Buddy L (also known as Buddy "L" or Buddy-L ) is an American toy brand and company founded in 1920 as the Buddy L Toy Company in East Moline, Illinois , by Fred Lundahl .
25-518: LJN Toys Ltd. was an American toy company and video game publisher founded by Jack Friedman in 1967. MCA Inc. acquired the company in 1985, and sold to Acclaim Entertainment in 1990. The toy division of the company was closed by Acclaim and a majority of its employees were fired as the company was shifted towards video game publishing. It was closed in 1994, but its label was used once more in 2000. Jack Friedman founded LJN in 1967 using funds from his employer Norman J. Lewis Associates (from which
50-410: A studio . The large video game publishers also distribute the games they publish, while some smaller publishers instead hire distribution companies (or larger video game publishers) to distribute the games they publish. Other functions usually performed by the publisher include deciding on and paying for any licenses that are used by the game; paying for localization ; layout, printing, and possibly
75-490: A baseball team manager and Kanaga stating that the game was advertised as having all of the players, but instead only had their uniform numbers. In 1991, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled LJN's Sling 'Em-Fling 'Em wrestling ring toys based on the World Wrestling Federation , which sold 1.4 million products from 1985 to 1989, due to multiple children between six and ten being injured by
100-564: A child to straddle, propelling himself with his feet. Others were pull toys . A pioneer in the steel-toy field, Lundahl persuaded Marshall Field's and F. A. O. Schwarz to carry his line. He did very well until the Great Depression , then sold the company. In 1941, Henry Katz and Company purchased Buddy L from the Molene Manufacturing Company. From 1976 to 1990, Buddy L was owned by Richard Keats ,
125-665: A group, they have had mixed performance. At present, Electronic Arts is the only third-party publisher present in the S&;P 500 diversified list of large U.S. corporations; in April 2010, it entered the Fortune 500 for the first time. Hype over video game publisher stocks has been breathless at two points: Buddy L Buddy "L" toys were originally manufactured by the Moline Pressed Steel Company, which
150-526: A model of an International Harvester truck made from 18- and 20-gauge steel which had been discarded to the company's scrap pile. Buddy L made such products as toy cars , dump trucks , delivery vans , fire engines , construction equipment , and trains . Fred Lundahl used to manufacture for International Harvester trucks. He started by making a toy dump truck out of steel scraps for his son Buddy. Soon after, he started selling Buddy L "toys for boys", made of pressed steel . Many were large enough for
175-540: A staff of producers or project managers to monitor the developer's progress, critique ongoing development, and assist as necessary. Most video games created by an external video game developer are paid for with periodic advances on royalties. These advances are paid when the developer reaches certain stages of development, called milestones . Video game publishing is associated with high risk : AAA game publishers produce and create games that are high budget and groundbreaking. They are advanced in technology and forward
200-470: A well-known New York toy designer who went to work for Buddy L the day after he graduated from Brown University in 1948. By 1978, the company was located in Clifton, New Jersey . In 1990, Keats sold Buddy L to SLM International . SLM sold Buddy L off in 1995 under bankruptcy protection. By 2010, Buddy L was owned by Empire Industries of Boca Raton, Florida , a subsidiary of Empire of Carolina. In
225-429: A wider consumer pool and have access to distribute to a big network. Although they have creative constraints within game development and marketing, they often focus and follow market trends. They have a higher demand to attain commercial success. Examples of AAA video game publishers are Electronic Arts , Ubisoft , and Activision . Indie game publishers are companies that work with independent developers. Their focus
250-611: Is on developing games that promotes creativity and originality. Developers have creative control over their games. These publishers implement intimate collaborations between the publishers and the developers. Often stand out in the video game market due to the more unique genres. Indie game publishers have restrict marketing budgets and have small audience reach and visibility. Examples of Indie video game publishers are Devolver Digital , Annapurna Interactive and Raw Fury . Mobile game publishers produce and specialize in video games on smartphones and tablet devices. They take advantage of
275-653: The 1990s, Buddy L made Splatter Up , a wet version of T-ball. On 31 August 2000, the Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a recall for about 113,000 battery-powered children's riding vehicles, marketed as "Power Drivers" or "Buddy L", for repair. The vehicles' battery chargers can overheat, presenting fire and injury hazards to children. In November 2000, Empire of Carolina and its wholly owned subsidiary, Empire Industries, Inc., filed for bankruptcy and, in July 2001, Empire Industries
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#1732780955523300-629: The E.T. and Brooke Shields toys. In 1984 LJN became the toy licensee of the World Wrestling Federation . The Wrestling Superstars line, which featured action figures based on WWF's roster of wrestlers, was produced from 1984 to 1989. LJN competed with Mattel in the toy market. The company produced the ThunderCats toyline in competition with Mattel's Masters of the Universe . On March 26, 1985, MCA Inc. announced that it would purchase 63% of LJN's stocks for $ 39.8 million and proposed to buy
325-616: The LJN deal. 181,000 shares were returned as part of a price adjustment agreement and the remainder was sold for around $ 4.3 million in 1991. LJN entered the video game industry by publishing games based on movies and television shows developed by companies including Atlus , Beam Software , and Rare for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987. The company released the LJN Video Art in 1987. At least 75% of
