Papercutz (publisher)
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Founded | 2005 |
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Founder | Terry Nantier & Jim Salicrup |
Headquarters location | New York City |
Key people | Jim Salicrup, Stefan Petrucha, Michael Petranek |
Official website | Papercutz.com |
Papercutz Graphic Novels is an American publisher of family-friendly comic books and graphic novels, mostly based on licensed properties such as Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, and Lego Ninjago. Papercutz has also published new volumes of the Golden Age-era comics series Classics Illustrated and Tales from the Crypt. In recent years they have begun publishing English translations of European (mostly French) all-ages comics, including The Smurfs.
Company history
Terry Nantier (born 1957),[1] founder of NBM Publishing, established Papercutz in 2005, along with comics industry veteran Jim Salicrup, who became the editor-in-chief. Their intent was to produce comics & graphic novels appropriate for children, which was lacking in the industry at the time. Writer Stefan Petrucha came on board as well; he has worked on such titles as Nancy Drew, Papercutz Slices, and Rio. Associate Editor Michael Petranek joined Papercutz in 2008.[2]
Publication history
In the spring of 2005 Papercutz launched with the publication of two three-part comic book series; Nancy Drew's The Demon of River Heights and The Hardy Boys' The Ocean of Osyria. Both series were both collected into 92-page graphic novels, becoming the first titles in the Nancy Drew Graphic Novel and The Hardy Boys Graphic Novel series respectively. All other titles in both series have been made in graphic novel format only and are published every three months. The Nancy Drew graphic novels are written by Stefan Petrucha, and the first series was illustrated in manga-style artwork by Sho Murase. The character's graphic novel incarnation has been described as "a fun, sassy, modern-day teen who is still hot on the heels of criminals."[3] Creators on the Hardy Boys series included writer Scott Lobdell (Hardy Boys), and artist Lea Hernandez. In 2010, Papercutz relaunched both titles, with the Hardy Boys series bringing on a new creative team of Gerry Conway and Paulo Henrique.[4]
In 2006, Papercutz published an English translation of the Italian nonfiction graphic novel The Life of Pope John Paul II, by Alessandro Mainard and Werner Maresta.
In 2007, Papercutz acquired the Classics Illustrated license and began publishing comic book adaptations of classic children's novels. Combining reprints of some of the original titles with new modern adaptations, contributors to the series include Rick Geary, Kyle Baker, Tom Mandrake, Jill Thompson, Dan Spiegle, Peter Kuper, Gahan Wilson, Ricardo Villagrán, Mike Vosburg, and Mike Ploog. A second series, Classics Illustrated Deluxe, features many French artists.
From 2007–2010 Papercutz published a new series of original Tales from the Crypt comics. The first issue was published in June 2007, with a cover drawn by Kyle Baker. All three of EC Comics' "horror hosts" (The GhouLunatics) appear in the issue, drawn by Rick Parker. Contributors to subsequent issues included well-known horror talents Joe R. Lansdale and his brother John L. Lansdale, Don McGregor, husband and wife team James Romberger and Marguerite Van Cook, Mort Todd, Neil Kleid, Arie Kaplan, and Chris Noeth. Controversy erupted in 2008 when U.S. vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin was featured on a cover attacking the horror hosts with a hockey stick, published with a letter from William Gaines' daughter Cathy Gaines Mifsud commenting on censorship.[5] Papercutz published 13 issues (9 graphic novels) of Tales from the Crypt, with the last issue being published September 28, 2010.
In 2009, Papercutz launched Papercutz Slices, a pop culture parody series written by Stefan Petrucha and illustrated by Rick Parker. Targets of the series have included Diary of a Wimpy Kid,[6] the Harry Potter books, Twilight, Percy Jackson & the Olympians, The Hunger Games, and The Walking Dead.
In July 2010, Papercutz began publishing The Smurfs comics, translated by Joe Johnson. Debuting with a special preview comic that contained the story "The Smurfnapper," Papercutz has released a large number of Smurfs graphic novels to date. The success of The Smurfs prompted Papercutz to publish more English translations of such French comics series as Benny Breakiron, Dance Class, and Sybil the Backpack Fairy.
