European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 21, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Daily Magazine by Carol Lawson new York times handsome he is not. His appearance i distinguished by owlish glasses a  Grin and a knit Cap topped with ared pomp Onnor is he a riveting conversationalist or a Titan of achievement he hardly Ever Speaks and does Little in Lile but wander around gelling lost in crowds and with a name like his he might seem even less Likely a candidate Lor lame and Fortune not so meet Waldo the newest Star of children s books Waldo is the Centrepiece of three books by Martin landlord. A reclusive 33-year-old British artist who described himself As not very successful before Waldo sprang from his pen in 1985 the books Are in print in 22 countries and the latest. The great Waldo search published in the United states last november by Little. Brown has been on the new York times Best seller list for several weeks 1 this has taken us by  said John g Keller vice president and publisher of children s books for Little Brown which has promoted the Book v n Waldo and his creator Martin Handford Grin cheerfully As Waldo books climb the beat seller lists. So Long Batman the hero for the 90s is Waldo mainly by giving 500 copies to booksellers ii a children s Book Sells 25,000 copies in a year we arc quite pleased we have sold 300.000 copies of the great Waldo search in three months " about 2 5 million Waldo books have been sold worldwide half of them in the United states they Are not yet available Al stars and stripes bookstores the books which Are Large lavishly illustrated and have Little text arc like games the object is to find Waldo plus a variety of objects As landlord s Antihero roams around the world and through tire a in his witty action packed drawing each Book   lists of often fanciful things that readers and players can Hunt Lor on each Page owners and managers of children s bookstores from new York to California Tell stories of Young Waldo enthusiasts who come in after school sit on the floor with the books and compete to see  can be first to find Waldo amid the hundreds of other characters on each brightly coloured Page the kids sit in a huddle and have a  said Pana Pastis. Manager of the san Marino toy and Book Shoppe in san Marino. Calif though the books were published Lor children youngsters Are not the Only ones searching Lor Waldo College students a a buying the Waldo books and adults bring them to parties As ice  Keller said amazingly kids always find Waldo the fastest " landlord works in his Home in Romford. Outside London while England sleeps i Wake up at 2 in the afternoon and work until 6 in the morning he said Over the Telephone from his Home which he described As very very Small a g onried Arl studio " a Large drawing table and other Art equipment occupy the bedroom the bed is in the living room Handford. Who likes to work while listening to audio tapes of Phil silvers As sergeant Bilko in the 1950s television show said the Waldo books arc essentially a continuation of Vork that has captivated him since to was a Young boy i have always done pictures of  he said miniature pictures with lots of activity usually with a sense of  he has been drawing since he was 5. When he would use stick figures to recreate scenes from action films Handford who grew up with his  Mother and spool a lot of time by himself As a cd id. A d to was a so fascinated by comic books and i Ultra cd historical  in the Waldo Booko. Each  a a  univer  a h h undred. Of Dothard figures no Lal or than an Inch of the Page when a do Isan Aport on to  hike in where s  the first of the books which was pub shed in 1987. The picture includes a forklift carry no a Gigantic Fork and an air Ane flying with feathered  in the second Book. Find Waldo now published in 198". A do journeys deep into history when he visits the building of the egyptian pyramids workers arc feeding a Sphinx a bowl of milk on a visit to the roman colosseum a hapless Gladiator finds himself next to a hungry lion read with a bib knife Salt and Pepper find Waldo vow also offers historical summaries filtered through the mind of Martin Handford an example at Home the Vikings were quiet people who liked knitting cheese tasting and Boring things like that but on tour they went wild " the great Waldo search the latest Book is Handford s most fanciful. Ii is a collection of Battles in a sea sky Forest Castle and Tunnel of his imagination among the clashes Are the ferocious red Darves against the Many coloured Spearman and the underground Hunters against malevolent Mons lors each of landlord s drawings takes about a month to finish i work in stages across the Page from left to right he said i Start out with a list of about 20 gags i want to put in a picture but More come to me As i am  originally. Landlord s character was named Wally the name was changed for american audiences in England. Handford said if someone says something silly or looks slightly foolish he is called a Wally he is a Little goofy but Well meaning " Keller of Little. Brown took an instant dislike to the name Wally he said. Ii reminded me of Wallis  for whom King Edward Viii gave up his throne Waldo made  happier that was not the Only name change Handford s character is known As Charlie in France and Ubaldo in Nlaly. For example other publishers chose their own nerd like names said Amelia Chadd promotions manager of Walker books Handford s London publisher. Handford is working on a Waldo acidity Book to in published late this year the next project will be Waldo s journey to Hollywood someday Handford said he might use his Waldo Windfall to buy a larger House but he is too Busy working to think about something As mundane As real estate so far. He added Success primarily has allowed him to upgrade his Art supplies and expand his comic Book collection i m a slave to my  said the artist whose most recent vacation was a weekend in Bath a year and a Hall ago i m obsessed with it. If i m not working on my pictures. I get very fidgety and bored my friends always Lell me to relax take it easy " but Handford added i feel really fortunate that something Ive done is making other people Happy it May sound like a cliche but that realization is one of the nicest things you can feel " the stars and stripes Page 13