 Most of the things I do, tend to
be based on a strong Look, rather than a strong idea.
Tugger on the other hand is a good example of the theory
that if something is a good idea the look isn't all that
important. At least, Playmates seemed to embrace that
theory. And as a result, they did a great job on
engineering the mechanism and sound.
Tugger really works and
sounds great and plays a convincing interactive game of
tug-of-war. But it is clear, that Playmates were not
concerned how he looked.
The product suffered
from un-imaginary styling and a generic look that
didn't even come close to looking like my model or my
sketch, which wasn't intended to do much more than
show the concept, But still looked cuter than what
they produced.
Playmates did
produce an adorable commercial with a singing dog,
who in the end is seen playing tug-of-war with
Tugger! Tugger came out last year and had a good run.
For some reason Toys R Us never did well with him.
but Target and Walmart were very pleased. I even
found one poor little guy with his batteries worn out
and his box smashed a few weeks ago in Walmart's and
felt so sorry for him that I had to take him home!
I'm told that Playmates intends to reintroduce Tugger
this year, as a dog who appears in some sort of
movie, I don't recall what it is, but I'll let you
know, When and If, it really happens! Notice, I'm Not
Holding my Breath, but I do have my Paws Crossed!
Best, Mel
Postnote: Tugger
was re-introduced Christmas 2002 as the Grinch's dog.
He had a stocking cap in his mouth instead of a sock,
and reindeer antlers on his head. When you pulled on
the cap, he growled. However, they did not put the
wiggly mechanism inside so the new version of Tugger
did not go into a frenzy of pulling and tugging.
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Copyright
Acknowledgment: All images of Baby Face and other
Products and Images,
Created by Mel Birnkrant, are Copyright © Kiscom,
Birnkrant
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