 |
Zhu Bot Zhejiang Scrap Metal Transformer Sculptures
A certain Mr. Zhu of China's Zhejiang province has a scrap metal business, you see. And in order to advertise his business, he naturally turned to one of the ancient cultural icons of his native land - Transformers.
(Zhu Transformers from scrap metal)
As it turns out, Hasbro gave the Transformers cartoon series to Shanghai television to broadcast for free starting in 1987, hoping to open the country to its toys. Chinese vocal contributors helped make it a classic for a generation of Chinese fans, many of whom now have young children.
According to Xia Yu, a famous actor who starred in movies like The Painted Veil, the Transformers was the first cartoon starring robots. He said "I remember once at that time, every boy screamed 'Autobots, transform and roll out! ' in the streets. "
The premiere of the recent Spielberg/Bey Transformers movie was a big event in Beijing last year.
From io9 and Transformers in China: A 20-year Retrospective .
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 10/12/2008)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion (Back On) ( 0 )
Related News Stories - (" Culture ")
German Firm Seeks To Recruit Autistics
Large corporations seem to be learning that people with autism can have unique strengths.
Personal Sniffer Robots
'...The ticking combinations of the olfactory system of the hound.'- Ray Bradbury, 1953.
A Big Collection Of Small Books
'Black, oblong, no larger than the end of Paul's thumb... It's a very old Orange Catholic Bible made for space travelers.'- Frank Herbert, 1965.
SimSensei Plus Kinnect Equals PKD's Voight-Kampff?
'We know this to be a primary autonomic response...'- Philip K. Dick, 1968.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Current News
Sweat Be Gone! Non-Wetting Fabric
'The skin-contact layer is porous.'
German Firm Seeks To Recruit Autistics
Not a deficit, but a strength.
NASA Supports Pizza Printer
Is it extra with printed pepperoni?
Could Ground-Based Lasers De-Orbit Space Junk?
'Then their lasers vaporized the smaller satellites...'
'Hello, Computer!' Google Now Highlighted at IO13
'Hello, computer!'
MIT Robot Cheetah Video Shows Gait Transition
'The legs are long, curled way up to deliver power, like a cheetah's.'
TrackingPoint Smart Rifle
Not your typical 'smart bullet' approach.
Sky City's 220 Stories Are Go
'It rested among green parklands and... stood in total isolation, a glittering block of whites and flashing windows dotted with colors.'
CARMAT Bioprosthetic Total Human Heart Replacement
'George Walt's corporate existence proved the workability of wholly mechanical organs...'
Personal Sniffer Robots
'...The ticking combinations of the olfactory system of the hound.'
Physical Exam? We've Got Apps
See the future of handheld, personal medical devices.
The Interplanetary Internet, Vint Cerf Speaking
'This was the center of Interplanetary Communications.'
Drosophila Robotica, The Mechanical Fly
'... the Scarab [flying robot] buzzed into the great workroom as any intruding insect might...'
Robo-Raven Flapping Wing Robot Bird
'When he had first built them, they had been crude indeed, flying mechanisms with little more than a reflex-response unit.'
Japan's Nursing Home Robot Plan
Let's make the Roujin Z-0001 Robotic Bed!
Samsung Smart TVs With Gesture Control
'He waved his hand and the circuit switched abruptly.'
