Mr. Potato Head

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Mr. Potato Head is a popular children's doll, consisting of a plastic model of a potato. Originally, the potato is blank; however, it can be decorated with numerous attachable plastic parts to make a face, including a moustache, hat, nose and other features.

History

Original 1952 Mr. Potato Head boxed set

Mr. Potato Head was the invention of George Lerner in the late 1940s. The idea was originally sold to a breakfast cereal manufacturer so that the separate parts could be distributed as cereal package premiums. This was not successful and Lerner bought back the rights and ultimately sold the product to textile manufacturers Henry and Merrill Hassenfeld, who did business as the Hassenfeld Brothers, later shortened to Hasbro.

When it was first sold to the public in 1952 it became the first toy to be sold through national television advertising and netted Hasbro over USD$4 million in Mr. Potato Head sales in its first year of production. In 1953, Mrs. Potato Head was added, and soon after Brother Spud and Sister Yam completed the Potato Head family. Although originally produced as separate plastic parts to be stuck into a real potato or other vegetable, a plastic body was added to the kit in 1964.

In 1974 the main potato part of the toy doubled in size and the size of its accessories were similarly increased. This was done mainly due to new toy child safety regulations that were introduced by the U.S. government. Hasbro also replaced the holes with flat slats, which made it impossible for users to put the face pieces and other body parts the wrong way around. In the 1980s Hasbro reduced their range of accessories for Mr. Potato Head to one set of parts. They did however reintroduce round holes in the main potato body, and once again parts were able to go onto the toy the wrong way around. Mr. Potato Head has appeared in both Toy Story movies (voiced by Don Rickles), had his own Fox Kids show, been the subject of a comic strip created by Jim Davis, and advertised fries for Burger King in commercials.

Trivia

• Mr. Potato Head has had various counterparts and friends over the years, including his Tooty Fruity Friends, released in the 1960s, which consisted of Pete the Pepper, Oscar the Orange, Cooky the Cucumber and Katie Carrot. Ironically, Oscar the Orange was the only member of the group that was actually a fruit. [link]
• Mr. Potato Head's Picnic Pals, also released during the 1960s, consisted of Willy Burger, Frenchy Fry, and Franky Frank. New face pieces were introduced to accompany these new characters, including ketchup and mustard colored eyes and ears, along with a whole set of onion and pickle-shaped face features. The Picnic Pals were sold in individual sets that included Mr. Potato Head, one of the main Picnic Pals, and a companion “side item” such as Mr. Ketchup Head, Mr. Mustard Head, and Mr. Soda Pop Head. [link]
• Mr. Potato Head received four write-in votes in the 1985 mayoral election in Boise, Idaho.
• Mr. Potato Head's parts originally contained a pipe, and in 1987 he quit smoking his pipe and became the official "spokespud" for the American Cancer Society's Great American Smokeout.
• In 1992 Mr. Potato Head received the Presidential Sports Award from the President's Council on Physical Fitness & Sports.
• In 1997, Rand Bellavia and Adam English of the filk band Ookla the Mok wrote a song called "Das Uber Tuber", about the adventures of the super spy "Mr. Potato Head, master of disguise". The song was nominated for the 1999 Pegasus award for "best hero song" [lyrics].
• In early 2000, Mr. Potato Head was named the official Ambassador for the Rhode Island State Tourism Board.
• In 2001, David and Kathy Reineke, hot-air balloon enthusiasts, created a Mr. Potato Head shaped Cameron Balloon that was 85 feet (26 m) tall and held 115,000 cubic feet (3260 m³) of air. [link] [link]
• On February 12, 2002, Mr. Potato Head rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
• When Mr. Potato Head turned 50 in 2002, he was given an American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) card.
• Voiced by Don Rickles, Mr. Potato Head appeared in 1995's Toy Story
• The 1996 League of Women Voters used Mr. & Mrs. Potato Head to promote their "get out & vote" campaign.
• In 2005 Hasbro released a new version of Mr. Potato Head, Darth Tater (who resembles Darth Vader), to be produced as a tie in to the movie . In the same year his crony, the Spud Trooper, also debuted. Artoo-Potatoo with Princess Tater hologram was released in April 2006.
• Potato Heads potato chips/crisps are made by Walkers. Packets have an image of a potato with a face. There is also a varition called Cheese Heads.
• Drivers in Rhode Island can order vanity license plates with Mr. Potato Head on them to benefit the Rhode Island Community Food Bank.

See also

• Pontiki

External links

• [Hasbro's Mr. Potato Head website]
• [Enthusiast's Mr. Potato Head website]
• [The Darth Tater page]
• [The Spud Trooper page]
• [Princess Potato in her own skin]
• [Mr. Potato Head license plates]

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