Launched in September 1997 with The Adventures of Captain Underpants, the Captain Underpants series has more than 50 million books in print in North America. The Captain Underpants book series tells the story of two mischievous kids, George Beard and Harold Hutchins, who hypnotize their school principal and turn him into their comic book creation, Captain Underpants. Dav Pilkey's three most recent Captain Underpants novels, Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People (August 2006), Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 1: The Night of the Nasty Nostril Nuggets (August 2003), and Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 2: The Revenge of the Ridiculous Robo-Boogers (September 2003), each debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. The Captain Underpants books are published in 19 languages. In October 2011, DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. announced that the studio had obtained the rights to Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants book series, with plans to pursue a feature film adaptation for the big screen. DreamWorks Animation development executive Damon Ross is overseeing the project at the studio.
When Dav Pilkey was a kid, he was diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia. Dav was so disruptive in class that his teachers made him sit out in the hallway every day. Luckily, Dav loved to draw and make up stories. He spent his time in the hallway creating his own original comic books–the very first adventures of Dog Man and Captain Underpants. In college, Dav met a teacher who encouraged him to illustrate and write. He won a national competition in 1986 and the prize was the publication of his first book, World War Won. He made many other books before being awarded the 1998 California Young Reader Medal for Dog Breath, which was published in 1994, and in 1997 he won the Caldecott Honor for The Paperboy. The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby, published in 2002, was the first complete graphic novel spin-off from the Captain Underpants series and appeared at #6 on the USA Today bestseller list for all books, both adult and children’s, and was also a New York Times bestseller. It was followed by The Adventures of Ook and Gluk: Kung Fu Cavemen from the Future and Super Diaper Baby 2: The Invasion of the Potty Snatchers, both USA Today bestsellers. The unconventional style of these graphic novels is intended to encourage uninhibited creativity in kids. His stories are semi-autobiographical and explore universal themes that celebrate friendship, tolerance, and the triumph of the good-hearted. Dav loves to kayak in the Pacific Northwest with his wife.