Since 2010 Papercutz has added a slate of new licensed properties to its graphic novel lines, including the Disney Fairies, Lego Ninjago,[7] Garfield, Power Rangers, Rio,[8] and Stardoll.[9]
Titles published
- Annoying Orange (2012–present)
- Bionicle (2008–2010)
- Classics Illustrated (2007–present) — includes Classic Illustrated and Classics Illustrated Deluxe Graphic Novel
- Disney Fairies (2010–present)
- Garfield & Company (2011–present)
- Geronimo Stilton (2009–present)
- The Hardy Boys Graphic Novel series (2005–present) — originally written by Scott Lobdell; relaunched in 2010 with stories by Gerry Conway and art by Paulo Henrique
- Lego Ninjago (2011–present) — by Greg Farshtey and Paulo Henrique[7]
- Nancy Drew series (2005–present) — includes The Nancy Drew Diaries and Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew; written by Stefan Petrucha
- Nickelodeon Magazine series (2015–present) — originally ran from 1993 to 2009; relaunched in 2015
- Papercutz Slices (2009–present) — by Stefan Petrucha and Rick Parker
- Diary of a Stinky Dead Kid (2009)
- Harry Potty and The Deathly Boring (2010)
- Breaking Down (2011)
- Percy Jerkson and The Ovolactovegetarians (2011)
- The Hunger Pains (2012)
- The Farting Dead (2013)
- Power Rangers (2012–2014)
- Rabbids Invasion (2014–present)
- Rio (2013–present) — by Stefan Petrucha and Paulo Henrique
- Stardoll (2013–present) — by JayJay Jackson
- Tales From The Crypt (2007–2010)
- Thea Stilton (2013–present)
- The Three Stooges (2012–present) — includes The Best of The Three Stooges
- Totally Spies! (2006–2007)
- Zorro (2005–2007) — by Don McGregor and Sidney Lima
- WWE Slam City (2014–2015) - by Mathias Triton and Alitha E. Martinez
Reprints/translations
- Ariol — by Emmanuel Guibert
- Benny Breakiron — by Peyo
- Dance Class — by Béka (Bertrand Escaich & Caroline Rogue) and Crip
- Ernest & Rebecca — by Guillaume Bianco and Antonello Dalena
- Monster — by Lewis Trondheim
- Pussycat - by Peyo
- The Smurfs (2010–present) — by Peyo
- Sybil the Backpack Fairy — by Michel Rodrigue and Antonello Dalena
- Toto Trouble — by Thierry Coppée
See also
References
- ↑ Nantier entry, Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999. Accessed Feb. 26, 2014.
- ↑ Petranek entry, ComicBookDB.com. Accessed June 1, 2015.
- ↑ "Sleuths Go Graphic" (March 10, 2008). The Hindu (English) (Madras, India). Accessed through Access World News on May 19, 2009.
- ↑ "Papercutz Makes Big Splash with Kids' Graphic Novels," Publishers Weekly (Nov 02, 2010).
- ↑ Melrose, Kevin. "Tales From the Crypt vs. Sarah Palin," Newsarama (02 October 2008).
- ↑ Mann, Mary (2009-11-10). "'Diary of a Stinky Dead Kid' Helps Bring an Old Comic Series Back to Life - Maplewood, NJ Patch". Maplewood.patch.com. Retrieved 2012-05-23.
- 1 2 Alverson, Brigid."Papercutz, Lego to Launch Ninjago Graphic Novels," Publishers Weekly (June 29, 2011).
- ↑ Wickline, Dan. "Can’t Wait for Rio 2? Papercutz Has A Graphic Novel For You!", BleedingCool (July 23, 2013).
- ↑ Reid, Calvin. "Papercutz, Stardoll Ink Deal to Produce Graphic Novel Series," Publishers Weekly (Mar. 30, 2013)
External links
- Official website
- Papercutz on Twitter
- Papercutz at the Comic Book DB