Beatles Cartoon Surfaces As Book

The Beatles' psychedelic cartoon "The Yellow Submarine" is being adapted for a children's book, the group's record label said Monday.

Apple Corps Ltd. said it had joined with Walker Books to create the book, which is expected to arrive in stores in September -- 36 years after the original animated feature film was released.

The book was inspired by the success of the release in 1999 of a digitally restored DVD version of the 1968 cult classic.

"'The Yellow Submarine' was made as a psychedelic film in the sixties, but it has had a timeless appeal, particularly for children, over the last four decades," Apple Corps. said.

The film followed the release of the "The Yellow Submarine" single in 1966, which was a hit in Britain, Australia, Canada, Germany, Holland, Norway, New Zealand and Sweden.

It was translated into many languages, including Yiddish and Latin, and was taken up as an anti-war anthem by American activists opposing the war in Vietnam.