DVD
Exclusive.com has posted an interview with BCI
Eclipse's Greg Glass, and it's got lots
of MOTU DVD tidbits. Check
it out!
We're
only two months away from the DVD release of the classic Masters
of the Universe cartoon, Season 1 Vol 1.
Check out the sales sheet, chock full of info!
He-Man.org
will be running a fan Q&A session with Masters of the
Universe creator Roger Sweet.
Now is your chance to ask those questions about the origins
of the toy line that you've always wanted to know!
We'll be running the Q&A thread until Friday, August 19th. Click
here to check out the Roger Sweet Q&A thread.
And don't forget about Roger Sweet's new Mastering
the Universe book. Click
here to order your copy today!
August
2
This
is your chance to win a free life-sized Power Sword! Emmis
Books will give one lucky winner a replica of He-Man’s
2002 Sword of Power as well as other exciting prizes!
It's all to celebrate the release of Roger Sweet's
Mastering the Universe book about his time at Mattel
during the 1980s run of the classic Masters of the Universe
toyline! Click
here to order your copy today!
One
lucky winner
will receive
a replica
of He-Man’s
2002 Sword
of Power
and other
exciting
prizes,
as more
specifically
described
below. NO
PURCHASE
NECESSARY.
VOID WHERE
PROHIBITED.
SEE OFFICIAL
GENERAL
CONTEST
RULES FOR
OTHER TERMS
AND CONDITIONS
THAT APPLY.
2.
Contest
Description
On
September
1, 2005,
a representative
from Emmis
Books will
conduct
random drawings
throughout
the day
from the
pool of
all eligible
participants
who enter
the contest
prior to
the Entry
Deadline
Date (defined
below).
Those selected
win the
prizes described
in detail
below.
3. Selecting
a Winner.
Emmis
Books will
select the
names of
all winners
by random
drawing
on September
1, 2005
from the
pool of
all eligible
entries
received
by the Entry
Deadline
Date (as
further
defined
below).
Emmis Books
will then
contact
each person
selected
by email
and notify
the person
that he/she
wins the
prize[s]
described
below. The
odds of
winning
vary depending
upon the
number of
eligible
entries
received.
4.
Description
of Prizes.
Grand-Prize:
A replica
of He-Man’s
Sword of
Power Estimated
value of
$100(US)
and a copy
of Mastering
the Universe
signed by
the authors,
Roger Sweet
and David
Wecker,
an $18 value
First
Prize:
5 winners
will receive
a copy of
Mastering
the Universe
signed by
the authors,
an $18 value. Second
Prize:
10 winners
will receive
numbered
and autographed
collectible
book jackets,
signed by
the authors
5.
How to Enter.
Beginning
August 1,
2005, eligible
participants
may register
as follows:
A.
By E-Mail.
Provide
your full
name, address,
daytime
phone number,
email address,
age and
the name
of the contest.
Mail completed
information
to publicity@emmis.com.
Please
put Mastering
the Universe
contest
in the subject
line.
B.
By Fax.
Provide
your full
name, address,
daytime
phone number,
email address,
age and
the name
of the contest.
Fax completed
information
to 513-861-4430,
Re: Mastering
the Universe
contest
Emmis
Books must
receive
all entries
no later
than 11:59
pm EST on
August 31,
2005. Mail-in
entries
must be
post-marked
by the Entry
Deadline
Date.
6.
Winner Notification.
On
September
1, 2005,
Emmis Books
will notify
the winners
via email
on the date
the winners
are selected.
7.
Eligibility.
Contest
is open
to all legal
residents
of the United
States,
who are
18 years
of age or
older. Employees
of Emmis
Communications
Corporation
and www.he-man.org,
its affiliates,
subsidiaries,
and successor
companies,
contest
sponsors,
participating
advertisers,
and immediate
family members
of anyone
so situated
are prohibited
from participating
in the contest.
“Immediate
family members”
includes
spouses,
siblings,
parents,
children,
grandparents
and grandchildren,
whether
“in-laws,”
or by current
or past
marriage,
remarriage,
adoption,
co-habitation
or other
familial
extension,
and any
other persons
residing
at the same
household
location,
whether
or not related.
One
entry per
person.
Only one
person per
household
may win
or qualify
to win during
the thirty-one
day period
of time.
