Raving Toy Maniac

WASHINGTON, May 2, 2012 -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

WEDNESDAY, MAY 2: BATMAN

Profile America - Wednesday, May 2nd. One of America's favorite superheroes appeared for the first time this week in 1939 — as Detective Comics introduced a new crime fighter - Batman. Created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger, the Caped Crusader was an immediate hit and has entertained several generations of fans, as he and sidekick Robin battle such criminals as the Joker and Catwoman to protect Gotham City. Batman has appeared in movie serials, feature motion pictures, and several television series, both with live actors and in animation. But after 73 years, he is still featured in comic books. Comic books are part of the $46 billion a year periodical publishing industry in the U.S. You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at http://www.census.gov.

Sources: Chase's Calendar of Events 2012, p. 242
2007 Economic Census, NAICS 51112

May 2, 2012 - (Sponsor Announcement) - Online retailer BigBadToyStore.com has several items of interest to collectors:

Hi - Here is a quick update from http://www.bigbadtoystore.com about a big batch of new arrivals. There were big deliveries of new items this week so we have many more instock announcements than normal. Also a nice round of new preorder items.

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NEW PREORDERS
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TRANSFORMERS PRIME ARMS MICRON VOLUME 02
The second wave of includes Megatron/Cannon, Bulkhead/Knuckle, Arcee/Blade and Snapping Turtle/Shield. We have these figures listed at $29.99 for a Box of 12, or $849.99 for a Case of 300.
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/search.aspx?search=Arms+Micron+Volume+02

BANDAI JAPAN COLLECTOR ITEMS
Saint Crown Cloth 1/6 Scale Poseidon Seiya, Ultraman Max Ultra-Act Figure, Super Robot Chogokin Might Gaine, Robot Spirits Sazabi, Leo, and Leo Option Set.

May 2, 2012 - The third day of CustomCon 31 is now online!

The Day Three galleries include:

• New Avengers
• Tim Burton's: The Batman Minimates
• Marvel Legends Golden Age The Crusaders Two Packs
• Being Human - Wave Three
• 80's Action Figures as Minimates
• Marvel Legends: Soldiers and Scientists

Thunderbirds products are go!
New Classic Thunderbirds licensing campaign begins with manual for fans of all ages

May 1, 2012 -- 5... 4... 3... 2... 1! Thunderbirds are go! ITV STUDIOS Global Entertainment's Classic Thunderbirds licensing programme is already making an impact - in the all-important publishing category with a brand new Thunderbirds guidebook. The International Rescue Thunderbirds Agents' Manual from Haynes Publishing is due out this summer and is an informative and entertaining guide to the world's foremost rescue organisation.

Gerry Anderson's famous supermarionette show still enjoys enormous consumer awareness and a strong fan base nearly 50 years after Thunderbirds first hit our TV screens. That's why ITV STUDIOS Global Entertainment met a number of potential licensees at Spring Fair as part of the process of creating a licensing programme for the Classic Thunderbirds brand.

May 1, 2012 - The next series of Halo Minimates is hitting comic shops tomorrow and Toys "R" Us stores any day now, so we thought we'd show you the packaging for this amazing assortment. The two-packs will only be at TRU, the four-pack is only at comic shops and specialty stores -- both have Master Chief and Cortana, but the rest of the figures are only available at their respective locations! Check out the carded pics and collect them all!

Pre-order the TRU two-packs at toysrus.com, and find your closest comic shop at comicshoplocator.com! And get regular DST updates on Facebook and Twitter!

Bloomington, Minnesota - April 30, 2012 - MetaCon 2012, the largest upcoming comicon, sci-fi, and anime con to come to Minneapolis is thrilled to announce that two more stars from Power Rangers will be joining the convention in 2012. Michael Copon (Blue Ranger, Time Force) and Nakia Burrise (Yellow Ranger, Turbo, Zeo, Mighty Morphin') will join MetaCon from August 31 - September 2, 2012 at the Doubletree by Hilton in Bloomington, Minneapolis for autograph signings and question and answer sessions. MetaCon will gather thousands of fans of TV, comics, sci-fi, anime, and popular culture to the Minneapolis, Minnesota area for a three-day weekend celebrating fandom and nerd life.

May 1, 2012 - Just in time for the Avengers movie, it's Marvel Minimates Series 44! Featuring the comic-book versions of some of the most famous Avengers, these two-packs will be available exclusively at comic shops and specialty stores starting tomorrow! Each Minimate is 2 inches tall, fully poseable and comes packed with accessories and interchangeable parts. Thor comes with an alternate head, Giant-Man comes with all the parts to turn him into Ant-Man, and be on the lookout for the rare variant set featuring Ant-Man II, a.k.a. Scott Lang!

Pick these figures up at your local comic shop, specialty store or your favorite online retailer! You can find your nearest comic shop at comicshoplocator.com! And get regular DST updates on Facebook and Twitter!

K'NEX Announces May Mission: K'NEX 20 on 20 Contest
Contests Run Monthly Through December, 20 Chances to Win Each Month!

Hatfield, PA, May 2012 - K'NEX, the only US construction toy company focused on Building Worlds Kids Love™, announced its fifth in a series of twelve contests, Mission: K'NEX 20 on 20, monthly "hunts" for secret codes on various K'NEX related web pages.

Every month on the 20th day, through December 2012, K'NEX will be giving away 20 products to 20 lucky fans! On the 1st weekday of every month a prize will be revealed and a new "mission" is assigned. Missions can be found on the K'NEX website: http://www.knex.com/20thanniversary/Mission20on20/ which directs participants how to find secret codes. Once a code is found, participants must return to the K'NEX site and enter the code. If correct, they are eligible to be entered for a chance to win a prize. On the 20th of each month, when the contest closes, 20 winners will be randomly chosen from those eligible entries.

May 1, 2012 - The second day of CustomCon 31 is now online!

The Day Two galleries include:

• New Avengers
• Tim Burton's: The Batman Minimates
• Guardians of the Galaxy Minimates
• Marvel Legends Golden Age Series 2 Two Packs
• "Before the Fall" Series 1 Minimates
• Heroic Commandos in Action!

April 30, 2012 - Congratulations to The Fwoosh on their 10th Anniversary!

To celebrate this milestone, they are giving away a big pile of toys! They have two prizes available: one is a batch of Young Justice action figures and the other is a batch of Avengers Movie toys in a seriously cool promotional box.

Head over to their contest page for more details on how to enter, but make sure you do so by the May 4th entry deadline.