ROK Mobile Comics has just released the first issue of its new audio comic
The Beatles Story for iPad, iPhone and other mobile devices.
The
eight-issue digital series collects, for the first time in its
entirety, the classic and highly-acclaimed Beatles strip created by the
late
Angus Allan and
Arthur Ranson for the British weekly comic,
Look-In.
With
new covers by Martin Baines, the digitally-enhanced audio comic also
includes rare Beatles videos and other material to complement the comic,
including audio commentary memories from writer and radio broadcaster
Angie McCartney.
Working
closely with artist Arthur Ranson - with some pages scanned from
original artwork - and the estate of writer Angus Allan, the eight-issue
digital audio comic is available for for iPad, iPhone, Android and
other mobile devices, the strip complemented by fully authored audio
enhancements that further bring this unique comic biography of The
Beatles to life.
The launch coincides with the 50th anniversary
of the Fab Four's beginnings back in 1962, when The Beatles - John,
Paul, George and Ringo - took the charts by storm in 1962 with their
first official release, "Love Me Do", quickly followed by "Please Please
Me" and "From Me to You". Beatlemania soon swept across the globe as
the Fab Four recorded a staggering 12 studio albums, 13 EPs and 22
singles from 1962 to 1970.
It is estimated they have sold
over one billion records worldwide and The Beatles continue to
influence many musicians and artists today, attracting a new generation
of fans.
Beautifully realized,
The Beatles Story charts
the history of the band from their struggle for success in the early
1960s through their entire career until the band's split in 1970.
DJ
Mike Read has called the strip "the only worthwhile strip record of the
Beatles" and the creator-owned comic, first published in British comic
Look-In has only ever been reprinted in an abridged form, both in the UK and in Europe.
 |
The opening page of The Beatles Story
© Angus Allan & Arthur Ranson |
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"Before
The Beatles - Their Story in Pictures strip, Angus Allan,
comic-book and Paperback Writer, and I had been teamed up by
Look-in
Editor Colin Shelbourn to do
The Elvis Story," recalls Arthur Ranson of
the origins of his acclaimed Beatles comic strip. "Like Dreamers Do I
suggested to Angus that we might retain the copyright - prompted by
belief in its future possibilities and thinking possible returns When
I'm Sixty-Four.
"Rather than just the Money there was also pride in
ownership and an interest in creators rights. Creator ownership was at
that time even less usual then it is now and Nobody I Know at the time
had done that. Can’t now imagine the hubris that made me pushy so don’t
Ask Me Why.
"When Angus heard the idea he was nervous about it,"
Arthur continues. "Apart from the gamble that a reduction in fee would
later be recouped I
think it ran against his idea of how professional comics guys worked and
he might be seen as a Bad Boy. I convinced Angus We Can Work It Out
and the Two of Us took the proposal to Colin. I said I would not draw
the strip on any other terms. (How was it I was so cocky?) With much
less argument than I expected Colin agreed. Thank you, Colin.
"When
Colin wanted The Beatles strip it was more or less understood that the
same terms would apply. At Look-in’s expense Angus and I became Day
Trippers, took A Ticket to Ride and went to Liverpool for research,
visiting Penny Lane and all.
"ITV Publications reproduced the
strip as a paper book only four months after its first appearance in
Look-In, hardly Any Time at All. The impression I was left with was that
whoever organised the reprint was so miffed when he discovered that
Angus and I had the copyright that he made no attempt to sell it on so
it wasn’t exactly Here, There, and Everywhere. Angus and I took on an
agent to act on our behalf and he landed some foreign versions.
"Some of
the artwork was displayed at the Walker Art Gallery in their 1984 'Art
of the Beatles' exhibition."
"Do You Want to Know a Secret?
Drawing a weekly story with the hope of seeing it reappearing in a
complete continuous format did need some thinking about," Arthur reveals. "The space where
the title would go required filling, but not with anything that was
essential. For new readers the breaks are then not apparent and the
story will move without interruption, Act Naturally..."
The Beatles Story is the latest audio comic project from ROK, who launched their first audio adventure comic
Team M.O.B.I.L.E.
earlier this year, with several new titles, including Houdini, new
adventures of the world's greatest escape artist soon to follow, along
with spy adventure
Tomorrow We Live, written and drawn by Mike Collins.
The
company is also working on a number of music comics featuring up and
coming bands, and a collection of Angus Allan and Arthur Ranson's other
creator-owned strip for
Look-In,
The Elvis Story.
• The Beatles Story by Angus Allan and Arthur Ranson, with new covers by Martin Baines
• From iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/app/the-beatles-story/id569176209?mt=8
• Android Edition: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rok.comics.beatles001
The digital edition of Print Media Productions STRIP Magazine #7 for iPad, published in partnership with ROK Comics, is on sale now from iTunes.
The digital edition also features some exclusive extras, such as a quirky festive tune when the app is launched, and added 'data cards' with background information on the characters and some creators, along with a video trailer for David Lloyd's digital project, Aces Weekly.
