 | |
| Authors | Roger Sweet David Wecker |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Emmis Books |
Publication date | July 11, 2005 |
| Media type | Print (Paperback) |
| Pages | 240 pages |
| ISBN | 1-57860-223-8 |
| OCLC | 59712548 |
| 688.7/2 22 | |
| LC Class | NK4894.3.H46 S94 2005 |
Mastering the Universe: He-Man and the Rise and Fall of a Billion-Dollar Idea is a 2005 book by Roger Sweet and David Wecker that recounts Sweet's work behind the scenes of the corporate culture of the 1980s American toy industry.
Sweet (with his co-author and nephew David Wecker) details the creation of the Masters of the Universe toy line, its rise to immense popularity and then dizzying crash in which profits fell from a peak of $400 million in United States sales alone in 1986 to a mere $7 million in 1987. The book is primarily a view of the corporate side of creating Masters of the Universe, but details very little of the conceptual process behind inventing the individual Masters of the Universe characters and products. [1]
Mattel, Inc. is an American multinational toy manufacturing company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in more than 150 countries. The company operates through three business segments: North America, International, and American Girl.
Billion Dollar Babies is the sixth studio album by American rock band Alice Cooper, released in March 1973 by Warner Bros. Records. The album became the best selling Alice Cooper record at the time of its release, hit number one on the album charts in both the United States and the United Kingdom, and went on to be certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. The album has been retrospectively praised by such critics as Robert Christgau, Greg Prato of AllMusic, and Jason Thompson of PopMatters, but The Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004) gave the album only two and a half stars.
He-Man is a superhero and the main protagonist of the sword and planet Masters of the Universe franchise, which includes a toy line, several animated television series, comic books and a feature film. He-Man is characterized by his superhuman strength and in most variations, is the alter ego of Prince Adam. He-Man and his friends attempt to defend the secrets of Castle Grayskull, the planet Eternia, and the rest of the universe from the evil forces of his archenemy Skeletor.
Star Maker is a science fiction novel by British writer Olaf Stapledon, published in 1937. The book describes a history of life in the universe, dwarfing in scale Stapledon's previous book, Last and First Men (1930), a history of the human species over two billion years. Star Maker tackles philosophical themes such as the essence of life, of birth, decay and death, and the relationship between creation and creator. A pervading theme is that of progressive unity within and between different civilizations.
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe is an American animated television series produced by Filmation based on Mattel's toy line Masters of the Universe. The show was one of the most popular animated shows of the 1980s.
Kenner Products, known simply as Kenner, was an American toy company founded in 1946. Throughout its history, the Kenner brand produced several highly recognizable toys and merchandise lines including action figures like the original series of Star Wars, Jurassic Park and Batman as well as die cast models. The company was closed by its corporate parent Hasbro in 2000.
Masters of the Universe is a sword and planet-themed media franchise created by Mattel. The main premise revolves around the conflict between He-Man and Skeletor on the planet Eternia, with a vast lineup of supporting characters in a hybrid setting of medieval sword and sorcery, and sci-fi technology. A follow-up series, She-Ra: Princess of Power revolves around He-Man's sister She-Ra and her rebellion against The Horde on the planet Etheria. Since its initial launch, the franchise has spawned a variety of products, including multiple lines of action figures, six animated television series, several comic series, video games, books and magazines, a daily newspaper comic strip, and two feature films.
Castle Grayskull is a fortress located on the fictional planet Eternia. It forms a central location in the Masters of the Universe toy/comic/animation universe and also appears in the 1987 live action adaptation. The concept is credited to Donald F. Glut. The toy set was invented by Roger Sweet. Castle Grayskull was a "major feature of Mattel's line", and was "one of the most famous playsets of all time".
Zodac is a fictional character, a cosmic superheroic entity in the Masters of the Universe mythology. The spelling varies between Zodac and Zodak in different sources. In a unique curiosity of the Masters of the Universe franchise, portrayals of Zodac vary considerably from medium to medium since the franchise began in the 1980s, leaving many confused over the character. The fact that in the original line and accompanying animated series's run, the character was very seldom used, added to the mystery surrounding him even further.
