European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 18, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                A amps Oak cd a by army spec. Mark Dulworth examines a cabbage Patch Dowiat toy Landin Hanau Germany. The dolts Mark their 10th anniversary this year and remain big Sellers. S Santa toy bag stuffed with dolls cars and building blocks Teytand shoppers Diane Hughes left and Esther Tanner solicit some advice from Hughes son Bryan. A amps Dav Coey by the associated press oys this season Are new High tech or old notch. One trend is toward gadgetry in toys for girls. For an expert opinion on the right choices Check with your nearest child. Otherwise Here Are some suggestions a dolls Barbie Queen of the fashion dolls shows up this year in period costume via her great eras collection including Gibson girl Barbie and flapper Barbie Mattel $60 each. _ less expensive lines include paint n dazzle Barbie which comes with two tubes of fabric paint so the owner can add her own distinctive designer touches to Barbie s Basic outfit. The dolls come in different hair and skin colors. A sister under the plastic skin is none other than Snow White Mattel $15 whose Dressy gown can be transformed into a ragged dress following the storyline of what shot in Europe the Walt Disney classic. A Little Golden Book telling her Story is included in the package. Her sidekicks the seven dwarfs $6 each or $35 in a set Aren t far away and each exhibits his unique personality trait with a magical change that occurs when cold or warm water is applied. Dolls that come with their own electronically controlled walkers include walk a Bye baby meritus $12.99 and baby walk n Roll Mattel $45. Both Giggle As they move about and they can be taken out of their walkers for cuddling. Another version baby giggles n go Tyco $35has a two Speed Walker. Pretty amp me toy Biz $29.99 is a modern child with Long Silky hair that her owner can primp dress and even Dye another color. She comes with non toxic cosmetics Gem stickers barrettes and jewelry. And her owner can share the goodies a the doll s skirts and tutus can be worn As scrunchies in real hair. It s the 10th anniversary of the cabbage Patch kids gang. Naturally there s a commemorative collection including a limited edition anniversary edition kid Hasbro $70 All dolled up with a lace trimmed print dress picture hat and Lacy stockings. Kids of color rag dolls plays Kool $9.99 make Happy squeaking sounds when hugged. Produced in cooperation with olmec a Pioneer in eth locally designed toys the dolls Are dressed in african Kente doth the boy wears a Cap with a visor and the girl wears a Bonnet with ruffles. A wheels the Tonka electronic talk n play fire truck Hasbro $60 is a vehicle smart enough for words a 120 of them. The computerized Gadget responds when accessories Are removed or pieces Are missing. The truck has engine sounds sirens and flashing lights. The sound machine emergency 911 vehicle Hylint $19.95 has buttons to trigger lights and sounds a Siren Horn intersection Clearing blast and messages like Quot stay Calm. Help is on the  Matchbox cars those tiny replicas of real vehicles celebrate 40 years this season and the original designs still can be found packaged in the Small boxes the color and shape of a Matchbox often Selling for under $ 1. According to Tyco which owns Matchbox nearly 100 million Matchbox cars Are sold every year. A 1 the wild ones mini re Are billed As american s smallest functioning Remote control racing cars the wild ones Solo Challenge Sam $25 is a single car play set while the wild ones ultimate Challenge $40 has two Stock cars with interchangeable 4x4 of sides two radio control transmitters dual 17-Inch Hills three Quot a Quot curves four 90-degree curves and one hairpin curve. 1 the sesame Street turnover Choo Choo Tyco $18 for toddlers features Engineer Ernie big Bird and Elmo. The child can press coloured buttons to hear a train Bell a toot or a chugging sound. The train turns Over and switches direction each time it goes around the track. The recycling truck from Little tikes $17-$25 has two bins for sorting and two toddle tots workers to guide the Way. Wheelchair ramp and Friend $9-$12also from Little tikes introduces youngsters to the needs of those with disabilities. The ramp fits onto Little tikes place or grandma s House sold separately. A for builders and creators. Those addictive plastic bricks Are pastel coloured in the Lego system Basic Quot specially for her Quot bucket Lego $19.99one of the company s new products for girls. Lego says its research found that girls often did t ask for building sets because they often were perceived As boys toys. This set has 202 interlocking pieces and includes family figures Pink windows doors and Flowers. For motor mechanics there is the Lego technic cafe racer $7.99which has the elements to build a motorcycle with working steering Shock absorbers and kickstand. There Are 76 pieces and instructions for two models. The problem is where to build the Erik construe table $49.99 has a Waffle grids to hold bricks in place a but flips Over to a smooth surface for drawing colouring Etc. The table legs Are hollow and provides Brick storage. Two coordinating child size chairs Are included. For the Brick builder who can t get enough How about the k nex giant set k nex $99.99 ? it has 1,800 pieces including rods connectors pulleys tires and rubber bands. The Granddaddy of the building sets erector offers dynamic erector sets Mecca no $34.99-$49.99 to build motorbikes aircraft race cars and All terrain vehicles. Each set