Mike Krahulik
The provocative artist behind Penny Arcade who channeled gaming culture's id into brash comics and built a multi-million dollar charity from a simple idea.
Born 1977 (age 49)·American webcomic artist·Birthday: September 25·Generation X
Biography
Mike Krahulik, better known as Gabe, is the visual half of the Penny Arcade empire, a force who helped define internet nerd culture in the early 2000s. With co-writer Jerry Holkins, he turned a simple comic strip about video games into a sprawling business encompassing a news site, a convention (PAX), and a charity. Krahulik's art—initially crude but full of manic energy—perfectly captured the fury and joy of gaming, while his public persona was often as contentious and unfiltered as the characters he drew. His most enduring legacy, however, may be Child's Play, a charity he co-founded that began as a simple toy drive and has since delivered tens of millions in toys and cash to children's hospitals worldwide, proving that a community often seen as insular has a tremendous capacity for generosity.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Mike was born in 1977, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Mike Was Born
The biggest hits of 1977
#1 Movie
Star Wars
Best Picture
Annie Hall
#1 TV Show
Happy Days
Mike's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1977Born
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1982Started school
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1990Became a teenager
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
1993Could drive
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
1995Could vote
Oklahoma City bombing; Windows 95 released
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $96,500Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Gangsta's Paradise" — CoolioBest Picture: Braveheart
1998Turned 21
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2007Turned 30
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
2017Turned 40
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
2026Age 49 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Co-created Penny Arcade, one of the longest-running and most influential webcomics, launching in 1998.
- Co-founded Child's Play Charity in 2003, which has raised over $50 million for sick children.
- Helped launch the Penny Arcade Expo (PAX), now a premier series of gaming festivals across the globe.
- Co-created the 'Penny Arcade' video game series and the online television network 'PATV'.
Did You Know?
His online alias 'Gabe' was taken from the angel Gabriel, but he often jokes it's a reference to the 'gabe' sound a frog makes.
Krahulik is colorblind, which influenced the stark, high-contrast style of early Penny Arcade comics.
He is a trained illustrator who attended the School of Visual Arts in New York City.
The character 'Gabe' in the comic is drawn with a full beard, while Krahulik himself is almost always clean-shaven.
“We're not journalists. We're two guys who draw a comic strip.”
