Mr. Clean

This is the start of (what I hope to be) a weekly spotlight on a cool toy from my vast collection.  It might be something odd, rare, supercool, or just whatever I happen to have loaded onto my camera..

Today’s falls under the ‘odd’ category, and while I don’t think anyone would have purchased this item for a child, there certainly isn’t enough merchandise out there related to advertising characters! (a lot of what’s out there was never actually released for sale, and gifted to employees, given away through mail-in offers, etc. which makes most advertising characters worth a lot)

Mr. Clean debuted in 1958 and within six months his product became the best-selling household cleaner on the market.  He is now known worldwide for his cleaning products, so when looking for something to spotlight, this was obviously my first choice.

Manufactured in 2000 by The Noveltoy company.  Mr. Clean was limited to only 100,000 pieces produced (and is numbered on the front of the box)  Sadly it looks like the company went out of business before they could produce any other cool Mr. Clean merchandise.

Fun Fact: Mr. Clean’s first name is Veritably (which was chosen as the winner of a 1962 “Name Mr. Clean” Contest)

Mr. Clean gets rid of dirt and grime
And grease in just a minute
Mr. Clean will clean your whole house
And everything that’s in it

Mr. Clean Action Figure by Noveltoy.  Produced in 2000.  Limited Edition 03061 of 100,000 UPC 814047001599

iddy biddy steps for a greener world

This is part of a series of posts related to my recent trip to the American International Toy Fair in New York City.

I’ll admit I knew about these before Toy Fair.  My mom has the whole set.  But the people at the booth were some of the friendliest at the show, so they’re worth talking about!

Idbids are “Green Toys.  Each plush is made from 100% organic cotton colored with all natural dyes.  They promote being kind to the earth and taking “iddy biddy steps” which make “a biggie big difference” in saving the earth.

The three plush (Scout the Cloud, Lola the Flower, or Waverly the Raindrop) can be purchased separately or in an “Eco-Friendly Starter Kit” that includes an organic cotton backpack, field guide (which includes 10 iddy biddy steps kids can complete), color storybook, and access to the online portion where kids can receive a certificate of achievement when they complete their iddy biddy steps, as well as choosing which of three charities to help out.

They’re a great gift idea!  And they help the earth too!  It’s the only one we’ve got!  Check them out at Idbids.com!

Tags: Green Toys, idbids, lola, scout, Toy Fair 2009, waverly

Jackson Hole

This is part of a series of posts related to my recent trip to the American International Toy Fair in New York City.

Ok, so this post isn’t about toys, it’s my blog, I can do what I want..
One day this year we skipped the usual hot dog vendor and a friend suggested Jackson Hole.  I hadn’t heard of it either..

Literally a “hole”, a tiny restaurant a little bigger than my bedroom where the tables are basically next to each other.  Don’t let that fool you.  They always say good things come in small packages, this is no exception.

From breakfast to burgers to a full line of desserts, they’ve got it all, and each is even better than the last.  if you’re in the city (they have six locations) definitely look them up!

http://www.jacksonholeburgers.com

and put a quarter in the jukebox for me!

Tags: Jackson Hole, Lunch, New York City, Toy Fair 2009

The Circle of Life

This is part of a series of posts related to my recent trip to the American International Toy Fair in New York City.

But the sun rolling high;  Through the sapphire sky;  Keeps great and small on the endless round…   *ahem*

They’re friends, and they eat each other! It’s a complicated relationship..

Meet Food Chain Friends

Created by Pintsize Productions, Each of these adorable plush has it’s own species name and backstory, as well as conveniently fitting in the stomach of the one a size bigger!

Pictured above is the “Alpha Series” (which you can purchase as the set of five or in smaller sets of two or three)

“The Fraaky, the tiniest creature of the Daro prairie, scurries to and fro, bonking into things and feasting on dust too small to see with the naked eye. His best friend and main predator is Skitter, with whom he loves to play a great game of tag. The Skitter is similar to the Earth rabbit in size. He likes to hop to great heights, but often bops his head on low hanging branches. His large ears allow him to hear things miles away. His favorite pal is the Sleeth, with whom he likes to play hide-and-seek. The Sleeth is a slug, snake like creature that slithers through the tall Daro grass. He loves to play games and can often be seen chasing his own tail! He eats anything in sight, especially the Fraaky! The Herkin is the furriest creature on Daro. He likes to roll around in the prairie grass to cool off on a hot summer day. He plays hopscotch with the Skitter on lazy days. And the Skitter is tasty too! The Lankum is a slow creature, but his tongue is fast and he loves to talk! The Lankum is shy and embarrassed by his appearance. He shares much more than a meal with the Herkin!”

