Press Release
Eastern Washington University is proud to welcome back to campus Todd McFarlane, an entertainment and business mogul and an international awarding-winning artist, during its Commencement weekend June 14-15.
Todd McFarlane ’84, who will be the keynote speaker at one of two graduation ceremonies that weekend, became a comic book sensation in the 1980s due to his work on Marvel Comics Spider-Man franchise. In 1992, he launched his own comic title, Spawn, which became one of the 1990s’ most popular heroes and which launched a highly successful and diverse career that includes action figures, film, animation and video games. Spawn became an Emmy Award-winning animated series on HBO and a top grossing live-action feature film from New Line Cinema. McFarlane founded and controls the award-winning McFarlane Toys, a leader in the action figure industry, and produces products based on the some of the hottest entertainment and sports properties.
Open to the public on the night before commencement, Friday, June 14, EWU will present Road Trip to Creative Autonomy, an evening with Todd McFarlane from 7-8 p.m., at the Red Lion Hotel at the Park in Spokane. An autograph session will follow. Admission to this special speaking engagement is $15, and will include a highly limited edition Spawn comic book with a E.W.U. Grad Special cover. The event is free for EWU students with Eagle Card ID. Advanced registration is required and IDs will be scanned at the door. Space is limited, so please RSVP to alumni.ewu.edu/mcfarlane.
McFarlane, who once worked as a janitor while studying and playing baseball at Eastern, will be the keynote speaker during the 2 p.m. Commencement ceremony on Saturday, June 15, for students in the College of Science, Health and Engineering and the College of Arts, Letters and Education.
MORE ABOUT TODD MCFARLANE
About McFarlane Toys: Grammy-and Emmy-winning producer/director Todd McFarlane, creator of Spawn, is the force behind McFarlane Toys, one of America’s top action figure manufacturers. McFarlane Toys has become a leader and redefined the standards within the action figure industry. 2013 Marquee lines include The Walking Dead TV and Comics, Assassin Creed and HALO video franchises and officially licensed teams of the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL. McFarlane has won two Emmys, two MTV Video Music Awards, a Grammy and hundreds of international awards for his work in the arts and action figure industry. Todd McFarlane Entertainment continues to development projects in film, television and video games. For more information on this pop-culture powerhouse, visit: visit www.McFarlane.com; https://www.facebook.com/liketoddmcfarlane; http://twitter.com/Todd_McFarlane (Todd_McFarlane) and https://www.youtube.com/user/McFarlaneCompany
