Universal Uclick
Encyclopedia
Universal Uclick is an American
entertainment company owned by Andrews McMeel Universal
. Universal Uclick is the world's largest independent press syndicate and provides syndication in print, online and on mobile devices
for a number of lifestyle and opinion columns
, comic strip
s and cartoon
s and various other content. Some of the company's most well-known features include Dear Abby
, Doonesbury
, Ziggy
, Garfield
, Ann Coulter
, Roger Ebert
and News of the Weird
. The company is headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri
.
Universal Uclick was formed in July 2009 with the merger of Universal Press Syndicate
and the digital entertainment company Uclick
.
Universal Press Syndicate was founded in 1970 by Jim Andrews and John McMeel. The company began syndicating Garry Trudeau
’s Doonesbury comic strip in October 1970. Trudeau won the Pulitzer Prize
for editorial cartooning
in 1975 for his work on Doonesbury, and the strip is now syndicated in more than 1,400 newspapers worldwide. Over the following decades, the syndicate added other well-known comic strips, editorial cartoonists and columnists.
Uclick LLC was founded in the late 1990s by Andrews McMeel Universal to explore opportunities in the digital realm. The company syndicated comic strips, cartoons, games, puzzles and text columns to online news organizations and other websites, on desktop computers and mobile phones.
In July 2009, Andrews McMeel Universal founder, chairman and president John McMeel, explained why the two companies were combined:
, FoxTrot, Calvin and Hobbes
, Garfield, The Boondocks, Doonesbury, Cathy
, Pooch Cafe
, Baldo
, What the Duck
, Ink Pen
, Liō
, Cul de Sac
, Ziggy, Tom the Dancing Bug
, The Far Side
and Peanuts
(since February 27, 2011) in newspapers, calendars and books.
Universal Uclick also owns and operates GoComics.com, a comics aggregate website featuring comic strips currently syndicated in print, online and on mobile devices by Universal Uclick, as well as discontinued titles such as Calvin and Hobbes, The Boondocks and Bloom County
, webcomics such as Pibgorn
and Bleeker: The Rechargeable Dog
, plus a selection of syndicated comic strips from Creators Syndicate
and Tribune Media Services
.
In October 2008, Uclick launched a GoComics gadget for iGoogle
which allows users to read comic strips on their iGoogle pages.
On February 24, 2011, Universal Uclick signed a deal with United Media
to handle syndication of the latter company's 150 comic strip and news features beginning in June 1.
, Tony Auth
, Stuart Carlson
, Lalo Alcaraz
, Glenn McCoy
, Pat Oliphant
, Ted Rall
, Ben Sargent
, Tom Toles
and Kerry Waghorn
.
and Kakuro, jigsaw puzzles and other casual games.
, The Five Fists of Science
, Godland, PvP
and Too Much Coffee Man
. Universal Uclick has also published mobile versions and iPhone
applications featuring comic book titles from Devil's Due Publishing
, Image Comics
, IDW Publishing
and Jeff Smith’s Bone
series.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
entertainment company owned by Andrews McMeel Universal
Andrews McMeel Universal
Andrews McMeel Universal is an American corporation based in Kansas City, Missouri. It was founded in 1970 by Notre Dame alumni Jim Andrews and John McMeel as Universal Press Syndicate and was renamed in 1997 to AMU to reflect the diversification that had taken place since its founding...
. Universal Uclick is the world's largest independent press syndicate and provides syndication in print, online and on mobile devices
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
for a number of lifestyle and opinion columns
Columnist
A columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....
, comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
s and cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
s and various other content. Some of the company's most well-known features include Dear Abby
Dear Abby
Dear Abby is the name of the advice column founded in 1956 by Pauline Phillips under the pen name Abigail Van Buren and carried on today by her daughter, Jeanne Phillips, who now owns the legal rights to the pen name....
, Doonesbury
Doonesbury
Doonesbury is a comic strip by American cartoonist Garry Trudeau, that chronicles the adventures and lives of an array of characters of various ages, professions, and backgrounds, from the President of the United States to the title character, Michael Doonesbury, who has progressed from a college...
, Ziggy
Ziggy
Ziggy is a cartoon created by Tom Wilson, a former American Greetings executive.Ziggy is a small, bald, trouserless, barefoot, almost featureless character who seems to have no friends, hobbies, or romantic partner, just a menagerie of pets: Fuzz, a small white dog; Sid, a cat afraid of mice;...
