Calvin and Hobbes
Commercialization: A Cheapening of Art Bill Watterson is a man of principles who voices his convictions and enforces them with his actions. This essay lays out the claim of value that commercialization of comics detracts from the quality of the art. Watterson never compromised his vision of how he viewed his characters-even if it meant sacrificing millions of dollars and fighting syndicates for years. Watterson's "Calvin and Hobbes" was an instant success, too big in fact for Watterson's liking. As soon as he became a household name, his battle with Universal Press Syndicate began. Commercialization is the name of the game in the comic industry. Dolls, mugs, T-shirts, TV cartoons, these were just the tip of the iceberg when it came to turning "Calvin and Hobbes" into a multi-million dollar profit center. Watterson's opinion on this subject is very different in respect to other cartoonists, "I believe licensing cheapens the original creation....nothing dulls the edge of a new and clever cartoon like saturating the market with it" (reemst.com 1). He did not want licensing
He could not stand the thought of other artists recreating his comic in different forms and flooding the market with it. Watterson attributes the success to another factor--the spirit of the comic. He felt if he gave even a shred of his rights over to licensing, he would be losing his entire artistic integrity (Rudd 2). The vocabulary used in the comic was exquisite and very thought provoking. or commercialization whatsoever and literally turned down millions of dollars because of his firm belief in keeping the spirit of the comic fresh. The integrity of the characters was the most important thing to Watterson by far. Watterson's refusal to sell out kept "Calvin & Hobbes" true to the cartoonist's vision. Naturally, his syndicate was not about let this go without a fight, and he spent the next five years trying to maintain control over his own creation.
Common topics in this essay:
Calvin Hobbes,
Bill Watterson,
Honk Magazine,
Plain Dealer,
calvin hobbes,
Syndicate Commercialization,
Columbus Dispatch,
Business Daily,
Hobbes Martijn's,
T-shirts TV,
HonkMagazine Issue,
bill watterson,
millions dollars,
plain dealer,
commercialization comic,
apr 2003,
watterson's refusal,
spirit comic,
2 apr,
2 apr 2003,
|
Acceptance Essays
