Jim Balent

2025-07-25T14:24:04Z

2A02:587:9842:500:5883:DA75:7DF1:BD7:

{{Short description|American comic book artist}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2025}}
{{Infobox comics creator
| image = Jim holly balent.png
| caption = Balent photographed with his wife, [[Holly Golightly (comics)|Holly Golightly]], at the [[MegaCon]] comic book convention
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| notable works = ''[[Catwoman]]''<br>''[[Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose]]''
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| spouse = [[Holly Golightly (comics)|Holly Golightly]]
| website = https://www.jimbalentstudios.com/
}}

'''Jim Balent''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|æ|l|ə|n|t}})<ref>{{cite AV media|title= Jim Balent & Holly G! Vienna Comicon 2017| publisher= [[YouTube]]|date= November 9, 2017|url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv_kYi5GKX4 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211213/Dv_kYi5GKX4| archive-date=December 1, 2021 |url-status=live}}{{cbignore}}</ref> is an American [[comics artist]], writer, and publisher from Pennsylvania. He is best known for his long run on ''[[Catwoman (comic book)|Catwoman]]'' between 1993 and 1999. Balent has also drawn ''[[Batman (comic book)|Batman]]'' and ''[[Lobo (DC Comics)|Lobo]]'' for [[DC Comics]], as well as some of the issues of ''[[Purgatori]]'' for the independent comic book publisher [[Chaos! Comics]].

==Career==
Balent's early work for [[DC Comics]] includes backup stories in ''[[Sgt. Rock]]'' such as "The Deadliest Casualty" in issue #393 (October 1984) and "The Ninja" in #397 (February 1985).<ref name="GCD">{{gcdb|type=credit|search= Jim+Balent|title= Jim Balent}}</ref> An [[Atom (Ray Palmer)|Atom]] story drawn by Balent was published as a [[DC Comics Bonus Book|Bonus Book]] in ''Power of the Atom'' #4 (November 1988).<ref>{{cite journal|last= Greenberger|first= Robert|authorlink= Robert Greenberger|title= New Talent and Bonus Babies|journal= [[Back Issue!]]|issue= 71|pages= 71–73|publisher= [[TwoMorrows Publishing]]|date= April 2014|location= Raleigh, North Carolina}}</ref> Balent and writer [[Jo Duffy]] launched an ongoing ''[[Catwoman]]'' series in August 1993.<ref>{{cite book|last=Manning|first= Matthew K.|editor-last=Dolan|editor-first=Hannah|chapter= 1990s|title = DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle|publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]]|year=2010|location= London, United Kingdom|isbn= 978-0-7566-6742-9|page= 260|quote = Selina Kyle finally stole the spotlight in her first ongoing series by writer Jo Duffy and artist Jim Balent.}}</ref> Balent drew ''Catwoman'' through issue #77 (February 2000).<ref name="GCD" /> He and writer [[Chuck Dixon]] created [[Geist (DC Comics)|Geist]] in ''[[Detective Comics]] Annual'' #6 (1993).<ref>{{cite book|last= Manning|first= Matthew K.|editor-last=Dougall|editor-first= Alastair|chapter= 1990s|title= Batman: A Visual History|publisher= [[Dorling Kindersley]]|date= 2014|location= London, United Kingdom|page= 204|isbn= 978-1465424563|quote= A hero with invisibility powers debuted thanks to writer Chuck Dixon and artist Jim Balent.}}</ref> As the artist of ''Catwoman'', Balent worked on several Batman crossover stories including "[[Batman: Contagion|Contagion]]",<ref>Manning "1990s" in Dougall, p. 220</ref> "[[Batman: Cataclysm|Cataclysm]]",<ref>Manning "1990s" in Dougall, p. 232</ref> and "[[Batman: No Man's Land|No Man's Land]]".<ref>Manning "1990s" in Dougall, p. 240</ref> In 1999, Balent left mainstream comics to form his own company, '''BroadSword Comics''', which publishes ''[[Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose]]'', written and drawn by Balent himself.<ref name="GCD" /> In an interview with [[Project Fanboy]], a comic book website, Balent spoke of his interest in both entertaining as well as educating his readers about the folklore and actual theology of [[Wicca]] and witchcraft with interviews with leading witch authors and spells from witches around the world.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://projectfanboy.gonnageekhosting.com/vb/showthread.php?737-Jim-Balent-Interview!|title= Jim Balent Interview!|first= Matt|last= Grant|date= May 13, 2008|publisher= [[Project Fanboy]]|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20160305055903/http://projectfanboy.gonnageekhosting.com/vb/showthread.php?737-Jim-Balent-Interview%21|archivedate= March 5, 2016|url-status= live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> Balent drew a retailer exclusive variant cover for ''[[Batman (comic book)|Batman]]'' vol. 3 #50 (September 2018) for Jetpack Comics / [[Forbidden Planet (bookstore)|Forbidden Planet]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.bleedingcool.com/2018/06/08/more-batman-50-covers-josh-middleton-francesco-mattina/|title= More ''Batman'' #50 Covers by Josh Middleton, Francesco Mattina, Jock, Joe Madureira, and More|first= Rich|last= Johnston|authorlink= Rich Johnston|date= June 8, 2018|publisher= [[Bleeding Cool]]|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20180808050137/https://www.bleedingcool.com/2018/06/08/more-batman-50-covers-josh-middleton-francesco-mattina/|archivedate= August 8, 2018|url-status= live|df= mdy-all}}</ref>

