Press Release from Papercutz
Chicago, IL, August 10, 2010 -- The Smurfs, the beloved cartoon characters who shot to fame in North America in the ‘80s, return in this new graphic novel series from Papercutz, publisher of the popular Bionicle, Classics Illustrated, Disney Fairies, Geronimo Stilton, Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, and Tales from the Crypt. Papercutz will publish the first two graphic novels in September 2010.
“Not many people realize that the Smurfs originally appeared in comics starting in the late fifties,” explains Papercutz Publisher Terry Nantier. “This is a classic of children’s comics that has sold over 50 million books worldwide in many languages.” After an animated movie in 1976, the Smurfs starred in their own Saturday morning TV series on NBC starting in 1981. The series was a blockbuster hit, spawning Smurf-mania and lasting nine seasons. These shows are still running on Cartoon Network’s Boomerang channel, and are also now available on DVD.
An all-new Smurfs movie, combining live-action and computer-animated Smurfs, is now in production and set for release in August 2011. This Sony/Columbia film stars Neil Patrick Harris, Jayma Mays, Hank Azaria, Alan Cumming, Jonathan Winters, Katy Perry and George Lopez.
“Papercutz is dedicated to publishing the very best comics and graphic novels for audiences of all ages, and are thrilled to be publishing one of the best-loved series of graphic novels ever created,” added Papercutz Editor-in-Chief Jim Salicrup.
The first of the Smurfs graphic novels from Papercutz includes “The Purple Smurf,” which presents a story never published before in English – until now. When a strange fly bites one of the Smurfs, a full-blown epidemic erupts. After being bitten, a Smurf turns purple, his vocabulary is reduced to one word (“gnap!”), and he goes berserk. It’s up to Papa Smurf to find a cure before all of the Smurfs lose their minds for good!
Papercutz also presents the first comic story in which the Smurfs ever appeared, “The Smurfs and the Magic Flute.” A story that takes place in medieval times and involves a court jester named Peewit, who lives in a king’s castle and discovers a flute that makes everyone who listens to it dance until they collapse from exhaustion. When a thief steals the flute, Peewit must seek out the Smurfs, the creators of the flute, to make an even more powerful flute to combat the thief. This story originally appeared within an already existing series of the adventures of Johan and Peewit. The Smurfs proved so popular that their own series was soon launched and became a best-seller for decades.