Rick Griffin (18 June 1944 - 18 August 1991; USA)
Like so many comic artists, Rick Griffin showed his talent as a youngster. He attended the Los Angeles Chouinard Art Institute where an instructor told him: "You cannot make art with a Rapidograph!" His singular drawing style developed - still using the Rapidograph - with practical experience on publications such as Surfer Magazine (he was an avid surfer), Car Toon Magazine, Hot Rod Cartoons and artwork for 'Big Daddy' Roth.

Settling in San Francisco in 1966, Rick Griffin's style reached maturity in the richly colored psychedelic concert posters he designed for Bill Graham's Fillmore and Chet Helm's Family Dog rock concerts. The famous 'Flying Eyeball' poster (Bill Graham #105) ranks as the most treasured of all his posters collected by fans and modern art museums alike.

Griffin drew comics for 'Zap' (with Victor Moscoso), 'Snatch' and 'Tales from the Tube', and created some several unforgettable designs for many album covers for the Grateful Dead and other San Francisco counter-culture rock bands of the sixties. Rick Griffin had a motorcycle accident on 15 August 1991 and died from his injuries a few days later.