JPToys - News

We've certainly had our fair share of JP merchandise liscense updates over the last year or so, almost all confusing to say the least. Well forum member 'crex' (who also happens to be Chris - see 10/2 story below) recently had one of his staffers inquire directly to the Star Wars team at Hasbro to get some sort of definitive answer on just what is really going on. Here's what he had to say:

"Since the summer the Star Wars team @ Hasbro has been allowing the SW Collecting sites to submit 3 questions each week. So after a few weeks of doing this, I decided to see if they would bite on a JP question. Turns out they still have the license and do plan on future releases BUT they are repaint exclusives to KB. Now obviously, the findings at KB months ago support that.

If the license ran out, someone would pick it up and announce it. And the exclusive thing has been following Hasbros MO lately with the repaints. There has been plenty of repaints with Star Wars and thats a license thats a year removed from a movie year, 6 months before the 30th anniversary build up and the upcoming TV shows. A license like JP wouldnt make fiscal sense to invest money for new product when no significant news is out there in terms of movie announcements and they can still get some return from JP with small scale repaints."

A big thanks to Chris again for that update. So in short, we can expect more repaints down the road until JP4 rolls around. I'm sure that's what most expected anyway but hopefully this report can serve to clear matters up just a bit. Also worth noting today is a set of JP3 prototypes that recently surfaced on ebay and were purchased by forum moderator Raptoralpha. He was kind enough to take several new pics along with descriptions which can all be found in this thread on our forum.

Check out this "old school" clip found by forum member 'musichead' on the popular video sharing site youtube. Clocking in at almost 6 minutes, it appears to be a marketing/promo reel for all of the then upcoming JP merchandise. Included are some really cool clips of some of those Kenner commercials we all so fondly remember. Ahh...the nostalgia!

It was recently brought to my attention that we somehow overlooked updating the JP Dinosaurs section with last years 3rd wave/series. Well I'm glad to say that it is now updated for your viewing pleasure. Better late than never...right?

Also today, I wanted to jump off the beaten path for a minute to address a very serious problem that effects many people all over the world - diabetes. One of our forum members Chris has a 6 year old son Christopher that is a rabid Dinosaur fan, JP toy collector and a regular visitor here at JPToys.com. However, that may be where his simalarities with most of you end. Christopher has been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes since he was 4 years old. He must have his glucose levels checked and managed several times daily through an insulin pump (yet some kids still require multiple injections of insulin). As you could imagine not only is this quite the chore for the parents but just think of the afflicted in this case. Christopher seemingly takes it all in stride and seems to have adjusted to his affliction quite well according to his Dad but you know it has to be tough on him.

This is why Chris is dedicated to help find a cure for this disease and would like your help. Christopher will be participating in his 3rd "Walk To Cure Diabetes" on October 15th in Pennsauken, NJ. If you can't make the walk, you may make a donation on behalf of Christopher at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Also, be sure to check out Christopher's website (run by his Dad) for all the latest news and any other FAQ you may have about diabetes. It's not often that we get a chance to participate in something larger than ourselves so make sure to check out those links and help out if you can. Every little bit helps!