ALISON MAREK has paired images with words professionally since she was a teen. In addition to creating Fido Kaplan for "The Prospect Press" (a biweekly newspaper in Brooklyn, New York), she wrote and illustrated two graphic novels for Piranha Press (DC Comics) -- Desert Streams and Sparrow.
She's an award-winning filmmaker with an MFA from NYU in film directing. Her short films have been sponsored by Showtime Networks, Inc., and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. She also shot or produced about 4,000 videos for the online toy magazine, TDmonthly.com.
Her dad, Richard O'Brien, wrote the nationally syndicated comic strip, "Koky" -- the first comic strip to feature a working mom -- and was one of the ghostwriters for the strip "Inside Woody Allen." He was also a gag writer and press agent for Woody, Joan Rivers, Rodney Dangerfield, and Victor Borge.
She's an award-winning filmmaker with an MFA from NYU in film directing. Her short films have been sponsored by Showtime Networks, Inc., and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. She also shot or produced about 4,000 videos for the online toy magazine, TDmonthly.com.
Her dad, Richard O'Brien, wrote the nationally syndicated comic strip, "Koky" -- the first comic strip to feature a working mom -- and was one of the ghostwriters for the strip "Inside Woody Allen." He was also a gag writer and press agent for Woody, Joan Rivers, Rodney Dangerfield, and Victor Borge.
FIDO KAPLAN began as a humorous name in a one-shot comic in Brooklyn's "The Prospect Press" called "If Dogs Were People." The strip explored all the ways our culture would differ if dogs were the Top Dogs (see Fido's entry under "Literature," above).
I chose the name Fido because, well, Fido is associated with dogs. Then picked Kaplan because it seems dignified and intellectual, but the "K" sound makes it funny (per the "The Sunshine Boys"). I fell in love with the name and then created the dog, who starred in "The Prospect Press" comic strip "Fido Kaplan," about a dog who tries to find true love for his owner Margaret, and later in a full-color strip in "Travel Today!" (Fairchild Publications/Fairchild Media), where Fido and Margaret traveled the globe. Play the VIDEOS to learn more about how Fido evolved into ARFFirmations. Thanks for watching! |
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