Lindberg Licensing & Promotions has been named the exclusive licensing agency for MARTHA SPEAKS by WGBH Boston and Studio B Productions, a subsidiary of DHX Media.
Lindberg Licensing & Promotions will develop the MARTHA SPEAKS licensing and merchandising program in North America, targeting kids 4 to 8 years old, across key categories including: toys, interactive, apparel, accessories and more.
The initial rollout of the merchandise program is anticipated for fall 2009. In addition, Lindberg Licensing & Promotions will bring MARTHA SPEAKS to the 2008 Licensing International Expo, taking place June 10-12 at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City and will be located in booth 4187.
A Studio B and WGBH Boston co-production, MARTHA SPEAKS will launch on September 1, 2008 in the U.S. and Canada on PBS KIDS, TV Ontario, Knowledge Network and SCN. Based on the best-selling books by Susan Meddaugh, the series follows the adventures of Martha, a loveable dog whose appetite for alphabet soup gives her the gift of human speech.
Using her speaking abilities, Martha gets jobs, foils bad guys, wins contests, runs for office and orders lots of steaks. A dog's breakfast of messes and hilarious entanglements ensue for Martha, her family and the unsuspecting people of her town who make up the comic heart of the series.
First published in 1992 by Houghton Mifflin, the MARTHA SPEAKS series of six books has sold more than a million copies to date, and has been translated into several languages, including Spanish, French, Japanese and Greek.
The books have garnered numerous awards, including the NEW YORK TIMES "Best Illustrated Book of the Year," IRA-CBC Children's Choice, and the Parent's Choice Award, and was selected as "Best Book of the Year" by the American Library Association's Booklist, Parent's Magazine, HORN BOOK MAGAZINE and The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books.
