Beanworld Sprouts Anew at Dark Horse

So trumpets the headline this week in an interview with me in Publisher's Weekly.

The interviewer, Wil Moss, asked me about the drawing
I made for a colleague's wife's birthday,
that I talked about a bit in a piece that ran in POP!

The drawing above is a recreation of the piece in color.

And below is a direct scan of the original.

Thanks to Jeremy Atkins at Dark Horse for securing the interview with PW.

Larry Marder's Beanworld returns for a whole new generation!

So said the official email from Dark Horse. Here is a transcript of the PR release:

Dark Horse Comics proudly announces the arrival of a most peculiar graphic novel experience -- Larry Marder's Beanworld!

Beanworld has captivated readers from grade school to grad school since its first publication as a series of comic books in the 1980s. Starting in early 2009, Dark Horse will present Beanworld as a series of affordable graphic novels collecting all existing Beanworld stories, with new material to follow in the same format, beginning with the all new graphic novel Remember Here When You Are There! To whet the appetite of new and loyal fans alike, Dark Horse will also release an all new Beanworld webcomic this Fall, with a full color Beanworld comic book to follow in time for the holidays!

Series creator Larry Marder explains, "Beanworld is about the affinity of life. It's like A Bugs Life meets Mutts, as told by Dr. Seuss & Joseph Campbell. It's a weird fantasy dimension that operates under its own rules and laws, but also reflects deep truths about our world in doing so. All the characters, whether they are friends or adversaries, understand that ultimately they depend on each other for survival. Beanworld isn't a place, it's a process, and I can't wait to share that process with a new generation of readers!"

"I couldn't be happier to welcome Larry Marder's wonderful stories home here at Dark Horse! I've always felt this is where they belonged, and I'm thrilled to be bringing them to today's readers," says Dark Horse President, Mike Richardson.

"Wahoolazuma! Larry Marder's personal Look-See Show is back on the boards! Beanworld is simply a joyous experience," said editor Diana Schutz, "total eye-candy, and it's good for you, too!"

"When Beanworld was first published, many people said it was ahead of its time," Marder says. "Looking at today's world raised on Pixar, Cartoon Network, and manga, I think it's fair to say that Beanworld's time has come. I'm looking forward to working closely with the team at Dark Horse to introduce the Beanworld to this comics-literate world!"

Look for Beanworld adventures, new and old, in the coming year!

So that is the news!

Beanworld is totally rebooting. It's not an archival project. It's being presented to a new generation in a modern format--a series of affordable graphic novels.

There is going to be a free online comic on MySpace Dark Horse Presents in the autumn.

And there is more!

A real live, full color Beanworld comic book in time for the holidays!

And in 2009--the graphic novel we've all been waiting for (yes me too!): Remember here when you are there!"

Home Sweet Home!

Larry Marder and Dark Horse Publisher, Mike Richardson

After almost a month of continuous movement--I'm home! And catching up on my sleep. Tomorrow I'll be back in my studio and get to the thing I like to do more than anything else--draw Beanworld.

Thanks to everyone who wrote in the last few days. I am really excited to be going to Dark Horse. I had a great day of meetings at their offices on Monday and the future is looking very exciting, not just for comics but other things too. As soon as there is something to say; you will be the first to know.

The above is my new poster. It went on sale at Stumptown. As soon as I can get some envelopes for it, I'll post a way for you to get them directly from me.

If you haven't already, go check out the Beanworld animation that Fashion Buddha Studios made in like three weeks. Kudos to Robert, Indigo, and Erica for bringing the little guys to life. Below is a scan of a quicky model sheet I did for them on the plane on the way to Boston only like 3 weeks ago!

Finally for today--I've posted a new photo set on Flickr--Larry Marder's Springtime Travels. I'm slowwwwwly catching up.

Beanworld Going To Dark Horse!

Yep. It's true.

Comics.

Toys and Collectibles.

Entertainment.

Steve Duin of the Oregonian did a nice write up of today's panel--including the announcement above and includes the following summary:"Dark Horse plans to republish the first 21 issues of Tales of the Beanworld, possibly in deluxe hardcover editions, then deliver Marder's new adventures sometime in early 2009. Diana Schutz will edit."

I'm really very excited to be affiliated with Dark Horse. I've admired Mike Richardson and his crew from across the playing field for two decades and have always had the greatest admiration for the entire Dark Horse team.

Today I gave the first solo Beanworld panel presentation in over 15 years. It covered a lot of ground, and I'm almost certainly going to be giving it again at SD08. Also revealed was the name of the up-coming NEW graphic novel: "Remember HERE when you are THERE."

Also had the world premiere of a one minute Beanworld animation by the talented folks at Fashion Buddha Studios. As soon as it is posted on their site, I'll be sure to let you all know about it and tell you the back story behind it!

The biggest and most amazing thing that happened today, however, was meeting Mark Irons aka Half for the very first time. Half is the guy who bravely put together BeanWeb. We had an incredible conversation before and after my panel.

It's getting late but I really wanted to get this up tonight. I'll be back to share more with you very soon. Also breaking today is a piece about me and by me at CBR--orchestrated by George Khoury.

I'm going to bed--I'll be at the Dark Horse offices tomorrow and home (at last) on Tuesday. I'll be summarizing the entire continuum of the last 3 weeks then.