Editing King Features Syndicate (section)

== History ==
[[File:King Features retro.png|thumb|200px|Historic logo, used until the 1960s]]
[[William Randolph Hearst]]'s newspapers began syndicating material in 1895 after receiving requests from other newspapers. The first official Hearst syndicate was called '''Newspaper Feature Service, Inc.''', established in 1913.<ref>Markstein, Don. [http://www.toonopedia.com/king.htm "King Features Syndicate,"] ''Toonpedia''. Accessed November 22, 2018.</ref> In 1914, Hearst and his manager [[Moses Koenigsberg]] consolidated all of Hearst's syndication enterprises under one banner (although Newspaper Feature Service was still in operation into at least the 1930s).<ref>''A Directory of Newspaper Syndicates in the United States'' (compiled from the ''Ayer Newspaper Directory'' for 1936 and ''Editor and Publisher International Year Book'' for 1936.)</ref> Koenigsberg gave it his own name (the German word ''[[wikt:König|König]]'' means ''king'') when he launched '''King Features Syndicate''' on November 16, 1915.<ref>[https://kingfeatures.com/about-us/king-features-history/ "King Features History: A Crowning Achievement,"] King Features website. Accessed January 15, 2019.</ref>
 
Production escalated in 1916 with King Features buying and selling its own staff-created feature material. A trade publication — ''Circulation'' — was published by King Features between 1916 and 1933. In January 1929, the world-famous [[Popeye]] character was introduced in King Features' ''Thimble Theater'' comic strip.

King Features had a series of hits during the 1930s with the launch of ''[[Blondie (comic strip)|Blondie]]'' (1930–present), ''[[Flash Gordon]]'' (1934–2003 Note: Relaunched again in October 2023 by Dan Schkade as a daily and Sunday strip), ''[[Mandrake the Magician]]'' (1934–2013), and ''[[The Phantom]]'' (1936–present). In March 1936, a fictional, magical animal called [[Eugene the Jeep]] was added to Popeye, and trademarked.<ref>[https://www.allpar.com/threads/how-the-jeep-got-its-name-instead-of-peep-beep-or-seep.229807/ How the Jeep got its name instead of Peep, Beep, or Seep | Allpar, Nov 2020] [https://web.archive.org/web/20220228111911/https://www.allpar.com/threads/how-the-jeep-got-its-name-instead-of-peep-beep-or-seep.229807/ Archived)]</ref>

King Features remained a "powerhouse" syndicate throughout the 1950s and the 1960s.<ref>[[Rick Marschall|Marschall, Rick]]. [http://john-adcock.blogspot.com/2020/10/a-crowded-life-in-comics_19.html "Bob Weber, Forever the Cartoon Fan" ("A Crowded Life in Comics")], ''Yesterday's Papers'' (October 25, 2020).</ref> In 1965 it launched a children's comic and coloring page.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/sim_editor-publisher_1965-04-17_98_16 | title=Editor and Publisher 1965-04-17: Vol 98 Iss 16 | date=April 17, 1965 | publisher=Duncan McIntosh }}</ref>

In 1986, King Features acquired the [[Register and Tribune Syndicate]] for $4.3 million.<ref>[http://www.lib.drake.edu/heritage/GardnerCowlesFamily/JohnCowles.html Strentz, Herb. "John Cowles"]</ref> Later that year, Hearst bought [[News America Syndicate]] (formerly Publishers-Hall).<ref name=Storch>{{cite news|author=Charles Storch|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1986-12-25-8604060301-story.html|title=Hearst To Buy Murdoch Syndicate|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]}}</ref><ref name="king">[http://www.hearstcorp.com/entertainment/property/ent_news_kfs.html King Features Syndicate profile.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061029015730/http://www.hearstcorp.com/entertainment/property/ent_news_kfs.html |date=October 29, 2006 }} via Hearst Corporation</ref> By this point, with both King Features and News America (renamed [[North America Syndicate]]), Hearst led all syndication services with 316 features.<ref name="Superhero">{{cite news |page=34 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=June 14, 1987 |title= A Superhero For Cartoonists?|author=Katina Alexander |access-date=August 18, 2012|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/06/14/business/a-superhero-for-cartoonists.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm}}</ref>

In 2007, King Features donated its collection of comic-strip [[Comic strip#Newspapers|proof sheets]] (two sets of over 60 years' accumulation) to the [[Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum]] and the [[Michigan State University Libraries#Comic Art Collection|Michigan State University Comic Art Collection]] while retaining the collection in electronic form for reference purposes.<ref>Randy Scott. "The King Features Proof Sheet Collection." ''Insight''. [Fall 2009?] p.3</ref>

In November 2015, King Features released a book, entitled "King of the Comics: One Hundred Years of King Features Syndicate" to commemorate its 100th [[anniversary]]. The book features a compilation of strips and the histories behind King Features strips.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Squirek|first=Mark|title=a book review by Mark Squirek: King of the Comics: One Hundred Years of King Features Syndicate (The Library of American Comics)|url=https://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/book-review/king-comics|access-date=December 27, 2021|website=www.nyjournalofbooks.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Clabaugh|first=Rich|date=November 13, 2015|title='King of the Comics' celebrates 100 years of classic comics|work=[[The Christian Science Monitor]]|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/Books/2015/1113/King-of-the-Comics-celebrates-100-years-of-classic-comics|access-date=December 27, 2021|issn=0882-7729}}</ref>

As of 2016, with 62 strips being syndicated, Hearst was considered the second-largest comics service, second only to Uclick<ref>Dwyer, Ed. [https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2016/11/the-funny-papers/ "CULTURE: The Funny Papers: Newspapers may be in trouble, but the comic strip is alive and well — and flourishing online,"] ''Saturday Evening Post'' (November 7, 2016).</ref> (now known as [[Andrews McMeel Syndication]]).

In December 2017, King Features appointed CJ Kettler as president of the company. Kettler previously was CEO of [[Sunbow Entertainment]] and the executive producer of the [[Netflix]] series ''[[Carmen Sandiego (TV series)|Carmen Sandiego]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Haring|first=Bruce|date=December 12, 2017|title=C.J. Kettler Named President Of King Features Syndicate, Will Focus On New Platforms|url=https://deadline.com/2017/12/c-j-kettler-named-president-of-king-features-syndicate-1202223521/|access-date=December 27, 2021|website=Deadline|language=en-US}}</ref>