"Blondie" and More Join the ArcaMax Funnies

The classic comic strip "Blondie" is one of four new comics to be added to ArcaMax Publishing's line-up of popular syndicated comics.

The ArcaMax Funnies page ( http://www.arcamax.com/comics ) features 25 comic strips available by e-mail in "ezine" format with a free subscription. Other comics available include "Garfield," "Family Circus," and "B.C."

ArcaMax CEO Scott Wolf says that the growing Funnies page is "one of our most popular features. More and more people are reading their daily comics online, and very few places collect so many popular ones and make them easy to read all at once. A person could go in and read our comics directly from the Web site, or they can subscribe and have 'Garfield' right there first thing in the morning."

"Blondie," which has run since the 1920s, is one of the biggest additions to the ArcaMax Funnies in recent months. The comic strip, depicting what many consider the quintessential American family, has thousands of readers all over the world in various newspapers. Now, reading daily installments from the life of the Bumstead family is even easier, through either the ArcaMax Web site or an e-mail subscription.

Also joining the line-up are the classic syndicated comics "Beetle Bailey" and "Hagar the Horrible" and Nickelodeon's comic strip adaptation of their popular cartoon "Rugrats." Like the rest of the ArcaMax Funnies, these new comics are available every day by e-mail with a free subscription. Readers can also choose to subscribe to one or more New Yorker cartoon ezines, in categories including Pets and Office Humor.

The Funnies page includes several other features sure to help readers start their morning with a laugh. The free daily Jokes ezine delivers clean jokes and family-friendly humor every day by e-mail, including a section just for kids. And for those whose interest in comics extends beyond the newspaper, there is a New Comic Books ezine available every Friday, with a full list of new comic, anthology, and toy releases for fans of any genre.

Will the ArcaMax Funnies continue to grow? "We're always looking for more entertaining content for our readers," Wolf replies. "A year ago this time, we only had four or five comic strips available. We've more than quintupled that in a relatively short period, and we're always growing. Readers will like the things we're planning to add to the site."

Besides comic strips, ArcaMax offers several other free features, including an online classic book club, reader pet and baby photo galleries, and daily interactive crossword and sudoku puzzles. For more information or to sign up for the ArcaMax ezines, visit http://www.arcamax.com/cgi-bin/reg .