Hal Foster's classic strip Prince Valliant began in newspapers in 1937 and continues to this day with the help of his assistant, John Cullen Murphy, who took over the bulk of the work in 1971 and continued on his own after Foster's death in 1982. These deluxe, full-colour editions of Prince Valiant were intended to end with 2000's Volume 40, but by popular demand they now continue featuring the strips written with the assistance of Cullen Murphy, who has developed an extensive fan following for himself. Each oversized edition features close to 50 full-colour Sunday strips.