Spike TV

SPIKE TV Launches Consumer Products Division at Licensing Show - First Network for Men Promotes 'Ren & Stimpy' and 'Gary the Rat' as Its First Properties Available for Merchandising.

NEW YORK, June 10 -- SPIKE TV, the first network for men, will mark its debut appearance at this year's Licensing Show with its own booth and a roster of properties that include the cult classic "Ren & Stimpy" and "Gary the Rat" starring Kelsey Grammer.

"Ren & Stimpy," which gained notoriety in the 90's on Nickelodeon, is back with a vengeance this month with a new adult-targeted series, called "Ren & Stimpy's Adult Party Cartoon," which will air exclusively on SPIKE TV. SPIKE TV is a new network created specifically as a destination for men with programming that appeals to their lifestyle interests.

A consumer products program is already in development with Palisades Toys and Balzout, who have come on board as Ren & Stimpy's first licensees. Product plans for Palisades Toys include action figures, PVC figurines and resin statues. Balzout will manufacture T-shirts. Other categories available for licensing include interactive, apparel and novelties that capture the edgy humor of Ren & Stimpy, the animated series that stars Ren, an ornery asthma-plagued chihuahua, and Stimpy, his trusting feline sidekick. Product will launch in specialty stores this Fall.

The program, "Ren & Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon," which are new original episodes, will debut on Thursday, June 26 as part of SPIKE TV's "Animation for Guys," a two-hour animated block which also includes "Stan Lee's Stripperella" starring Pamela Anderson and "Gary the Rat" starring Kelsey Grammer. "Animation for Guys" will also feature the "Ren & Stimpy Show," classic uncut digitally re-mastered episodes.

"Our male audience grew up watching Ren & Stimpy and recognize it as one of the most groundbreaking animated series of its time," said Albie Hecht, President of SPIKE TV. "Ren & Stimpy personify SPIKE TV. Merchandise promises to be as edgy and irreverent as the network itself."

"SPIKE TV is a tremendous addition to the Viacom family and one that will provide great content to build a consumer products arm of the business," said Maureen Taxter, Vice President, Business Development, SPIKE TV.

SPIKE TV Consumer Products will also be representing licensing for Gary the Rat, which will also have a presence at the Licensing Show. "Gary the Rat" is a 30-minute original animated series starring Kelsey Grammer as the voice of the title character. Gary is a New York attorney who is so unscrupulous and immoral that he wakes up one morning to discover that he has turned into a rat. Grammer is a co-executive producer of the show.

SPIKE TV can be found at Licensing Show booth #1519 at the Jacob K. Javits Center in New York City June 10-12.

SPIKE TV, the first network for men, is available in 86 million homes and is a division of MTV Networks. MTV Networks owns and operates the cable and television programming services MTV: Music Television, MTV2, Nickelodeon/Nick at Nite, TV Land, VH1 and CMT: Country Music Television, as well as The Digital Suite from MTV Networks, a package of thirteen digital services, all of which are trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks also operates and offers joint ventures, licensing agreements and syndication deals whereby its programming can be seen worldwide.