Season
1, Volume 1 of the classic Masters of the Universe cartoon
arrives on DVD this October 18th! Finally, it's on its way. And here's what you can
expect to find in the first Volume release from BCI
Eclipse:
33 digitally remaster episodes
6 DVDs released in a 6-Panel fold-out DigiPack
2 new documentary features
2 new collectible art cards
The first part of a spine mural that spans all 4 MOTU volumes
to make a cool background image
and
special features including Character Bios, Story Boards,
Scripts and more!
This is the first of four Classic MOTU volumes that will complete
all 130 classic episodes.
All for the MSRP of 49.98. And you know how retailers are!
They'll be competing for the best price, so expect to get
it even cheaper in stores and online when the time comes to
preorder!
Check out the images from the press flyer and of the cover
itself!
July
19
Wave
3 of the Four
Horsemen's 6" Micro-Statue line has been revealed!
Say hello to Tung Lashor, Mantenna,
and the long-awaited Sorceress, all due out
Spring of 2006!
And keep those eyes peeled for Wave 2 (Clamp
Champ, Stinkor & Grizzlor) due out before the 2005
holiday season!... which may include an Odiphus
figure, Stinkor's original persona? Stay
tuned for more details!
Emiliano
Santalucia at interview for DVD fan documentary
Mattel
designers & MV artists.. trouble at large!
Check
back tomorrow for a look at the cover and features on the
Season 1 Volume 1 Masters of the Universe cartoon DVD from
BCI
Eclipse!
July
18
The
San Diego
Comic Con 2005 has come and gone.
And it was a madhouse! We found ourselves going non-stop on
Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
But here's some of what went on!
Friday
and Saturday saw some great signings from some of our favorite
creators. Check out images from some of those events:
Bruce
Timm
Paul
Dini
Bruce
Timm & Paul Dini
Bruce
Timm, Paul Dini & He-Man.org Crew
Tom
Sito & Tom Tataranowicz
Tom
Sito, Tom Tataranowicz & He-Man.org Crew
Lou
Scheimer
Jay
Scheimer
Erika
Scheimer
Friday
was also the day for the BCI MOTU DVD Panel, that had panelists
Erika Scheimer, Lou Scheimer,
Tom Sito, Tom Tataranowicz
and BCI Eclipse's Jeff Hayne (J
Michael Straczynski was unable to attend). Fans got
to ask questions about the upcoming DVD release and heard
stories behind some of the content on the disks from the creators:
Complete
Panel
Panelists
enjoying a joke
Tom
Tataranowicz
Tom
Sito
Tom
Sito being his typical crazy self
Check
back tomorrow for more pics, detailed pics of Wave 3 of the
Four
Horsemen's 6" Micro-Statue line due out Spring 2006,
and a look at the cover and features on the Season 1 Volume
1 Masters of the Universe cartoon DVD from BCI
Eclipse!
July
15
Yesterday
had a number of fantastic events for MOTU at SDCC
2005.
In addition to the King Randor 6" Micro-Statue that continues
to sell out each day at the NECA booth, and the 10 Best DVD
for MOTU that has proven to be a strong seller out the gate
for retailers everywhere and at the con, there have been some
great signings and a fantastic panel.
From noon until 2pm, Lou Scheimer, his wife
Jay Scheimer, and daughter Erika
Schemier all signed for a huge line of fans.
Lou
Scheimer
Lou
Scheimer, Jay Scheimer,
Erika Scheimer
Emiliano
Santalucia, Lou Scheimer, James Eatock
BCI
Booth at Tower Records Island
Then
from 3pm until 4pm, a great panel with the Scheimers
took place where a huge number of fans turned out to pay respect
to Filmation's contributions over the years.
Lou
Scheimer
Lou
Scheimer, Jay Scheimer, Erika Scheimer
Then a couple great signings took place that afternoon.
One from 4:30pm until 6pm with Adam Hughes
and Andy Mangels where Adam took time to do
some sketches for fans in addition to signing,
and then another from 5:30pm until 6:30pm with Emiliano
Santalucia where he did tons of free sketches for anyone
who asked.
Check back later on for coverage of today's events, and great
pictures of the upcoming 3rd wave of Staction figures... if
we can find the key to the display cabinet, that is. D'oh!
July
14
With
the buzz strong on the 10 Best DVD, people have been asking
more about the upcoming documentaries.
He-Fans can learn more about the He-Man DVD documentaries
and see an extensive series of screen captures at documentary
director Andy Mangels' website. Check
it out!