Roger Sweet is an American designer. He grew up in Akron, Ohio and graduated from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio and the Institute of Design in Chicago, Illinois. He served as a lead designer at Mattel throughout much of the 1970s and 1980s and worked extensively on the Masters of the Universe toy line. Before working for Mattel, Sweet held design positions with Walter Dorwin Teague Associates, an industrial design firm, and other design firms. He worked on the accounts of such companies as Boeing, Rubbermaid, Hoover, and Procter & Gamble, and on such products as the interior of the Boeing 747 jumbo jet airliner, and the Downy and Scope packages.
Clawful is a fictional supervillain in the Masters of the Universe toy line and the accompanying cartoon series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.
Masters of the Universe is a 1987 American superhero film directed by Gary Goddard, produced by Yoram Globus and by Menahem Golan and written by David Odell. The film stars Dolph Lundgren, Frank Langella, Jon Cypher, Chelsea Field, Billy Barty, Courteney Cox, Robert Duncan McNeill, and Meg Foster. It is based on the Mattel toy line of the same name and tells the story of two teenagers who meet He-Man, the most powerful man in the universe, and his friends, who arrive on Earth by chance from their home planet Eternia and go on a mission to save the universe from He-Man’s archenemy, the evil Skeletor.
Thomas Kalinske is an American businessman, best known as having worked for Mattel from 1972 to 1987, where he was credited with reviving the Barbie and Hot Wheels brands, launching Masters of the Universe, then being promoted to CEO from 1985 to 1987. He next became CEO of Matchbox, and then was recruited to be the president and CEO of Sega of America, Inc. from 1990 to 1996, and the CEO and COB of Leapfrog 1997-2006. His aggressive marketing decisions during his time at Sega, such as price drops, anti-Nintendo attack ads, and the famous "Sega Scream" TV campaign, are often cited as key elements in the success of the Sega Genesis video game console. The book Console Wars and the documentary film of the same name chronicles Kalinske’s strategies and success in competing with Nintendo. Tom was inducted into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame in 1997 and received a lifetime achievement award from People of Play in 2021. He has also been honored as "Man of the Year" by the NY Boy Scouts and LA Make A Wish Foundation. He currently serves as Chairman of Mixed Dimensions, a 3D printing company, and on the boards of Stiched Insights, Adjunct Professor Link, Storyworld, the University of Wisconsin School of Business, and Teach The World Foundation. His estimated net worth is $10–$20M.
David Wecker is a writer His experience includes nearly 25 years as a newspaper columnist for The Cincinnati Post, The Kentucky Post and the Scripps News Service. His Post editors said he wrote about ordinary people in a way that made them memorable.
The Power Sword, also referred to as the Sword of Power or the Sword of Grayskull, is a fictional sword from Mattel's Masters of the Universe toy line. In the original mini-comics produced with the toyline in 1981, the Power Sword was a mystical object split into two parts, which Skeletor tries to obtain and put together in order to gain control over Castle Grayskull. In these early stories, He-Man uses an axe and a shield, rather than the magical sword.
The Masters of the Universe media franchise has appeared in several comic book series. Most were small publications, which were included as bonuses with action figures. Standalone comic-book series were also published by DC, Marvel Comics, London Edition Magazines and Image Comics.
David Maisel is an American film and Broadway producer, entertainment businessman and the architect of the self-financed and self-producing Marvel Studios. He is the executive producer of Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, and The Angry Birds Movie. At the helm of Livent, Maisel won the Tony Award for Best Musical for the Broadway production, Fosse.
2019 in film is an overview of events, including the highest-grossing films, award ceremonies, critics' lists of the best films of 2019, festivals, a list of country-specific lists of films released, and movie programming.
Roboto is a fictional character from the Masters of the Universe franchise.
The Toys That Built America is a multi-part documentary series that showcases Parker Brothers, Milton Bradley and Ruth Handler who were visionaries that transformed Mattel, a small toy company, into a multi-billion dollar empire.
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