Hey guys-
It’s been a long, long while since I’ve posted anything in the “Muppet Replicas” section – partly because there hasn’t been much to say, and partly because, well… I was licking my wounds a little bit after being laid off from MR.
While I share everyone’s frustrations regarding the situation with the Photo Puppets (or perhaps, the lack thereof) and the lack of information from eFX, there are a few things that I think deserve to be cleared up. I mean, as much as anything can be cleared up -- literally, I lived through this and I know all the players, but I would be remiss in saying “I know the whole story.”
So, let’s go back to 2005. I was still with Palisades Toys, but my friend Kevin Eslinger worked for Master Replicas, and truly, he was the one who pushed to get the Kermit Photo Puppet made. (The difficulties of that situation are a whole separate story.) I joined Master Replicas around Thanksgiving of that year, and became intimately involved with the project, and Kermit finally came out in 2006. And it was a moderate success. Didn’t light the world on fire or anything, but we sold most of them – enough that Kevin and I were able to scheme and get it changed from a single Photo Puppet, into a line of Photo Puppets. (The truth is that we actually slashed prices on the last 500 or so Kermits, and sold them at huge discounts to retailers sometime in 2007; the company’s financial situation did not allow for inventory to just sit, at that time… But more on that in a minute…)
So, we got started on Gonzo and Animal. Gonzo was supposed to be second, and Animal third. Sometime during this process, Master Replicas went through a ton of changes. We merged with 2 other companies – Corgi & Cards Inc, both in the UK. And it was decided that instead of just a high end, collectibles/prop replica company, we were ALSO going to be a toy company. Right or wrong, that was the company’s new direction. Around the same time, our license with Lucasfilm expired, and for a variety of reasons, both companies decided not to renew. Internally, there were all kinds of changes – new staff (particularly lots of people with “mass toy” backgrounds), new policies and procedures. And many of the people that I had worked with left, or were let go.
Still, we plodded on with our little collectibles. Kevin was still managing the project from a product development perspective, and I was handling the marketing… only, with the company’s new focus on toys and the lack of revenue from Star Wars, money became tighter and tighter. You have to understand – the corporate climate changed; things were very different all of a sudden. I’ve heard lots of griping here that we didn’t properly “market” the line. And that is true. But it was not for lack of WANTING to properly market the line. We were no longer the same company that had built a stellar reputation in the collectibles arena. (Part of the problem, I think, is that most of us didn’t know what we were...)
So, we plugged on. Eventually, Animal’s development overtook Gonzo’s… there were, as you all know, lots of issues with Gonzo. And sometime in this period– like so many of my other co-workers – Kevin left the company to pursue other opportunities. So, not only was I championing this (and other) collectible lines with little internal support and no financial backing, I lost the driving force behind getting the products made well. But still, we trudged on.
So, Animal had his issues, but I was fairly pleased with the way he came out. I cannot remember the exact timing of Kevin’s departure, but I think he had more of a hand in Animal. (No pun intended.) Gonzo on the other hand, was a nightmare. I remember going back and forth and back and forth with our product development team, trying to get things right – particularly that nose. And, it just wasn’t happening. (At one point, they ordered the wrong color fur, based on a baby Gonzo PMS color from a style guide, just to show you how messed up things got!) But you see, this was not a priority for the company, and the PD people – who knew how to make lightsabers in their sleep – just couldn’t wrap their brains around this project. Ultimately, the “sock nose” was Disney’s call… but it was really a “lesser of two evils” kind of situation. And so, we ended up going with it. Do I hate the product? No. But it could have (should have) been much, much better. It actually haunts me a little… and it makes me sad.
