Ballantine to publish Garfield Minus Garfield!!

[Raph's Girl]

This is SOOOO cool!!! I love this webcomic!!!

Paws, Inc. and Ballantine Books, a division of the Random House Publishing Group, announced last week at Comic-Con International that Ballantine will publish a book inspired by the popular webcomic Garfield Minus Garfield.

Garfield Minus Garfield (www.garfieldminusgarfield.net) made its online debut in February 2008 and quickly became an online sensation based on a simple premise: What would Jim Davis’ Garfield comic strip be like without its lasagna-loving fat cat? Without the presence of Garfield and other characters such as Odie the dog and Nermal the kitten, the strips “create a new, even lonelier atmosphere for Jon Arbuckle…Jon’s observations seem to teeter between existential crisis and deep despair.” (New York Times)

The full-color book format will give readers the experience of having both the original and doctored Garfield strips together on the same page for comparison. Dublin, Ireland-based Garfield Minus Garfield creator Dan Walsh will provide the foreword to the book.

Garfield creator Jim Davis was intrigued by—and pleased with—the concept. “I think it’s an inspired thing to do,” Davis said. “I want to thank Dan for enabling me to see another side of Garfield. Some of the strips he chose were slappers: ‘Oh, I could have left that out.’ It would have been funnier.”

Garfield Minus Garfield site creator Dan Walsh says, “When I looked at Jon and laughed at his crazy antics I thought ‘He’s just like me.’ As it turns out, I wasn’t the only one saw myself in him: millions of visitors from all over the world visit Garfield Minus Garfield and tell me they think the same thing. Now, thanks to the awesome generosity and humor of Jim Davis, Garfield Minus Garfield is going to become a book and I’m absolutely honored to be part of it.”

Ballantine Books has been publishing Garfield books since 1980, and thirty-three Garfield titles have made the New York Times bestseller list. Thirty Years of Laughs and Lasagna: The Life and Times of a Fat, Furry Legend, will be published by Ballantine Books in October 2008. This hardcover anniversary collection will include a foreword from Dean Young, Blondie cartoonist, and exclusive content from Jim Davis.

[ToxicRevolution]

I'll probably be buying this. G-G rules.

[Kunoichi_Haruko]

I'm so glad Jim Davis was cool with the concept. Far too many artists are too quick to scream "copyright infringement!" when someone gets inspiration from their work.

[sdp]

meh, not a big fan of G - G.

I always liked the removing garfield's thought bubbles a lot better and didn't it start a few years before garfield minus garfield? It made Jon a lot crazier IMO.

[Tinuvielsdreams]

Originally Posted by Kunoichi_Haruko

I'm so glad Jim Davis was cool with the concept. Far too many artists are too quick to scream "copyright infringement!" when someone gets inspiration from their work.

yeah Ruko Jim Davis is really cool about it, it seems like he embraces the whole concept

I was pretty Garfield obsessed when I was a kid but I had no idea about this G-G project. It's interesting that someone thought to do this.
I wouldn't give up Garfield though he is still one of my faves.

[turkishproverb]

He hated the garfield randomizer though, had it taken down. Of course, that could be because modern artists obsession with Dadaism is a very bad thing...