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The authors of the recent Access Guide to the Black Comic Book Community are paying it forward - while paying tribute to a person who helped get us this far.
Joseph Illidge, Dimitrios Fragiskatos, and George Carmona the 3rd have donated the complete proceeds of their guide so far - $2,000 - to the Dwayne McDuffie Fund.
"The Dwayne McDuffie Fund was established to help memorialize my late husband's entertainment industry legacy, which - in addition to the groundbreaking Milestone Media - now includes the prestigious annual Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity in Comics, and the Dwayne McDuffie Award for Kids' Comics," Charlotte (Fullerton) McDuffie, the widow of Dwayne McDuffie, tells Newsarama.
"The fund also continues to help secure his societal legacy, through scholarly publications, charitable organizations, documentaries, and educational exhibits, most notably at the Smithsonian National Museum of African-American History and Culture."
Released earlier this year, the Access Guide to the Black Comic Book Community works as a resource tool for a better understanding of the black comics community - for those working in, those aspiring to, and for those simply wanting to be aware and more knowledgeable. When the project was announced, the authors pledged to donate all profits from the book to the Dwayne McDuffie Fund.
"The stated goal of the Dwayne McDuffie Fund to (upon reaching its goal) award scholarships to diverse students completely aligns with the purpose of Access Guide to introduce more people to comics, both on the consumer level and professionally," says Dimitrios Fragiskatos, co-author of the guide and owner of the Brooklyn comic store Anyone Comics.
"The life and career of McDuffie himself is a testament to the need for diverse voices in comics. Even with limitations, McDuffie created stories and universes that we celebrate today; that speak to my customers at Anyone Comics in Brooklyn."
In addition to co-creating Milestone Media (and many of its characters including Static), Dwayne McDuffie created Marvel's Damage Control and the third iteration of Deathlok (Michael Collins). As a writer, he had memorable runs on Static, Fantastic Four, Justice League of America, and Icon. In comics-based media, he wrote the animated films All-Star Superman and Justice League: Doom.
"I am so grateful for the generous donation by Access Guide and Anyone Comics," McDuffie continues. "Dwayne had such a deep love of comics all his life. But as has been said since his death, comics didn't always love him back. It's heartening to see that even now when he's been gone for 10 years, the comics industry and fandom remembers and respects the man, his work, his mission. That new fans and pros alike are learning about him and what he was about. I only wish Dwayne were here to thank you himself."
Nearly $100,000 has been donated so far for the Dwayne McDuffie Fund, and you can find out more (and possibly donate yourself) on the Dwayne McDuffie Fund's GoFundMe page.
A collection of some of the late author's work is being organized called DC Universe by Dwayne McDuffie.
