DATE: Monday, March 3, 1997                 TAG: 9703010131

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NEW COMIC STRIP "JUMPSTART" CARTOONIST USES LIFE AS INSPIRATION

``JUMPSTART,'' a comic strip about Joe and Marcy, a young, two-career married couple, begins today in The Virginian-Pilot.

The strip was created in 1988 by Philadelphian Robb Armstrong. It appears in more than 250 newspapers around the country.

Armstrong, 34, says he bases the strip on people he knows and on his own life experiences.

Main character Marcy, for example, is modeled on Armstrong's wife, Sherry. ``Because I had to study my wife's every nuance to write for Marcy, I fell in love with Sherry all over again,'' Armstrong says.

``JumpStart'' will appear in both daily and Sunday editions of The Pilot. It replaces ``Mixed Media,'' which fared poorly in the most recent reader survey.

To comment on ``JumpStart'' or any other comic strip, call Infoline at 640-5555 and press 4242 (HAHA). ILLUSTRATION: Color illustration by United Feature Syndicate

"JumpStart," a strip about a young, married working couple, begins

today on Page E6.

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