| Summary | Dexter Coleman is a comic character developed as part of the Back of the Yards comic series, a Creative Commons project produced by the Made Collaborative Studio. "Dex" is one of the last of a previous generation of neighborhood troublemakers who are alive and not in prison. He’s gone (mostly) straight in his older years, trying his best to make amends for the bad deeds of his youth. |
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| Core Personality Traits & Values | Dex is a wisecracker, a sharp dresser and a straight talker. Even though his moral compass has evolved over the years into that of a respectable citizen of Back of the Yards, he’s still known to indulge in a few vices. |
| Primary Archetype | The Rebel |
| Motto | “I ain’t got time for dreamin’. I’ll sleep when I’m dead.” |
| Collaboration Background | Dex was developed by Jimmy Briseno and Len Kody as part of the initial Issue 1 scripting process. |
| Debut | Issue #1 of the Back of the Yards comic series |
Three wise-cracking wise guys man a permanent post around a pickle barrel in front of Kozlow’s General Store. They are Peaches, Dex and Big Earl. Although these distinguished gentlemen of the neighborhood are officially retired from whatever eclectic ventures kept them occupied (and mostly out of trouble) in their storied youth, the Elders, as we call them, continue to serve an important purpose in their community—and in our story!
The intertwining threads of fate in Back of the Yards all intersect at the Elders’ humble pickle barrel, believe it or not. In ancient mythology, the Fates weren’t just observers and commentators but also tailors in life’s grand tapestry. Similarly, Peaches, Dex and Earl color the happenings of their Southside Chicago block with their piercing insight and cutting humor. They provide context, gravitas and perspective, reminding the reader and our younger characters that the world is big and history is long.
Dex has a sharp mind. As steel sharpens steel, he keeps his mind sharp through constant use: chess in the park, all-night poker games and the occasional hustle.
They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but that isn’t true of Dex—he’s probably the only one of the Elders who knows how to work a smartphone! Even so, he’s never learned his lesson.
Dex has lost a step or two but he stays one step ahead of the law, for now.
Unlike Peaches, who became a community leader at marches and church picnics, Dex made his way running numbers for the policy kings of Chicago. “Policy” was an underground lottery in poor and working-class neighborhoods that was something of an illegitimate institution. The whole racket was run by the mob but supported by local politicians and preachers who always counted on their cut.
Dex is a good man, at heart. He’s never hurt anyone (intentionally) nor has he scammed anyone who didn’t have it coming (mostly). He’s just not one to turn the other cheek. Dex is an operator. When he sees injustice, he’s going to figure out a way to finish ahead.
For others in the community, Policy was opportunity in a time when legitimate opportunities were scarce. The Policy hustle was an economic engine that helped drive the growth of many legal black-owned businesses
Policy made millionaires of the men (and women) who hustled in that racket. But, as a criminal gambling enterprise, it certainly left its own victims in its wake; most notably, the poor folks who played multiple times a day, throwing away their scant earnings in the desperate hope that the numbers would fall their way one day…
This Studio Card is part of the Back of the Yards comic series, a Creative Commons project developed by the Made Collaborative Studio. You can learn more about our Creative Commons license by visiting the Explore the Studio page, but in short, what this means is that as a Creative Commons project, you can copy, redistribute, remix, transform, and build upon the content for any purpose, even commercially, as long as you give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. And if you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license above.
If you’d like to explore the Back of the Yards comic further, you can see and access the Studio Card to your right and/or the related Studio Cards below. Thanks for collaborating with us!
Imagine that it's 30 years ago. It's the mid-1980s. Dex is a slightly younger man, in his early 40s. He's misspent his entire youth by crossing people and double-crossing them.
Some special pieces may be selected to appear in the Back of the Yards comic book.
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Collaborate with professional artists by contributing some artwork of your own! Some special pieces may be selected to appear in the Back of the Yards comic book.
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