By: E&P Staff When the Winston-Salem (N.C.) Journal dropped "Peanuts" reruns yesterday as part of a shake-up of its comics section, the newspaper gave readers a long explanation for its decision.
Journal reporter Tim Clodfelter wrote: "Now, don't go sending the Red Baron after us. Just hear us out. We love 'Peanuts.' It was a terrific comic strip, arguably the best in comics history. But the truth is, it ended more than six years ago when Charles Schulz died. Schulz was adamant that no one else would do the strip after him, an admirable sentiment in an industry where some long-running strips become little more than cartoon mills run by ghost artists and writers.
"The Journal has been running repeats of the strip since 2000 because no one wanted to be the person who put Snoopy to sleep.
"But the fact of the matter is, the strip is taking up a spot on our comics page that could be handed over to a newcomer. One reader wrote to us back in February 2000, when Peanuts ended, saying that he felt that Schulz would have wanted us to give the space to a younger cartoonist, to give the next generation a chance. That sentiment stuck in our heads, but change is hard... ."
The Journal -- which began publishing "Peanuts" in 1953 -- also dropped "Spot the Frog" and "You Can With Beakman and Jax." It added "Lio," the new pantomime strip by Mark Tatulli of Universal Press Syndicate; and "Over the Hedge," the comic by Michael Fry and T Lewis that inspired a movie opening this Friday.
"Over the Hedge" is syndicated by United Media, which also distributes "Peanuts" reruns.
The Journal story was linked to by ComicsReporter.com.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here