McCay had become frustrated with the "Herald", partly over money issues and partly because he perceived a lack of freedom. He accepted a higher-paying offer in spring 1911 from Hearst at the "New York American" and took "Little Nemo"s characters with him. The "Herald" held the strip's copyright, but McCay won a lawsuit that allowed him to continue using the characters, which he did under the title "In the Land of Wonderful Dreams". The "Herald" was unsuccessful in finding another cartoonist to continue the original strip.