The Toy Book - 2016 NY TOY FAIR EDITION

INDUSTRY UPDATE
FANTOYSTIC FACTS:
STAR TREK CELEBRATES
50 YEARS
➢➢
Toy partners for this year include Mattel,
Spin Master, Wooden Expressions, and
USAopololy for board games.
➢➢The entire Star Trek franchise includes
six series: The Original Series, The Animated
Series, The Next Generation,
Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise,
totaling 726 episodes. Desilu
Productions, headed by Lucille Ball,
produced the original series.
➢➢
Stephen Hawking guest starred in an
episode of Star Trek, as himself, playing
a game of poker with Albert Einstein, Sir
Isaac Newton, and Data.
➢➢
An October 1967 TV Guide ad from RCA
cited Star Trek: The Original Series as
the reason to buy a color TV.
➢➢
There are more Star Trek websites than
U.S. government websites.
➢➢
NASA’s Space Shuttle Constitution had
its name changed to Enterprise, following
a letter-writing campaign from Star
Trek fans.
➢➢
After the first season, Nichelle Nichols
wanted to leave the show, but reconsidered
after a conversation with Martin
Luther King Jr., a big Star Trek fan.
➢➢
The first interracial kiss on U.S. television
was on Star Trek.
➢➢
When the original Star Trek became a
hit on TV, Leonard Nimoy’s dad,
who worked as a
barber, offered
customers a
Spock cut at
his barbershop.
➢➢
After Star Trek was
canceled, Nichelle
Nichols volunteered for a
special recruiting project at
NASA, where she recruited
America’s first female and
male black astronauts.
➢ ➢ Scientists from the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory wore Spock ears
while monitoring the Mariner V on
October 1967.
TOY STATE SIGNS FOR
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA
TURTLES VEHICLES
Toy State secured a licensing
partnership with Nickelodeon to design,
develop, and manufacture lines of toy vehicles
featuring the Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles entertainment brand. The threeyear
deal will allow Toy State to create
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles-themed
lights and sound, preschool, and R/C
vehicles. Product will be available at
major retailers later this year.
Toy State recently added Barbie and
NASCAR to its licensing portfolio, joining the
company’s flagship Road Rippers and Nikko
brands, as well as lines featuring leading
licensed properties including Hot Wheels,
Caterpillar, WWE, Thomas & Friends, and DC
Super Friends in its brand lineup. »
DCP, BANDAI AMERICA
LAUNCH FINDING DORY
PRODUCT LINE
Disney Consumer Products (DCP) and
Bandai America unveiled the global product
lineup for Disney•Pixar’s Finding Dory, debuting
in the U.S. on June 17.
With recognizable sounds and voices
from Dory, Marlin, and Nemo, Bandai America’s
products capture the essence of the film
and transform key moments into play sets,
interactive toys, feature figures, plush, and
bath toys. Highlights include a My Friend
Dory interactive soft figure and Swigglefish
figure. The merchandise will roll out globally
starting in May. »
Air Hogs Star Trek
Enterprise, from Spin Master
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Party Van, from Toy State
PILLOW PETS, DCP SIGN
SHARK WEEK LICENSING
AGREEMENT
CJ Products, creators of Pillow Pets
foldable plush, partnered with Discovery
Consumer Products (DCP), the licensing arm
of Discovery Communications, for the Shark
Week Pillow Pet.
Shark Week Pillow Pets feature realistic
attributes and are surface washable. They will
be available in May for merchandising.
Discovery Channel’s Shark Week is TV’s
longest running summer event, and Shark
Week last year was the highest-rated Shark
Week in the event’s 28 year history in prime
time TV. »
SPIN MASTER EXPANDS
GAMES PORTFOLIO
Spin Master Corp. entered an agreement
to purchase the library of board games
from Editrice Giochi SRL, one of the oldest
privately held toy companies in Italy. The
sale includes the Editrice Giochi brand. The
acquisition enables Spin Master to expand its
selection of games and licensed products in
the Italian market with games such as Risiko,
Italy’s most popular strategic game, and
Scarabeo, the leading word game in Italy. The
acquisition also complements Spin Master’s
recent acquisition of Cardinal Games.
The parties expect to complete the transaction
in early February. »
STAY CONNECTED!
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34 THE TOY BOOK | FEBRUARY 2016 | TOYBOOK.COM