Squaredy Cats on WPIX 11 Morning News

 We were waiting as patiently as we could since we did this interview with Francesca Maxime around a month ago. It was finally produced, and aired on October 13 on the WPIX channel morning news Dunkin Donuts Studio On The Run segment.

Francesca and her production team made us feel very comfortable on the set, and Elaine did an amazing job explaining what Squaredy Cats are all about. We couldn't have been happier with how it turned out :)
They even flashed our Squaredy Cats Facebook page across the screen.

Francesca Maxime with Elaine de la Mata and Kurt Marquart, the inventors and designers of Squaredy Cats.

It seems everyone there had fun with the new plush line that's out now, and available at Toys R Us. Linda Church held, Tiger Lily, and Frances Rivera and Sukanya Krishnan really had a ball with a few others. Below you'll find a link to the broadcast piece, but directly below that check out what else we found. Someone posted a YouTube link of the team goofing off with the cats on the set, but we think it was terrific! How great that they had so much fun with our fun-loving toys.

Thank you to everyone at the WPIX Channel 11 Morning News in New York!

Here's a link to the embedded video below.

 

And here's the YouTube video of the fun banter.

Frances Rivera and Sukanya Krishnan a few of the Squaredy Cats.

Sukanya Krishnan holding Sandy (not squared to make waves) from series 2.

Sukanya Krishnan holding Honey (not squared to BEE smart) from series 1.

"Doing Their Own Thing"

We're on page 6 in the Art of Licensing supplement to License Global! They even used a picture of Giggles on the Table of Contents page :)

We're thrilled because we couldn't make it to Licensing Expo this year, but this magazine circulates through the show and will supplement two issues. We hope to make some new connections and find new deals. People are buzzing about Squaredy Cats!

Link to article.

Brainstorm Session

Brainstorming is an important part of a toy designer/inventor's day. This is what a brainstorming session looks like at Monkey Doodle Dandy Studio!

Paperoni Deluxe Studio has a commercial

See THE COMMERCIAL here

The Paperoni Deluxe Studio is available on Amazon now :)

Spin Master's Paperoni Deluxe Studio is available on Amazon.
Elaine designed some of the Paperoni animals for this and other sets. She did preliminary concept sketches, and worked out 3-D mock-ups for most of these Paperoni characters.
Visit the official paperoni site :)

Squaredy Cats stickers for sale

Elaine just found this link for gumball machine vendors offering Squaredy Cats stickers for sale in bulk at Gumballs.com. If you know someone who owns vending machines or works at a vending machine company, please forward it to them.

Paperoni hit the shelves

Elaine shows off a find of some of her Paperoni work.

Elaine and I were visiting my parents upstate, NY, and made our ritual visit to Wal-Mart. We found a large display of Spin Master's Paperoni in the toy section. These are some of the crafts that Elaine designed :)
She worked out 3-D mock-ups for most of these Paperoni characters.

We just discovered they finally have an official paperoni site :)

Dora Links Doll

The new Dora Links Doll will being unveiled today on The View. Set your DVRs and TIVOs, or watch live.

Elaine played a role in the design and development of the Dora doll and her clothing. She did a ton of graphics for the site connected to the doll, and I contributed with some illustrations.

Go to doralinks.com when you buy the doll or just check it out now.

Sorry, we can't post a picture of the doll until it's officially announced, but I'll throw something up later.

Interviewed by Ruby Winkle

Meghan Killeen of Ruby Winkle interviewed me about Monkey Doodle Dandy this week.
I was a little late in sending images, so I hope she can still insert what I sent today. We are always so busy, and of course, working on this beautiful Saturday.

What a great feeling to know that what you might have to say is important to someone other than yourself!

Read the interview here.

Thanks for finding us, Meghan :)

Paperoni - pasta, present, future

The original Paper'oni logo we created.

Our apartment was filled with these Paper'oni boxes and jars while Elaine was developing uses for the craft product.

Elaine at the Happy Hands booth, Toy Fair 2008. Paper'oni was their featured product. Elaine designed all the packaging and banners.