While
many fans probably don't even realize this, the new DVDs were
converted from restored digital masters in PAL format, a format
used commonly outside the US (click
here to learn more about broadcast formats). The
PAL format episodes are slightly faster than the NTSC format
that was originally aired in the US, by about 2 to 3%. BCI attempted, prior to release of the 10
Best, to slow the speed of master copies when converting to
NTSC. But while the sound quality held up, the video quality
did not. So the DVDs released will continue to have the speed
of the PAL format, familiar to most fans outside of the US.
So some fans have wondered why the digital masters are in
PAL format to begin with. BCI licensed the rights to produce the DVD
from Entertainment Rights, who provided BCI
with the episode content they were to use. And previously,
Entertainment Rights bought the Filmation
library from Hallmark, complete with restored
digital masters in PAL format. Here is what Entertainment Rights has to say about
the current PAL format of the digitally restored master copies:
"Our He-Man MOTU masters were digitized into PAL format,
primarily, to take advantage of a number of material benefits,
including a 625 line structure and that they lose any NTSC
2-3 'pull-down' issues. There is no loss of any program material,
whatsoever, when using these PAL masters."
"There is a percentage decrease in running time, due
to the difference in film transfers between PAL and NTSC,
but this factor is very common and generally accepted within
the industry as being so slight that it should not affect
NTSC conversions at all."
"We would also like to assure you that when servicing
NTSC customers, a Snell & Wilcox converter with PHC is
used to produce industry standard transfers. The new Digital
He-Man Masters are a huge improvement to the old broadcast
master reels in every way."
MASTERING
THE UNIVERSE
He-Man and the Rise and Fall of a Billion-Dollar Idea
By Roger Sweet and David Wecker
The
cutthroat toy industry is no place for children. MASTERING
THE UNIVERSE ($16.99, Emmis Books, July 2005) takes readers
inside that world with an unprecedented behind-the-scenes
look at the inspired creation, meteoric rise, and devastating
fall of one of the top-selling toy lines ever—He-Man
and Masters of the Universe (MOTU to fans)—as told by
He-Man’s creator, Roger Sweet.
The
outrageously muscle-bound action figure and his allies and
villains created a fantasy world for boys that, at the height
of MOTU’s popularity in 1986, reached $400 million in
sales, only to plummet to $7 million the following year. During
its six-year run, the line sold $1.2 billion worldwide and
spawned a syndicated cartoon series and a major motion picture—a
feat not even the venerable Barbie can claim.
Roger
Sweet and co-author David Wecker reveal the office politics
that influenced the development of He-Man and MOTU, starting
with Mattel’s initial call for a male action figure
that could compete with the Star Wars craze—on which
Mattel had notoriously missed the boat.
The
authors also recount the creative process, from He-Man’s
origins as three separate characters—a barbarian, a
military man, and a futuristic space man—to the moment
when Mattel’s president, in choosing among several toy
concepts, pointed to the He-Man prototypes and uttered the
prophetic line, “Those have the power.”
MASTERING
THE UNIVERSE is a must-read for members of the He-Man generation
as well as for toy collectors, pop culture enthusiasts, and
anyone interested in the drama of business history—as
bloody a battleground as anything He-Man ever faced.
Roger
Sweet has a Master of Science degree in Product Design from
the Institute of Design in Chicago. He worked twenty years
doing general consumer product and graphic design and twenty-five
more years doing toy product and graphic design. Companies
for whom he has designed products include Boeing, Procter
& Gamble, Rubbermaid, Hamilton Beech Scovil, Hoover and
Mattel. He is currently researching and developing new product
concepts. Roger resides in the Pacific Northwest.
David
Wecker is a columnist for both the Cincinnati Post and the
Kentucky Post. He is also co-host of Brain Brew, a weekly
on-hour radio program distributed by PRI, Public Radio International
and co-author of Jump Start Your Brain. He lives with his
wife and children in a 200 year-old log cabin in Kentucky.
And
Greg Glass, Senior VP of BC, has an important announcment
he wanted to pass along to fans about Comic-Con, in hopes
of their support.
"The cost of the He-Man 10 Best DVD set at Comi-con,
sold through the Tower Records booth, will be $20. Although
this is $2 to $5 higher than some of the retailers out there,
BCI would really appreciate all the fan support that we can
get by having attending fans purchase their 10 Best DVD while
they are at the convention."
"It
has been very expensive to put on this He-Man event at Comi-con,
including all of marketing materials and travel expenses associated
with all of the fine talent we have at the event. In addition,
we have a crew of 5 people filming the entire event for great
upcoming DVD extras! Some of this expense is being funded
by Tower Records, and it is very rare to find a retailer so
willing to support this kind of TV property!"
