March 2003 - DC Comics has acquired worldwide publishing rights in all formats and languages as well as media and merchandising rights to the wildly successful, epic-adventure fantasy comic book series Elfquest, it was announced today by Paul Levitz, President & Publisher, DC Comics.
Elfquest is the magical universe of elves, trolls, mer-elves, primitive humans and fairylike creatures that has attracted a rabidly loyal fan base since the first black and white comics were self-published in 1978 by artist/writer Wendy Pini and her husband and series editor Richard Pini.
"It's a pleasure to bring Wendy and Richard's incredibly original universe into our diverse publishing program," said Levitz. "We hope to take their quarter-century of success and build it together to new heights."
"We are big believers in new beginnings," said Wendy Pini. "Coming as it does on the silver anniversary of the release of our first issue of Elfquest, we feel this opportunity is a gift from the Universe that frees us up to create new epic adventures in brand new formats for a brand new audience as well as for our longtime fans."
"After a quarter century of shepherding Elfquest as far as the two of us could take it, we are thrilled, now, to have the power, punch and creativity of DC Comics behind us," said Richard Pini. "We can't imagine a more respectful and enthusiastic partner to help us take our beloved characters into new realms."
Now celebrating its 25th anniversary, Elfquest has been called "one of the most important works in American fantasy" by the American Library Association. As part of the initial publishing plan DC Comics will be publishing a full-color, hardcover archive series and compact-sized black and white trade paperbacks, along with a DC Direct merchandise program, plus new, original Elfquest material to be produced by the Pinis.
There are over 12 million Elfquest works in print as the series has been published in a variety of formats including comic books, graphic novels, prose novelizations, short story collections, reference and related books. The Pinis published the series out of their modest two-person office in Poughkeepsie, New York.
With an audience ranging from pre-teen to adult, a captivating, diverse cast of characters and emotionally charged stories, Elfquest is a natural fit for DC Comics, the world's largest English language publisher of comic books.
Elfquest is ® & © 2003 Warp Graphics, Inc.