350-410: The boundaries of technology and creativity in the video game world. AAA game publishers often produce popular and blockbuster games. These publishers have the financial resource and means to fund large game development projects. These publishers implement and fund marketing and distribution to guarantee reach and exposure for their games. With their funds to market they are able to advertise and reach
375-433: The company name "LJN" is derived, being a reversal of Lewis' initials) after seeing the sale figures of Mattel and Milton Bradley Company increase. Friedman later founded THQ and Jakks Pacific after leaving LJN. LJN shifted money used for television advertising to instead purchase licenses to make toys based on television shows. The first toyline by LJN based on a television show was for Emergency! The highest amount
400-597: The company paid for a license by 1982 was $ 250,000. LJN purchased the license to make toys based on E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial for $ 25,000 due to other companies declining the option, including Kenner Products and Ideal Toy Company , and sold over $ 16–25 million worth of merchandise without the need of an advertising campaign. A doll based on Brooke Shields was released with a $ 2 million advertising budget and made over $ 12 million in 1982. LJN's revenue rose from $ 5 million in 1971 to $ 70 million in 1982 due to
425-516: The company's $ 70 million in sales in 1990 came from video game sales on the Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy . The company released a paint gun line named Gotcha! with a license from the film Gotcha! , but this line were criticized by consumer protection groups due to the danger it posed to eyes. The toyline was financially unsuccessful, and MCA had to take a $ 35 million after-tax charge due to its failure and
450-421: The company's 70 employees and moved its headquarters from Lyndhurst, New Jersey to Oyster Bay, New York , the same place as Acclaim's headquarters. Lawrence Kanaga filed a lawsuit on behalf of Clark Thiemann on January 31, 1990, against LJN, Nintendo , and Major League Baseball claiming that the game Major League Baseball was falsely advertised to Thiemann stating that it would allow him to simulate being
475-516: The expenses of the Coleco . The company was also criticized by police officers and Americans for Democratic Action for its Entertech line of toy water guns due to how realistic they looked; LJN changed the design of the toys after three people in the United States from ages 13 to 19 were killed as a result of police officers thinking they had actual guns, and multiple cities and states banned
500-540: The remainder of the stock for $ 14.26 for each share which would increase the total value of the deal to almost $ 65 million. However, the company failed to make a net income from 1986 to 1989, and MCA had to take a $ 53 million after-tax charge due to the expenses of the company before selling it to Acclaim Entertainment for $ 30 million in April 1990. LJN had a revenue of $ 110,510,000 and a net loss of $ 37.3 million in 1987. MCA received 1.2 million shares in Acclaim as part of
525-416: The sale of realistic toy guns. Lawrence J. Kirk Jr. fired half of the company's employees as part of a cost-cutting plan during his seven months as president from 1989 to 1990. LJN attempted to acquire Buddy L during his tenure, but MCA ended the negotiations before announcing that it was selling LJN. Acclaim closed LJN's toy division and shifted the company's focus to video game publishing. It fired 45 of
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#1732780955523550-525: The toys. Acclaim closed LJN in 1994, but reused the company's name for the release of Spirit of Speed 1937 in 2000. Video game publisher A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that have been developed either internally by the publisher or externally by a video game developer . They often finance the development, sometimes by paying a video game developer (the publisher calls this external development ) and sometimes by paying an internal staff of developers called
575-704: The widespread appeal and rise of mobile gaming. These publishers enhance games for touch based interfaces and devices. They are proficient in designing monetization tactics for mobile platforms. Mobile game publishers have a comprehensive understanding of the mobile gaming market. They have proficiency in strategies for engagement and user acquisition for mobile sites. For mobile gaming there is access through app stores for distribution channels. There are obstacles with monetization due to lack of in-app purchase and free-to-play(F2P) models . Examples of Mobile game publishers are Supercell , King , and Zynga . Numerous video game publishers are traded publicly on stock markets . As
600-494: The writing of the user manual; and the creation of graphic design elements such as the box design. Some large publishers with vertical structure also own publishing subsidiaries (labels). Large publishers also attempt to boost efficiency across all internal and external development teams by providing services such as sound design and code packages for commonly needed functionality. Because the publisher often finances development, they usually try to manage development risk along with
625-707: Was started by Fred A. Lundahl in 1910. The company originally manufactured automobile fenders and other stamped auto body parts for the automobile industry, instead of toy products. The company primarily supplied parts for the McCormick-Deering line of farm implements and the International Harvester Company for its trucks. Moline Pressed Steel did not begin manufacturing toys until 1921. Mr. Lundhal wanted to make something new, different, and durable for his son Arthur. He designed and produced an all-steel miniature truck, reportedly
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