![]() Yes, absolutely, I think thoughts of aging, mortality, creeping irrelevance, all of that comes to haunt one. “I turned 60 this year, and it's an ugly number. “I had a big birthday this year,” laughs Mancini. ![]() Now, 35 years after his creation, Chucky is starting to get old. As the series progressed, Mancini began exploring queer themes that reflected the alienation he felt growing up as a gay kid facing abuse from his father. In 1988, he was a reflection of his creator’s disdain for commercialized kids toys like Cabbage Patch Kids and My Buddy dolls. It can't just be a doll saying ‘Fuck’ and knifing people because that would get old.” “You have to ground this stuff in something identifiable,” Mancini tells IGN. He wrote or co-wrote all seven films in the franchise and spearheaded his current cable outing, all the while using Chucky as an expression of his inner feelings. Check out the IGN's Festival of Fear schedule for the full rundown on everything that's going on in the countdown to Halloween!ĭon Mancini is the rare horror auteur who has stuck with his creation throughout the decades. We're celebrating the spookiest season in style this year with over 20 articles, videos and more. The truncated run of four episodes was cut short due to the double whammy of writers and actors strikes that put the kibosh on production, so as we await the back half of episodes, we spoke with Chucky creator Don Mancini about the doll’s dealings in the White House, the cast of victims new and old, the shocking celebrity cameos and, of course, the kills. Let’s just make it 75 because My Buddy deserves at least that.Season 3 of Syfy’s Chucky series is in the bag. Prior to the upcoming Child’s Play series coming in October from SyFy, Chucky’s kill count sits at 74. But, it didn’t have the effect the toymakers’ thought it would and My Buddy went completely off line in the 90s’ due to poor sales. Hasbro subsidiary Playskool continued manufacturing the doll into the 1990s, while changing up his look a bit to distance the toy’s legacy away from the Child’s Play series. Whether it was the kids themselves, or parents making that association, the My Buddy toy line suffered. He did NOT want that thing in his room anymore and unfortunately, that same scenario rang true for many other kids as well. However, shortly after seeing the movie, we got rid of those fuckin’ nightmare inducing wads of stuffing on the fact it resembled it TOO much and it did give my brother several nightmares. My younger brother had a My Buddy doll prior to the movie coming out, as I did as well with his sister companion. Just like with Freddy, every kid in the late 80s’ early 90s’ knew all about Chucky and we closely associated the plastic terror with the My Buddy doll. Chucky was directly inspired by My Buddy- who in turn, had a hand in the down-fall of the doll. ![]() I’m eternally grateful to have such a marvelous, witty, pint-sized horror maniac in the horror movie legends roster. I’m certainly not giving the guy (Mancini) any shit. It truly was the perfect combination for creating a memorable identity for a toy while cleverly referencing the doll’s name throughout the “earworm” so much so, all kids’ would remember the name My Buddy or Kid Sister when asking for an oversized bundle of plastic and stuffing with sewn-on clothing. In which case, was most certainly the biggest selling point of this doll. And neither did his off-shoot Kid Sister either- which I TOTALLY HAD.Īnd intro the theme song that will probably be stuck in your head the rest of the day. The My Buddy doll was officially stocked on store shelves in 1985 and actually sold fairly well – ranking in eighth place officially as the top-ten selling toys for that year. Up until Hasbro launched a market campaign with a doll, directly marketed to boys as, “ A little boy’s special friend! Rough and tough, yet soft and cuddly.” The boys had their GI JOES and HE-MAN, and that seemed to be the way it just was. Although considered non-gender specific, the dolls were mostly marketed towards little girls. In the earlier part of the decade, Cabbage Patch Dolls rules the ugly doll market with a mighty fist crushing any and all competitors that stood in their creepy, cabbage-dwelling way. Also, looking at this pair side-by-side, it’s beyond obvious we know where he got his look from. But My Buddy was in itself, was inspired by the Xavier Roberts’ line. Sure, the Cabbage Patch Kids as originally stated, served as some inspiration for good ol’ Chuck. Without skipping a beat, 80s’ kids know that My Buddy jingle- and we also know without a doubt, THIS, without a doubt, is the true inspiration behind the Child’s Play franchise.
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