Brian Azzarello
He dragged comic book noir into the 21st century with morally ambiguous, street-level stories where everyone speaks in a hard, authentic criminal patois.
Born 1962 (age 64)·American comic book writer·Birthday: August 11·Baby Boomers
Biography
Brian Azzarello emerged from the Chicago indie comics scene with a voice forged in grit and grift. His breakthrough, the Vertigo series '100 Bullets', was a masterclass in sustained tension, weaving a sprawling conspiracy where ordinary people were offered a gun, untraceable bullets, and a target. Azzarello’s writing is defined by its ear for the rhythms of criminal dialogue and a refusal to offer easy heroes. He brought this same brutal sensibility to mainstream DC Comics, most notably in a run on 'Wonder Woman' that re-framed Greek gods as a scheming, dysfunctional mob family. His frequent collaborations with artists like Eduardo Risso and Lee Bermejo have produced some of the most visually striking and narratively uncompromising work in modern comics, cementing his role as a writer who treats the medium as a place for complex, adult storytelling.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Brian was born in 1962, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Brian Was Born
The biggest hits of 1962
#1 Movie
Lawrence of Arabia
Best Picture
Lawrence of Arabia
#1 TV Show
Beverly Hillbillies
Brian's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1962Born
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1967Started school
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1975Became a teenager
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1978Could drive
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1980Could vote
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1983Turned 21
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1992Turned 30
LA riots after Rodney King verdict
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $84,300Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"End of the Road" — Boyz II MenBest Picture: Unforgiven
2002Turned 40
Euro currency enters circulation
Gas: $1.36/galHome: $137,800Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"How You Remind Me" — NickelbackBest Picture: Chicago
2012Turned 50
Curiosity rover lands on Mars; Sandy Hook shooting
Gas: $3.64/galHome: $143,200Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Somebody That I Used to Know" — GotyeBest Picture: Argo
2022Turned 60
Russia invades Ukraine; Queen Elizabeth II dies
Gas: $3.97/galHome: $348,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"As It Was" — Harry StylesBest Picture: Everything Everywhere All at Once
2026Age 64 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Created and wrote the entire 100-issue run of the acclaimed crime noir series '100 Bullets' for Vertigo.
- Reinvented Wonder Woman's mythology during his run on the character's New 52 title, emphasizing her Olympian family drama.
- Co-wrote the graphic novel 'Joker' with artist Lee Bermejo, providing a ground-level, chilling portrait of the Batman villain.
- Wrote 'Batman: Broken City', a self-contained noir story illustrated by Eduardo Risso.
- Authored one of the 'Before Watchmen' prequel series, tackling the morally complex character of the Comedian.
Did You Know?
He worked in advertising before breaking into comics.
Azzarello is a dedicated fan of the Chicago Cubs baseball team.
He co-wrote the video game 'Batman: Gotham Knight' and contributed to the story of 'Darksiders II'.
His first major comics work was 'Jonny Double', a Vertigo miniseries also drawn by Eduardo Risso.
He has a reputation for writing dialogue that requires artists to carefully plan page layouts for maximum impact.
“The world isn't black and white. It's a dirty, filthy gray.”
