Hildebrandt, Greg 1939–

Personal

Born January 23, 1939, in Detroit, MI; son of George J. (an executive) and Germaine (Lajack) Hildebrandt; married Diana F. Stankowski, June 8, 1963; children: Mary, Laura, Gregory. Education: Attended Mienzinger's Art School.

Addresses

Home—England. Office—90 Park Ave., Verona, NJ 07044. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Jean L. Gruder, 90 Park Ave., Verona, NJ 07044. E-mail—brothershildebrandt@spiderwebart.com.

Career

Freelance illustrator and writer, 1958–. Documentary filmmaker and animator, with brother, Tim Hildebrandt, including for Bishop Fulton J. Sheen; consultant to Columbia Pictures. Exhibitions: Work exhibited at Elizabeth Stone Gallery, Birmingham, MI; Franklin Mint Museum, Franklin, PA; Every Picture Tells a Story, Los Angeles, CA; and at numerous other galleries throughout the United States. Louis K. Meisel Gallery, one-man show, 2000. Military service: U.S. Army, 1959–63.

Awards, Honors

(With Tim Hildebrandt) Golden Eagle Award, for documentary film Project Hope; gold medal, Society of Illustrators, 1976, for Clive.

Writings

SELF-ILLUSTRATED, WITH BROTHER, TIM HILDEBRANDT

How Do They Build It?, Platt & Munk (New York, NY), 1974.

The Art of the Brothers Hildebrandt, Ballantine (New York, NY), 1979.

(With Jerry Nichols) Urshurak (fantasy novel), Bantam (New York, NY), 1979.

A Christmas Treasury, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1984.

Greg Hildebrandt's Favorite Fairy Tales, Little Simon (New York, NY), 1984.

From Tolkien to Oz, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1985.

Greg Hildebrandt's Book of Three-Dimensional Dragons, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1994.

Greg and Tim Hildebrandt: The Tolkien Years, Watson-Guptill Publications (New York, NY), 2001.

(With Justin Boring) War on Flesh (manga), art by Tim Smith, Tokyopop, 2005.

Greg Hildebrandt's Magical Storybook Collection, Running Press (Philadelphia, PA), 2006.

ILLUSTRATOR

(With Tim Hildebrandt) Audrey Hirsch and Harvey Hirsch, A Home for Tandy, Platt & Munk (New York, NY), 1971.

(With Tim Hildebrandt) Watty Piper, editor, Mother Goose: A Treasury of Best-Loved Rhymes, Platt & Munk (New York, NY), 1972.

Aileen Lucia Fisher, Animal Disguises, Bowmar/Noble, 1973.

Barbara Shook Hazen, A Nose for Trouble, Golden Press (New York, NY), 1973.

Anthony Hiss, The Giant Panda Book, Platt & Munk (New York, NY), 1973.

Gloria Skurzynski, The Remarkable Journey of Gustavus Bell, Abingdon (Nashville, TN), 1973.

Simone Zapun, Games Animals Play, Platt & Munk (New York, NY), 1974.

Annie Ingle, The Big City Book, Platt & Munk (New York, NY), 1975.

Winifred Rosen Casey, The Hippopotamus Book, Golden Press (New York, NY), 1975.

Kathleen N. Daly, The Wonder of Animals, Golden Press (New York, NY), 1976.

Kathleen N. Daly, Dinosaurs, Golden Press (New York, NY), 1977.

Kathleen N. Daly, Today's Biggest Animals, Golden Press (New York, NY), 1977.

Terry Brooks, The Sword of Shannara, Random House (New York, NY), 1977.

Ruthanna Long, The Great Monster Contest, Golden Press (New York, NY), 1977.

Kathleen N. Daly, Hide and Defend, Golden Press (New York, NY), 1977.

Kathleen N. Daly, Unusual Animals, Golden Press (New York, NY), 1977.

Here Come the Builders!, Platt & Munk (New York, NY), 1978.

Who Runs the City?, 1978.

Clement Clarke Moore, The Night before Christmas, Golden Press (New York, NY), 1981.

Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol, Little Simon (New York, NY), 1983.

Bram Stoker, Dracula, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1985.

Bonnie Worth, Peter Cottontail's Surprise, Unicorn (Par-sippany, NJ), 1985.

L. Frank Baum, The Wizard of Oz, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1985.

Edgar Allan Poe, Stories and Poems, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1986.

Carlo Collodi, Davy and the Goblin, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1986.

(With Tim Hildebrandt) The Cricket Book of Mother Goose, Platt & Munk (New York, NY), 1987.

Charles E. Carryl, Davy and the Goblin, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1988.

J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1988.

Gaston Leroux, The Phantom of the Opera, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1988.

J. Walker McSpadden, Robin Hood, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1989.

Simone Zapun, Wonderful Wild Animals, Grosset & Dunlap (New York, NY), 1989.

Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1990.

'Twas the Night before Christmas, and Other Holiday Favorites, Unicorn (Parsippany, NJ), 1990.

Tad Williams, Child of an Ancient City, Maxwell Macmillan (New York, NY), 1992.

(With Tim Hildebrandt) Bob Woods, Star Wars: The Art of the Brothers Hildebrandt, Ballantine (New York, NY), 1997.

(With Tim Hildebrandt) Star Wars Episode I: Great Big Flap Book, Random House (New York, NY), 1999.

Illustrator of other books, including Clive.

Sidelights

A prolific artist, Greg Hildebrandt made up one half of the award-winning artistic duo working professionally for many years as the Brothers Hildebrandt. Collaborating with twin brother Tim Hildebrandt up until Tim's death in 2006, Greg Hildebrandt has become an established force in the world of illustration; the brothers' work on the posters for Barbarella, Clash of the Titans, and the original Star Wars film are among many popular science-fiction images to their credit. Fantasy-genre art by the Brothers Hildebrandt include the best-selling Lord of the Rings calendars created during the 1970s; other works include comic books, trading cards, and commercial and advertising art, as well as writing and illustrating the 1979 fantasy novel Urshurak. Their work, which has become highly collectible, has also been featured as poster art and has been adapted for use on collector plates and as china figurines.

The Hildebrandt twins—born in January of 1939 in Detroit, Michigan—made an early start in their creative endeavors, learning to color and drawn with crayons under their father's guidance at age two. Inspired by comic books such as Terry and the Pirates, Prince Valiant, and superhero sagas featuring the Bat-Man, Superman, and others, they moved into science-fiction art, and dreamed of a career working as animators in the studios of Walt Disney. Ultimately, they moved into print art, working together until 1981 when they parted company to pursue separate careers. Greg Hildebrandt has gone on to illustrate numerous literary classics, such as Alice and Wonderland, Robin Hood, and Dracula, as well as a calendar based on the popular "Merlin" novel trilogy by Mary Stewart. He has also moved into manga, coauthoring the three-volume horror manga War on Flesh with Justin Boring, that Kliatt contributor George Galuschak dubbed "riveting." After pursuing separate careers for a dozen years, the brothers reunited to produce one of their final book-length collaborations, 1994's Greg Hildebrandt's Book of Three-Dimensional Dragons. Greg's pictures have also been collected in Greg Hildebrandt's Magical Storybook Collection. Both Star Wars: The Art of the Brothers Hildebrandt and Greg and Tim Hildebrandt: The Tolkien Years reissue the Hildebrandts' original movie and calendar art, introducing the brothers' fantastic vision to new generations of science-fiction and fantasy fans.

Hildebrandt once commented: "I feel that the field of fantasy is just beginning to be appreciated by people. It is now and has always been my first love. Fantasy enables people to escape into a world of pure joy and

[Image not available for copyright reasons]

imagination. I am fortunate to have spent my entire life working with my imagination and I certainly hope I have managed to bring some joy to others through my art and writing."

Biographical and Critical Sources

BOOKS

Ian Summers, The Art of the Brothers Hildebrandt, Ballantine (New York, NY), 1979.

PERIODICALS

Booklist, December 1, 1992, Sally Estes, review of Child of an Ancient City, p. 662; April 1, 1995, review of Greg Hildebrandt's Book of Three-Dimensional Dragons, p. 1415.

Kliatt, November, 2005, George Galuschak, review of War on Flesh, p. 24.

Publishers Weekly, November 11, 1983, review of A Christmas Carol, p. 224; April 19, 1985, Jean F. Mercier, review of Peter Cottontail's Surprise, p. 82; November 27, 1987, Diane Roback, review of Treasures of Chanukah, p. 79; December 12, 1994, review of Greg Hildebrandt's Book of Three-Dimensional Dragons, p. 63; October 10, 2005, review of War on Flesh, p. 43.

School Library Journal, March, 1984, Jean Hammond Zimmerman, review of A Christmas Carol, p. 172; February, 1986, Kenneth Marantz, review of Peter Cottontail's Surprise, p. 79; January, 1993, Cathryn A. Camper, review of Child of an Ancient City, p. 134; January, 1995, John Sigwald, review of Greg Hildebrandt's Book of Three-Dimensional Dragons, p. 130.

Voice of Youth Advocates, April, 1995, review of Greg Hildebrandt's Book of Three-Dimensional Dragons, p. 13.

Wilson Library Bulletin, October, 1993, Cathi Dunn MacRae, review of Child of an Ancient City, p. 124.

ONLINE

Greg Hildebrandt Home Page, http://brothershildebrandt.com (June 6, 2006).