"For
all of these reasons, we hope that all the He-Man fans who
come to the booth will purchase a copy of the 10 Best Episode
DVD set we have on hand, and have it signed by Lou Scheimer
and the rest of the creators and artists associated with Masters
of the Universe. Thank you all in advance for your support
of He-Man DVD and the He-Man Comi-con events!"
Having
any problems with your new 10 Best DVD not playing correctly? Well never fear! Technical support for disc problems
can be reported to Dan
McNair at BCI!
July
11
Tomorrow
is the big day!
The Best of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe DVD from
BCI
Eclipse hits stores in North America! Spread the word
to fellow fans everywhere!
And to keep people in the know, BCI has unleashed a flurry
of advertisement.
Earlier last week, Adult Swim on Cartoon Network ran promos
for the popular cartoon block with the support of the 10 Best
DVD! Right click
here to download, then play the WMV file featuring this Adult
Swim ad! *700 KB File*
Want more?
BCI is also running a spot in Target to promote the DVD for
customers browsing the isles! Click here to
check out the MOV file (using Quicktime) featuring this Target
ad! *1.5 MB File* Still want more?
Well, how about a network TV promotional spot with an awesome
commercial? Click here to check
out the MOV file (using Quicktime) featuring this slick television
ad! *8 MB File*
You can catch the TV ad on any of the following
networks:
Minneapolis - Comcast Cable, various stations, July 4 - 17
Los Angeles - Comcast Cable, various stations, July 7 - 31
Baltimore - WNUV-TV (WB), July 3 - 15
San Antonio - Time Warner Cable, various stations, July 3
- 31
Kansas City - Time Warner Cable, various stations, July 3
- 31
Oklahoma City - Cox Media, various stations, July 8 - 24
Cincinnati - WSTR-TV (WB), July 3 - 15
Jacksonville - WJWB-TV (WB), July 10 - 24
Boston - Charter Cable, various stations, July 3 - 31
Denver - Comcast Cable, various stations, July 1 - 10
St.Louis - Charter Cable, various stations, July 3 - 23
Cleveland - Time Warner Cable, various stations, July 1 -
31
Charlotte - WJZY-TV (UPN), July 4 - 10
Columbus - Time Warner Cable, various stations, July 3 - Aug.
3
Washington - Comcast Cable, various stations, July 3 - 10
Salt Lake City - KUWB-TV (WB), July 10 - Aug. 15
Sacramento - Comcast Cable, various stations, July 3 - 31
Las Vegas - KVWB-TV (WB), July 3 - 8
Miami - Comcast Cable, various stations, July 3 - 31
July
10
Wave
1 of the Four Horsemen's 6" Micro-Statues, including
Hordak, Snout Spout and
Clawful, are beginning to show up at the
homes of fans everywhere.
And these babies look incredible. Click
here to check out pictures and comments from other fans!
And it's not too late to order your own Wave 1 6" Micro-Statues,
still at AFX's dicounted preorder price. If
you click on this link, or use the banner above any time
you order anything from AFX, you
will be supporting He-man.org.
Thanks for your support!
July
8
Bad
news for fans who can't attend SDCC
or Wizard
World, but still hoped to get a King Randor 6"
Micro-Statue.
Despite the repeated efforts of He-man.org and the Four
Horsemen, NECA
won't be able to commit to selling the exclusives prior to
SDCC.
There is a possibility that something may be worked out as
Wizard World draws close, but we can't promise anything.
Our advice to fans is to wait it out until Wizard World.
We are 100% positive you'll still be able to find the Randors
on eBay after Wizard World, and you'll also be doing yourself
a favor and saving money by not getting sucked into the initial
bidding war over new items.
If
you just can't wait until Wizard World to find out if we can
land some King Randor statues, we suggest
working deals or trades with other fans attending cons, especially
on our New
Masters Marketplace.
Beware of eBay presales. Not only are presales illegal
on eBay when having the item in-hand cannot be guaranteed,
but these sellers are making an arm and a leg off or your
desire to get an exclusive.
If NECA has any left over by the end of Wizard World, we'll
do what we can to procure those for you all at con cost. Keep
your fingers crossed!
Do remember that the Four Horsemen, the sculptors and licensees
of these 6" Micro-Statues, did fight really hard to make
this happen for fans.
We hope we'll have good news come Wizard World. But to be
on the safe side, it may be best to seek out an alternative
means to acquire one of the exclusive 6" King Randor
Micro-Statues.
