Meanies
Encyclopedia
A Meanie is a small stuffed animal made by Topkat LLC, starting in October 1997 and lasting until 2000. A Meanie is a type of bean bag
Bean bag
A bean bag is a sealed bag containing dried beans, PVC pellets or expanded polystyrene, with various applications.-Games:...

 in the form of a stuffed animal toy. Unlike Beanie Babies, the Meanies line is humorous in nature, and were made to target a younger audience than Beanie Babies, usually by relying on bodily function and gross-out humor.

History

Meanies were first released in October 1997 with a 12 animal run. They were an attempt by The Idea Factory and Topkat LLC, to capitalize on the Beanie Baby
Beanie Baby
A Beanie Baby is a stuffed animal, made by Ty Warner Inc., which was later renamed as Ty Inc. in late 1993. Each toy has an inner "posable lining" and is stuffed with plastic pellets rather than conventional stuffing , giving Beanie Babies a flexible feel.The original nine Beanie Babies launched...

 fad by providing a humorous alternative to collectors and a younger crowd. The first line of toys was generally based on bodily function or gross-out humor, including Splat The Road Kill Cat, Fi & Do The Dalmutation a two-headed mutated Dog, and a flatulent Elephant named Bart. Keychain versions of 9 of the Series I Meanies were made available at 7-Eleven
7-Eleven
7-Eleven is part of an international chain of convenience stores, operating under Seven-Eleven Japan Co. Ltd, which in turn is owned by Seven & I Holdings Co...

 stores in 1998. They were small versions of the characters on a small chain with a standard keychain clasp. When a Meanie design ceased production, it was "Exterminated" instead of Retired.

Later lines

Infamous Meanies were takes on celebrities, such as "Donkeyng" for Don King, "Mike Bison" for Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson
Michael Gerard "Mike" Tyson is a retired American boxer. Tyson is a former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and holds the record as the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles, he was 20 years, 4 months and 22 days old...

, and "Bull Clinton" for then-United States President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...

.

Meanies "At Large"

A few of the Meanies were made in a larger version in the Meanies "At Large" Series.

Special Giveaways

Some special edition Meanies were given away as collectibles at arena events such as basketball games. They were animal versions of players for the home team, which was either the New Jersey Nets or Philadelphia 76ers.

Other meanies were mail-away offers where collectors could send in tags or proofs of purchase to get a free mystery Meanie in the mail. This was done First with "Fangaroo the Kangaroo" in Series I and then in Series II with "Cubby The Bear", and finally with "Tiger Shark" as a special promotion through Cap'n Crunch.
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