Cleveland, OH - (March 9, 2009) - No one appreciates the beloved comic strip character, Ziggy, more than his creator, Tom Wilson . Besides the years of entertainment he’s provided for millions of readers, Ziggy’s trademark wisdom has helped his cartoonist through some of the most traumatic periods of his life. In Zig-zagging: Loving Madly, Losing Badly – How Ziggy Saved My Life (HCI Books - $17.95), Wilson takes us along with Ziggy, through two tremendous losses, that of his father, the original comic strip cartoonist and his soul mate/wife, Susan .

In this new memoir, we have the opportunity to peek behind the scenes of an animated American icon. Rarely, do we get to know the person who thinks up and drafts a cartoon strip and discover how much of him is actually imbued in the character. Equally fascinating is witnessing the life of Ziggy from his inception at Tom Wilson, Sr.’s pen, to his current home on his son’s drafting table. Tom literally grew up with Ziggy yet probably was unaware of the inspirational role he would play in his personal life.

Through the occasional appearance of Ziggy cartoons across the pages, the book deftly treats us to “comic relief” along Wilson ’s sometimes sad road. Susan, who died of cancer, was everything to Tom and losing her threw him into deep despair. Although humorous, Ziggy’s messages provide concentrated doses of healing wisdom.

Like Ziggy, Tom turns tragedy into a learning experience so he can move forward in his life with his two sons. Fans of the cartoon will be happy to learn that their illustrator’s outlook on life is in sync with his very own Ziggy.

Zig-zagging is truly an intersection of lives, love and loss throughout a cartoonist’s artful life journey.

Ziggy first appeared in newspapers in June 1971. Tom Wilson has drawn and written Ziggy since 1987, after the retirement of his father, the senior Tom Wilson, who first created Ziggy as a greeting card character. Now distributed through Universal Press Syndicate, a division of Andrews McMeel Universal, Ziggy is published in more than 600 newspapers, reaching 75 million readers daily, and maintains an online presence through www.Ziggyzone.com and www.uclick.com.

Video of Tom Wilson discussing the new book is available by clicking here.

Publishing Contact:
Kim Weiss, Director of Communications, HCI Books, T: (800) 851-9100 x 212; KimW@hcibooks.com

Ziggy & Freinds, Inc. Contact:
Greg Walsh, Walsh Public Relations, T: 203-292-6280; greg@walshpr.com