| November 2, 1994
MEMO to Don Levine from John Michlig
RE GI Joe book and figure project.
Obviously, a cooperative venture between us (a royalty split) will open up a new arena of opportunity for you when it comes to speaking at conventions and appearing at collector shows; you'll have a commodity to sell in exchange for your time. Regis and Cathy Lee will want to talk to you. QVC thrives on creator-product tie-ins. Further GI Joe offshoots will become desirable, and your name will be firmly attached to a recent successful tie-in (unlike the "small GI Joe" products).
The Barbie people will do this same thing very quickly after catching wind of my idea - a franchise opportunity if I ever saw one. With one like-minded project already under our belt, Levine-Michlig Enterprises could put their book together in a snap.
The Book's look and feel
I'm anticipating a 250 page hardcover book.
The book should be the main product focus, with the figure being implied in the packaging. We don't want the huge book-buying audience to be alienated by a "figure with a book" type of idea; it should give the impression of "a book with a figure."
The book should convey
- visual value (in terms of photography and overall design)
- narrative interest (in terms of the story presented)
- high perceived value (in terms of construction and materials used)
This is NOT a collector's book. There is no effort to be all-inclusive in pictures or descriptions. This is a "why" and "how" book that explores the human motivations, environments, limitations, inspirations, etc. that combined to produce a cultural icon. If the publisher wants a "collector" book in the future, I'll be happy to do it - - but this isn't it.
The narrative is 95% oral history, and uses Don Levine as its center. Additional comments and anecdotes will be provided by other people involved as they come up in Don Levine's remembrances. For example, a passage that says, "Then I took it down to the art department ..." would lead to a short passage by the artist involved, giving his impression of the project. Short infusions of other voices provide needed additional color and perspective to the story.
Each page spread will be designed to tell a story in words and pictures. The main body text will be your narrative, and very minimal supplemental info (almost like a "narrator") will run in a separate area on the outside edges of the page.
For example, if you spend a page discussing your time in the Orient trying to coordinate production with Tony Zee, we would include (if able to locate)
- an old page of number-coded parts to screen behind the text
- a snapshot of Tony Zee and yourself in the Orient
- a BIG picture of a small accessory
Also, this is an example where supplemental voices are valuable; Tony Zee can add some flavor to this section by discussing his initial impressions and confusion, sharing an anecdote, etc.
More on design ...
- The book will look like a modified vintage GI Joe accessory package. I'll use the classic logo and design elements, but change the dimensions somewhat to allow for a book and figure combination. The goal here is INSTANT RECOGNITION on the shelves.
- Original artists Sam Petrucci and George Eisenberg could do some cover/package art for a fee (the collectors will appreciate the "authenticity" angle).
- Interior photography will be full color whenever possible. Locating these items will be the your most annoying task - I'll be badgering you to find that "stuff in the attic."
Some illustrative items -
- the diorama pictures from 1964 Toy Fair
- the pre-production items you have (boxes, prototype figure, etc.)
- some product shots that serve to illustrate an anecdote
- snapshots from the period (from the Hasbro newsletter or personal files)
- documentation and paperwork, sketchbook pages, etc.
"Dry" material like paperwork, blueprints, etc. will be presented as intrinsic to the page design (faded back behind text as background, etc.) rather than just put in a box "as is."
Pre-sells
This is the best possible way to assure the financial cooperation of a publisher in a project that involves a high advance on royalties. Some example of places to pre-sell the book -
QVC (on their "collector's corner")
- This is the spot to pull out all the stops; fully autographed, deluxe in every way possible.
Cotswald's Collectibles (and other large GI Joe dealers that do mail order business)
- The mailing lists at places like Cotswald's are a GOLDMINE. Sending an order card to these people - who already spend huge amounts of money on GI Joe material - could sell at least 500 units. Also, the promise of some sort of "exclusive" (autographed, imprinted, etc.) would entice advance orders.
Target
- Obviously a retail area that appreciates the 12" GI Joe and can coordinate its planned 12" figure efforts with this book very simply.
Conventions
- If you speak at a convention, I'd work that room like the devil himself. We could have pre-printed mail-in cards (or even brochures, depending on the budget) to hand out. If you appear at two conventions and we get 750 cards back that say, "My name is _________ and I'd buy that book" or "Please reserve my autographed copy, enclosed is $$$," we'd carry that much more weight with a publisher.
Anticipated Production costs (our end) to be covered by publisher
The publisher will want to know why we want/need a large advance on royalties.
In the very likely event that the publisher doesn't do production of the book in-house, I (we) will need to pay (or plan to reimburse) the following people (I'll have the vendors, design, etc., submit bids so we know exactly what to expect) -
GI Joe Figure Procurement - This is obviously an area suited to your expertise. Any publisher will want at least some idea of how this would be accomplished, and we need to provide the proper language for two or three options. Here are my initial ideas -
- offer Hasbro a lump sum of money for the figures (least desirable)
- have the publisher and Hasbro work out a cooperative venture (most desirable, but may cut into our royalty if not monitored by yourself)
- work the book into Target's allotment of exclusive 12" figures (most complicated, and may limit market to Target for too long)
Design Studio - This is a very visual project, and the publisher's in-house design crew will not do the job correctly - they'll turn out a perfunctory product at best. I need to have control of this via my own people (i.e. people I can control every inch of the way).
At the very least, I want to give the publisher some very explicit "guide pages" to follow. I have in mind a local (Milwaukee) studio - they could put together a mock-up for presentation and convention advertising, and then do the entire project.
Photographers - The persons I've chosen have studio and lab access, and are located here in Milwaukee. They will coordinate with the design studio.
Travel - I'm sure I'll need to get to Providence again, and it would be valuable to visit Hasbro to pry open the archives.
Misc. office expenses - Transcribers, phone bills, postage, etc.
Also - from the moment we get a publisher, I will be doing this project to the exception of all others for a period of at least three months. Obviously, my advance has to cover living expenses over that period.
Immediate concerns
These are the things we can deal with right now -
- Find a way to pay a studio to create a solid mock-up for presentation to publishers and potential pre-sells (and convention advertising). It's VERY IMPROBABLE that someone will do it on spec. I'd like to use Milwaukee talent if possible.
- Get Hasbro aware and interested.
- Find a "shortcut" to a publisher. Some of the bigger publishing houses – the ones with deep pockets - won't even look at a submission without an agent (thankfully, Chronicle is not one of those publishers). We could investigate possible publishing subsidies that exist in corporations that you have easy access to. For example, Turner Entertainment now has a publishing house of its own. Does Target have any holdings in the publishing field?
- Set a deadline for presentation materials and start shopping it around. If we discuss this and decide that I can get it together in three weeks (to allow for possible production of a mock-up), let's start setting stuff up based on that time frame. I have LESS to do if you are able to "just pick up the phone." If you have the ability to cold-call a publisher and get a meeting, we're way out ahead.
- I will get bids from a design studio and photographers for the cost of book production.
That's where I'm at. I'm stepping up my proposal (minus visuals and sample chapter) so I can show you something next week in case an unexpected opportunity to present the idea comes up in the very near future.
Talk to you soon -
John Michlig |
