Couple Launches Baxter the Bunny Cartoon Series and Baxterthebunny.com Based On Pet Rabbit's Personality
Atlanta-area couple converts daily musings about their English Angora rabbit into a cartoon series and fun web site
Atlanta, GA (PRWEB) November 28, 2007 -- An Atlanta-area couple have turned quirky household stories of their English Angora rabbit into an exciting new cartoon series, Baxter the Bunny. Baxter the Bunny was born when Ernie and Kim Martin adopted an English Angora rabbit in 1997 because Kim was allergic to dogs and cats and wanted a pet that was more substantial than a hamster or gerbil.
English Angora rabbits are a rare and exotic breed known for their fluffy wool and stuffed animal-like appearance. While Kim immediately fell in love with the rabbit, it took Ernie a while to warm up to the creature.
"I wasn't sure what kind of animal it was," said Ernie. "He was really fluffy and you couldn't see his eyes, so I couldn't tell whether it was a rabbit or a rug. After seeing him, though, I thought we should name him Buster."
A year after bringing him home, Ernie and Kim found themselves developing stories based on Buster's personality; innocent and unassuming, yet possessing an incredible zest for life. Friends and family found these stories so entertaining, Ernie and Kim decided to take their idea to the next level and develop a complete cartoon around their pet.
"We initially wanted to call the cartoon Buster the Bunny, but a certain, large New York-based media company said we couldn't use that name," chuckled Kim. "We eventually settled on Baxter the Bunny because we still thought it captured the essence of what we were trying to do."
The couple searched for more than a year to find the right artist who could help bring their vision to life, meeting with several candidates but finding no one who truly understood what they were trying to do. By chance, Ernie attended a networking event at a local art gallery and eventually asked the curator if she knew of any young artists that might be interested in helping them develop a cartoon.
Soon after, the curator put the couple in touch with Miles Davis, a recent Auburn University graduate who was in the process of developing his career as a painter but also had a love for cartoons like Calvin and Hobbes.
"I got a call from Ernie and Kim and met them at a local restaurant," said Miles. "They explained to me what they were trying to do and had a detailed idea of what the characters should look like and how they should behave. We kind of hit it off because I thought this was right up my alley."
The couple worked with Miles for several months to get the characters just right, developing eight stories for the purpose of putting together a book proposal and sending it to more than 30 agents and publishers.
"We were aware of several popular cartoons that were made into books, so we thought we would go that route first," said Kim. "We thought that would be much easier than trying to do a daily cartoon and going for syndication."
Baxter the Bunny features an English Angora rabbit as the title character that lives with married couple Jeff and Brenda. Baxter's faithful sidekick -- a fast-talking chipmunk named Chatter -- and his arch nemesis -- a diabolical kitten named Evil Kitty -- round out the main characters.
With little success finding an agent or publisher, the couple decided to develop their own website and launched baxterthebunny.com in September 2007.
"The website was the logical next step for us," said Ernie. "Because my company does web development for large and small clients, we knew we could do a really nice site and configure it in such a way as to attract a lot of visitors."
The site features a new cartoon story every week. Visitors to the site can sign up for free membership and have the weekly cartoon delivered to them via e-mail. In addition, visitors can log on to the baxterthebunny.com discussion board to discuss each week's cartoon or to discuss other cartoon-related topics. The site also features merchandise such as t-shirts, mugs, mouse pads and other items featuring several Baxter the Bunny characters.
So far, the site has been able to attract several thousand unique visitors with virtually no advertising. The site will soon feature regular contests where members can win cool prizes as well as play online games featuring the main characters.
"Although this is a relatively small beginning," said Kim, "We really believe Baxter the Bunny has a lot of potential and could be really big."
About Baxter the Bunny
To see Baxter the Bunny weekly cartoon stories, as well as cartoon stories from the archive, visit www.baxterthebunny.com. To contact the creators of Baxter the Bunny, send an e-mail or correspondence to Baxter the Bunny c/o Persuasion Marketing Group, Inc. P.O. Box 697, Jonesboro, GA 30237. Baxter the Bunny, Jeff, Brenda, Chatter Box and Evil Kitty are trademarks of Persuasion Communications Group, Inc.
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