, Garfield
Garfield
Garfield is a comic strip created by Jim Davis. Published since June 19, 1978, it chronicles the life of the title character, the cat Garfield ; his owner, Jon Arbuckle; and Arbuckle's dog, Odie...
, Ann Coulter
Ann Coulter
Ann Hart Coulter is an American lawyer, conservative social and political commentator, author, and syndicated columnist. She frequently appears on television, radio, and as a speaker at public events and private events...
, Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
and News of the Weird
News of the Weird
News of the Weird is a syndicated newspaper column edited by Chuck Shepherd that collects bizarre news stories. It was created in 1988. , it is syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate and published in more than 250 newspapers in the United States and Canada. As of July 2008, the daily internet...
. The company is headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
.
Universal Uclick was formed in July 2009 with the merger of Universal Press Syndicate
Universal Press Syndicate
Universal Press Syndicate, a subsidiary of Andrews McMeel Universal, is the world's largest independent press syndicate. It distributes lifestyle and opinion columns, comic strips and other content. Popular columns include Dear Abby, Ann Coulter, Roger Ebert and News of the Weird...
and the digital entertainment company Uclick
Uclick
Uclick LLC was an American corporation selling "digital entertainment content" for the desktop, the web and mobile phones...
.
Universal Press Syndicate was founded in 1970 by Jim Andrews and John McMeel. The company began syndicating Garry Trudeau
Garry Trudeau
Garretson Beekman "Garry" Trudeau is an American cartoonist, best known for the Doonesbury comic strip.-Background and education:...
’s Doonesbury comic strip in October 1970. Trudeau won the Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
for editorial cartooning
Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning
The Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning has been awarded since 1922 for a distinguished cartoon or portfolio of cartoons published during the year, characterized by originality, editorial effectiveness, quality of drawing, and pictorial effect...
in 1975 for his work on Doonesbury, and the strip is now syndicated in more than 1,400 newspapers worldwide. Over the following decades, the syndicate added other well-known comic strips, editorial cartoonists and columnists.
Uclick LLC was founded in the late 1990s by Andrews McMeel Universal to explore opportunities in the digital realm. The company syndicated comic strips, cartoons, games, puzzles and text columns to online news organizations and other websites, on desktop computers and mobile phones.
In July 2009, Andrews McMeel Universal founder, chairman and president John McMeel, explained why the two companies were combined:
- The tradition and reputation that have made Universal Press Syndicate the destination for top-notch creative talents are now joining forces with the technological expertise, versatility, and new media innovations of Uclick. This is a historic move that brings together two industry leading companies to create a dynamic new organization capable of supporting today's renowned creative talents and the superstars of tomorrow, propelling them to new levels of popularity and success, as well as looking to the future by creating new distribution channels and outlets for this beloved art form.
Comic strips and panels
Well-known comics currently and formerly syndicated by Universal Uclick include For Better or For WorseFor Better or For Worse
For Better or For Worse is a comic strip by Lynn Johnston that ran for 30 years, chronicling the lives of a Canadian family, The Pattersons, and their friends. The story is set in the fictitious Toronto-area suburban town of Milborough, Ontario. Johnston's strip began in September 1979, and ended...
, FoxTrot, Calvin and Hobbes
Calvin and Hobbes
Calvin and Hobbes is a syndicated daily comic strip that was written and illustrated by American cartoonist Bill Watterson, and syndicated from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995. It follows the humorous antics of Calvin, a precocious and adventurous six-year-old boy, and Hobbes, his...
, Garfield, The Boondocks, Doonesbury, Cathy
Cathy (comic strip)
Cathy was a comic strip drawn by Cathy Guisewite. It featured a woman who struggled through the "four basic guilt groups" of life — food, love, mom, and work — the strip gently poked fun at the lives and foibles of modern women. Cathy's characteristics and issues both made fun of and...
, Pooch Cafe
Pooch Café
Pooch Café is a Canadian and American comic strip written and illustrated by Paul Gilligan.- Overview :Pooch Café is a comic strip that follows the humorous antics of a self-serving, squirrel-fearing, food-obsessed, toilet-drinking mutt named Poncho....
, Baldo
Baldo
Baldo is an American comic strip written by Hector Cantú and illustrated by Carlos Castellanos. It was launched in April 2000, and is widely billed as the first comic strip featuring Latino characters and themes to be marketed to a mainstream audience....