==Awards==
On March 1, 2009, Balent's company, BroadSword Comics, won three of the 25 categories in the inaugural [[Project Fanboy]] Awards and was nominated for ten other categories at the [[MegaCon]] convention. His title ''Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose'' won in the categories of "Best Title" and "Best Indy Title", and the character Raven Hex from the aforementioned title won in the category of "Best Indy Villain".<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.projectfanboy.com/index.php?pageid=pfa_winners|title= The Project Fanboy Awards|date= 2009|publisher= Project Fanboy|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20090408121937/http://www.projectfanboy.com/index.php?pageid=pfa_winners|archivedate= April 8, 2009|url-status= dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

==Bibliography==

===BroadSword Comics===
* ''3 Little Kittens: Purrr-fect Weapons'' #1–3 (2002)
* ''[[Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose]]'' #1–145 (2000–{{as of|2025|May}})

===Chaos Comics===
* ''[[Purgatori]]: Prelude'' #1 (1996)
* ''Purgatori: The Vampires Myth'' #1–3 (1996)

===Dark Horse Comics===
* ''[[Dark Horse Presents]]'' #71–73 (1993)

===DC Comics===
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
* ''[[Batman (comic book)|Batman]]'' #507 (1994)
* ''Batman 80-Page Giant'' #2 (1999)
* ''[[Barbara Gordon|Batman: Batgirl]]'' #1 (1998)
* ''Batman: Brotherhood of the Bat'' #1 (1995)
* ''[[Catwoman (comic book)|Catwoman]]'' vol. 2 #1–30, 33–77, #0, #1000000, ''Annual'' #2; #31–32 (layouts) (1993–2000)
* ''Catwoman/[[Vampirella]]: The Furies'' #1 (1997)
* ''[[Catwoman: Guardian of Gotham]]'' #1–2 (1999)
* ''[[Darkstars]]'' #7 (1993)
* ''[[Detective Comics]]'' #660, ''Annual'' #6 (1993)
* ''[[Green Lantern Corps]] Quarterly'' #4–6 (1993)
* ''[[Green Lantern: Mosaic]]'' #9 (1993)
* ''[[List of Amalgam Comics publications|Legends of the Dark Claw]]'' #1 (1996)
* ''[[Lobo (DC Comics)|Lobo's Big Babe Spring Break Special]]'' #1 (1995)
* ''[[Atom (Ray Palmer)|Power of the Atom]]'' #4 ([[DC Comics Bonus Book|Bonus Book]]) (1988)
* ''[[Sgt. Rock]]'' #393, 397 (backup stories) (1984–1985)
* ''[[Showcase (comics)|Showcase '95]]'' #4 (Catwoman) (1995)
{{div col end}}

===First Comics===
* ''[[Evangeline (comics)|Evangeline]]'' #11–12 (1989)
* ''[[Nexus (comics)|Nexus]]'' #42 (1988)

===Harris Comics===
* ''[[Vampirella]]'' #1–3 (1992–1993)

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{Official website|https://www.jimbalentstudios.com/}}
* {{comicbookdb|type=creator|id= 748|title= Jim Balent}}
* [https://www.mikesamazingworld.com/main/features/creator.php?creatorid=149 Jim Balent] at Mike's Amazing World of Comics

{{s-start}}
{{succession box|title= ''[[Catwoman]]'' penciller|before= n/a|after= [[Staz Johnson]]|years= 1993–2000}}
{{s-end}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Balent, Jim}}
[[Category:20th-century American artists]]
[[Category:21st-century American artists]]
[[Category:American comics artists]]
[[Category:American comics writers]]
[[Category:American company founders]]
[[Category:American publishers (people)]]
[[Category:Artists from Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Comic book publishers (people)]]
[[Category:Comics inkers]]
[[Category:DC Comics people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Writers from Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Place of birth missing (living people)]]

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Jim Balent