
Out on a ledge.
From 1983 until 1990, I was the Creative Director on the Tonka Toy business. It was an extraordinary period of time that saw Tonka grow from a well known maker of sturdy, yellow, Mighty Dump Trucks to the company that marketed Gobots, Pound Puppies, Sega Video Games and other imaginative toys created to wow kids everywhere. The Account Director on Tonka was a good friend of mine named Ken Kaess. Ken was a smart, charismatic leader who ultimately became the CEO of DDB Worldwide. Sadly, Ken Kaess died of cancer several years ago. It was a tremendous loss for DDB and for his many friends and business associates.
On a bright, spring day in 1987, Ken and I were trying out a prototype of Interstellar Defender, a new, lightweight plane from Tonka. As far as we knew, there were only three of these unique planes in existence and we were told to be very careful with this one. The plane was launched into the air with its wings positioned at its side by a device that looked much like a slingshot. At the apex of its trajectory, the wings suddenly shot out allowing it soar from great heights down to the ground. At least, that’s what we were told.
To test it out for ourselves, we went out on to 56th St., right off Park Ave., and shot it up in the air. It literally took off like a rocket, going up at least 7 stories between the skyscrapers. Then, as advertised, the wings of our Interstellar Defender shot out and we both watched as this elegant glider took flight. Our smiles turned to concern when it suddenly swooped down and landed on the ledge of a building six stories up. Oops!
We couldn’t just leave it there and get another one. There were only three in existence. So counting the floors and the office position, we went up to the large law firm that occupied the 6th floor of the building. After telling our sad story to a string of receptionists and office managers, we were escorted into a very surprised lawyer's office. Once he stepped away from his desk, we opened his window and looked up and down the ledge. There it was. And there was only one way to retrieve it.
While I held Ken's legs and the lawyer looked on in horror, Ken leaned halfway out the window and stretched across to the ledge. With barely a fingertip to spare, he recovered our wayward, winged prototype.
So what ultimately became of Interstellar Defender? A commercial was produced which was shown at Toy Fair in New York to see how much interest our high-flying projectile could generate. But sadly, even after our daring rescue, it never really took off.