, What the Duck
What the Duck
What the Duck is a comic strip by Aaron Johnson. It started as a webcomic, with the first strip posted in July 2006. The strip has appeared as print in numerous photography magazines including Amateur Photographer. It was picked up for syndication in 2008 by Universal Press Syndicate under the name...
, Ink Pen
Ink Pen
Ink Pen is a daily comic strip by Phil Dunlap that started in 2005 and is syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate.This comic strip is about an employment agency for out-of-work cartoon characters...
, Liō
Lio
Lio is a singer and actress who was a pop icon in France and Belgium during the 1980s.- Biography :...
, Cul de Sac
Cul de Sac (comic strip)
Cul de Sac is a comic strip created by Richard Thompson and distributed by Universal Press Syndicate to 150 worldwide newspapers.The central character is four-year-old Alice Otterloop, and the strip depicts her daily life at pre-school and at home...
, Ziggy, Tom the Dancing Bug
Tom the Dancing Bug
Tom the Dancing Bug is a weekly satirical comic strip by cartoonist and political commentator Ruben Bolling that covers current events from a liberal point of view. The strip appears in mainstream and alternative weekly newspapers, as well as on the Boing Boing website. Tom the Dancing Bug won...
, The Far Side
The Far Side
The Far Side is a popular single-panel comic created by Gary Larson and syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate, which ran from January 1, 1980, to January 1, 1995. Its surrealistic humor is often based on uncomfortable social situations, improbable events, an anthropomorphic view of the world,...
and Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
(since February 27, 2011) in newspapers, calendars and books.
Universal Uclick also owns and operates GoComics.com, a comics aggregate website featuring comic strips currently syndicated in print, online and on mobile devices by Universal Uclick, as well as discontinued titles such as Calvin and Hobbes, The Boondocks and Bloom County
Bloom County
Bloom County is an American comic strip by Berkeley Breathed which ran from December 8, 1980, until August 6, 1989. It examined events in politics and culture through the viewpoint of a fanciful small town in Middle America, where children often have adult personalities and vocabularies and where...
, webcomics such as Pibgorn
Pibgorn
Pibgorn may refer to:* Pibgorn , a Welsh musical instrument of the hornpipe family* Pibgorn...
and Bleeker: The Rechargeable Dog
Bleeker: The Rechargeable Dog
Bleeker: The Rechargeable Dog is a comic strip by Jonathan Mahood about ten-year-old Skip Smalls, his friend Lila and Bleeker, an electronic dog. The strip is distributed by King Features Syndicate....
, plus a selection of syndicated comic strips from Creators Syndicate
Creators Syndicate
Creators Syndicate is an independent distributor of comic strips and syndicated columns for daily newspapers. It was founded in 1987 by Richard S. Newcombe, and is based in Los Angeles. Creators was one of the first syndicates to allow its clients to maintain creative control of their material...
and Tribune Media Services
Tribune Media Services
Tribune Media Services is a syndication company owned by the Tribune Company.The company has two divisions, "News and Features" and "Entertainment Products"...
.
In October 2008, Uclick launched a GoComics gadget for iGoogle
IGoogle
iGoogle , a service of Google, is a customizable Ajax-based startpage or personal web portal . Google originally launched the service in May 2005...
which allows users to read comic strips on their iGoogle pages.
On February 24, 2011, Universal Uclick signed a deal with United Media
United Media
United Media is a large editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States, owned by The E.W. Scripps Company. It syndicates 150 comics and editorial columns worldwide. Its core business is the United Feature Syndicate and the Newspaper Enterprise Association...
to handle syndication of the latter company's 150 comic strip and news features beginning in June 1.
Editorial cartoons
Universal Uclick syndicates the editorial cartoonists Don AsmussenDon Asmussen
Don Asmussen is an American cartoonist working for the San Francisco Chronicle and Universal Press Syndicate.He was born in Rhode Island...
, Tony Auth
Tony Auth
William Anthony Auth Jr. , better known as Tony Auth, is an editorial cartoonist for The Philadelphia Inquirer, where he has worked since 1971. His other work includes the comic strip Full Disclosure, which he worked on in 1982 and 1983, and Norb, which he worked on in 1989...
, Stuart Carlson
Stuart Carlson
Stuart Carlson is a former editorial cartoonist for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. His cartoons usually followed the moderate editorial stance of that paper....