It's always nice to see the fruits of your efforts drop to the earth so that the seeds plant new trees that grow before your eyes. Sometimes we miss the scope of what we've contributed to particular products, and sometimes we just have to patiently wait to see what comes up.
A few of years ago Elaine met a new client at Toy Fair. He hired Monkey Doodle Dandy to develop a new craft concept with him. We even provided a list of creative titles for the product, and Raymond Suskin, the inventor chose a name we brainstormed: Paper'oni. We knew immediately, based on his idea, and how we felt about the name that Raymond had a hit.

I designed the logo, and Elaine did most of the development; presentation boards, product illustrations, packaging, etc. We were both very proud when Raymond at Happy Hands told us his Paper'oni was doing well in other countries.

It seemed like it happened over night. One day last year, Elaine got a call from an unrelated client who hired her to develop their new license… Paper'oni! The product caught the eye of Spin Master, and coincidentally, Elaine helped develop the license for new product. More illustrations, and a slight change in the name (Paperoni without the apostrophe), and Spin Master has finally released Paperoni to market… and we can finally show it.

This Amazon link might not last forever so images are below.

Spin Master's first Paperoni item.
Elaine and I sketched and rendered concepts for the machine, and Elaine designed the 2-D and 3-D animals. This was one of the projects our friend, Nancy Sampson helped with.

See Nancy Sampson's website.

First Day at first Expo

Elaine and Kurt in the Monkey Doodle Dandy booth at our first Licensing Expo.

Kurt and the Squarey Monsters banner.

Elaine and the Wudjadoo banner.

The Jitterbutter banner and Betty Bones' skateboard concept.

The Squarey Monsters display.

Our first day of Licensing Expo went very well… even better than either of us had expected it could. We met manufacturers and producers from all over the world. Sometimes inventors had a product they thought would work well with our images. Sometimes an agency wanted to know what was available. There seems to be pretty even interest among all four of our properties, Jitterbutter GirlMonsters, Wudjadoo, Squarey Monsters and Squaredy Cats.

Today is the second day, and we don't know what to expect. We hope it can go half as well as it has already. I can't wait to see what the end result will be, and how these new connections will affect Monkey Doodle Dandy. 

We haven't figured out if our ad in Art of Licensing has sent anyone in our direction. It's possible, when everyone browses their papers from the show they can find us then. Not like we had many free moments yesterday. It seemed like someone was always stopping at our booth, and we're thankful for that! Even the heads of Tara Toy stopped by to say hello.

This booth is made for stompin'

Elaine and Kurt stand in the empty booth 1873 at their first Licensing Expo.

First order of business… hang the Monkey Doodle Dandy Banner!

Elaine and Stephanie assembling our shelves. Not sure where everything goes yet.

Elaine and Stephanie. All the banners are up.

Now we know where the Squarey Monsters are going, cut stickers for packets.

Last minute concept mock-ups to assemble.

Squarey Monsters await fame while Elaine goes through last minute portfolio changes.

We're pretty much finished setting up the booth for Licensing Expo. Booth 1873. We'll post more pictures showing the entire booth tomorrow when the union gets all the skids out of the way and the carpet is down. 

Also, great to note:

A google alert made me aware that our Exhibitor profile has been published at TMCnet.com.

Here's how it reads:

Company: Monkey Doodle Dandy Booth: 1873 Media Contact: Elaine de la Mata Phone: 718-398-2338/917-450-2483 E-mail: studio@monkeydoodledandy.com Web: monkeydoodledandy.com   Since 1998, Monkey Doodle Dandy, Inc. has developed properties for major companies including Scholastic, Nickelodeon, Fisher Price and Mattel. The Brooklyn-based art and design company is now expanding as a licensor, introducing its own brands Squarey Monsters, Squaredy Cats, Wudjadoo and GirlMonsters. Whether they're furry, fanged, or four-sided, these endearing creatures allow young consumers to express themselves with an individuality that resonates with their age group but still meets the approval of parents. For more information, visit www.monkeydoodledandy.com.

Matt Likes This

The bright yellow Squarey Monster, Bitzy was hanging on our studio door for a while. One night when we left the studio to head home we found out that Facebook had crossed over from the digital world into real life.
A recognizable image of a thumbs up with the words, “Matt likes this,” was taped below Bitzy’s image. It took a while to post this, but we were certainly amused.
Look closely for Elaine poking her head into the picture.