Dogpatch Press

Headlines, links and little stories to make your tail wag.  Tips: patch.ofurr@gmail.com. Thanks to Dronon for editing help!

Furry Media Events have never been so frequent!

Big stories come in clusters.  A blog reports something, more blogs catch on, and the story trades up to syndicated news. In Furry fandom, that used to happen maybe once a year… and that could be predictable stories about Anthrocon.

Dogpatch Press is only 2 years old, but there’s been a noticeable spike. There was the chlorine attack at MFF. #TonyTigerGate hit the “weird news” section. Not 6 weeks later, there’s THREE in the same week – Zootopia marketing to Furries; Syrian refugees at VancouFur; and notices for the Fursonas documentary.

It’s so much that you get two Newsdumps this week.  Soon: “all the controversy in the media”.  The pace makes it hard to keep up with the Year Of Furry!

Zootopia marketing to Furries – (Look for another article about this soon.)

It blew up with a Buzzfeed column full of fetish-snark: Proof Disney Is Actually Marketing “Zootopia” To Furries.

• Zootopia on WikiFur: Media notice and controversy about marketing to furries.
• Is Disney Marketing New Movie ‘Zootopia’ to Furries? (Inquisitr)
• Disney Seems to Be Embracing Its “Furry” Fan Base (Vanity Fair)
• Disney’s ‘Zootopia’ and furries: a match made in marketing heaven? (The Oregonian)
• Is Disney targeting its Zootopia marketing strategy toward Furries? (National Post; Canada’s right-wing newspaper)
• How The Marketing Of ‘Zootopia’ Won Big By Getting Weird (Forbes; disable ad-blockers)
• Disney is marketing ‘Zootopia’ to furries because it would be crazy not to (The Daily Dot)

How Disney Influenced Furry Fandom – (Look for another article about this soon, too.)

Furry artist Joe Rosales posted a retrospective about how Disney influenced the Californian side of Furry Fandom in its formative years, including early fursuiting.

(Patch comments:)  Good, but it doesn’t give enough credit for sci fi fandom, and misses early fursuiters like Robert Hill who were not professional (and not G-rated, either.)  The unnamed animator must be Shawn Keller, maker of the notorious Furry Fans flash animation and comic… if he didn’t want to be named, he shouldn’t have published “Shawn Keller’s Horrifying Look at The Furries.”

(Dronon comments:) Not only Robert Hill, also Ed Kline. Unnamed animator is undoubtedly Shawn Keller, he was the first fandom fursuiter. Skunk was not his first suit; that was actually Chip and Dale – one suit, but easy to change the costume to be one or the other because they looked so much alike. I heard a rumor from Robert King that an anatomically-correct canine fursuit wandering openly at CF6 or 7 (which I saw) might have also been Keller to deliberately piss people off, just a few years before his attack comics and flash animations. Rosales also skips over the huge influence of the Disney weekday afternoon cartoons in the late 80s through the mid-90s, plus The Lion King movie in 1994. That was a gigantic thing in the fandom. A number of animators were briefly in Vootie and Rowrbrazzle, usually just a page or two here and there. Tim Fay can rattle off a whole bunch of names.

Rod O’Riley preparing another “Art of Furry Fandom” gallery show in Southern California.

Rod is one of the founders of furry fandom, and co-host of the Prancing Skiltaire meet. Previous shows were written up for Flayrah.

Once again we are hosting an Art of Furry Fandom display at a Gallery in Santa Ana (CA) through the month of May. We are seeking out framed art to show, but we need to receive it by the middle of April. If you’re interested, we would love to have you be a part of this! Please let me know if you can.

Syrian refugees meet fursuiters at Vancoufur.

Vancoufur’s 5th convention happened over March 3-6, 2016 and got some local media coverage.  But what really attracted international attention was this:

• These Images Show What Happens When Furries Welcome Syrian Refugees With Open Paws (News.Mic)
• Syrian refugees in Canada got housed in same hotel as VancouFur furry convention and the children loved it (The Independent)
• Syrian refugee children dance with furries after being placed in same hotel as VancouFur convention (New York Daily News)
• A Furry Convention Welcomed Syrian Refugee Families to Canada (Vice)
• Syrian children met a load of furries in a hotel and it was brilliant (Metro, UK)
• VancouFur Bear Hugs Syrian Refugees (The Australian Huffington Post)
• Migrants Settled in Hotel Hosting Furry Convention (Breitbart)
• Syrian refugees greeted with furry culture shock at VancouFur convention in Canada (International Business Times)
• Syrian refugees placed in hotel hosting a furry convention (BoingBoing)
• Awww! Furry Conference-Goers Comfort Syrian Child Refugees (Unicorn Booty)
• Conspicuously absent – the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Kyell Gold summarizes the fandom in Uncanny Magazine.

If you’re looking for a way to introduce the fandom to people who are fans of science-fiction and fantasy, furry novelist Kyell Gold has written an excellent description of some of the basics.

Tempe O’Kun reports from Brazil.

Abando, Brazil’s first furry convention, will not be continuing. Still, there’s a nice little con report by Tempe O’Kun.  To replace Abando, the organizers of the local bowling meet intend to start a new convention called Brasil FurFest.

Disney’s DuckTales will be coming back!

We have our first look at an image made for the revival of Disney’s DuckTales cartoon, which should be premiering in 2017!

This Tiger. Put together just in time for Texas Furry Fiesta: 

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=734145453389318&set=a.177217459082123.44536.100003816100829&type=3

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AMAZING FURRY NEWS COMING SOON – Obama Declares National Furry Day In #7!

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