Garfield’s creator is Jim Davis has managed to make a pretty good living off of his plush pal. Since the comic strip was such a success, Davis went ahead to produce many Garfield specials for television in the 1980's. Of the 13 that were created, all were Emmy nominated and 4 actually won the prestigious award. 1988 marked the beginning of the Saturday morning series called, Garfield and Friends. Davis managed to include a segment on his other comic strip, U.S. Acres. All of the shows have since become syndicated. Remember Carlton the Doorman in the Rhoda prime time sitcom? That is Lorenzo Music who became our beloved Garfield.

Reprints of the Garfield strip have hit the bookstores too, of course. Jim Davis is the only author to ever have 7 books on the New York Times best-seller list at the same time back in 1982. Of his 30 books, 11 have made it to the top of the list.

How did all this happen? Jim Davis says it has to do with a simple philosophy. “If we take care of the cat, the cat will take care of us.” That certainly seems true enough. Davis does follow a few of his own basic rules. Garfield humor does not rely on topical or country-specific issues. The humor should be accessible to everyone, everywhere at any time. Davis’ drawing style has tremendous appeal also because it is simplistic and unornamented.

Obviously, we can relate to Davis’ characters, particularly Garfield’s sarcastic, biting personality. Look around today and you will still see all kinds of Garfield goodies on the market. Toys, figures, stationary and books are still selling. For you, we have the cool t-shirt. Enjoy.