Toyetic is a term referring to the suitability of a media property, such as a cartoonormovie, for merchandising tie-in lines of licensed toys, games and novelties.[1] The term is attributed to Bernard Loomis, a toy development executive for Kenner Toys, in discussing the opportunities for marketing the film Close Encounters of the Third Kind, telling its producer Steven Spielberg that the movie was not "toyetic" enough, leading Loomis towards acquiring the lucrative license for the upcoming Star Wars properties.[2]
The concept of toyetic works is stated to have come from Bernard Loomis in 1969, while working at Mattel. With the introduction of the Hot Wheels line of toy cars, Loomis proposed that they also developed a 30-minute show Hot Wheels as a means to promote the toys. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in reviewing the show, determined that the program needed to be treated as advertising, which affected the records of the network, forcing the show to be taken off the air within two years. Loomis later moved on to the Kenner division of General Mills; during this time, he had read about the upcoming Star Wars films, and positioned the company to produce toys based on the film. The move was considered highly successful, with over $100 million in annual toy sales following the release of the film.[3]
In the early 1980s, the FCC revised its rules on children's programming, specifically allowing for the use of "character marketing" where shows could employ fictional characters based on toys and other real-world objects without counting towards advertising. Loomis saw the same potential in the Strawberry Shortcake line of toys as he did for Star Wars, and was able to successfully produce a line of specials for Strawberry Shortcake under the less-restrictive FCC guidelines.[4] Following on Loomis's success, toyetic shows became popular in the 1980s. This was aided by the introduction of cable television that allows for more airtime for new and repeat broadcasts of such shows. The number of toyetic shows waned after 1990 when the United States Congress passed the Children's Television Act which required content to include educational and instructional material for children, and targeted the type of commercial advertising that could accompany these shows.[5]
Notable examples of toyetic properties include:
