Re: Comic/toy store disappointments....

From: Andy Hill <chance_at_unix.infoserve.net>
Date: Sat, 8 Jul 1995 01:32:43 -0700 (PDT)

On Fri, 7 Jul 1995, Ian Lynn wrote:

> Another bad sign for the Kats.....
>
> I mentioned Swatkats are due out anytime now, and got the blankest
> stare I believe I'd ever seen. Normally if this guy doesn't
> know what you're talking about he'll at least play along and put
> on a face for you. But he had no clue, not only about the figs.
> but the show as well. I was stunned!! He said usually he'll
> see a few things on the pre-order list he's never heard of before,
> but has received NOTHING with the SK on it.
>
> What going on with this is Tedco trying to prove the Kats are
> losers before they even get a chance?? Maybe he's looking
> for a big write-off this year to cover up Capt. Planet.


      I hate being negative all the time, but someone passed me something
in my mailbox yesterday which I passed to r.a.a. concerning Kats
cancellation, budget cuts, and Turner's behaviour. If anyone wants it
copied to the list, just ask, but essentially it points out that Joe
Mazzuca was hired at the beginning of the second season specifically to
trim down the budget (he's called "The Angel of Death" in the biz,
because he mercilessly fires people in the name of budget cuts), and his
success or lack of it may've contributed to the behaviour of Turner org
at the time, and at present. Evidently, if Kats completed season two,
and the show had good numbers, there was some aspect of the contract that
would've ensured the show went to 65 episodes, with promotions for some
of the crew, and I gather some profit sharing deal with Christian and
Yvon. Well, Ted nicely cancelled it just short of the second season
fulfillment, and didn't need to fulfill any of the contracts. This
individual speculated that Turner couldn't afford _two_ 65 ep
commitments, and decided to go with the wholly owned "Jonny Quest" rather
than further pursue "SwatKats". There's a bunch of other skullduggery
that led up to this information concerning Gary Owens being let go from
"Space Ghost", but it's really only tangential to this list. Ask for
details.

     Tedco's behaviour towards the toys and videos? I talked to my local
vid store, who said they didn't receive any posters or display stuff for
the 'Kats vids, which was considered _highly_ unusual. Toys and Video
Game? Aside from the U.S. "Toys 'R 'Us" info I got from someone else,
there has been _no_ information noted by anyone up here, in any store you
ask. Ian mentioned some kind of blank stare concerning the toys....well,
you'll get a similar blank stare if you ask about _any_ of the Kat
products at the moment, Turner isn't advertising, promoting, or caring
about what happens.

      I am guessing from here. The pointers I've seen toward something
happening are the announcement of the new projects they're doing ("Cave
Kids", "Dumb and Dumber"), the ABA convention, the licensing convention,
our phone calls not being returned, and the total lack of support for the
merchandise lead me to believe one thing: Turner doesn't want to promote
something he's going to have to spend money on. Face it, he already owns
"Scooby" and "The Flintstones" and doesn't have to spend a single dime to
air and derive income from those properties, yet if he pursues Kats in
any fashion, he does. I had a friend call H-B and see if his calls would
be returned, being wholly innocent, not like some of us more "vocal"
types - and his calls weren't returned either. This TCN promotion of
Kats was originally going to be big deal, and they wanted my/our input,
but then fell strangely silent; likely because someone from up the ladder
ordered them not to pursue the issue - so they got Macho to do
lip-service to the program, not taking even the *slightest* opportunity
to push the goods. Turner took out that big ad awhile back stating "new
episodes, action figures, video games, the works!" for 1995 - now he's
headed off legal questions by doing just that - though he simply
fulfilled the letter of the agreement and not the spirit - giving us just
"katseye news" as the "new episodes for 1995", and the toys and videos
without _any_ marketing backup. "Animation Magazine" last month had a
_ton_ of Hanna-Barbera stuff in it, but not a single "logo" throughout
the whole magazine contained a "SwatKat" - they even dredged up Magilla
Gorilla and Atom Ant to fill the spots, but specifically avoided the
'Kat guys. I may be paranoid or whatever, but too many coincidences add
up to something altogether different, and that's where I think we're at now.
I told H-B that I'd leave the political stuff out of the Swatkats
newsgroup, but I'm sure as hell free to do what I like on r.a.a., "noise"
or otherwise. This behaviour from such a "respected" organization is
inexcusable.

 _____________________________________________________________________________
     "...$%#!!_at_!!, does EVERYTHING have to occur at the speed of MTV?!"
  - George Lucas on the cancellation of "The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles",
    after hearing that viewers expected constant action, rather than a
                        "gentle history lesson"
 _____________________________________________________________________________
Received on Sat Jul 08 1995 - 04:45:30 PDT