THE WAYANS BROTHERS LAUNCH “THE DOZENS” WITH TOPPS, BONUS MOBILE &
BLOCKBUSTER, INC.
Los Angeles, CA
(May 18, 2005)
– The Wayans Brothers, best known for their stand-up comedy and movies such as
I’m Gonna Get You Sucka!,
Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood,
White Chicks,
and Scary Movie 1
& 2 have partnered with Topps Trading Cards, Bonus Mobile and Blockbuster
Inc. to launch a brand-new, multi-player game called The Dozens.
The Dozens
is both a mobile phone and collectible trading card game of the classic urban
pastime of exchanging “Yo Mama” jokes with your friends. Through their own
company, SMK Merchandising LLC which is represented by the Fireball
Group, The Wayans Brothers have created a unique and fun game for kids of all
ages.
“We wanted to bridge
our favorite childhood activity with modern technology and also bring back
some of the fun from Wacky Packs and Garbage Pail Kids,” said Marlon Wayans.
“Keenen, Shawn and I want others to be able enjoy today the laughter and good
times we had when we were growing up.”
While the classic
version of the game determined a winner by who was “the last person standing,”
the new version is a point-based game that rewards players by the strength of
the insult. With the new emergence of mobile phone technology, and its
ability to incorporate everything from news to messaging to gaming, The Wayans
Brothers’ The Dozens will be an innovative version of the classic
childhood game, and will create a whole new genre of mobile gaming.
The Topps collectible trading card version of
the game features 150 different "snaps," with power rankings from 1 to 12.
Challengers can compete by trying to outrank each other by having an audience
decide which insults are the funniest. Rare "Oooh!" cards are randomly
inserted into packs, allowing players to make up their own jokes. The Topps
card game will be available in foil packs, each containing 5 joke cards, one
sticker, game rules and a piece of bubble gum.
“There’s no other collectible trading card
game out there like The Dozens”, proclaims Ira Friedman, Topps/Vice President
of New Product Development. "It’s irreverent and hilarious and it taps into a
form of social interaction we believe many kids will find appealing. Plus,
there’s no more credible source than the Wayans Bros. to present this
audacious concept to the consumer public,” says Topps’ Friedman.
The new high-tech
version offered by Bonus Mobile Entertainment, involving the use of GPRS and
SMS mobile technologies, can be played by trading virtual game cards between
cell phones, using SMS text messages that work with any phone. The advanced
Game Lobby feature incorporated into the mobile version allows the players to
challenge anyone on any cell phone. The Dozens will be available from
major carriers and at
www.bonusmobile.com. New content will continually be added to keep the
game fresh and exciting.
Bonus Mobile Entertainment’s
CEO William Volk said, “We are thrilled to work with the Wayans Brothers and
The Topps Company to bring their outrageous insult card game to the mobile
community. We are extremely confident that as a result of The Dozens
being played by mobile phone users, the insult rate will rise dramatically
throughout the country.”
The trading cards
will be carried in 3500 BLOCKBUSTER stores exclusively for 60 days beginning
June 1st, with a buy three get one free special on the card sets. Beginning
at the end of July, The Dozens will be available nationwide at
BLOCKBUSTER and other retailers.
“Blockbuster is
the brand for home entertainment — specifically movies and games,” said
Frederick Jones, buyer of retail games for Blockbuster. “With significant
growth in the BLOCKBUSTER trading card business and the Wayans Brothers humor
in many of our movies for rent, The Dozens is the perfect complement to
our existing product mix. As part of our current program, “Buy 3 Booster Packs
and Get 1 free” the Dozens will help to grow the gaming card market by
offering more customers a chance to check out this dynamic category.
About SMK
Merchandising
SMK was founded in 2003 by Shawn, Marlon and
Keenan Wayans for the purpose of using the Wayans name for branding and
marketing. The Wayans Brothers grew up as a very close family unit and have a
strong sense of compassion for children and their parents. By using comedy to
express their ideas, fears, hopes and dreams, the Wayans have become one of
America’s most beloved families. Now, through SMK, the Wayans Brothers can
convey their sense of humor by presenting their message in the consumer
marketplace.
About Fireball Group
Headquartered in Beverly Hills, the Fireball
Group is a licensing and brand management company, representing high profile
actors, music artists, and entertainment properties in all areas of licensing,
merchandising, endorsements, direct response and brand management. Led by
former Universal Studios and Firm executive Shab Azma, Fireball Group LLC
continually shapes and strengthens brands and properties for their clients and
exploring potential partnerships in a variety of categories.
About The Topps Company
The Topps Company (
www.topps.com ) founded in
l938 as Topps Chewing Gum, is an international marketer of kids’ entertainment
products encompassing trading cards, confections, sticker album collections
and games. Brands within the Company’s portfolio include: Wacky Packages,
Garbage Pail Kids, Topps Baseball Cards and Bazooka Bubble Gum.
About Bonus Mobile Entertainment
Based in Los Angeles, CA, Bonus Mobile
Entertainment is an established virtual network of original and licensed
mobile content, and multi-player social games, which utilizes unique,
proprietary strategies and technologies for distribution. Current game
products offered from Bonus include the Wayans Brothers The Dozens ™, WordZap™,
Crickler Mobile™, Mystic Warrior™ and Gotcha! ™. Upcoming releases include
products based on comedy from Comedy Time network and animated characters from
Jidousports. The Company also distributes a variety of customized features for
mobile phones, including ring tones, classic games (Checkers, Video Poker,
Chess), mobile greeting cards, wallpapers, screen savers, and alert systems
and services, which include gas price alerts, motivational messages, diet tips
and email. For additional information, visit
www.bonusmobile.com.
About
Blockbuster
Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE: BBI, BBI.B) is a
leading global provider of in-home movies and game entertainment with more
than 9,100 stores throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia and Australia. The
company may be accessed worldwide at
www.blockbuster.com.
