I just learned that Ellie Frazetta, Wife, business manager, and inspiration to the father of modern day Fantasy, Frank Frazetta...had passed away a day ago from Brain Cancer.
For anyone that knows anything about the Frazetta's, know that Ellie was truly the mastermind behind the success of husband Frank. Yes, Frank is a MONSTER GENIUS of a guy..but as anyone knows..artists aren't the quickest people in the world. Which is why so much of the work from the old masters were just given away. Ellie was a trail blazer in the field by making sure Franks originals came back to him. Something that paved the way for all of us up and comers.
Ellie also saw to it that it might be a profitable thing to get Franks works on posters and prints, t-shirts and everything else you can name.
Wife of 53 years to Frank..thier story is truly an inspirational one. A success in business and more importantly a success in life and love. Boasting four children and several grandchildren.
She is missed.
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A great write up from "spectrum fantastic art" posted below:
"Unfortunately sad news tends to come in waves. Ellie Frazetta, wife of 53 years to Grand Master Frank, died in her sleep July 17 after a year-long battle with brain cancer; she was 74 years old.
Hot-tempered, opinionated, aggressive, and sometimes just an out-and-out pain in the butt, Ellie could be a bull in a china shop when dealing with people: it's hardly surprising that she accumulated her share of enemies and detractors over the decades. But she could also be effusive, friendly, kind, and generous to a fault; she would open her home to visitors and treat them like family. If she liked you she made sure you knew it every day; if she didn't... look out!
While Frank gained recognition for his art, it was Ellie who capitalized on that popularity, pushing and promoting and making Frank Frazetta bigger and more successful than he probably ever would have been without her. To minimize her efforts would be a mistake: together they made a potent team.
They met in 1952 when she was 17 and Frank was 24; they quickly became inseparable and, despite her father's misgivings, were married when she turned 21 in 1956. Their first child – Frank Jr. – was born within the year. The Frazettas experienced career ups and downs (as detailed in Icon, Legacy, and Testament) through the years and had three more children together. During this time, Ellie increasingly began to act as Frank's business manager. Not every decision was the right one and not every business deal turned out as it was hoped, but through trial and error she created a successful poster business, realized substantial sums for Frank's original art, and opened several incarnations of a museum devoted to his work. She was his biggest fan, his staunchest defender, and his steadfast companion in good times and bad. And in doing so she became something of a role model for many other artists' spouses that have followed her lead through the years.
After Frank's undiagnosed thyroid condition in the 1980s and debilitating strokes in the '90s, Ellie was care-giver (and mother and grandmother) and breadwinner: she made book deals, published her own products, and licensed art for calendars, advertising, and comics. She lived her life without excuses or apologies... but there was also a certain vulnerability and sadness lurking beneath a steely exterior that would become apparent on those rare occasions when she allowed her guard to momentarily drop.
Ellie Frazetta's story is a complex one, not easily understood nor readily explained; hopefully one day it will be properly told.
It was a long and painful final year for her both physically and emotionally; may she rest in peace.
