The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT), created by Kevin
Eastman and Peter Laird in 1984, debuted in an American
comic book. The TMNT are a group of four anthropomorphic
turtles, who, as one might infer from the name, are also
teenagers, mutants and ninja. The Turtles, each named
after one of their master's favorite Renaissance artists,
were Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michaelangelo.
The turtles were trained by a mutated rat, Master Splinter.The
original small-press black & white comic book was
successful enough to inspire a syndicated (and later Saturday
morning) cartoon, which catapulted the characters into
a nation-wide merchandising craze. The cartoon, while
obviously inspired by the comic book, diverged in almost
every way. While the comic was meant for an older audience,
the cartoon standard children's fare and typically avoided
overt human violence and any semblance of real conflict.
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