Slap Happy & Andrews McMeel Pact for Heart of the City

Vancouver-based Slap Happy Cartoons has partnered with Andrews McMeel Entertainment to develop content inspired by the newspaper, web and book-based property Heart of the City.

The Heart of the City comic strip debuted in newspapers in 1998 and is syndicated by Andrews McMeel Syndication in both newspaper and web format. It tells the story of Heart, a girl with big dreams and a love of drama, who lives with her mom in Philadelphia, and has always had the support of her best friends Dean and Kat.

Currently, the Heart of the City comic strip appears in 50 newspapers and news sites across the U.S., Canada, and a number of other countries including India, the Netherlands and Trinidad. Andrews McMeel Publishing released the first Heart of the City book collection, Heart Takes the Stage, in May 2022.

The new Heart of the City TV content will be aimed at kids aged 6 to 11 and their families.

Josh Mepham, partner and director of development at Slap Happy Cartoons, said: “Heart of the City is a cartoon that has established itself as a big favorite with online and newspaper readers since 1998 and has successfully reinvented itself for the 2020s without losing the wit, fun and spirited characters its audience has grown to know and love. Today, in the hands of the very talented Steenz, it has underlined its promise and is ready to expand its reach.”

Bridget McMeel, executive producer at Andrews McMeel Entertainment, added: “The positive response to the successful handover of Heart and her story from Mark to Steenz has been enhanced by excellent reviews for Heart Takes the Stage. This is a character and storyline with vast potential in multiple formats. We’re looking forward to working with Slap Happy on taking Heart’s adventures to an even bigger audience.”