Comic Book Mogul Suing Ex-Partners

Comic book mogul Rob Liefeld, the creator of “Youngblood,” “X-Force” and the latest version of “Captain America,” has sued the independent comic book company he co-founded in 1990 with six other former Marvel Comic artists.

Liefeld, 28, and the companies he controls, Rob Liefeld Inc., Extreme Studios and Maximum Press, filed a $1-million lawsuit against Image Comics Inc. for breach of contract and slander. Fullerton-based Image is co-owned and operated by artists Todd McFarlane, Jim Lee, Erik Larsen, Jim Valentino and Marc Silvestri.

“For the past two months, I have been trying to resolve my differences with Image Comics in a reasonable manner,” Liefeld said. Liefeld said his former partners refused to pay money he is owed from the sale of his titles distributed through Image. An Image representative declined comment Friday.