ACF 1804: VIZ & Sanrio to develop original HELLO KITTY graphic novels

© 1976, 2013 SANRIO CO., LTD

VIZ MEDIA & SANRIO ANNOUNCE PUBLISHING DEAL

TO DEVELOP ORIGINAL HELLO KITTY GRAPHIC NOVELS

Pop Culture Icon Hello Kitty And Her Friends

Will Debut In Two VIZ Kids Offerings

VIZ Media has announced a new publishing deal with Sanrio, Inc., the global lifestyle brand and parent company of pop icon Hello Kitty, to develop a series of original graphic novels, and a special single-volume comic featuring a limited-edition Hello Kitty design.

The single-volume Hello Kitty comic is scheduled to debut at the 2013 Comic-Con Show in San Diego with a Comic-Con exclusive cover by Eisner-nominated artist Jacob Chabot. The comic will feature art by Victoria Maderna, Ian McGinty and Chabot. The main graphic novel series is scheduled to launch in the Fall of 2013 with Here We Go!, a collection of comic stories about Hello Kitty’s travels. Both offerings will be rated ‘A’ for All Ages, and will be published under the company’s VIZ Kids imprint. VIZ Media previously teamed with Sanrio and video game company Capcom to develop a pair of fun STREET FIGHTER X Sanrio books that were released in November 2012.

HELLO KITTY: Here We GO!· MSRP: $7.99 US / $9.99 CAN · Available Fall 2013  

Hello Kitty has places to be and friends to meet! Join her  (or Hello Kitty) as she explores an underground realm, chases an unsavory cake thief around the world, climbs the Himalayas, travels back in time, and discovers that sometimes, the best place to get away from it all is between the pages of a good book.

HELLO KITTY FASHION MUSIC WONDERLAND · MSRP: $6.99 US / $7.99 CAN · Available Summer 2013  

It’s Hello Kitty as you've never seen her, in stories filled with fashion, music and adventure!

Sanrio is the global company behind classic iconic characters Hello Kitty, Little Twin Stars, My Melody, and many more. Sanrio was founded in the 1960's in Japan by Shintaro Tsuji, whose simple dream of bringing smiles to people's faces grew into the brand's "small gift, big smile" philosophy. This philosophy has served as the inspiration for the broad spectrum of products bearing the likeness of endearing characters that have helped to skyrocket the brand into a $5 billion-a-year business. Sanrio recently acquired the classic Mr. Men Little Miss brand which also has graphic novels published by VIZ Media.

“Sanrio and Hello Kitty are synonymous with the very essence of pop culture, and we’re very excited to have Hello Kitty as part of the VIZ Kids family of titles,” says Beth Kawasaki, VIZ Media Senior Editorial Director. “The new wordless comic and graphic novel series will appeal to Hello Kitty fans of all ages. VIZ Media is having a blast creating the fun new original series and we can’t wait for everyone to see the books.”

For more information on VIZ Kids graphic novels and manga, visit VIZKids.com.

Note:

Hello Kitty, STREET FIGHTER, Sanrio, Little Twin Stars, My Melody are all ®.

Mr. Men Little Miss is ™.