Factory Entertainment Pink Dolphin Project Aims to Raise Cancer Awareness at NY Comic-Con
New York, NY (PRWEB) October 05, 2014 -- When collectibles manufacturer Factory Entertainment exhibits for the first time at New York Comic-Con next week, it will be using the opportunity to do more than just introduce east coast fans to its regular array of products based on iconic pop culture brands like Batman, Superman, Game of Thrones, James Bond, Back to the Future, Jaws and Ghostbusters. Factory will also be making a centerpiece of its New York Comic-Con appearance its Pink Dolphin Project, a unique fan-based fundraising drive to raise money for breast cancer research and education.
The Pink Dolphin Project is the brainchild of Factory Entertainment CEO Jordan Schwartz, who decided earlier this year to try to use the use the platform and power of the growing Comic-Con industry to try to tap into the charitable nature of the fan community in support of a worthy cause.
The challenge for Mr. Schwartz was to select the right cause. Factory Entertainment’s business consists of making licensed toys and collectibles, which meant finding a tie-in between one of the licenses in its portfolio and an appropriate charity.
Enter the dolphin. One of Factory Entertainment’s most popular licenses is Archer, the edgy TV-MA animated spy spoof that airs on the FX network and that will be beginning its sixth season in early 2015. While reviewing possible charity partners, Mr. Schwartz recalled that, in an episode of Archer’s second season, the protagonist, superspy Sterling Archer, learns that he has Stage 2 breast cancer. Although his cancer goes into remission in a later episode, the cancer episodes were noteworthy for adding a poignant twist to an animated comedy.
One of Archer’s most popular characters is Pam Poovey, the human resources director for the spy agency Archer works for. Pam is beloved by Archer fans for, among other things, the dolphin puppet she uses to conduct HR mediations. So popular is Pam’s dolphin puppet, in fact, that a replica puppet in the blue color seen in the show’s first season, which Factory Entertainment produced as a convention exclusive last year, was an instant sell-out.
So, thought Mr. Schwartz, why not return to the dolphin puppet again this year, and make it in a color not actually featured in the show but with a special significance in the world of cancer fundraising. Thus was born the Pink Dolphin Project, which debuted at San Diego Comic-Con in July and, through the generosity of fandom, raised $2,000 for Susan G. Komen For The Cure, a leading organization supporting breast cancer research, community health outreach, advocacy and programs in more than 30 countries and Pink Ribbon Story Foundation, whose mission is to empower women with breast cancer to share their stories, helping themselves and others learn from their unique experiences, and to be better advocates for their treatment and recovery.
Says Mr. Schwartz, a native New Yorker whose own mother died of cancer at age 46 and for whom this project is deeply personal, “We were extremely gratified by the outpouring of support for the Pink Dolphin Project in San Diego. I hope that east coast Archer fans, and other members of the New York Comic-Con community in general, will be even more supportive and will stop by the Factory Entertainment booth to pick up a limited edition collectible that both reminds them of their time at Comic-Con and contributes to the fight against breast cancer. Nothing would make our maiden voyage to New York Comic-Con more successful.”
The pink dolphins will be available at Factory Entertainment’s New York Comic-Con booth (#1759) or, for those who want to participate in the fundraiser but aren’t coming to Comic Con, through its website, http://www.factoryent.com.
Jordan Schwartz, Factory Entertainment, http://www.factoryent.com, +1 (925) 270-3739, [email protected]
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