Happy Bunny is a character in a series of stickers, buttons, greeting cards, posters, and other merchandise sold at novelty shops across North America. Designed by artist and writer Jim Benton in the 1990s, whom People Magazine called "the most visible cartoonist in America," [1] Happy Bunny is a small, smiling bunny, often varying in color, with an insulting slogan printed at its feet. [2] Happy Bunny gained popularity in 2001 after stores like Hot Topic and Spencers began selling its merchandise . [3]
Happy Bunny products are sold in many forms such as clothing lines, note pads, key chains, computer mouse pads, energy drinks, school supplies, and many more. "Mr. Benton's intellectual properties ... have made him stand out in an industry dominated by big entertainment companies." [4] "Last year, the It's Happy Bunny brand nabbed the International Licensing Excellence Award for Best Art Brand Licensing of the Year, from the Licensing Industry Merchandisers' Association (LIMA)." [5] "An anti-drug campaign featuring It's Happy Bunny was honored at the 2007 Austin ADDY Awards for advertising excellence in the category of public service." [6]
The appeal of the merchandise lies in the fact that most, if not all, of the slogans are apathetic and sometimes offensive and derogatory, and one commentator noted that "'It's Happy Bunny' has joined the "tasteless" category of merchandise ...". [7] The slogans include, among others, "You suck and that's sad", "Cute but psycho: things even out", "Hi, Loser", "It worries me how dumb you are", "Dear Santa, leave presents. Take Brother!", and "I am the dominant bunny in the world" . It's Happy Bunny also has a line of "medicine" to cure quite awkward (fictional) diseases such as the "I'm delusional" pills; they are actually mints or small candies, the word poison badly blocked out with crayon (with happy bunny holding a crayon) and written in crayon there is, "mints for a frend"(sic).
In addition, Jim Benton has written It's Happy Bunny books including Life. Get One; Love Bites; What's Your Sign?; and The Good, The Bad, and the Bunny. These books are targeted towards teen audiences and are not intended to be children's books. An It's Happy Bunny Sudoku book has also been written by Jim Benton and Rafael Sirkis.
In 2006 the Partnership for a Drug-Free Texas commissioned Benton to create anti-recreational drug public service announcement messages featuring Happy Bunny. [8]
Helen Beatrix Heelis, usually known as Beatrix Potter, was an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist. She is best known for her children's books featuring animals, such as The Tale of Peter Rabbit, which was her first commercially published work in 1902. Her books, including 23 Tales, have sold more than 250 million copies. An entrepreneur, Potter was a pioneer of character merchandising. In 1903, Peter Rabbit was the first fictional character to be made into a patented stuffed toy, making him the oldest licensed character.
Playboy is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother.
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Sanrio Company, Ltd. is a Japanese entertainment company. It designs, licenses, and produces products focusing on the kawaii ("cute") segment of Japanese popular culture. Their products include stationery, school supplies, gifts, and accessories which are sold worldwide, including at specialty brand retail stores in Japan. Sanrio's best-known character is Hello Kitty, a cartoon cat and one of the most successful marketing brands in the world. Sanrio's mission and vision statements are "everyone getting along together" and "One World, Connecting Smiles".
Peter Rabbit is a fictional animal character in various children's stories by English author Beatrix Potter. A mischievous, adventurous young rabbit who wears a blue jacket, he first appeared in The Tale of Peter Rabbit in 1902, and subsequently in five more books between 1904 and 1912. The six books by Potter featuring Peter Rabbit have sold over 150 million copies. Spin-off merchandise includes dishes, wallpaper, painting books, board games and dolls. In 1903, Peter Rabbit was the first fictional character to be made into a patented stuffed toy, making him the oldest licensed character.
Merchandising is any practice which contributes to the sale of products to a retail consumer. At a retail in-store level, merchandising refers to displaying products that are for sale in a creative way that entices customers to purchase more items or products.
Trix is an American brand of breakfast cereal made by General Mills in Minneapolis, Minnesota, for the North American market and by Cereal Partners elsewhere in the world. The cereal consists of fruit-flavored, sweetened, ground-corn pieces.
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Jim K. Benton is an American illustrator and writer. Licensed properties he has created include Dear Dumb Diary, Dog of Glee, Franny K. Stein, Just Jimmy, Just Plain Mean, Sweetypuss, The Misters, Meany Doodles, Vampy Doodles, Kissy Doodles, and the jOkObo project, but he is probably most known for his creation It's Happy Bunny.
Brand licensing means renting or leasing of an intangible asset. It is a process of creating and managing contracts between the owner of a brand and a company or individual who wants to use the brand in association with a product, for an agreed period of time, within an agreed territory. Licensing is used by brand owners to extend a trademark or character onto products of a completely different nature.
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Frederick Warne & Co. is a British publisher founded in 1865. It is known for children's books, particularly those of Beatrix Potter, and for its Observer's Books.
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That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown is a children's picture book written by Cressida Cowell and illustrated by Neal Layton, published in 2006. It won the Nestlé Children's Book Prize Gold Award, as well as being shortlisted for the Booktrust Early Years Awards and longlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal.
Jim Henson's Pajanimals is a children's television series created by Jeff Muncy and Alex Rockwell. The Pajanimals are characters that were made by Jim Henson's Creature Shop at The Jim Henson Company. The series was filmed in Northern Ireland. It aired on PBS Kids Sprout in the United States, and Sprout was a co-producer of the series.
Claymation Easter is a 1992 stop-motion animated short film by Will Vinton. The Easter-themed special won an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program. The special aired on CBS on April 19, 1992.
He was also in 1998's Silent Dog and 2001's Happy Bunny that were drama and fantasy and not black comedy
