Some characters stayed on the screen, but the Care Bears climbed right off it and onto our beds. Before they became icons of children’s television, these lovable characters were born as greeting cards for American Greetings, brought to life through the distinct and colorful artwork of Elena Kucharik. If you were there, you remember the…
One look at pink hair, star earrings, and a wall of neon, and you knew this wasn’t ordinary Saturday morning TV. The boys had He-man, and the girls had Jem and the Holograms sold a fantasy, secret identities, girl-band glamour, and songs that landed like tiny music videos. If you were the kind of kid…
Some toys were cute. Some toys had a gimmick. Popples plush toys had both, and that was the whole magic. Created by Those Characters From Cleveland, a division of American Greetings, the same creative team responsible for Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake, these vintage toys and collectible toys featured an original line produced by Mattel…
A singing raisin in sunglasses should’ve been a one-joke commercial. Instead, the California Raisins, conceived by the California Raisin Advisory Board, turned into one of the biggest pop-culture curveballs of the late 1980s. If you were anywhere near a TV set back then, you remember the vibe. Cool voices. Tiny dance steps. That sly “I…