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Travolta did a bit of stumping at Toy Fair, as did Ron Howard, director of the likely toy winner for the winter holidays, Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas. ''We're lucky that it's a character we don't need to educate people about,'' says Jill Jones, Universal's creative and marketing vice president. ''You say the Grinch, and people either smile or smirk.'' And when you take a beloved cartoon, add Jim Carrey, and create a toy line that includes everything from plush puppies to a Grinch whose heart grows, it ''can be a home run,'' says Silver. ''It's just a natural.''

Scattered throughout the year are returning toy lines that complement sequels to Rugrats, Pokémon, and 101 Dalmatians. But Silver has a surprising pick for the line to watch: ''Charlie's Angels is a big-time sleeper,'' he says. ''They want to create a fashion trend for girls. Expect the dolls to be very cool and hip.''

Just don't expect them to carry guns — or have Barbie-esque proportions. Rather than having a sculptor create Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz, or Lucy Liu look-alikes, toy licensee Jakks Pacific will use a technology called RealScan, which will take a 360-degree scan of each actress and output an identical computerized image. The end result will be dolls physically proportionate to each of the trio.

And don't forget one Harry Potter. Sure, the Warner Bros. movie isn't due until the summer of 2001, but Mattel — which has the lion's share of the Potter license along with Hasbro — will introduce some holiday goodies based, they say, on the books — followed by a slew of stuff in 2001. ''Harry Potter is themovie next year,'' says Byrne. Wait, didn't they say that about...oh, never mind. Pass us that Terl doll.

Posted Mar 10, 2000 | Published in issue #530 Mar 10, 2000 | Order Article Reprints

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