Craig Yoe


Craig Yoe is an American author, editor, art director, graphic designer, cartoonist and comics historian, best known for his Yoe! Studio creations and his line of Yoe Books.

Early life

Craig Yoe was born in Des Moines, Iowa. He attended Firestone High School in Akron, Ohio and the University of Akron before dropping out to concentrate on counter-cultural activities and the anti-war movement.

Career

In the early 1970s Yoe was a leader in the Akron Jesus People movement, creating a newspaper/Christian comic first called The Acorn and, later, Jesus Loves You. In 1970, Yoe commissioned legendary surf artist and friend Rick Griffin to do the painting Rock of Ages which became the cover for Jesus Loves You.
Early in his career, Yoe was senior designer at Marvin Glass and Associates, where he worked on Cabbage Patch Kids and My Little Pony toys. Recruited by Jim Henson, Yoe became the creative director and general manager of the Muppets, working on everything from theme parks to television shows. After Henson's death, Yoe opened his own company, Yoe! Studio, working in the entertainment and licensing fields and creating publications, style guides, packaging, press kits, logos, and toys. Yoe! Studio client list includes Kellogg’s, Disney, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Marvel, DC Comics, and even IMAX. Clizia Gussoni is Yoe's wife, business partner and the co-creative director of Yoe! Studio.
Yoe also handled Big Boy Restaurants' promotional comic book Big Boy Magazine – the successor to the Adventures of the Big Boy comic book – as he discussed with Steven Heller:
We produce everything from start to finish. We interview celebrities from Britney Spears to SpongeBob SquarePants. We produce the comic stories that are still the heart of the publication. Luke McDonnell, another Marvel graduate, is our staff artist at Yoe! Studio. Luke is an incredible visual storyteller who gives Big Boy and friends a delightful modern flair. We get freelance writers Craig Boldman and Bob Supina to do the scripts. When she has time, my business partner, Clizia Gussoni, pens some of the stories with her own magic. It goes from our printer right to the warehouse that houses all the food and napkins, then is trucked to the individual restaurants across the country. The kids love ’em. We get many enthusiastic letters and incredible drawings of Big Boy that we include in each issue.

As of 2010 Yoe is an adjunct professor of art at Syracuse University.

Personal life

Yoe is married to Clizia Gussoni, who is also his creative partner, with whom he has had 3 children..
Yoe currently resides in Baguio.

Awards

  • Gold Medal from the Society of Illustrators
  • Addy Award
  • Eisner Award
  • 4th Annual Jerry Bails Award For Excellence in Fandom, at 2013 Detroit Fanfare
  • Inkpot Award

    Books

Yoe followed The Art of Mickey Mouse with books for several different publishers: The Mighty Big Book of Optical Illusions, Clean Cartoonists’ Dirty Drawings, Secret Identity: The Fetish Art of Superman’s Co-creator Joe Shuster, The Great Anti-War Cartoons, Boody and Krazy Kat & the Art of George Herriman: A Celebration.
In 2012, Yoe co-edited IDW's Popeye comic book miniseries, illustrated by Bruce Ozella.

Yoe Books / IDW

In 2010, Yoe launched his own imprint, Yoe Books, with IDW.
  • The Art of Ditko
  • The Complete Milt Gross Comic Books and Life Story
  • Dan DeCarlo's Jetta
  • The Golden Collection of Klassic Krazy Kool Kids Komics
  • Felix the Cat’s Greatest Comic Book Tails
  • Dick Briefer's Frankenstein
  • Barney Google: Gambling, Horse Races & High-Toned Women
  • The Great Treasury of Christmas Comic Book Stories
  • Popeye: The Great Comic Book Tales by Bud Sagendorf
  • Krazy & Ignatz in Tiger Tea
  • Archie: A Celebration of America's Favorite Teenagers
  • Archie's Madhouse
  • Amazing 3-D Comics!
  • Barks' Bear Book
  • Bob Powell's Terror: The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics
  • Frazetta Funny Stuff
  • Zombies: The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics
  • The Creativity of Ditko
  • Little Penis: A Finger Puppet Parody Book
  • Comics About Cartoonists: Stories About The World's Oddest Profession
  • Ditko Monsters: GORGO!
  • Jack Cole's Deadly Horror: The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics
  • Haunted Horror: Banned Comics from the 1950s: The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics
  • Felix the Cat Paintings
  • Alice in Comicland
  • The Worst of Eerie Publications: The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics
  • Haunted Horror: Comics Your Mother Warned You About: The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics
  • Ditko's Shorts
  • Howard Nostrand's Nightmares: The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics
  • ''Tom Sutton's Creepy Things: The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics''

    Children's Books for Mango Publishing

In 2020, Craig Yoe and Mango Publishing launched a series of four children's books titled "Squeaky Clean, Super Funny."
  • Squeaky Clean Super Funny: Jokes! For Kidz
  • Squeaky Clean Super Funny: Knock Knock Jokes! For Kidz
  • Squeaky Clean Super Funny: Riddles! For Kidz
  • ''Squeaky Clean Super Funny: School Jokes! For Kidz''