The showroom floor at the `97 Licensing Show in New York.

Keychains, bumper stickers, pins, ice cream, Polaroid shots, Chippendale Dancers, and even superheros. Some strange new variety store? No, just the 17th annual International Licensing Show. From June 10-12, more than 14,500 members of the international licensing and merchandising community braved the brutal humidity of Manhattan to promote, negotiate, buy and sell nearly 3,000 properties, including characters, trademarks, original designs, entertainment, sports, animation and personalities. Exhibitor attendance marked a 70% increase over last year, while general attendance recorded a 12% increase from 1996.

To accommodate the number of new and diverse companies exhibiting this year, Licensing International premiered four new speciality pavilions, including the Interactive Entertainment Pavilion, a Sports Pavilion, Fashion Alley, and an Animation Pavilion. Cinar Films, DIC Entertainment, Gaumont Multimedia, InToons Entertainment Group, Jim Henson Productions, Matinee Entertainment and Nelvana, Ltd. were among the animation studios on site.

Big Animation News
Making animation news was Los Angeles-based DIC Entertainment, which promoted three new animated series, "Wacky World of Tex Avery," "Extreme Dinosaurs," and the eagerly awaited "Mummies Alive!," a collaboration between DIC and "Ghostbusters" producer Ivan Reitman. Golden Books Family Entertainment and Goodtimes Entertainment announced they have joined forces to produce an animated feature based on the classic television special "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer." The feature is set for a Christmas 1998 release.

Gaumont's animated series Tune of the Moon.

On the international front, French animation studio Gaumont Multimedia took the opportunity to debut three new children's animated television properties, including "The Magician" and "Tune of the Moon." The third series, "Home to Rent," marks the first European-produced, non-commissioned animated series to be sold to a U.S. network. Fox Kids Network will premiere "Home to Rent" in the fall. But perhaps the most unique animation news found at Licensing International was the introduction of "Ticker," an animated spokes-character for the American Heart Association (AHA). Created by award-winning animation producers David and Mary Corbett of Evening Sky Productions, Inc., Ticker is designed to promote good health to people of all ages, and will be the focus of HeartPower!, a new children's educational campaign. Ticker will reach millions of children from kindergarten through 8th grade by a number of platforms, including animation, toys, publishing, apparel, promotional tie-ins and other major avenues of character licensing.