It's A Wrap

Ah, yes . . . the ratings. When "Mummies Alive" debuts this fall, it will carry with it some great expectations, both as a program and as a licensed property. "Even in a business where it seems that everything's been done, there's never been an animated mummies series for kids, and there's never been any series where mummies are the good guys," says Tashjian. "So immediately we have a point of difference, which really helps position us as a strong merchandising player for 1998."

If successful, "Mummies Alive" will follow in the footsteps of other DIC children's properties such as "Inspector Gadget" and "Madeline." Just how soon, though, will the company know if it's struck cartoon gold again? "I'd say we'll have a good idea by the end of the year," says Heyward. "It takes maybe three months to watch the ratings and the viewing patterns."

Not that the head of DIC Entertainment is a stranger to this particular form of waiting. "I've been doing this all my life," says Heyward, speaking of his experience in the world of children's programming. "I started as a gopher for Joe Barbera [of Hanna-Barbera Productions]. I was his runner--getting him coffee and everything else. I started at the bottom of the studio." After working his way up to writer, story editor and sales executive for Hanna-Barbera, he left to take his current job at DIC.

"When I have important clients come in, I still get them their coffee," he adds dryly. "So nothing has changed."

Which doesn't necessarily make the waiting any easier. After all, if "Mummies Alive" does make it big, there's that proverbial pot of licensing gold to be realized. Stay tuned.

This article was originally published in the September 1997 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: It's A Wrap.