, Lalo Alcaraz
Lalo Alcaraz
Lalo Alcaraz is an Mexican-American cartoonist. He is most known for being the author of the comic La Cucaracha, the first nationally syndicated, politically themed Latino daily comic strip. Launched in 2002, La Cucaracha has become one of the most controversial in the history of American comic...
, Glenn McCoy
Glenn McCoy
Glenn McCoy is an American conservative cartoonist, whose work includes popular comic strip The Duplex and the daily panel he does with his brother Gary entitled The Flying McCoys. Glenn also produces editorial cartoons...
, Pat Oliphant
Pat Oliphant
Patrick Bruce "Pat" Oliphant is the most widely syndicated political cartoonist in the world, described by the New York Times as "the most influential cartoonist now working"...
, Ted Rall
Ted Rall
Ted Rall is an American columnist, syndicated editorial cartoonist, and author. His political cartoons often appear in a multi-panel comic-strip format and frequently blend comic-strip and editorial-cartoon conventions. The cartoons appear in approximately 100 newspapers around the United States...
, Ben Sargent
Ben Sargent
Ben Sargent is an American editorial cartoonist. He began drawing editorial cartoons for the Austin American-Statesman in 1974 and retired in 2009. His cartoons are also distributed nationally by Universal Press Syndicate....
, Tom Toles
Tom Toles
Thomas Gregory Toles is an American political cartoonist. He is the winner of the 1990 Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning...
and Kerry Waghorn
Kerry Waghorn
Kerry Waghorn is a syndicated caricaturist whose Faces in the News feature, established in 1977 by Chronicle Features is a journalistic legend. He estimates that more than 9,000 of his images have been published since the early 1970s, including just about every prominent news, business and...
.
Puzzles and games
Universal Uclick distributes daily puzzles and games in newspapers and other print media. The company also distributes puzzles and casual games online through consumer and news web portals as well as through its own puzzle and game portals, PuzzleSociety.com and UclickGames.com. Universal Uclick products include crossword puzzles and games edited by Timothy Parker, number placement puzzles like SudokuSudoku
is a logic-based, combinatorial number-placement puzzle. The objective is to fill a 9×9 grid with digits so that each column, each row, and each of the nine 3×3 sub-grids that compose the grid contains all of the digits from 1 to 9...
and Kakuro, jigsaw puzzles and other casual games.
Syndicated columns and text features
Universal Uclick syndicated columns and text features are distributed in newspapers and other print media worldwide and online through consumer and news web portals, as well as through the Universal Uclick syndicated column and text feature consumer site, uExpress.com. Popular Universal Uclick columns and text features include the Dear Abby advice column, conservative columnist Ann Coulter, film critic Roger Ebert, and News of the Weird.Comic books and manga
In 2006, Universal Uclick launched the United States’ first comic book reader application for mobile phones. The introductory line of titles included Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Mirage Studios)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is an American comic book published by Mirage Studios from 1984 to 2009. Originally conceived by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird as a one-off parody, the comic's popularity has gone on to inspire a major pop culture franchise, including three television series, four...
, The Five Fists of Science
The Five Fists of Science
The Five Fists of Science is a steampunk graphic novel created by writer Matt Fraction and artist Steven Sanders. It was published in 2006 by Image Comics.-Plot:...
, Godland, PvP
PvP
PvP, also known as Player vs Player, is a webcomic, written and drawn by Scott Kurtz, with around 100,000 unique visitors per day . On February 1, 2007, it became the subject of its own animated series.-Themes:...
and Too Much Coffee Man
Too Much Coffee Man
Too Much Coffee Man is an American satirical superhero created by cartoonist Shannon Wheeler, and which has appeared in comic strips, minicomics, webcomics, comic books, magazines, books, and operas....
. Universal Uclick has also published mobile versions and iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
applications featuring comic book titles from Devil's Due Publishing
Devil's Due Publishing
Devil's Due Publishing is an independent comic book publishers in the United States. Based in Chicago, Illinois, DDP is best known for its wide selection of genres, including licensed and original creator-owned properties that populate its monthly comic book series and graphic novels.Though...
, Image Comics
Image Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
, IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing, also known as Idea + Design Works, LLC and IDW, is an American publisher of comic books and comic strip collections. The company was founded in 1999 and has been awarded the title "Publisher of the Year Under 5% Market Share" for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006 by Diamond Comic...
and Jeff Smith’s Bone
Bone (comics)
Bone is an independently published graphic novel series originally serialized in 55 irregularly released issues from 1991 to 2004. Bone was drawn and written by Jeff Smith....
series.