Dover looks to mark Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles birthplace. Here's where project stands.

DOVER — One of the city’s hidden pieces of history is being the birthplace of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," the internationally famous comic turned TV cartoon and movie franchise. Coincidently, the turtles are celebrating their 40th birthday as Dover celebrates its 400th.

Mirage Studios was formed in 1983 at 28 Union St., where Kevin Eastman began illustrations with his roommate and co-creator Peter Laird. The house has since been taken down, but the location remains the historical roots of the beloved characters named after Italian Renaissance artists Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo.

Years later, James Lane, a resident of Eastman’s and Laird’s former neighborhood in Dover, was inspired to commemorate the site.

“I would walk my dog past it and wish there was a historical marker … something memorializing the spot,” said Lane. “And after a while, I decided to be the guy to make that happen.”

Lane has been working for a few years now to get the project approved with hopes to complete fundraising and install it this spring, seeking to link up Dover’s 400th anniversary and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' 40th. The Dover 400th committee is helping promote the TMNT project.

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Eastman to design Dover's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles marker

Lane's original idea for the marker was for it to be placed on the maintenance hole located on the street outside the former Mirage Studios. It served as a symbol of the entrance to the turtles’ underground lair in city sewers, as portrayed in the comics.

However, the Dover City Council agreed having pedestrians viewing the marker in the middle of the street could cause potential safety risks. So plans now call for a man-made maintenance hole to be constructed and placed on the sidewalk of the street.

Lane said Eastman agreed to design the marker.

“He's been super supportive and has talked up this project in a bunch of places,” said Lane.

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How much money is still needed for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles marker?

Now that the project has been approved, the last step of the process is fundraising. The money is being raised by Lane and then donated to the city.

Lane’s fundraiser on Indiegogo launched a few weeks ago, and has 40 days left to reach the goal of $13,000. More than $5,000 has been donated so far from more than 100 donors at tmntdover.com.

Any excess money raised would be donated to the Seacoast Science Center in Rye, Turtle Rescue League in Southbridge, Massachusetts, and the Turtle Conservancy in California, according to Lane.

Lane said Jetpack Comics & Games, owned by Ralph DiBernardo in Rochester, has provided “tremendous support” for the project.

According to Lane, Jetpack Comics bolstered Eastman’s and Laird’s vision from the beginning, helping them sell the first copies of the comics.

“Today they're probably the world's foremost expert on TMNT,” Lane said.

DiBernardo has supported Lane by donating pledge premiums for the fundraiser, including limited-edition TMNT comics, some signed by Mirage Studios artists and Laird’s original, hand-drawn art, according to the fundraising page.

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Dover and New Hampshire plan highway marker, too

In addition to Lane’s project, the Dover Arts Commission, the city’s Planning Department, the New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources and the Department of Transportation are collaborating to create a highway marker where Union Street and Central Avenue intersect at state routes 9 and 108. The sign will commemorate Dover as the birthplace of the comics, according to Brian Early, a spokesperson for the city.

The highway marker will include general information about the marker planned outside 28 Union St.

When asked how it feels to finally have the project nearing completion, Lane was reminded of when he met Eastman and Laird as a kid in 1988.

“Fourteen-year-old me would be very proud of what I'm doing,” he said.

This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: Dover NH looks to mark Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles birthplace