For the first time in years, film licensing maintained a higher profile than television at Licensing International 2004, held June 8—10 at the Javits Center in New York City. Among the upcoming movies pitched to 20,600 attendees—mostly potential licensees, including publishers—were Disney/Pixar's Cars, Disney's Chicken Little, Warner Bros.'Tim Burton's Corpse Bride and Sony's Open Range, all animated, as well as special effects-laden features such as Universal's King Kong.
Many of the films, including Disney's Narnia and Warner's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, are based on books and therefore sometimes limited by rights considerations when it comes to publishing, although other merchandising activity is widespread. For Paramount's John Carter of Mars, licensed by Viacom Consumer Products, Del Rey and Modern Library are likely to reissue the original Edgar Rice Burroughs novels; novelty formats might include an atlas of the planet Barsoom or a "postcards from Mars" title, according to Viacom's publishing representative Risa Kessler. "If the screenplay is changed dramatically from the book, we do a novelization, or maybe a YA novelization and a reissue," she said. "If the movie is very close to the book, then there would only be a reissue."
Of course, television programs, both original and book-based, also vied for publishers' attention. Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks, which airs on PBS Kids and is licensed by United Media, recently signed Simon & Schuster for children's books. Toddworld, based on the 23 Todd Parr books from Little, Brown, will launch on TLC this fall. "We wanted to have it look like a page in the book," said author Parr, who does many of the drawings for the animation. A tie-in publishing program will be announced shortly.
Several book publishers and properties, aside from those with film or television support, were among the 520 exhibitors and 5,700 properties on display. Panic Entertainment showed franchises from Chronicle and its imprint Quirk Books, including the Worst-Case Scenario series. The Beanstalk Group, which represents Penguin's Mad Libs, added Dick and Jane to its stable of brands. Wiley exhibited its For Dummies products, including videos, software, playing cards and craft patterns, as well as music CDs for both Dummies and Frommer's.
Guinness Book of World Records, owned by HIT Entertainment, is doing its first licensed publishing outside of the core title, with initial licensee Penguin marketing a branded Mad Libs book. "We desire to have a year-round presence at retail," said Laura Barrett, Guinness's marketing manager, noting that the annual edition stays on shelves from August to February. "We have 40,000 records, and we can apply the content to any format or platform."
Silver Lining Productions announced new merchandising representation deals with Eric Carle and with U.K. publisher The Templar Co. for Dragonology. SloaneVision introduced Perfect Pigs!, a tween version of the characters from Nick Ward's book How to Be a Practically Perfect Pig (Scholastic). Evergreen Concepts announced that it is working with Random House/Golden Books and Classic Media on licensing programs for Pat the Bunny and the Little Golden Book library.
Trends in Licensing
Publishers walk the show each year with an eye for not only new properties, but for trends that may have applications in books. Even more anime was on display at this show than in recent Japanimation-infused years. TokyoPop was at the center of this trend with its Cartoon Network series Rave Master, for which it publishes Cine-Manga titles. Comics in general had a strong presence, with properties from DC (Catwoman) and Marvel (Fantastic 4) among the comic-based films being promoted. Classic Media announced it had signed Dark Horse and iBooks to produce reprints and originals based on its Harvey, Gold Key and Valiant backlists.
Nostalgia remains a prevalent theme. Viacom's White Christmas is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a tie-in book/CD from Rutledge Hill, while HIT's Thomas the Tank Engine will mark its 60th with a half dozen titles coming back into print. Just when you thought there were no more 1980s properties, Nickelodeon relaunched Holly Hobbie and Joester-Loria reintroduced The Get-Along Gang.
Other notable trends included Hispanic and bilingual properties, notably Scholastic's Maya & Miguel, which will launch on PBS Kids this fall, followed by a publishing program next spring; motorcycle and hot rod detailing along the lines of Discovery Consumer Products'American Chopper, for which Meredith is publishing a tie-in; and still-abundant teen/tween properties for girls, ranging from 4Kids'Winx Club to DIC Entertainment's Trollz. Artists, many looking for publishing deals, accounted for more than 200 of the 520 exhibitors.
Overall, Licensing International 2004 was one of the biggest, most high-energy shows in several years, with steady traffic and elaborate booths. While there was no single "hot property" as in days gone by, there were many that publishers and other licensees felt had potential. Most exhibitors reported a busy, productive three days.
