NY Times - Christmas 1988

[PizzaPower1985]

Found this NY TIMES article for those interested in TMNT history... It details the very beginning of Turtlemania. Archived HERE (https://www.nytimes.com/1988/12/25/business/dynamic-duo-kevin-eastman-peter-laird-turning-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-into.html).

Copyright Disclaimer: This written work is a printed media that is entirely owned by The New York Times, copyrighted, 1988.

[Jester]

Stupid pay wall...

On a wacky note, this TMNT article is written by a man who shares my surname.

[IndigoErth]

Neat!

*Waits for Jester to hunt down his distant cousin to see if he has a copy he can share* :trazz:

[neatoman]

Stupid pay wall...

On a wacky note, this TMNT article is written by a man who shares my surname.

So your alias wouldn't be Saul Goodman, would it?

[Jester]

so your alias wouldn't be saul goodman, would it?

;) .

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

I can read the article. Is that because I live in Sweden?

[neatoman]

Stupid pay wall...

On a wacky note, this TMNT article is written by a man who shares my surname.

I can read the article. Is that because I live in Sweden?

We can read the transcribed article but it's the scan that is behind a pay wall.

[mikey0]

Here’s an actual article from when Turtlemania erupted: https://tmnt-ninjaturtles.com/assets/TMNT-Scrapbook_Page_08.jpg

Nintendo Entertainment System was the best selling toy of the 1988 holiday season, not TMNT. 1990 was the year of Turtlemania.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Nintendo Entertainment System was the best selling toy of the 1988 holiday season, not TMNT..

And what toy sold best for Christmas 1989?

[PizzaPower1985]

Here?s an actual article from when Turtlemania erupted: https://tmnt-ninjaturtles.com/assets/TMNT-Scrapbook_Page_08.jpg

Nintendo Entertainment System was the best selling toy of the 1988 holiday season, not TMNT. 1990 was the year of Turtlemania.

Dude, after 36 years, you can't be pedantic. After all this time Turtlemania IS NOT a single year. It began in '88 and ended around 1993. It's not about what year the toys were the bestseller, it's about the franchise as a whole. It's heyday was when TMNT was a merchandising juggernaut. After '93, it was still around, but Turtlemania was over.

[mikey0]

Dude, after 36 years, you can't be pedantic. After all this time Turtlemania IS NOT a single year. It began in '88 and ended around 1993. It's not about what year the toys were the bestseller, it's about the franchise as a whole. It's heyday was when TMNT was a merchandising juggernaut. After '93, it was still around, but Turtlemania was over.

I am sorry to inform you of this, but 1990 was the year of Turtlemania. Christmas sales have everything to do with it. How can 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, and 1993 be remembered for TMNT when Super Mario Brothers, Gameboy, Super Nintendo, Barney, and the Talkboy are what those years are most known for? That does not add up. In the year 1990, TMNT became a CBS Saturday morning cartoon, a live musical tour, PSA characters, guests on The Oprah Winfrey Show, featured on three Cracked magazine covers, the best selling toy line of the holiday season, Burger King tie-in characters, and a film franchise (the first film is the most successful independent comic book movie out of them all). The first issue of TMNT magazine was even released in 1990. The other years before and after 1990 all fall short of this.

1987: The TMNT FW mini-series is shown in syndication.

1988: The first season of the TMNT FW episodes air/ TMNT action figures are released in the summer.

1989: TMNT becomes a fad in the US.

1990 (Median number): America and the UK is completely obsessed with TMNT.
TMNT is larger than life.

1991: Stocks fall for Playmates Toys.

1992: The Michelangelo virus is unveiled. Children move on to Hasbro WWF, Barney, Treasure Trolls, and Super Soakers.

1993: The third live action film playing at the theater and being sold as a VHS.

[PizzaPower1985]

I?m sorry to inform you of this, but 1990 was the year of Turtlemania. Christmas sales have everything to do with it. How can 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, and 1993 be remembered for TMNT when Super Mario Brothers, Gameboy, Super Nintendo, Barney, and the Talkboy are what those years are most remembered for? That doesn?t add up. In 1990, TMNT became a CBS Saturday morning cartoon, a live musical tour, PSA characters, the best selling toy line, Burger King tie-in characters, and a film franchise. The other years before and after 1990 all fall short of this.

Okay
Well, if it's all about the year of merchandising and not franchise popularity, then fair enough. I like that article you posted though.

[mikey0]

And what toy sold best for Christmas 1989?

Nintendo products like the Power Glove, Game Boy, and the Nintendo Action Set.

Okay
Well, if it's all about the year of merchandising and not franchise popularity, then fair enough. I like that article you posted though.

How was 1990 not the year of franchise popularity?!
The Coming Out of Their Shells tour, Operation Blue Line, the CBS Saturday morning cartoon, TMNT the Movie, Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles, Cartoon All Stars to the Rescue, View Master tie-ins, Ellios Pizza tie-in, the first Cookie Crisp tie-in, Bonkers Candy tie-in, Burger King tie-ins, Rolets Pork Rinds tie-in, Light n Lively tie-in, TMNT magazine, Mello Smello tie-ins, and etc. all came out in 1990. 1990 was the biggest year for all things TMNT. Turtlemania did happen in 1990. There will never be another Turtlemania like the one from 1990 in this century or the ones after.