So, then we get to Fozzie… ugh, this was the bane of my existence. Because Kevin was long gone before this happened, and I was the Disney/Muppets brand manager… So this was my baby. But by this time, collectibles were virtually not even being discussed internally anymore. We still had a few things on the schedule (Star Trek, James Bond… and you’ll note that most of those never came out either…) But mainly, we were trying to get into making mass (i.e. Walmart and Target) toys. But that didn’t seem to be getting off the ground either, and as we all now know, the company was on its way down… So Fozzie would get put on the schedule and taken of the schedule... and get pushed around and pulled around... and dropped and picked back up… And so, I stopped coming here with info. I literally just shut down all communication. And everyone cried foul and complained that we weren’t giving you any information… But I honestly did not know what to say, or what to tell you. But I kept fighting internally to get Fozzie made! Until the bitter end... And I know that the guys who picked up the mantel after I was gone were in the same boat… they wanted to make Fozzie, too. But we were as confused as you were, most days. How could we market something when it was on the schedule one day, and off the next? It was a nightmare. And I am sorry that I could not give any more information than I did…
Anyway, the rest as they say (who are they, anyway?), is history. MR eventually folded or went out of business or went bankrupt… I honestly don’t know what the technical term is for what happened over there. It went ka-boom. And my few friends who were left at that once-great company joined us in the unemployment line.
So meanwhile, eFX starts up. (Again, how that happened is a story for another day!) Now YES eFX is made up entirely of former Master Replicas employees. However, there are two important things to note: (1.) None of these people were involved in the Muppet line at Master Replicas. So when you say “Oh it’s the same people pulling the same thing…” That is not true. And even if it were, those of us who WERE involved with the Muppets at Master Replicas, really had our hands tied in terms of impacting what was going on, and what was being said or communicated to the public. And (2.) eFX is a very, very small staff in terms of full-time employees. Literally, I think (though I have not spoken to anyone there in some time) there might be two full-time employees, and one part-time person. So, not to excuse their lack of communication, but they’re swamped.
But I am getting ahead of myself. So, eFX called me up and asked me to consult for them for a few months, and during that time, asked if I would introduce them to the collectibles people at Disney, as they were interested in picking up both the Disney Classics & Muppets lines. (See, had they been involved before, they would not have needed me to make the intro!) And, of course, I did. It actually cracked me up -- for a while on MC, there was a thread called “We saved the Muppet Photo Puppet line!" Not to be rude or condescending, but actually it was myself and Bryan at eFX that “saved” the line. (And more Bryan than me!) But that’s neither here nor there... especially now two years later, looking back and seeing that actually, nothing has happened with the line!
I went to bat for eFX and introduced them to Disney, because I truly believed (and still believe) that if anyone in this industry could pull these products off, it would be these guys. They (and their web of prop fanatics throughout the world) really the best prop replicators there are. Now, truth be told, I’ve had no real contact with eFX in some time, outside of having seen Bryan briefly in Orlando at Celebration V…
I understand that everyone is frustrated about the lack of news… and knowing the guys at eFX as I do, I can tell you that no one is more frustrated by lack of progress than they are. But that is probably of little consolation to you guys; nor should it be. I think a number of factors have probably come into play. And I think that Muppet Caper summarizes them beautifully in his post... To be objective though, eFX does need to do a better job answering customer service emails. If they can answer SW ones, they can answer Muppets ones. Just calling a spade, a spade. On the flip side, I don't know what's going on there internally and maybe -- like the last year or so at MR -- they just don't know what to say. Doesn't excuse it; but believe me, I can relate to how hard that can be.
Believe me, as a long time Muppet fan/collector – and someone who has put blood, sweat and tears into this line – no one wants these things to come out more than me. I know that eFX was still trying, the last I spoke to Bryan. But it’s a long, difficult road… and things have not gone as planned. So, I cannot give you any official word – all I can do is retroactively tell you (and apologize for) what went down with MR and, once again, vouch for the integrity of the eFX guys. Believe me, they don’t want to sign licenses and not put anything out… They’re good, hard-working guys.
The whole situation is just tough. And wow, I wrote a book. Sorry about that… Somewhat therapeutic though.
Sorry to ramble guys. Hope this helps in some small way…
Travis
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It's great to hear from Travis on this. Nobody knows the Muppet posers' journey better and I completely agree with what he's said.
