FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — Contact: Kathy Hilliard, Publicity Director, (800) 851-8923, ext. 6741, khilliard@amuniversal.com
Kansas City, MO: — Andrews McMeel Universal (AMU) has entered a licensing agreement to team up with world-renowned "Painter of Light ™," artist Thomas Kinkade, in an innovative multi-platform product launch beginning in 2007, announced Hugh T. Andrews, executive vice president of AMU and president and chief executive officer of Andrews McMeel Publishing (AMP). Andrews McMeel Universal is uniquely positioned to initiate this licensing program with The Thomas Kinkade Company through its three affiliated companies, AMP, uclick, and Universal Press Syndicate (UPS). The product launch will include a variety of calendar formats offered from AMP's award-winning calendar division; mobile wallpapers and screensavers featuring the powerful imagery of Kinkade through uclick, the digital content division of AMU; and a weekly syndicated feature, Kolorful Kids, from UPS.
"Mr. Kinkade is America's most popular living artist, and we are excited and energized by the opportunity to present his remarkable work in an exceptional variety of original formats," said Andrews. "The synergistic relationships between our companies make us singularly suited to offer such an interesting and inventive assortment of product lines."
"We are delighted with our new partnership," said Linda Mariano, Vice President of Marketing and Licensing at The Thomas Kinkade Company. "Andrews McMeel Universal brings their industry leadership and product ingenuity to the leading art brand, Thomas Kinkade. We are eager for AMU's creativity and innovation to maximize the potential of the Thomas Kinkade brand and the inspiration of Thom's art in the product lines that are created."
AMP will offer Kinkade enthusiasts the opportunity to enjoy his distinctive art throughout the year in a calendar line including wall, desk, and day-to-day formats, among others. The addition of the Kinkade calendar program will position AMP as the producer of the five best-selling calendar programs in North America. The Kinkade line appears with Bookscan's four other list-topping calendar lines, all from AMP: The Far SideŽ, Dilbert™, Jeff Foxworthy, and George W. Bushisms. AMP will begin shipping the 2009 Kinkade calendars in 2008. In addition, GoComics, a division of uclick, will offer the Thomas Kinkade Mobile Collection, providing Fine Art for Your Phone, in time for the 2006 holiday season. Screensavers and wallpaper imagery will mobilize the Thomas Kinkade experience, enabling consumers to take it with them on their mobile phone. The exploding wireless media market, populated by users who wish to express and entertain themselves while on the go, will welcome Kinkade's distinctive artwork.
And, beginning in 2007, Kolorful Kids will introduce children to the world of Thomas Kinkade through a variety of engaging and interactive artistic activities in a weekly syndicate feature provided by UPS. With family-shared art experiences and a vast array of inventive crafts and projects, it will soon become an eagerly-anticipated newspaper feature for parents and their children.
About The Thomas Kinkade Company
The Thomas Kinkade Company publishes the work of Thomas Kinkade and distributes his art and related collectibles through independently owned galleries worldwide, an extensive network of branded and licensed dealers, and strategic marketing relationships with more than 70 licensees. The company's primary products are canvas and paper reproductions that feature Mr. Kinkade's artistic unique use of light and his peaceful and inspiring themes. Mr. Kinkade, known as the "Painter of Light™," is the most successful and most collected living artist in U.S. history. For more information, please visit the Company's web site at www.thomaskinkade.com.
About Andrews McMeel Universal (AMU)
Founded in 1970 by Jim Andrews and John McMeel, AMU is comprised of: Universal Press Syndicate (UPS), the world's largest independently owned newspaper and licensed property syndicate; Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC (AMP), an industry leader in trade, book, and calendar publishing and a staple on best-seller lists annually; uclick, the digital content division and the nation's premier packager and distributor of electronic entertainment; and AMUSE (Andrews McMeel Universal Syndicated Entertainment), providing film and television opportunities for AMU creators and content in partnership with the William Morris Agency.
About Andrews McMeel Publishing (AMP)
AMP is a leading publisher of general nonfiction trade books, gift books, and humor books, publishing more than 300 new titles annually. New York Times bestsellers from AMP include The Complete Calvin and Hobbes and It's A Magical World: A Calvin and Hobbes Collection by Bill Watterson; The Complete Far Side and Last Chapter and Worse: A Far Side Collection by Gary Larson; The Blue Day Book, Tomorrow, The Meaning of Life and Dear Mom by Bradley Trevor Greive; Miracle by Anne Geddes and Celine Dion; Reflections of a Peacemaker and Just Peace by Mattie J.T. Stepanek; The Millionaire Mind by Dr. Thomas Stanley; America: What Went Wrong? by the Pulitzer Prize-winning team of journalists Donald Barlett and James Steele; and Forever, Erma by Erma Bombeck.
AMP is also the nation's top calendar publisher, annually producing calendars based on many top-selling properties such as The Far Side®, Dilbert ™, Jeff Foxworthy, Bushisms, Mary Engelbreit, and the new sensation Sudoku, among other characters and titles, and selling more than 15 million calendars each year.
About uclick
uclick is the nation's premier packager and distributor of electronic entertainment to Web sites, portals, e-mail publishers, wireless content providers, and other digital mediums. A variety of brands including Garfield, Doonesbury, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Pat Sajak Games and USAToday delivered to cell phones and personal digital assistants in formats such as Comic Strip-a-Day, Wallpapers, Screensavers, video and games. Clients include Cingular, Verizon, Sprint and other wireless network operators.
About Universal Press Syndicate (UPS)
Universal Press Syndicate is the largest independent newspaper syndicate in the world and the industry leader in bringing products and services to print and digital media that offer both advertising and subscriber opportunities. Headquartered in Kansas City, Mo., Universal Press Syndicate distributes some of the most popular comics and features in newspapers today, including Dear Abby, For Better or For Worse, Doonesbury, FoxTrot, Cathy, Garfield, The Mini Page and Ziggy. Its features list ranges from Pulitzer Prize winners Roger Ebert, Pat Oliphant, Anna Quindlen, Ben Sargent, Tom Toles and Garry Trudeau to famed columnists William F. Buckley Jr. and James J. Kilpatrick. Nine cartoonists now associated with Universal Press Syndicate have won a total of 11 Reubens, the highest award for cartooning in the industry.