Also available is the “Beta Series” (in a set of five or smaller sets of two and three)

“The Zezzel is the tiniest and most active creature in the Daro Forest. His favorite food is the moss of the Floober trees where he also takes cover inside the bark. The Skoodle looks very much like an earth snail. However, his shell is not completely hard, thus exposing his body through swiss-cheese like holes! He snacks on the bark of the Floober tree where he occasionally finds a delicious treat, the Zezzel! The Fergel is a lot like the Earth squirrel, but he has a very large mouth! He jumps among the Floober trees staying a step ahead of the Vextie! His favorite snack is his pal, the Skoodle. The Vextie is the fastest and sneakiest creature in the Daro Forest. He is reminiscent of an Earth lizard. He enjoys snacking on moss and Fergels and Skoodles and an occasional Zezzel! But he scatters when he sees a Frokol! The Frokol is a jolly creature, but rather dull. He loves to hear himself talk and rarely notices when someone creeps away from the conversation. He has vacuum-like lungs that can suck the bark off the Floober tree and little creatures, too!”

The depth and storyline behind each of these characters goes far deeper, all while teaching children science!

Be on the lookout for my personal favourite, the “Gamma Series”, available soon!

Tags: Food Chain Friends, Pintsize Productions, Plush, Toy Fair 2009

Random Has a New Name!

This is the first in a series of posts related to my most recent trip to the American International Toy Fair in New York City.

Quelf by Imagination Games is described as a new definition of random. Players take turns moving around the board choosing various cards such as “Roolz”, “Stuntz”, or “Scatter Brainz” and following the (totally random) instructions on them.

One card will have you singing songs of the sea while splashing water on your face, while another will ask you to name as many different things that give you a rash as you can possibly think of. Choose not to do a stunt, or fail, and pay a penalty (always moving back spaces, sometimes involving standing in a corner or wearing tin foil on your arm)

The absolute random nature of the cards makes for a unique and exciting experience every time you play!

They sucked me in with a giant Super Ninja Monkey and a Platypus

and the premise of winning a free copy just for volunteering to play a short game on a makeshift stage. Always ready to make a total fool of myself, I agreed.

My first task was to sing a childhood song (We went with Row Row Row your Boat) with my teeth clenched and while patting my head. (there is not, nor will there ever be, video =P) While my opponent was asked to name a word that sounded like Third, that rhymed with Bird, that could be Heard. (she came up with Curd..) I was then tasked with touching my tongue to my nose which is a lot harder than it sounds! My lacking a sense of humor opponent was asked to name the seven continents, of which she could only name three. And with that I was deemed winner! I’m hoping to round up a bunch of friends soon to play the full game, and I’m certain we’ll all have a blast!

If you’re looking for a party game and like Apples to Apples, Cranium, Zobmondo, or just really having a good time, Quelf is the game for you!

Tags: Board Games, Imagination Games, Quelf, Toy Fair 2009

I buy cereal based on the prize inside

Disney has partnered with Kellogg’s again to provide a set of twelve “mini-pals” plush featuring favorite Disney and Pixar characters.

I will edit in pictures here..

The easiest way to collect the whole set is to mail in 2 UPCs from participating cereals as well as shipping and handling to receive the complete set of twelve as well as a Mickey Backpack to put them in!
More information as well as the order form are here:
http://www.kelloggs.stagek.com/promotions/disneyparks2/

Tags: Cereal, Disney, Kelloggs, Prize

Teenage Mutant Ninja Anniversary!

When I was little I had almost every Ninja Turtle they made.  We used to go around to all the different stores (who remembers Child World?)  trying to track them down. (I remember the Manta Ray was the hardest to find..)  What’s wacky about my story is that even at the age of three, I had two of every figure.  One to play with, and the other to keep in the package.  So, somewhere in my vast collection of toys (that I hope to catalog here!) I still have many of the Ninja Turtles still in their original packaging!

When I walked into Target the other day and saw these, I was most excited!  While not exact replicas of the originals (the packaging is different even though it features the original designs) they are just like the ones I had and now I have to have the new ones! (two of each of course!)

I don’t like the template of the blog either, temporary until I find or customize something I actually like..

Tags: Ninja Turtles, Playmates Toys, Toys

Hello world!

Hello world!  I’m sure no one is going to notice, but I just totally ripped apart joesstuff.com.

When I first registered the domain (quickly, I might add, as I missed out on it the first time around and had to wait until it expired) I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with it..  Wanted a place to store all my stuff (which is now at another domain actually) and didn’t want anything to do with the free sites and banner ads.

I originally toyed with the idea of setting up a blog and then linking the store to it, and planned on selling what I blogged about..   It was a pretty good idea, but for whatever reason I ended up making the store the main part of the site with nothing..  (I made more on ebay than through my little piece of web, but I really enjoyed coding the storefront and the few customers it brought me)  Time went by and I really didn’t have the funding to keep up the store (though I do sell from time to time on ebay) and yesterday I decided that I needed yet another project (I have a fulltime job, as well as a fulltime website, three Facebook applications in the works, and many random other things) so I totally gutted the storefront (it’s archived and saved, it will be back integrated with the blog and possibly a message board just because I can) and setup this blog.  It won’t look like this for long, I plan on customizing it, but I’ve never really used wordpress before so it’s yet another learning process.

Special thanks to anyone reading this!

Joe