Raving Toy Maniac

NAAF Welcomes Barbie's Bald Friend

SAN RAFAEL, CA – April 9, 2012 – The National Alopecia Areata Foundation (NAAF) applauds Mattel's news that it will unveil a doll for children experiencing hair loss. The as yet unnamed doll is a bald friend of the iconic Barbie, and is expected to come with wigs, scarves, hats and other accessories.

The doll will not be available in stores. However, NAAF is scheduled to receive a quantity of the new doll upon release expected in late 2012 or early 2013, as well as a cash donation from Mattel to pay for shipping and administrative costs involved with shipping to children afflicted with alopecia areata. "We are very proud Mattel has selected us to carry this special doll, which will make so many children happy," said NAAF President Vicki Kalabokes.

April 9, 2012 - (Sponsor Announcement) - Online retailer BigBadToyStore.com has several items of interest to collectors:

Hi everyone - a few cool items just listed this morning that are worth mentioning:

Transformers Generations 2012 Volume 01 - Artfire - Mailaway Japanese Exclusive
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=MPB10008&mode=re...

Captain Action - Wave 02 - Dr. Evil, Thor, Loki
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/menu.aspx?menu=1312&company=0&categor...

Mortal Kombat - 18" Rain Statue
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=SYC10011&mode=re...

DC, Star Trek, Star Wars Cufflinks
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/search.aspx?search=cufflinks

APE ENTERTAINMENT DRAWS SESAME STREET

Ape Entertainment and Sesame Workshop to Create Entertaining Educational Comics for Young Readers

SAN DIEGO, Calif. - April 06, 2012 - Ape Entertainment announced today that they have entered into a licensing agreement with Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization, to produce a series of print and digital comic books featuring the cast of the beloved children's show Sesame Street. The new and original comic book series will emphasize educational and entertaining content for younger readers.

From television to the comic panel, Ape Entertainment will portray the characters that millions of parents and children have come to know and love in a comic series that will be produced in full color and available in stores this fall in standard comic sized printed editions for $3.99 and digest sized hardcover comic book editions for $7.99. They will also be available as a digital comic book that will be available through Apple's App Store for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.

April 2012 - This week, Diamond Select Toys is giving away a set of Marvel Minimates Series 43 -- yes, that's the set with Spider-Man, Daredevil, Jean DeWolff and the Sin-Eater, among others. But the set they're giving away is a special one -- its been signed by acclaimed comics writer Peter David! The man who wrote the Jean DeWolff Saga this series is based on has signed all four packs: Spidey/Jean, DD/Sin-Eater, J. Jonah Jameson/SHIELD Agent and even the rare variant Aunt May/SHIELD Agent. And all you have to do is:

1. Follow @Minimates on Twitter. http://www.twitter.com/minimates
2. Tweet "@Minimates" and #PeterDavidRulz
3. Sit back and wait for DST to pick a winner!

The drawing will happen on Tuesday, April 17. You can enter once per day, so Tweet early and often!

CLUTTER MEDIA GROUP Announces the Call for Entries for the Second Annual DESIGNER TOY AWARDS

Entries for Nominations Open April 9th!

April 5, 2012 - CLUTTER MEDIA GROUP is thrilled to announce a call for entries for nominations in the 2012 DESIGNER TOY AWARDS. The DESIGNER TOY AWARDS are back for a second year, after making a huge impact on the world of art in their 2011 inaugural event. The DTAs bring together dozens of artists, writers and fans to celebrate creative excellence in the global Designer Toy market. In 2011, its first year, the DESIGNER TOY AWARDS attracted an international board of over 50 A-list professional artists and captured the attention of both the sub-culture niche and the mainstream alike. The event was standing room only and at capacity, drawing over 200 artists, producers and influencers, and was attended by over 75 media outlets including CNN iReport, Core77, and LA Weekly. The Designer Toy Awards website drew a staggering 40,000 visits and 200,000 page views from over 106 countries, just between June and July of last year's voting period!

STEPHEN RANNAZZISI TO TAKE THE STAGE AT C2E2 FOR NIGHT OF COMEDY!

Popular "You're Either In or You're Out" Tour Comes to Comic Convention... Free for All Weekend, Saturday or VIP Ticket C2E2 Ticket-Holders!!

Kevin "Dot Com" Brown from "30 Rock" to Open

All-New, Action-Packed Animated Series 'Kaijudo: Rise of the Duel Masters' to Premiere on the Hub TV Network June 2

Scott Wolf, Freddy Rodriguez, John DiMaggio, Phil LaMarr, and Oded Fehr Among Those To Voice Roles in New Series; Special Sneak Peek of First Three Episodes in May

LOS ANGELES – April 4, 2012 - The Hub TV network, a television network for kids and their families, will premiere the all-new, action-packed animated series "Kaijudo: Rise of the Duel Masters" Saturday, June 2. Featuring the voice talents of popular actors Scott Wolf ("Party of Five"), Freddy Rodriguez ("Ugly Betty"), John DiMaggio ("Pound Puppies," "Futurama"), Oded Fehr (The Mummy) and Phil LaMarr ("Mad TV"), the half-hour series from Hasbro Studios is a re-imagination of the wildly successful Duel Masters property in Japan developed by Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro, Inc.

April 2012 - Gentle Giant is giving away a production sample of their Incredible Hulk mini-bust.

To see how to enter, head over to the Gentle Giant blog and log in with your Facebook account or email. They also have a short video clip of the bust, so you can see what green goodness you are entering to win.

Hasbro Studios Signs Multi-Year Deal with Netflix to Provide Its Award-Winning Content across Multiple Platforms in the U.S.

Programming, including Transformers Prime and My Little Pony, joins Netflix immediately with new additions to come

LOS ANGELES -- April 5, 2012 -- Hasbro Studios, the Los Angeles-based television production and distribution division of Hasbro, Inc., today announced a multi-year deal with Netflix, Inc. Ten highly popular franchises, including new and catalog seasons of famed Hasbro content, will be available to instantly watch on Netflix.

Transformers Prime, My Little Pony, Pound Puppies, G.I. Joe: Renegades and The Adventures of Chuck & Friends are now available to instantly watch on Netflix. JEM & The Holograms, Transformers: Generation 1, G.I. Joe: Real American Heroes, Transformers: Beast Wars and Transformers: Rescue Bots will follow later in 2012.

Brisk® Iced Tea Unveils One-Liter Bottle, Featuring Star Wars™ Characters R2-D2 and C-3PO, With Tag to Unlock Exclusive Content for New "Kinect™ Star Wars" Game

Limited-time package will launch exclusively at 7-Eleven in April before nationwide roll-out in May

PURCHASE, N.Y., April 4, 2012 -- Brisk® Iced Tea invites fans to taste "The Force" as it unveils a limited-time one-liter bottle with the first-ever Kinect scannable Microsoft tag (M-Tag) printed on a bottle that unlocks content in an Xbox game. The special M-Tag on the label will allow gamers to unlock an exclusive Anakin Podracer experience in the new "Kinect™ Star Wars™" game, available now, along with the Limited Edition "Kinect Star Wars" Xbox 360 bundle.