Created in the fall of 1947 in Los Angeles, California by Marine Corps Reserve Major Bill Hendricks, Toys for Tots today, is one of the nation's flagship Christmas charitable endeavors. Over the past 54 years, Marines have distributed over 272,000,000 toys to some 133,000,000 needy children across the nation.

From October through December, U.S. Marines with support of the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation, the Marine Corps League and an array of other organizations, groups, committees, local businesses, national corporations and individual volunteers work tirelessly to collect new, unwrapped toys which they distribute to needy children at Christmas. In many communities, Marines and those who support them can be found hard at work until late on Christmas Eve when they conclude their annual campaign and return home to their families.

Stuart Little will be an icon of the Toys for Tots program, including the famous Toys for Tots poster, which will be displayed in nearly one million storefronts nationwide. He will also help kick-off the Toys for Tots National Campaign Kick-Off Luncheon, which will be held in Washington D.C. November 22, 2002.

"We're excited to have Stuart Little on board to support Toys for Tots 2002," stated Major William J. Grein, USMC (Ret), vice president, marketing and development, Marine Toys for Tots Foundation. "And we look forward to even greater exposure and support because of it."

"Toys for Tots is a wonderful organization and we are proud and pleased that Stuart is going to be their national spokesperson," stated producers Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher.

A beloved instant classic when he was released to the thrill of audiences everywhere in December 1999, Stuart Little charmed his way around the world and proved to be one of the most exciting and unique new franchises for Sony Pictures Entertainment. Stuart was short in stature, but strong at the box office, as the blockbuster earned over $300 million worldwide and a 2000 Oscar nomination for Best Visual Effects, and the Stuart Little DVD and videos have been bestsellers since their release in April of last year.

Now, the biggest Little star in Hollywood, is ready for a return with the highly anticipated theatrical release of Stuart Little 2, set for July 19, 2002. The original cast (including Michael J. Fox, Geena, Davis, Hugh Laurie, Jonathan Lipnicki, Nathan Lane and Steve Zahn), returns to the screen in this second full-length feature film, poised to win hearts once again. Melanie Griffith and James Woods join the cast, and Rob Minkoff (Lion King) returns to direct Stuart Little 2, which is being produced under Douglas Wick (including Gladiator) and Lucy Fisher's Red Wagon Productions banner. Like its predecessor, the sequel combines live-action with groundbreaking visual effects technology by the artists and innovators at Sony Pictures Imageworks, who will once again use photo-real, performance-based digital character creation to bring Stuart Little back to the big screen.

The U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program is the Marine Corps' premier community action program and one of the nation's flagship Christmas charitable causes. Over the years, it has become a traditional part of the annual Christmas holiday season within communities nationwide. The message of hope delivered through a shiny new toy at Christmas has a positive impact on children, their families and their communities. It's not the toy, it's what the toy does.

Sony Pictures Consumer Products (SPCP), based in Los Angeles, handles the merchandising and branding efforts for some of the most recognized properties in film and television. This includes theatrical properties such as Charlie's Angel's 2(TM), Men in Black(TM) II, Stuart Little 2(TM) and Spider-Man(TM) through a limited partnership with Marvel Enterprises, Inc. as well as television properties, like "Jackie Chan Adventures(TM)," "Pyramid(TM)," "Harold and the Purple Crayon(TM)" and "Max Steel(TM)." SPCP is a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE), whose global operations encompass motion picture production and distribution, television production and distribution, worldwide channel investments, home entertainment acquisition and distribution, operation of studio facilities, development of new entertainment products, services and technologies, and distribution of filmed entertainment in 67 countries.