Slap Happy Cartoons, Andrews McMeel Entertainment explore Heart of the City

Heart of the City debuted as a comic strip 24 years ago

Vancouver-based Slap Happy Cartoons has partnered with Andrews McMeel Entertainment to develop newspaper-, web- and book-based property Heart of the City.

Heart of the City debuted as a newspaper comic strip in 1998 and is syndicated by Andrews McMeel Syndication in both newspaper and web formats. Today it appears in 50 newspapers and news sites across the US, Canada and other countries including India, the Netherlands and Trinidad.

Andrews McMeel Publishing released the first Heart of the City book collection, Heart Takes the Stage, in May this year.

Heart of the City tells the story of Heart, a girl with big dreams and a love of drama, who lives with her mum in Philadelphia and has always had the support of her best friends.

The property was originated by cartoonist, writer and animator Mark Tatulli. In 2020, Tatulli handed the story over to cartoonist and editor ‘Steenz,’ who developed a new storyline in which Heart and her friends are a few years older

Slap Happy Cartoons said Heart of the City has potential to be adapted across multiple formats, targeting a 6-11 age range.