Tundra Publishing

Infobox Company
company_name = Tundra Publishing
company_
company_type = Comic publisher
company_slogan =
foundation = 1990
founder = Kevin Eastman
key_people =
location = Northampton, Massachusetts
industry = Comics
homepage =

Tundra Publishing was a Northampton, Massachusetts-based comic book publisher founded by Kevin Eastman in 1990. [ [http://www.lib.msu.edu/comics/rri/trri/tundra.htm Reading Room Index to the Comic Art Collection, Special Collections Division, Michigan State University Libraries: "Tundra" to "Tuniques"] . Michigan State University Libraries. Accessed October 14, 2007.]

Overview

Tundra was meant to provide a venue for high-quality work by talented cartoonists and illustrators. Its publications were noted in the trade for their high production values, including glossy paper stock, full-color printing, and non-saddle-stitch binding. Notable works published by Tundra include:

* Scott McCloud's "Understanding Comics"
* Dave McKean's "Cages"
* Steve Bissette's horror anthology "Taboo", where portions of Alan Moore's "From Hell" (with Eddie Campbell) and "Lost Girls" (with Melinda Gebbie), as well as Neil Gaiman's unfinished "Sweeney Todd" (with Michael Zulli), were first serialised
* Mark Martin and Jim Woodring's children's comic "Tantalizing Stories", where most of Woodring's early "Frank" stories appeared
* Mike Allred's "Madman Adventures"
* Mark Bodé and Larry Todd's continuation of Vaughn Bodé's "Cobalt 60"
* Al Columbia's first solo comic book, "Doghead"

Tundra UK

In 1991 a British arm of the company, Tundra UK, opened in London. Led by Dave Elliott, an editor at "Deadline" and a founder of Atomeka Press, the UK branch worked with creators already on board with Tundra in the US as well as developing new projects. Tundra UK's titles included:

* Peter Milligan and Brendan McCarthy's groundbreaking graphic novel "Skin"
* "White Trash" by Gordon Rennie and the late New Zealand artist Martin Emond
* "Lazarus Churchyard" by Warren Ellis and D'Israeli
* "The Lords of Misrule" by John Tomlinson and Gary Erskine
* The anthology "Monster Massacre", featuring work by Simon Bisley, Dave Gibbons, James O'Barr, Henry Flint, Dave Elliott, Doug Braithwaite and Kevin O'Neill

Closure

Despite its ambitious start, Tundra never became a profitable enterprise. It closed its doors in 1993 after burning through $14 million in three years. [Wolk, Douglas. "Reading Comics: How Graphic Novels Work and What They Mean" (Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press, 2007), 45.] Kitchen Sink Press acquired its holdings [ [http://www.icv2.com/articles/home/2681.html Comic Bubble, Deal Craze, Foreshadowing the Crash: Ten Years Ago this Month in Internal Correspondence] . IcV2.com. April 30, 2003. Accessed October 14, 2007.] ; it reprinted popular Tundra publications such as "Understanding Comics" and continued to publish some Tundra series such as "Taboo".

Citations