Being the dad of two boys doesn’t get me in tune with the culture of young girls. You can insert your own joke about that here.
Anyway while stumbling around the web I saw a press release for casting calls for Kitt. Kitt is a character from the “American Girl” toy line which is 100% owned by Mattel. Mattel is working with HBO to make a movie about this doll/story character named Kitt. The film will be called “Kitt Kittredge: An American Girl Mystery.” The film will take place in Depression era America and star Abigail Breslin from Little Miss Sunshine.
I won’t lie to you. I am a dad. I tend to look at toys from a dad’s perepective. That means that for me to personally like a toy, I need to like playing with the toy. Needless to say I don’t like too many of my sons’ toys.
Playmobil recently launched a new line of play sets with a sports theme. There are two sports in the new line, Skateboarding/BMX Biking and Soccer. This move by Playmobil really goes into the “why didn’t some one think of this sooner” category. With children’s weight problems spiraling out of control, anything that fosters an interest in sports and outdoor activities is a welcome change for parents. Even if these are toys to be played inside, it is better than a screen that has them slaying dragons all day.
Happy Meals are great for one reason; they have boys and girls toys.
I don’t know if other parents had this fantasy growing up, but I always envisioned my (future) kids playing with the toys I kept from my childhood. Don’t ask me why I thought this but I had an opportunity to put this to the test the other day.
Ever go to the local Target looking for a toy only to find a ton of the one you already have, that your kid is not playing with anyway? This typically happens with the “hot new toy” or item in a line of toys relating to a hit movie, Cars (from Pixar) being a prime example.