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All Phantom 7 Days a Week!!

My apologies for not updating the news section for quite some time. I've been a little busy. Last October I received a call from Jay Kennedy, Editor-in-Chief, at King Features Syndicate. He told me that Graham Nolan, famed for his work on the Phantom Sunday strip and the Sunday and Daily Rex Morgan, M.D. strip had decided against renewing his contract for the Phantom Sundays. Jay asked me if I would be interested in adding the Phantom Sunday strip to my current KFS assignment, the Phantom Daily strip. He said I didn't have to give him an answer right away. I didn't. I actually paused for at least fifteen seconds (I didn't want him to think I was THAT easy) before I agreed to take on the Sunday strip.

The story, The Ossuary, by Phantom scribe, Tony De Paul, looks to be a very interesting tale. My first Sunday came out April 1, 2007. When I first heard that my first Sunday was to appear April 1st, all I could think was....typical! For those Phantom fans living somewhere other than the United States, April 1 is what we Yanks call April Fools Day. A day when friends and family alike play pranks on each other. At least I won't have any trouble remembering my start date.

On a sad note, that conversation I had with Jay was one of the last times I had the opportunity to speak with him before his untimely death. Jay, a good man and a gentle soul, lost his life in an accidental drowning incident while on vacation this year. He will be sorely missed by all who had the honor and privilege of knowing him.

That's all for now. This April Fool hopes that you won't be too disappointed with his efforts on the Sunday page. If your newspaper doesn't carry the Phantom you can always access his adventures and those of all the KFS strips, for a very, very modest annual membership fee, at www.dailyink.com.

Thanks for dropping by,
Paul
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