This one-of-a-kind doll prototype was made in 1997 by the Hasbro toy designers for a proposed Dinotopia toy.
She is the red-haired character Sylvia in ceremonial costume, with a coronet of flowers and a tiny handmade vest that fastens in the back with Velcro. Her dress is a crinkle cotton gauze made to look like pleated linen, with gold trim. We liked the way she is dressed in a timeless and modest way, and her face has a sweet smile.
Although the Dinotopia toy line never went into production due to reversals in the movie project at Columbia, Hasbro's toymakers made a beautiful group of proposals, and their marketing people were excited about the prospect of that rare thing: a toy line designed for both boys and girls.
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Sylvia appeared first in Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
in 1992.Thanks, Michael Stone and Robert Gould.
Are you able to make any comments, or a blog post about the movie that never went into production, sounds really curious?
ReplyDeleteHi, Matt,
ReplyDeleteSure. In a nutshell, the Dinotopia film property was at Columbia/Sony from 1993-1997. Sony Pictures Imageworks staffed up under the director Ken Ralston, and the project was going to use all their best newly developed digital tools. There were several interesting scripts by Lynda Woolverton and others. Iain McCaig did some knockout storyboards. But the top brass changed at Sony, and as often happens, projects in development went into turnaround. From there the project went to Hallmark Entertainment for a TV production in 2002.
Thats really interesting... Have you ever discussed the hallmark film? Ive often wondered how involved you were, and what your opinion was of the final product.
DeleteI wish this toy line had been produced! My children would have loved it. As it is, we had dinos living alongside the barbies, in their house cooking, giving transportation, even included in the worshipping crowd at our Christmas Creche.
ReplyDeleteLovely doll. Would have been an awesome toyline, I agree. Boys and girls playing together....
ReplyDeleteThis would've been one toy line I would've been interested in getting all the toys of. Or at least the dinosaurs. Maybe someday a toy line will come out. Until then all we can do is hope and wait.
ReplyDeleteTo me, she looks a bit like Kate Middleton, prince Harry's wife:-)
ReplyDeleteRich, funny you said that. We mentioned the same thing to each other. Amazing resemblance.
ReplyDeleteVery cool/interesting. Thanks for sharing. :)
ReplyDeleteI bet that guy from the toy collector reality show would love to get his hands on this. Can't think of the name of the show currently. But do watch it on occasion. Saw a very interesting Thunder Cats toy prototype that was never made in to production. Some kind of bubble monster villain.
Also I often though about making a model of my super hero character using a Barbie look-a-like I bought years ago. Just never get to find the time.
It'll be worth a fortune on Antiques Roadshow someday!
ReplyDelete