If you grew up during the 1980s or 1990s, there’s a good chance you enjoyed reading comic books, watching animated series, or playing video games featuring four martial arts-trained reptiles known as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Named after prominent European Renaissance artists—Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Donatello—each turtle had a unique personality and specialized in a particular type of weapon. Despite their differences, they shared a common love for justice, fighting evil, and adhering to the guidance of their mentor, Splinter, as well as a passion for pizza. The success of these legendary characters necessitated tracing their origins, understanding their creators, and exploring how they evolved into global icons, which is the focus of this article.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were the brainchild of two struggling artists, Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, living in Northampton, Massachusetts. In November 1983, they began creating these characters as a joke. Eastman drew a turtle standing on its hind legs, wearing a mask, and wielding nunchucks. He labeled the drawing “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” and, after a chuckle, proceeded to draw a more refined version of the turtle. Soon, he created four turtles, each armed with a different weapon used by ninjas, and added the phrase “Teenage Mutant” below “Ninja Turtles.” The original drawings of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were later auctioned for $71,700 in 2012.

After finalizing the drawings, Peter Laird joined Eastman, and the duo began laying the groundwork for the Ninja Turtles’ characters to create a comic book. They initially considered Japanese names but eventually chose names of Renaissance artists—Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo. Notably, the creation of these heroes was influenced by Marvel’s Daredevil, where the protagonist Matt Murdock gains superpowers after a radioactive substance impacts him. Similarly, the turtles were exposed to radioactive waste, which transformed them into human-sized heroes, guided by Splinter, who discovered them in the waste.

In March 1984, Eastman and Laird established Mirage Studios, borrowing $1,300 from Eastman’s uncle to print 3,000 copies of their first comic book, titled “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.” After printing costs, they had just enough to place an ad in a comic book magazine, which led distributors across the country to contact them. They sold the initial 3,000 copies within a few weeks and printed another 6,000 copies, which sold easily. By May, they had earned enough to repay the loan and divide a profit of approximately $200 each (the first edition of the comic was originally sold for $1.50 and can now cost between $2,500 and $4,000).

By January 1985, the second issue of the series was completed, and they received orders for 15,000 copies. The success led to demands for reprints of the first issue and increased prints of the second issue, totaling 50,000 copies. Sales continued to rise, peaking with issue #8, which sold 135,000 copies due to the introduction of new characters. Initially, the early issues were not intended for children due to their violent content. When Playmates Toys expressed interest in producing toys and merchandise in 1986, they required a reduction in violence to suit the target age group of 4 to 8 years. Additionally, the animated series needed to pass TV censorship. Despite their frustration with these changes, the creators complied, leading to the production of approximately 400 Ninja Turtles figures and dozens of vehicles. In the first four years of their popularity, they generated $1.1 billion in sales, making them the third highest-selling toy characters at the time, behind G.I. Joe and Star Wars.

The changes also included the turtles becoming pizza enthusiasts, the villain Shredder adopting a comedic touch, and replacing some phrases with more child-friendly ones like “Cowabunga.” One notable change was their appearance in the comics: originally depicted in black and white, the turtles were distinguished by their weapons and colors in the animated series, with blue for Leonardo, orange for Michelangelo, red for Raphael, and purple for Donatello. The animated series, which first aired in December 1987, garnered significant viewer interest and continued until 1996 with 188 episodes. After a hiatus, a new animated series produced by 4Kids Entertainment aired from 2003 to 2009, with Peter Laird actively involved following his acquisition of Eastman’s share in 2000, bringing the series closer to the original comics.

In cinema, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles made their live-action debut in 1990 with a film that had a budget of $13.5 million and grossed over $200 million worldwide. The film used advanced special effects techniques to bring the turtles to life, including control sticks for their eyes and electronic gloves for their jaws. Due to the success of the first film, two more sequels were produced in 1991 and 1993, earning $78 million and $42 million, respectively. A 2007 animated film with a $34 million budget earned $95 million at the box office. In 2014, the turtles returned in a live-action film directed by Jonathan Liebesman and produced by Michael Bay. The production faced challenges, including initial statements in 2012 about the turtles being extraterrestrials, which displeased fans and led to a script rewrite to satisfy them. Filming began in April 2013 with Megan Fox as April O’Neil and William Fichtner as Shredder, receiving mixed reviews due to the turtles’ larger appearance compared to previous versions.

Despite their successes, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles faced several obstacles, including a lawsuit by Eastman and Laird for $5 million from Buffalo Bob Smith, host of Howdy Doody Show, who claimed they stole the “Cowabunga” chant from his show. After months of legal disputes, the matter was settled for $50,000. Additionally, while the 1988 animated series was relatively harmless, many scenes were removed in the UK and most of Europe due to stricter censorship, including scenes with excessive weapon use and the alteration of the word “ninja” in the title. Another issue arose in 1990 when around 250,000 turtles were imported to Britain as pets, but many were abandoned in rivers and ponds, causing environmental damage. This led to the European Union banning the sale of the species in 1997.