Disney Pixar Cars Darth Mater Unveiled at San Diego Comic-Con 2008

I've been writing updates based on what's relevant to collectors. There's much more to come about New toys such as the fan Cars, the old days Cars, the trailers, pitty's, and the goings on at San Diego Comic-Con 2008, so come back for more. Tonight as I finish my trip in San Diego, I thought it was a good time to talk about Darth Mater! On Thursday, July 24, 2008, Darth Mater was unveiled at the San Diego Comic-Con at Mattel's booth. This one-of-a-kind work of art was the collaboration of Mattel's fantastic design team. It will be auctioned off at this year's Children Affected by Aids Foundation's Dream Halloween event on October 25, 2008. Want to know more about this great organization? Visit this link Children Affected by Aids Foundation so you can bid on Darth Mater.

Darth Mater is nothing short of incredible! He's about the size of one of the many talking toys Mattel has released. He wields his light-up light sabre while Star Wars music plays. At the time of the unveiling he had no voice. He will have a recording added with his alter-ego Larry the Cable Guy saying something choice to be sure. The floor lights up as well. You can see two acrylic plaques in front that are signed by John Lasseter and George Lucas.

Are you drooling? I wish I had the kind of money needed to be able to win this great piece. Oh, well! I'll just have to wait until the smaller version comes out in October. Yes! I was given indication that a smaller die-cast version is a very strong likelihood for Halloween!! I'll certainly keep you all posted as info is made available to me. Live from San Diego Comic-Con 2008. I'm out for tonight.

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Disney Pixar Cars New Releases Part One

It is always cool to see prototypes of New Releases. I'm going to show you a ton of upcoming Cars die cast toys! You are going to be very excited, and you better start saving your pennies, 'cause there's a lot you're going to want to buy!

Hmmmm, where would you like me to start...the New Die Cast Trailers? How about the Over sized releases to come? Maybe, you'd like to hear about the Chase Cars? Oh, wait, you want to hear about the characters you've been dying to be released forever?! I gotcha...enee, meenee, minee, mo...just get on with it will you Joe! My name's not Joe, but here we go! Yeah, I'm a bit punchy after days of Comic-Con.

Ok, ok, let's start with the Chase Cars. "Chase Cars" are Cars that will be randomly inserted into distribution. They will have subtle differences and have a limited run of 20,000 per Chase Car. That means they are rare and will be tougher to find. The first two we should see very soon are Stickers McQueen and Stickers Fred. Stickers McQueen will have bumper stickers on his rear end, while Fred will have them on his sides. You have to be on the lookout to find them with their subtle differences. They are expected to be released at a one per month frequency.

We should see Chase Cars of DJ, Wingo, Snot Rod, Boost and Lightning McQueen with the ole Denver Boot on them! Quite the motley crew aren't they? These are hilarious!

We should also see Piston Cup Trophies as Chase from what I was told. The cool little accessory should come packaged with Lightning McQueen, The King and Chick Hicks as the Piston Cup Champs! I was told they'd look like they were gilded in gold by being made with a special finish.

Since my laptop's battery is getting low and
I'm getting hungry, this is it for this entry. I'll continue with Oversized releases in my next entry LIVE from Comic-Con!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Comic-Con El Dia Dos!

San Diego is warm, inviting and all abuzz with Comic-Con! The morning news had extensive coverage today. The local coverage spoke a lot about fearing the convention would be moved to L.A. or Vegas due to it getting so big. I believe I heard the head man of Comic-Con say they had a contract through 2010 to stay in San Diego. I've also heard talk about a move in the crowds. Time will tell.

I can tell you that most of the people working on the event, don't know what's going on and how to direct you. The organization has been average at best. The food vendors are pathetic for such a large and well-known convention. All I've seen is pretzels, cookies and crappy overpriced sandwiches for $8.00! I'm dumbfounded by a lack of more and high quality food! It is the worst part of what I've encountered.

Ok, let's get on with some cool stuff! Today I spent the morning at the Mattel booth. I interviewed Martin Arriola, Senior Manager of Product Design, who heads up Mattel's design team for Disney/Pixar's Cars die cast toy line! I'm going to write an entry all about Martin and his great insight later. I also spoke to Ryan Mansour who is the Brand Manager of the Cars line. I talked about things, you the fan, are hungry for...A great Display Case, Miniature Scenery to complement your play sets, and setting limits on their new MattyCollector.com site which debuts on Monday, July 28, 2008! I'll discuss more about MattyCollector.com later as well!

I'll tell you what is exciting about the future of the Cars line for us as collectors...John Lasseter! Martin told me that John has been developing this line like the fan of great toys he is! John wants to create EACH AND EVERY character in scale and quality! This way we as collectors can recreate Radiator Springs to Pit Row in die cast toys and play sets! That's been my hope as a collector! I've been envisioning the day I will setup the entire town and the race track as my first venture into a "Railroad" set type display! Something I've been inspired by Walt Disney's passion of Trains and model Railroads to do!

There's a lot to come, and I guarantee, that you'll be beyond excited!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Publisher's Comic-Con 2008 Adventure!

I leave for San Diego in less than 2 days! I'm as excited as can be, as both a fan, and a fan site publisher! I'm still checking to be sure I know where to go, and what I need to do, as I attend my First Comic-con. My professional goals are clearly in my head, but the fun and impromptu items are dizzying. I can attend this party, go to that screening, setup interviews with these stars, and so much more! Once I get my bearings with the logistics of parking and where things are, I'm sure I'll settle into a nice flow and enjoy things beyond my expectations. I'm trying to be certain I have my laptop ready technically. I want to be able to write and update all of you while I'm at the convention. I'm still trying to figure out parking and making purchases. I just know it will be a lot of fun! My focus will be on Mattel and Hot Wheels concerning interviews and product info, but will add other items of interest if it makes sense to publish it. For now, I'm off to pack!

http://carsdiecasttoys.blogspot.com/

Mattel Collectors Club - Rumor or Reality

I've read rumors on a number of sites claiming Mattel is going to launch a FREE Collectors Club. I've searched and searched and can't find anything to support this assertion. I've been contacted by the PR firm that handles Mattel due to my covering the Comic-con, and the Press Release I received didn't mention the launch of a Collectors Club. I will certainly explore this further on Monday, and inform readers about any verified news as I get it. I will have a definitive answer by July 23, 2008.

http://carsdiecasttoys.blogspot.com/

Off to Cover Comic-Con 2008!

I've got my Press Pass approved, my airline ticket purchased, my car and hotel setup, and I'm ready to head to San Diego in two weeks to cover Comic-Con 2008! It will be my first time attending, and I am truly excited to be part of the Press who'll bring you the goings on at the convention.

I will be bringing you coverage of Mattel's release of the special Lightning Storm McQueen! I'll certainly take photographs and give you the most detailed info I can report to you. I'll also do my best to find out about Mattel's plans for the line of Cars die cast toys, and any announcements I can fill you in on.

The convention is filled with so many features...I personally can't wait to see the Costume Ball where entrants must make an Original Costume. There's sure to be a lot to see! Celebrities like Dean Koontz, Lindsay Wagner and so many more will be in attendance! An incredible roster of exhibitors such as Mattel, Hot Wheels to LucasArts! What excites me, is I have no idea of the cool and crazy people I'll meet. So, it is sure to be a great time!

http://carsdiecasttoys.blogspot.com/

Looking for Pixar's "Cars" all Over the Globe!

I'm back from my trip aboard the Disney Magic and California! I sailed from Florida through the Panama Canal and ended my journey in Los Angeles. Three weeks of fun and adventure! During my trip, I continued my hunt for Cars die cast toys! What kind of collector and writer would I be if I didn't search out the little die cast treasures throughout my trip. The first and obvious place I had to check was the ship's gift shop. What do ya know? I found Dudley Spare, and got two to boot!

The next place I found some treasure was in Acapulco! I went to a Mexican drugstore with a friend who was looking for some medicine. While she attended to her business, I milled around until I found a bunch of toys messily stacked on some shelves. I looked through them until...Eureka! I found a Flik and Flea Movie Moments!!!! I couldn't believe I finally found one! Then, to add to my excitement, the darn thing was also in Spanish!

When we visited Puerta Vallarta, I searched at both a Sam's Club and Walmart, and came up empty. I looked around Cabo San Lucas and only found sea lions and Pelicans! Finally, arrived at Disneyland and hunted around only to find hundreds of Peg Warmers! My last lucky find was up in Culver City, Cal-e-fornia! I drove by a Toys R Us a couple times and finally decided to drop in because my intuitive Cars sensors were going off! I went to the Cars display and found one Chuki! That was the last lucky find on my three week trip. I travelled roughly 7500 miles and these three were all I could track down. Do you think collecting these little guys is a bit popular?!

I visited the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles because they HAD a Pixar Cars exhibit that was to run through November. I got there and was about to go in when I saw a sign that said the exhibit was gone. The ticket seller had no good answer, other than to say Disney decided to pull the exhibit. I was very dissapointed and just turned and left. So, my article about that exhibit will not happen. I looked in the Auto Museum gift shop and they just had the usual Peg Warmers too!

I'm amazed at the staying power these toys have had after two years on the market! As I joked tongue in cheek, when I heard about Cars 2 being released, I'll have another six to eight years to write about collecting these fun folks from Carburetor County for some time to come!

http://carsdiecasttoys.blogspot.com/

The Art of Cars Exhibit in Los Angeles

I depart for the Panama Canal aboard the Disney Magic tomorrow. I will be travelling for 3 weeks. Two weeks will be spent sailing from the East Coast, through the Panama Canal, and finally arriving in Los Angeles. I will visit the Petersen Automotive Museum to see "The Art of Cars" exhibit. When I get home, I'll report on the entire exhibit in three weeks and resume publishing then.

http://carsdiecasttoys.blogspot.com/