Hobart connection to recent Comic-Con gathering

When the expected 4,000 people entered the Lake County Fairgrounds’ Industrial Building Feb. 10 for the NWI Comic-Con, they were treated to a variety of comic books, artists, paraphernalia, and food.

They were also treated to two artists with a Hobart background, Greg Manwaring and Cory Hamscher.

Hamscher graduated from Hobart High in 1995. Shortly after graduating, he began his career with Guideposts for Teens, a faith-based publication. After working nearly 10 years for another publication, he worked 2006-2019 for Marvel Comics.

While at Marvel, Hamscher got to work on some of the company’s more prominent superheroes. These include Spiderman, Fantastic Four, Incredible Hulk, Captain America, Avengers, and X-Men. His work also included Star Wars.

To work on a 20-page comic book, Hamscher said it would take a team about a month to complete.

Today Hamscher works for himself from his home in Valparaiso. He described gatherings such as Comic-Con as “the Super Bowl for geeks.”

As for Manwaring, he is not an HHS grad, but his father was, class of ’59. Manwaring, who today lives in Crown Point and runs the Tinseltown Animation School, was born in Gary, but at age 10 he and his family moved to an Army bases in Wuerzburg, Germany.

Back in the states, Manwaring moved to Los Angeles and attended the California Institute of the Arts, where he studied character animation. His interest in animation led his to Walt Disney Studios, where his most recent projects include Dolittle and Space Jam 2.

An animator, actor, and director, Manwaring can list on his resume these projects: The Lion King, Little Big Panda, The Iron Giant, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, the 1988 film which combined live action and animation.