CELEBRATE THE 40^TH ANNIVERSARY OF POP ICON HELLO KITTY^® WITH HELLO KITTY, HELLO 40 — NEW FROM VIZ MEDIA’S PERFECT SQUARE

A Vanguard Of Comic Artists, Muralists, Toy Creators And Authors Pay Homage To The Global Icon In A Special Release; Also Catch Perfect Square At The First-Ever Hello Kitty Con In Los Angeles

San Francisco, CA, October 20, 2014 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, joins the global celebration to mark the 40^th Anniversary of global pop icon Hello Kitty^® with the release of HELLO KITTY, HELLO 40, available now.

The hardcover full-color anthology features a notable line-up of some of Hello Kitty’s biggest fans paying tribute in the best way they know how: through their stories and art. HELLO KITTY, HELLO 40 is published under VIZ Media’s Perfect Square imprint, and carries an MSRP of $29.99 U.S. / $34.99 CAN.

A digital version of HELLO KITTY, HELLO 40 is also available for $14.99 U.S. / CAN from the Perfect Square App, which has titles available for the Apple iPad^® and iPad^® Mini. The Perfect Square App is available from the iTunes store. Fans also will be able to find digital versions for the NOOK, Kindle Fire, and Kobo eReaders, as well as in the iBooks and GooglePlay Stores.

VIZ Media will also take part in the very first Hello Kitty convention. Hello Kitty Con 2014 will take place in Los Angeles October 30^th – November 2^nd at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) in Downtown LA's Little Tokyo district. VIZ Media's Perfect Square booth will offer a convention exclusive edition of HELLO KITTY, HELLO 40 along with a variety of other HELLO KITTY original graphic novel titles for purchase. Additional information on Hello Kitty Con is available at: www.sanrio.com/hellokittycon.

In 1974, Hello Kitty stepped on the scene, and she's had the world wrapped around her red bow ever since. In Perfect Square's Hello Kitty, Hello 40, an array of acclaimed comic artists, muralists and toy creators pay tribute to Hello Kitty in story and art.  Contributors include the award-winning creators of the Tiny Titans series, Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani; Brian Smith, co-creator of the New York Times bestselling series Stuff of Legend; Gene Luen Yang, award-winning author of American Born Chinese and Boxers and Saints, and Uglydoll co-creator David Horvath. Everyone has a tale to tell about the cute little girl who speaks from her heart. The hardcover edition will also include a special introduction by Matt and Jennifer L. Holm, award-winning creators of the Babymouse series.

“Hello Kitty has inspired and influenced artists the world over, and we've invited some of them to pay tribute and share their Hello Kitty memories," says Traci Todd, Perfect Square’s Senior Editor. “This anthology of wordless comics is truly for Hello Kitty fans of all ages. You'll recognize many of the artists from our main Hello Kitty series, and others from the worlds of comics, pop culture and children's literature. It's our small gift to Hello Kitty for 40 years of big smiles!"

Perfect Square publishes an acclaimed collection of HELLO KITTY original graphic novels including, HELLO KITTY: WORK OF ART, HELLO KITTY: JUST IMAGINE, HELLO KITTY: HERE WE GO!, HELLO KITTY: DELICIOUS!, and HELLO KITTY: SURPRISE! These books will be featured as part of the first ever Hello Kitty Reading Day on October 25th. Hello Kitty Reading Day is a multi-publisher event with programming at bookstores and libraries across the country. See http://www.sanrio.com/hellokittyreading for more information.

Sanrio^® is the global company behind classic iconic characters Hello Kitty^®, Little Twin Stars^®, My Melody^®, and many more. Sanrio^® was founded in the 1960's in Japan by Shintaro Tsuji, whose simple dream of bringing smiles to people's faces grew into the brand's "small gift, big smile" philosophy. This philosophy has served as the inspiration for the broad spectrum of products bearing the likeness of endearing characters that have helped to skyrocket the brand into a $8 billion-a-year business.

VIZ Media’s Perfect Square imprint focuses on delivering original pop culture books with an emphasis on strong storytelling, eye-popping graphics, empowering themes, and a dash of irreverence that captures the imagination of a whole new generation.

Additional information on HELLO KITTY and other titles published by Perfect Square is available at www.PerfectSquare.com.

For more information on manga titles from VIZ Media, please visit www.VIZ.com.

About VIZ Media, LLC

Headquartered in San Francisco, California, VIZ Media distributes, markets and licenses the best anime and manga titles direct from Japan.  Owned by three of Japan's largest manga and animation companies, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media has the most extensive library of anime and manga for English speaking audiences in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. With its popular digital manga anthology WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP and blockbuster properties like NARUTO, BLEACH and INUYASHA, VIZ Media offers cutting-edge action, romance and family friendly properties for anime, manga, science fiction and fantasy fans of all ages.  VIZ Media properties are available as graphic novels, DVDs, animated television series, feature films, downloadable and streaming video and a variety of consumer products.  Learn more about VIZ Media, anime and manga at www.VIZ.com.

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HELLO KITTY © 1976, 2014 SANRIO CO. LTD. Used under license.