Nothing Funny About This Comics Spat

In a legal battle over as many as 44 original "Peanuts" comic strips, the trust that controls Charles Schulz's strip has sued Mort Walker, creator of the strip "Beetle Bailey," and his International Museum of Cartoon Art, to regain strips that Schulz lent Walker in 1978.

The complaint alleges the strips were to be returned to Schulz when the museum no longer needed them. The Charles M. Schulz Trust also claims Walker and the museum broke an agreement by selling four original strips, an allegation the museum denies.

Walker founded the museum in Connecticut in 1974. It moved to New York and then to Boca Raton, Fla., where it closed in July of this year. The plaintiffs contend the museum no longer needs Schulz's strips because it closed, and the plaintiffs are concerned the museum will sell the strips to pay its debts.

Schulz trustee Ed Anderson said the trust wants to display the strips at the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, where Schulz made his home.

But Ken Seeger, an attorney for Walker and the museum, said his client still needs the strips because he's planning to re-open the cartoon art museum.

Lawyers on both sides said they hope to reach an agreement.

Over the years, Schulz lent Walker's museum 44 original works and donated more than $1 million, according to the lawsuit filed this week in San Francisco.

A written statement from Walker, who also created the strip "Hi and Lois," said he and his wife hoped a settlement could be reached, and referred to Schulz by his nickname.

"My wife Catherine and I are sadly disappointed that this lawsuit has been filed," the statement said. "Sparky Schulz was a longtime friend and a key supporter of the International Museum of Cartoon Art."