Charlie Brown, Garfield and other longtime favorite cartoon stars will soon be sharing space in North American newspapers with doe-eyed women in frilly outfits, effeminate long-haired heroes and cute fuzzy animals.
Come January, "manga" comics -- one of Japan's most successful exports -- will start appearing in the Sunday funnies section in several major papers in the U.S. and Canada.
The reason? Newspaper editors want to attract more young readers. A study released earlier this year by the Carnegie Corporation put the average age of U.S. newspaper readers at 53 and climbing -- hardly a recipe for circulation growth.