IT’S one of the most famous comic books in the world and now Manilla has a claim to fame of sorts.
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Jeremy Macpherson used to draw on anything and everything in his primary school days at St Michael’s in Manilla, but fast forward 15 years and his name is gracing the front cover of The Phantom.
The talented comic artist received the nod from Australian publishers in the latest edition, realising a life long dream for the 32-year-old.
“I always used to fill up notebooks when I was in school,” he recalled.
“Back when I was 12 that was my dream in life to one day draw The Phantom.”
Many locals would still recall his early work with the adventures of Ned and Ted – two characters he brought to life in the comics he regularly submitted to the Manilla Express.
And while he’s still drawing for the local paper, there’s now a much wider audience taking it in.
“I submitted samples, a few examples of what kind of thing I might be able to do and after that they came back and I got to work on a brief,” he said of working on The Phantom.
And since his work was published, he’s had a host of fans seeking him out.
“Someone (the other day) asked me for an autograph, so there are people out there who are big fans,” Jeremy joked.
“Obviously it’s got a large fan base.”
The Phantom is a personal favourite, as are some of the earlier comics from decades gone by.
“As a little kid I used to read Donald Duck, The Phantom, Ginger Meggs – either comic books or the comic strips,” he recalled.
The front cover has wowed Manilla locals who have eagerly snapped up the comic book – and there are none prouder than Jeremy’s parents.
“He’s finally done it,” Ken Macpherson beamed.
And while it was a labour of love for Jeremy, his parents were backing him all the way.
“All that time he’s been doing comics, he’s got to know all the famous people and met all the comics people,” he said.
“The Phantom had a look at him and they were very impressed and then they printed it.
“So we made sure we bought a couple of copies.”
The latest edition of the comic book hit stands last week.