July
7
Norm
Prescott, co-founder of FILMATION, passed away on
July 2nd.
Prescott was a popular Boston radio personality in the 1950s.
When Fred Silverman (at CBS) was looking for a low budget
studio to produce SUPERMAN for Saturday morning in 1966, Prescott
teamed with Lou Scheimer to form Filmation - and convinced
Silverman to give their studio a shot. The rest is history.
He will be missed. Please
click here to share your thoughts.
WJZY
UPN46 in the Charlotte, NC viewing area has a contest
running from July 4th thru July 10th where the contestant
can win a copy of the new 10 Best
MOTU DVDand a set of home gym equipment!
To enter, please visit their website and click on contests.
BUT, contestants must be legal residents of North or South
Carolina.
Thanks to He-Fan Marvin Glenn for that info.
There will also be other stations doing similar promotion.
We will post more info as it becomes available!
July
5
DVD
info for Australian and other Region 4 DVD fans! MadMan has now posted a section for their
upcoming MOTU DVD release. Click
here to check it out. (thanks to He-Fan
Scott Falappi for the link)
As
you may notice, this is the same DVD as the North American
10 Best DVD from BCI, which is different from what MadMan
had originally planned to release.
MadMan is going to be using all of BCI's DVD material for
all of their releases.
While we can't speak for the actual manufacturing process
(such as whether or not the packaging will
be embossed the same way or printed with the same spot UV
techniques, or whether the art cards will be printed on the
same matt stock, etc),
we can tell everyone that the MadMan DVDs will contain the
same episodes and menu designs as what BCI produces.
The packaging and artcard files MadMan uses will also all
come from BCI.
This should hold true through MadMan's entire series of MOTU
releases, meaning their season volume releases and content
will match BCI's.
MadMan will be at Comicon, so fans can meet them there and
ask questions.
July
2
BCI
Eclipse will be advertising the 10 Best DVD
for Masters of the Universe in all of DC
Comics' teen and adult titles starting with books hitting
stores this coming Thursday, July 7th! (typically,
it would be Wednesday, but the July 4th holiday pushes comic
shop deliveries back a day).
Check out the ad supporting the July 12th release!
July
1
The
6" Micro-Statues from NECA
and the Four
Horsemen have been reported to have arrived here in the
states to distribute.
Now it's only a matter of time before they are in the hands
of retailers and on their way to you!
And it's not too late to order your own Wave 1 6" Micro-Statues.
If
you click on this link, or use the banner above any time
you order anything from AFX, you
will be supporting He-man.org.
Thanks for your support!
Classic
Prince Adam / He-Man made
a brief cameo on the animated cartoon Family
Guy! Click here
to download a brief AVI clip of this awesome cameo (it
may take a few minutes to download, as it's 5 MB in size),
put together by one of our fellow He-Fans! You'll need DivX
Play Bundle installed on your machine to play the clip
(install at your own risk, we don't support
any system install problems or questions).
You can catch Family guy on FOX on Friday nights and regular
time slots on both TBS and Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. See
what other fans have to say about the clip!
June
30
BCI
Eclipse has answered your questions!
And they have revealed tons of details about
the upcoming DVD release of the classic Masters of the Universe
carton series!
BCI
has had
two meetings
with Mattel.
In both
meetings,
we’ve
made it
clear that
we are very
interested
in having
their involvement
and support
on the project.
Mattel is
a huge company
and moves
slowly,
but we are
hopeful
that they
will come
around soon
and support
us with
materials
from their
archives
and other
things as
well.
2) Will
there be
similar
releases
with She-Ra?
Is it dependent
on the sales
of He-Man?
Entertainment
Rights also
controls
She-Ra.
They will
obviously
be interested
in what
happens
with the
sales of
He-Man before
they move
forward
on She-Ra
DVD. They
also have
a slightly
different
rights split
with Mattel
on She-Ra
then on
He-Man,
so they
have some
ideas in
mind for
the future
of She-Ra
that they
are looking
to Mattel
to support.
Again,
as a rights
holder,
you are
always trying
to bring
all of the
rights to
bear on
the market
at the same
time. When
Entertainment
Rights and
Mattel get
on the same
page about
the future
of She-Ra,
hopefully
that will
include
BCI for
North American
DVD. However,
right now,
there is
no date
on the horizon
for She-Ra
on DVD.
We
believe
that Entertainment
Rights is
interested
in convincing
Mattel of
some type
of “re-launch”
of She-Ra.
However,
we have
absolutely
