NEWS & EVENTS

INTRODUCING...
THE "W. C. FIELDS COLORING BOOK" BY RONALD J. FIELDS

Adult coloring books are one of the hottest new trends right now – largely because they take us back to feelings from our childhood.

Those feelings bring us back to a time of peace and clarity – and make it possible for us to use this as fuel to recreate less stressful times. This is particularly useful right now in the uncertain times we are living in.

There are many other reasons besides nostalgia that adults flock to adult coloring books.

“Coloring books have been shown to reduce stress and promote relaxation due to their inherent qualities, such as the ability to remain present and focused on the image and provide temporary relief from life stressors,” Martha Dorn of The Art Therapy Project, a New York-based nonprofit organization that provides art therapy to trauma survivors, told Today.com.

So folks, we have created a new and exciting adult coloring book. The W. C. FIELDS COLORING BOOK brings back some of the comic strips Ronald J. Fields created way back in 1983 and his famous grandfather W.C. Fields' art, all combined with the talent of Artist / Disney Animator Dave Woodman. We are hopeful you will thoroughly enjoy this new project.

We are seeking votes to see if you, the public, would like to see this book available for purchase (for a reasonable price of course).

Read the history and find out how this all came about, from Ronald J. Fields himself.

THE BIRTH OF THE W.C. FIELDS COMIC STRIP

In 1983 I was just completing the final touches on my film book W. C. FIELDS A LIFE ON FILM, a mere five years, or so, past my deadline, when our family agent mentioned that the Los Angeles Times comic syndicate indicated they would like a W. C. Fields centric comic strip. I told him in just a couple of days, I would be available to write it. He gave me a knowing chuckle (I hate it when agents give me a knowing chuckle) and told me that comic strip writing takes time and a very specific type of talent. He added that they already picked a newspaper columnist, who although he never wrote a comic strip before, had the right tools to pen the daily work.

By dint of W.C.'s reputation something like eight hundred newspapers nationwide signed up to feature the strip. In a couple of months, the LAT Syndicate received a sufficient amount of comics with a comfortable backlog to begin the national publishing process.

Well, it did not go too well. In no time newspapers started cancelling the comic strip. From over eight hundred papers, the quits started pouring in; five hundred; two hundred. Our family agent called me and asked if I would consider taking over the writing chore. I gave him a knowing chuckle, but said, “Yes.” The next day I started writing for the Los Angeles Times Comic Strip Syndicate (panels by Fred Fredricks). My agent said they had trashed the backlog so I would have to write at least five jokes a day. I did it, but I found that very challenging.

On the day I began, the LAT Syndicate only had 80 papers still buying the comic strip, and all of them had submitted their mandatory four-week cancellation notice. Charge! I went right at it. By the end of the month all 80 newspapers rescinded their notice of cancellations. Within three months we recovered all 800 newspapers that dropped the strip and started adding more and more newspapers. We actually got over a thousand of them by a lot. Unfortunately, I needed ten thousand papers to start making any money, thus I had to say goodbye to the comic strip writing business.

Now we have decided to re-release these strips, including the Sunday papers’ full color depiction with many more panels. I am proud to share this endeavor with the great Disney artist Dave Woodman. If this works well, we will start producing brand new W.C. Fields comic strips.

With a hearty handclasp I remain,

Ronald J Fields

Check out this (59 page) W. C. FIELDS COLORING BOOK BY RONALD J. FIELDS sample and let us know if you would like to see it available for purchase (reasonably priced).

Thank you!

Note: This is a reduced size version for sample viewing only. ( All 59 pages)

Simply scroll the PDF below to view the entire coloring book sample.

We thank you in advance for taking a moment to cast your vote below. Click the quick "Thumbs Up", or, if you feel more ambitious, take time to fully fill out the form below and give us your thoughts.

Vote "YES" to see the W.C. FIELDS COLORING BOOK BY RONALD J. FIELDS to be available for purchase by clicking the "Thumbs Up" Button, which will send a quick email to us. You don't even have to fill out the rest of the email. By just clicking "send" your vote will be counted. Thank you!