Sam Kieth, the comic book creator of 'The Maxx' and co-creator of 'Sandman,' died on March 15 at age 63. His death from Lewy Body Dementia was confirmed by lifelong friend Scott Dunbier to Bleeding Cool.
Sam Kieth passed away on March 15, 2026, at the age of 63, as confirmed by his lifelong friend and collaborator Scott Dunbier to Bleeding Cool. The artist died of Lewy Body Dementia. Born on January 11, 1963, Kieth entered the comics industry at 17, publishing his first work with Comico. His early projects included contributions to 'Wolverine' in Marvel Comics Presents and 'The Hulk.' In 1993, he launched 'The Maxx' for Image Comics, a series delving into themes of identity and reality. It was adapted into an animated series on MTV's 'Liquid Television' and inspired action figures produced by Todd McFarlane. Kieth co-created 'Sandman' with Neil Gaiman, providing illustrations for the first five issues published by DC Comics. Other notable works encompass 'Zero Girl' and 'Four Women' for Wildstorm, 'Ojo' and 'My Inner Bimbo' for Oni Press, 'Batman: Secrets,' 'Batman/Lobo: Deadly Serious,' 'Lobo: Highway to Hell,' and the Batman/Maxx crossover 'Arkham Dreams' for DC Comics. He also contributed to 'Judge Dredd' for 2000AD and '30 Days of Night' for IDW. Beyond comics, Kieth helped develop the 'No Smoking' pilot for 'Cow and Chicken' and directed the film 'Take It to the Limit' for Roger Corman's Concorde-New Horizons. Kieth retired from mainstream comics following 'Arkham Dreams' due to health issues. He is survived by his wife of 43 years, Kathy Kieth.
