for the Titan Comics re-release. Incorporating examples from all aspects of the creative process, the exhibition will offer the viewer the opportunity to experience story and character development; penciled, inked, and painted art; and samples of completed comic pages – that all are part of constructing a narrative in the comic format.

“Over the years we have heard time and again from so many pros working in comics, animation and film that Breathtaker was a game-changer for them. People like Ben Caldwell, Mark Waid, David Lloyd, Jason Minor, Barry Lyga, Jose Villarrubia, Genndy Tartakovsky, Mike Oeming, Mark Buckingham and many more,” said Mark Wheatley.

Now with a new, fully restored version due to be collected by Titan, the creative duo has teamed up with the Norman Rockwell Museum to showcase the original art from the project. Additional details will be forthcoming.

About Mark Wheatley

Among his many projects, Insight Studios Group founder Mark Wheatley has had his work for CBS Television featured on The Millers and Super Clyde, and he’s presently developing work for a live stage show featuring Dick Tracy, Tarzan and the Green Hornet. In print his work has recently been featured on covers of Doctor Who comics, Stargate Atlantis comics and in the acclaimed Jungle Tales of Tarzan from Dark Horse Comics, on the cover of the Meteor House release of Exiles Of Kho, the Phillip Jose Farmer series novel by Christopher Paul Carey, and his own well-received new art book, Stars, which presents elaborate line art portraits of actors, musicians and authors. With a track record that includes Frankenstein Mobster, Radical Dreamer, Return of the Human, Hammer of the Gods, EZ Street, Skultar, and Lone Justice, Wheatley is an Inkpot, Mucker, Gem, Speakeasy and Eisner award-winning creator. He has lectured at the Library of Congress, exhibited at the Normal Rockwell Museum, created set pieces for The Black Eyed Peas, designed for Lady Gaga, and contributed designs to ABC’s Beauty and the Beast.

About Marc Hempel

Writer-illustrator Marc Hempel, grew up in the northwest suburbs of Chicago and now resides in Baltimore, Maryland, where he plies his craft on such diverse projects ranging from his own books Gregory, Tug & Buster, and Naked Brain to Disney Adventures, and SpongeBob Comics – and from Clive Barker’s Hellraiser to “The Kindly Ones” in Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman. Hempel’s art has also appeared in MAD, Marvel Fanfare, Epic Illustrated, Heavy Metal, Flinch, My Faith in Frankie, The Dreaming, Lucifer, Munden’s Bar, Nickelodeon Magazine, and a 21-page Escapist story for Dark Horse Comics. He recently contributed a full page comic strip to the lavish hardcover Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream, and his series The Love Brothers has appeared in Aces Weekly. Hempel has been nominated for both Harvey and Eisner Awards, and is the recipient of the Speakeasy Award and the Inkpot Award.

About Norman Rockwell Museum

About Titan Comics

Titan Comics is a bold new publishing initiative from Titan Publishing, offering readers the best new stories from new and established comics creators – and offering those creators a great deal to bring their stories to a worldwide audience. Titan Publishing has been a purveyor of comics, graphic novels, fiction and licensed publishing for over thirty years. Since 1981, the company has been instrumental in the field of licensed film and television properties, including The Walking Dead, Star Wars, Transformers and Star Trek, as well as creator-owned successes such as Tank Girl and Lenore – but now is the time to nurture a new generation of creators, characters and properties. Combining unique voices and idiosyncratic visions with strong marketing and a trusted brand, Titan Comics is the ultimate expression of their extensive editorial, design and sales experience.

About This Traveling Exhibition

Contents: Approximately 90 original artworks; photographs; objects; introductory and informational panels; and object/extended identification labels. A PDF, including a list of all elements of the show, and images of the show pieces, is available on request.

Print Materials: A handsome show catalog, postcards and the hardback graphic novel will be available.

Video: A HD video documentary of Marc Hempel creating a piece of BREATHTAKER art is available for inclusion in the exhibit.

Artists: Mark Wheatley and Marc Hempel are available, on request, for signings, power point lecture and PR interviews.

Security: Medium, all works must be monitored by a trained security officer/staff member at all times during public hours.

Environment: Light level -18 to 22 foot candles for paintings and 10 to 12 foot candles for works on paper and other light restricted objects. Humidity -50% plus or minus 5% and temperature 68 – 72 degrees, no direct sunlight and no direct contact with light fixtures or heating, air conditioning, ventilation, or electrical outlets.

Space Requirements: approx. 1500 square

Full details: http://www.nrm.org/digital/exhibitionbreathtaker/

For more information contact: mmelius@nrm.org