Legendary comic book writer Harvey Pekar, best known for his autobiographical American Splendor series, has died at age 70, according to the Plain Dealer in his hometown of Cleveland.

Pekar was found dead in his home in Cleveland Heights, shortly after 1 a.m. on July 12th, by his wife Joyce Brabner. No cause of death has yet been announced, but an autopsy will be conducted shortly.

Pekar was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer, and also suffered high blood pressure, asthma, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and clinical depression.

This is a great loss to the world of comics. Harvey Pekar was an pioneer in the world of underground comics, and his unforgettable work on American Splendor opened up a whole new audience to the world of comics, and was instrumental in showing people that comics could also be literature.

Make sure to check out the wonderful obituary posted over on the Cleavland Plain Dealer: http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2010/07/cleveland_comic-book_legend_ha.html

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