Morgan, by John Benz, Beats Out Big Syndicate Offerings, Breaks into the Competitive World of Newspaper Comics, Replacing For Better or For Worse in N

Thu Sep 25, 4:35 AM
Most people grab their morning coffee, catch a quick laugh at the comics page then go about their day without a thought as to how the comics they love got there, or what is really going on behind the scenes in this competitive world.
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(Business Wire)

NAPA VALLEY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Most people grab their morning coffee, catch a quick laugh at the comics page then go about their day without a thought as to how the comics they love got there, or what is really going on behind the scenes in this competitive world.

“I was lying on my bed when I got an idea for this dog with a lot of wisdom; a young dog who could get crazy, but with sort of an old soul so he never got upset about anything. I picked up my pad, started sketching, and there was Morgan,“ says John Benz author and illustrator of the comic strip Morgan.

John first started Morgan 7 years ago when he was living in New York with his 2 dogs in a bathroom under the 59th Street Bridge. “I had my bed in this bathroom, it was crazy but I didn’t care. Back then I was happy to have it,” says Benz.

Most newspapers get their comics from one of the top three press syndicates: Universal, King, or The Washington Post Writers Group. A press syndicate like Universal can get up to 5,000 submissions a year out of which they choose only one strip to represent.

“I could have taken Morgan around to all the syndicates first, but that can be a long process. I ended up sending Morgan to Bill Kisliuk, Editor of the Napa Valley Register,” says Benz. “Bill wanted Morgan but he didn’t want to just crowbar it into the paper. He already had a full page of comics. I think he was just waiting for the right situation,” says Benz.

On Friday the 27th of August the right situation arrived. Lyn Johnston, author of the popular comic strip For Better or For Worse was retiring. “Bill called me that Friday, three days later Morgan was in the Register,” says Benz.

For more information, or to schedule an interview with John, call 707-812-3233.

About John: When he’s not writing and illustrating the comic strip Morgan, John works as a painter and a photographer and has shown his art in galleries in New York and Los Angeles. John lives in the heart of America’s wine country, Napa Valley, California. Morgan appears six days a week in the Napa Valley Register and weekly at www.morgancomics.com.

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Morgan Comics, Napa Valley
John Benz, 707-812-3233
http://www.morgancomics.com