Randy Stradley was born on March 4, 1956, and is an American comic book writer and editor who built a career of unusual depth and range over more than three decades. He is perhaps best known for his long tenure in an executive role at Dark Horse Comics, where he worked for 35 years and contributed to shaping the publisher's identity across multiple genres and licensed properties.
Dark Horse Presents #3 (1986)
Stradley's credits span writing, editing, inking, and coloring across nearly 200 issues, with his active publishing years running from 1984 to 2019. His work touched some of Dark Horse's most commercially significant titles, including *Star Wars*, *Dark Horse Presents*, *Dark Horse Insider*, and *Mecha*. Among his most notable contributions as a writer are *Star Wars: Crimson Empire* and *Aliens vs. Predator: Three World War*, the latter helping to cement the AVP crossover as a durable franchise concept.
The American #3 (1987)
Throughout his career, Stradley occasionally wrote under the pseudonyms Mick Harrison and Welles Hartley, a practice that reflects the behind-the-scenes versatility common among editors who also pursue creative work. His longevity at Dark Horse — serving simultaneously as an executive, editor, and working storyteller — gave him an unusually broad influence on the independent comics landscape during a formative period for the medium.
