Surprisingly, they quickly sold all 3000 copies in a few short weeks. The newly formed Mirage Studios printed approximately 3000 comic books of this first run, scraping together what little funds they had and obtaining a small loan from a family member of Kevin’s. The first print run of the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” comic issue was completed, printed, and delivered to the housemate’s living room sometime around May 1984. It was titled “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.” Interestingly, the original nemesis was killed off in the debut comic issue as the uncertainty of a follow-up issue was uncertain at the time.Įastman and Laird created an official company called Mirage Studios and decided to fund and distribute the printed copies independently. This first comic issue was black and white with only minimal color on the cover.
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The duo began sketching a series of sequenced comic-style pages, eventually leading to a completed professional-looking comic book. Equally inspired by each other, Peter took Kevin’s version and added “Teenage Mutant” to the title’s beginning, establishing the official birth of the now beloved franchise. Kevin added three more turtles, gave them unique weapons, then added the name “Ninja Turtles” to the top of the page. Peter then shared his updated sketch of the ninja-like upright turtle with Kevin, who inspiredly took Peter’s updated sketch to the next level. Kevin thought his concept was hysterical however, Peter liked the idea enough to attempt his own version of the character. In 1983 Kevin Eastman showed Peter one of his recent concept sketches of an upright standing turtle in a Kung fu pose, wearing a ninja-style mask and holding nunchucks. Along with Peter’s girlfriend, the three lived in the New Hampshire residence and took random jobs to make ends meet while they set up their art studio in the living room. After a short time of collaborating remotely and a series of long weekend commutes from Main, Peter invited Kevin to move into his house in New Hampshire so they could expand their creative productivity. The two quickly found that they shared similar artistic drawing styles and a love for comic books, especially the work of the great comic legend Jack Kirby. Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird first met in 1981 after being referred to each other by a local newspaper associate when Eastman was looking for work as an artist. If you could overlook the absurd genius Eastman and Laird jokingly created in 1984 and found a way to open your mind to something new, you would soon be in for a groundbreaking multi-media treat, as they were. All these examples may have sounded quite fitting as standalone concepts on their own in the 1980s however, they put them all together, and the rest is pop culture history. Teenagers, sewers, mutating reptiles, urban vigilantes, superheroes, pizza, and the highly popular ninja craze of the early 80s.
The four lead charters often collaborated with several human friends like street vigilante Casey Jones and news reporter April O’Neil, who always looked for trouble, and usually found it.Ĭreators Eastman and Laird developed the concept as a humorous parody, mocking traditional superhero personas by mixing popular elements of the time that generally do not relate to one another. The vigilante turtle team took on the city’s most powerful enemies through the years, including the evil Shredder and his antagonist faction, the Foot Clan. He named them Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael, after his favorite historical art legends. The mutated human-like turtles were discovered and instructed by their rat-like sensei and adoptive father, Splinter.
The developed concept focuses on four anthropomorphic lead characters who become trained in the art of ninjutsu and fight crime and evil in the city streets.
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles started as a single independent comic book turned mass-media franchise and was created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird.
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