Shame On Toy Industry – Hasbro Nabs Boy Toy of the Year Award For “Ultimate Full Auto Clip System Blaster!”

(Click on photos for larger images.)

Grannies wish toy execs a Happy Valentine’s day at fancy Toy of the Year Awards’ Dinner..

Saturday, February 12, 5 PM.  One by one, about 30 grannies and their friends snuck furtively into the Time-Warner Building at the corner of  Broadway and 60th Street . They had come to serenade and to hand out Valentine’s cards to executives attending the $350 a plate Toy Association’s Toy of The Year Award’s dinner.

The plan had been to meet on the corner outside, but it was much too windy and cold, so as if it had been pre-arranged (which it wasn’t), they all knew to go inside. They aroused no suspicion, this bunch of old ladies, and as they talked they decided that they would be much more comfortable singing inside and that was the place to distribute the valentine’s cards pleading with the toy industry to make toys of peace and to flaunt their banners saying WAR IS NOT A GAME and ALL WAR TOYS MUST GO.

They brought with them Hasbro’s Nerf Stampede Blaster, a gun Hasbro promises will make vigilantes of your children, and which was nominated for (and won) the BOY TOY OF THE YEAR AWARD Award.

For 45 minutes the grannies belted out their ballads targeting militaristic toys, particularly those made by Hasbro. Our very own Bev was assigned to schmooze with the guards and the police as Mercy led us all in song.  Mercy you can hear on the third floor of the Time-Warner Building.

After 45 minutes a combination of security and NYPD got it together to get us out of the building and for a while we sang outside.

The high point of the night was when a man, who seemed to be employed by Time-Warner and had been watching us intently as we did our thing, came outside and told us that he had listened to what we were saying and we were right.  The granny holding the Stampede Blaster informed him that it had been nominated for the Boy Toy of The Year award.  As he walked off, he told us that he had bought that gun for his son, and said “I DON’T WANT MY SON PLAYING WITH GUNS NOW AFTER LOOKING AT THIS.”

– Joan Pleune
for the Granny Peace Brigade
Photos 1, 2, 4 & 5: Bud Korotzer
Photo 3: Joan Pleune