Dynamite Comics has announced a graphic novel adaptation of James LaRossa Jr.’s memoir, Last of the Gladiators, of growing up with his father, the famed defense lawyer long sought by organized criminals in New York City to “get them off easy,” so to speak. LaRossa will handle the script for the graphic novel, which boasts the same title as his memoir, with additional writing and editing by Jonathan Vankin and art by Giorgio Pontrelli.

The story focuses on a turning point in the relationship between LaRossa and his father: when he helped his father leave a New York hospital in secret to lie low in Manhattan Beach for five years.

“After I ‘snuck’ my father out of a New York hospital to prevent his certain death, I never imagined that the five years we spent together in Southern California would be so momentous,” said LaRossa. “While I cooked him his favorite Italian meals, we shared the intimate stories of our lives, including the secrets to a generation of the most colorful criminals imaginable. After he died, I walked the beach aimlessly until the themes of Last of the Gladiators began to form. This is where the graphic novel begins.”

Last of the Gladiators features cover art by Butch Guice, seen below along with an unlettered preview.

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Last of the Gladiators will hit shelves at your local comic shop and everywhere books are sold on October 9.

Stay tuned for more SDCC ’24 coverage from The Beat.