DOVER, N.H. — As the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" became a pop culture sensation, the place where they were conceived was rarely mentioned.
It wasn't the New York City sewers, where the Turtles mutated from regular reptiles into a crime-fighting quartet who battled foes with nunchucks, snark and pizza. Rather, it was a small city near the New Hampshire coast. A new exhibit hopes to put that community — Dover, New Hampshire — at the center of the Turtles' story and, in turn, attract fans or anyone else who grew up reading the comics and watching the movies and TV shows.
At one point in the 1980s, the frenzy around the Turtles was called Turtlemania. "It's the birthplace," said Kevin Eastman, who with Peter Laird created the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" 41 years ago when the two shared a house in Dover. The first issue went on sale a year later.
"That's where the Turtles were created. ..
. It is very historic and very important to us." People are also reading.
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H. The Turtles' exhibit opened last in July at the Woodman Museum , which houses an eclectic collection that includes a stuffed polar bear and a Victorian funeral exhibit replete with a horse-drawn hearse. With its explosion of colors and cabinets full of action figures, the exhibit aims to be the go-to place for all things Turtles.
It starts with franchise's humble beginnings in Dover, where the duo formed Mirage Studios, a play on the fact they were creating the first comic in their living room rather than an actual studio. Inspired by Eastman's fascination with turtles and martial arts, they came up with the crime-fighting Turtles and self-published their first comic in black and white. "We hoped that one day we would sell enough copies of our 3,000 printed, $1.
50 comic books that we could pay my uncle back," Eastman said, adding they had no intention of writing a second issue until fans asked for more. He said he "could never have imagined that one comic book would lead to any of this." John Cookson, operations manager at the Woodman Museum, shows first edition "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" action figures Sept.
5 in the museum's permanent collection in Dover, N.H. Ralph DiBernardo, whose store in nearby Rochester sells comics and games, was among the first to champion the Turtles.
He knew Eastman and Laird from selling them comics and was the first person to sell their Turtles comic commercially after purchasing 500 copies. At the time, it seemed more like a favor to friends than a business decision, with him thinking, "those guys are never going to make their money back." "To watch them go from two struggling guys just barely getting by to becoming multi-millionaires, it's that American dream story that just never happens," said DiBernardo, who remains friends with the two artists.
The exhibit details the emergence of the Turtles as a global phenomenon, featuring pizza-obsessed characters with catchphrases such as "cowabunga" and "booyakasha." A "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" arcade video game and painting by a local artist are displayed Sept. 5 as part of the permanent collection at the Woodman Museum in Dover, N.
H. Among the exhibit's highlights are a video game console where visitors can play Turtles arcade games, vinyl records of soundtracks from Turtles movies and signed, first-run Turtles comics, including some valued in the tens of thousands of dollars. The marketing power of the Turtles is also on display, with everything from Turtles-inspired Christmas ornaments, throw rugs and backpacks to a talking toothbrush.
Massive bronze statues depict the four turtles — Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello and Raphael — along with their resident sage, the mutant rat Master Splinter. The display was one of 12 made as part of a fundraiser by Eastman to benefit a museum in Northampton, Massachusetts. Bronze statues of the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" characters are displayed Sept.
5 in the permanent collection at the Woodman Museum in Dover, N.H. "The Ninja Turtles are a multi-billion-dollar international franchise, and they originated here in Dover," said Jonathan Nichols, executive director of the Woodman Museum.
"So, it was a no-brainer for us to incorporate the Ninja Turtles here. This gallery is really a celebration and the history of the turtles from their creation to today." Eastman said the exhibit demonstrates the Turtles' widespread appeal, which he attributes to their heroic natures and that they operate almost like a family that bickers but also works better as a team.
The 33 most anticipated movies of the fall By The Associated Press Fans also love that they are "four green, mutated turtles not of any race, creed or color." "Anybody could be a Turtle," said Eastman, who now lives in Arizona but planned to attend a Manchester, New Hampshire, comic convention this month. He said he loves "talking to the fans not only about what they love about their Turtle," but also "what their favorite Turtle is.
" "I ask who they relate to," he added. "It tells a lot about their personality." Heather Shingleton of Dover, N.
H., walks past a roadside marker honoring the creation of the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" characters on Sept. 5 in Dover.
The exhibit's opening is part of Dover's larger effort, some say long overdue, to embrace the Turtles. A state historical marker went up next door to the museum last year recognizing Dover as the birthplace of the Ninja Turtles. A few blocks away, a decorative manhole was placed in front of an empty lot where the creators' house once stood.
"I grew up here in Dover and had no idea that I was actually growing up in the town where they were created," Nichols said. "So, once that really started being brought to the forefront, I think it was just a huge push in the town to really make that well known." Movie Review: Bring your global entry card — 'Beetlejuice’ sequel’s a soul train ride to comedy joy By JOCELYN NOVECK - AP National Writer Fictional sleuth Sam Spade will be back on the job in upcoming novel by Max Allan Collins By HILLEL ITALIE - AP National Writer These 10 comic books go beyond the superhero story ‘Something Is Killing the Children’ The evocative title of James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera’s series indicates only part of what’s actually going on in the comic.
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