The greatest episodes of the FW cartoon were introduced in the late 80s, but the FW series failed to the sell the action figures in the numbers that TMNT the Movie did. 1990 was when TMNT was most popular worldwide.

[Leo656]

Dude, after 36 years, you can't be pedantic.

"Pedantic" is apparently something this individual is elevating to an art form. :lol:

[PizzaPower1985]

Nintendo products like the Power Glove, Game Boy, and the Nintendo Action Set.



How was 1990 not the year of franchise popularity?!
The Coming Out of Their Shells tour, Operation Blue Line, the CBS Saturday morning cartoon, TMNT the Movie, Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles, Cartoon All Stars to the Rescue, View Master tie-ins, Ellios Pizza tie-in, the first Cookie Crisp tie-in, Bonkers Candy tie-in, Burger King tie-ins, Rolets Pork Rinds tie-in, Light n Lively tie-in, TMNT magazine, Mello Smello tie-ins, and etc. all came out in 1990. 1990 was the biggest year for all things TMNT. Turtlemania did happen in 1990. There will never be another Turtlemania like the one from 1990 in this century or the ones after.

The greatest episodes of the FW cartoon were introduced in the late 80s, but the FW series failed to the sell the action figures in the numbers that TMNT the Movie did. 1990 was when TMNT was most popular worldwide.

Yup, you're being pedantic, my friend. I always understood Turtlemania to be defined as the heyday... not a single year when the capitalist machine got lucky and sold a bunch of $hit to hungry young turtle fans. All of the stuff you mentioned may have gotten popular in '90 but it remained popular for the remainder of Turtlemania!

[mikey0]

Yup, you're being pedantic, my friend. I always understood Turtlemania to be defined as the heyday... not a single year when the capitalist machine got lucky and sold a bunch of $hit to hungry young turtle fans. All of the stuff you mentioned may have gotten popular in '90 but it remained popular for the remainder of Turtlemania!

I am not being pedantic. There is no such thing as 1988 to 1993 being the heyday of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I have seen people say that Turtlemania occurred in 1989 and lasted into 1991, but that information is also incorrect. The heyday for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles happened in 1990. 1989 and 1991 were bookmark years for 1990, but none of them were as extravagant for TMNT fans as 1990 was. 1990 was clearly the year to be alive as a shell-head.

Also, things like TMNT Burger King Kids Club kids meal toys may have been sold in 1993, but the bike gear kids meal toys were nowhere near as memorable as the F.H.E. tapes and action badges from 1990.

1987 was the exposition,1988 and 1989 were the rising action, 1990 was the peak (climax), 1991 and 1992 was the falling action, and 1993 was the resolution (when the franchise fell off). There is no denying this.

[PizzaPower1985]

I am not being pedantic. There is no such thing as 1988 to 1993 being the heyday of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I have seen people say that Turtlemania occurred in 1989 and lasted into 1991, but that information is also incorrect. The heyday for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles happened in 1990. 1989 and 1991 were bookmark years for 1990, but none of them were as extravagant for TMNT fans as 1990 was. 1990 was clearly the year to be alive as a shell-head.

Also, things like TMNT Burger King Kids Club kids meal toys may have been sold in 1993, but the bike gear kids meal toys were nowhere near as memorable as the F.H.E. tapes and action badges from 1990.

1987 was the exposition,1988 and 1989 were the rising action, 1990 was the peak (climax), 1991 and 1992 was the falling action, and 1993 was the resolution (when the franchise fell off). There is no denying this.

Dude, you're splitting hairs here, but okay. TMNT was far too large a phenomenon to have a heyday of a single year. I get what you're saying about 1990 being the biggest year for popularity but that's not the same thing as 1990 being the end of Turtlemania. It kept being popular. Within the context of history, way before anything from the 21st century or way before Next Mutation, TMNT's heyday (Turtlemania) ended in '93. That's when most OG fans started checking out of fandom and finding other things. You're just gonna have to stop splitting hairs, pal. We can disagree. It's totally okay!

[mikey0]

Dude, you're splitting hairs here, but okay. TMNT was far too large a phenomenon to have a heyday of a single year. I get what you're saying about 1990 being the biggest year for popularity but that's not the same thing as 1990 being the end of Turtlemania. It kept being popular. Within the context of history, way before anything from the 21st century or way before Next Mutation, TMNT's heyday (Turtlemania) ended in '93. That's when most OG fans started checking out of fandom and finding other things. You're just gonna have to stop splitting hairs, pal. We can disagree. It's totally okay!

Well, I bet Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman wish they could return to the year 1990.

Saying the very beginning of Turtlemania happened in 1988 is akin to a child of the 90s believing that the heyday for the FOX Kids programming block started in the fall of 1990. All children of the 90s should know that Mighty Morphin Power Rangers put FOX Kids on the map. 1994 was the year of Morphin-mania (as the Orlando Sentinel put it).

Many American historians today do not list 1990 as the year when Turtlemania hit. Unfortunately, that would be because American historians tend to look at the release date of the FW miniseries or action figure line and label TMNT as an 80s phenomenon. For those of us who lived in the year 1990, we know that 1990 was the only year when TMNT was the number-one movie for over two weeks, the number-one program for children, and the best selling toy line in the States and abroad. There will never be another 1990 for TMNT fans. TMNT was a very 90s phenomenon.