Nude 'Ulysses' too rude for Apple
The offending comic strip 'Ulysses Seen'. Apple took exception to a number of images contained in the strip, including a woman with exposed breasts. 'Ulysses', the novel by James Joyce on which the strip is based, was similarly censored on publication.
A COMIC book version of James Joyce's 'Ulysses' has fallen foul of Apple after the computer giant ruled some images too rude for its iPad.
Publishers of the lavishly illustrated 'Ulysses Seen' have been ordered to remove all nudity before it can be downloaded as an app via Apple's online store.
The move comes more than 75 years after an obscenity ban on the classic Irish novel was lifted in a historic ruling by the US appeals court.
Illustrator Robert Berry, who helped produce the comic strip for US publisher Throwaway Horse, said Apple objected to a number of images, including a woman with exposed breasts. "We had to lose all of her body and just tighten in on her face. It is rather disappointing," he said.
"Apple has strict guidelines and a rating system to prevent adult content. Their highest mature content rating is 17+, which doesn't seem to be a problem since no one reads 'Ulysses' at 16 anyway.
"But their guidelines also mean no nudity whatsoever, which is something we never planned for. So we were forced to either scrap the idea of moving to the iPad or re-design our pages."
Mr Berry and Josh Levitas, the company's production director, hoped the comic would be used as a learning tool for college students and that fans of Joyce would download it from iTunes, where it is available free.
Offending
Mr Berry said an uncensored version is on the website ulyssesseen.com and claimed he was happy to change the offending images, saying of Apple: "It's their rules. We're coming to their dinner party at their house."
Rated 17+ by Apple, 'Ulysses Seen' is currently only available on the US iTunes store.
- Eddie Fitzmaurice
Irish Independent
