2008-08-11 23:42:03 -
- King Features Syndicate Claudia Smith, 212-969-7542 cmsmith@hearst.com or Rose Croke, 212-969-7594 rmcroke@hearst.com King Features Syndicate will begin distribution of the daily and Sunday "Shoe" comic strip effective with the first release dates of September 1, 2008 for the dailies and September 7, 2008 for the Sundays.
The comic has been syndicated internationally since 1977 and now appears in
more than 500 newspapers. Most recently, it has been distributed by Tribune Media Services.
"Shoe" was created by the late editorial cartoonist, Jeff MacNelly, who earned top honors during his dual career. He won three Pulitzer Prizes for editorial cartooning and twice received the Reuben Award for his "Shoe" comic strip from the National Cartoonists Society. The current creative team was handpicked by MacNelly and has continued to produce the famous comic strip for the past 16 years. Editorial cartoonist Chris Cassatt, who was MacNelly's long-time assistant, was one of the country's first digital cartoonists. Editorial cartoonist Gary Brookins trained under MacNelly at the Richmond News-Leader. And MacNelly paid his wife, Susie MacNelly, the ultimate compliment by acknowledging that she was Roz, one of the funniest of his main characters in the strip.
"We are delighted to be syndicating the creation of one of the country's all-time top cartooning talents," said Brendan Burford, King Features comics editor. "Jeff MacNelly was universally loved by his peers in our industry and his comic strip continues to be universally loved by his loyal fans. The creative team behind the strip today has done a magnificent job of keeping the strip fresh, funny and topical, and certainly true to its creator's vision."
"Shoe" chronicles the daily doings of a group of newspaper employees and their friends, foes and families, all of whom are portrayed as all-too-human birds in the fictional town of Treetops, East Virginia. The strip often pokes fun at various social and political issues of the day.
The strip's characters include P. Martin Shoemaker, a cigar-chomping editor nicknamed "Shoe"; Cosmo Fishhawk, an overeducated but underachieving reporter and columnist who writes for The Treetops Tattler-Tribune; Cosmo's nephew, Skyler, who he is raising; and Roz, the wise-cracking waitress at Roz's Roost, the local diner.
About King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate is a member of Hearst Entertainment and Syndication Group, an operating group of The Hearst Corporation, which includes the company's cable network partnerships, television programming activities and newspaper syndication and merchandise licensing operations. King Features is the world's premier distributor of comics, columns, editorial cartoons, puzzles and games, distributing in print and online some 150 features to nearly 5,000 newspapers around the globe. Among its most popular comics are Blondie, Beetle Bailey, Zits, Baby Blues and Mutts. For more information, visit www.kingfeatures.com.
Distribution of Popular Feature Begins September 1, 2008