has three models to build featuring Shock absorbers and or an electric motor. The Crayola 90th anniversary tin Binney amp Smith $5.99 celebrates the famous Crayon with its 64-Box crayons the eight Quot retired Quot Crayon colors. Glitter crayons $2.49 for eight pack and $3.49 for 16-pack add Flash to the pack. There also Are a number of new kits for stencils stamping molding and decorating that feature inevitably Quot Barney purple Quot most of them $9.99. A amps Dave Casey army sgt. Christopher Hixon checks out a Lego building set in Hanau. By Chuck Roberts staff writer though cafes worldwide toy sales have increased slightly this Holiday season european toy sales Are Down 9 percent because of the military draw Down according to an cafes spokesman. The worldwide increase although Small is better than the Flat toy Market in the civilian Market said Thomas Cobb a toy buyer at the cafes company Headquarters in Dallas. Cafes toy sales in Europe got off to a slower Start than usual this year Cobb said noting that the Quot big push Quot did t begin until after thanksgiving. Leading the list of hottest toys is the fun time Barney Dinosaur figures that have racked up about $5 million in sales. Worldwide Cobb said. Quot Barney by far will Dwarf anything in the toy business Quot Cobb said during a Telephone interview. Although Barney figures have a limited Circle of customers a children 2 to 5 a the tremendous sales volume has More than offset he Small audience Cobb said. But that s not the Case at the to land store at Rhein main a Germany where Barney is in no immediate danger of becoming extinct. For reasons unclear to supervisor Eveline Tiefenbach Barney figures have become a permanent fixture on her shelves. Other Overall top Sellers for cafes this year Are a k nex a Type of construction set that Sells for about $27 for the Basic set and about $77 for bigger version. K nex seems to be part of a developing trend by parents to buy activity Type toys dealing with science and education a something for the child to spend Quot Quality time with Quot Cobb said. A Barbie which continues to be one of the hottest Sellers annually for girls. Jurassic Park figures Are popular with boys this year. A a men which Are toy figures based on classic comic Book characters. A men Are Selling Well to audiences of All Ages because they Are also purchased As collector s item Cobb said. Here is How the Overall cafes list compares with the Best Sellers at a few toy stores picked randomly in Europe. A at Rhein main Little tikes toys for toddlers almost so out Batman figures Star trek alien figures which Are being bought Quot by the baskets Quot Tiefenbach said . Joe Stre fighter ii nerf arro storm Gatling uni Littlest pet shop Polly pocket sold out Ken doll the most popular Barbie Figur sold out Barbie accessories such As the dream House porsche Mustang Pony and Mountain Bike trains and the following dolls a Aladdin Jasmine Cinderella Snow White Beauty and the beast. A at the four seasons at Caserma Ederle in Vicenza Italy Quot anything Jurassic Park/1 said Branch manager Theresa Ozbun Barney toys Quot for infants and toddlers it s number one Quot she said Barbie a men . Joe sold out and Star trek figures. A at Raf Alconbury and Raf Mildenhall base exchanges England Barney especially stuffed animals Micro machines Littlest pet shop Barbi Lego toys and Jurassic Park figures. A amps Dave Disbo Gunnar Severts left son of capt. Ward and Dana sever to and Timothy Delaney son of Star sgt. Danny and Suntaree Delaney examine the Stock in the toy Section of the Exchange at rap Mildenhall England. 16 the stars and stripes saturday december 18,1993 a. 7 a a a a. A amps Felto i then a variety of Barney toys and accessories line a shelf at the Frankfurt Germany Exchange. Dinosaurs tearing up toy sales the Dinosaur craze continues in toy country. Reports of the creatures extinction Are greatly exaggerated. Topping the list is Barney the new spinoff King a the Sweet purple fellow seems to be everywhere. A new twist on the stuffed toy is talking Barney plays Kool $34,99who can say More than 500 different phrases. A child can squeeze Barney s hand and the Dino will suggest amusing things to do. If the child hugs the toy s Tummy he responds Quot remember i love  other big Sellers include a Dartin Dinos bejewelled dinosaurs with Long Blond curls fluttery eyelashes and wardrobe accessories Are aimed at Young girls not quite ready for esoteric study of geologic eras. Leading the new series from meritus Are Bronte the Brontosaurus to Rexanne the tyrannosaurus and Tri Sarah tops the triceratops the toys come in a variety of sizes and costumes most priced under $ 10. A scooters dinosaurs from Hylint Are for preschoolers. These Small plastic figures Roll on a single entered wheel 7 the Rock n rollers Dinosaur set includes a stegosaurus Brontosaurus tyrannosaurus and triceratops each toy is about 3 inches Long and costs $3.95.a a Jurassic Park series from Kenner includes up. Action figures $5.99j.p. Dinosaur assortment $7,49 . Electronic dinosaurs $10.99 and . Miniature die cast assortment $4.99. A the smithsonian institution Dinosaur assortment from Tyco Are replicas authenticated by the smithsonian s National museum of natural history. This series appropriate for older children includes the apatosaurus one of the largest land creatures that Ever lived As Well As the foot kicking Dein Onychuk Wing flapping Pteranodon and powerful tyrannosaurus Rex. Prices Range from $5 to $25. A. A a a Dino Dave and Dina Are a pair of stuffed Dinosaur accessory bags for shoes from stride rite. Naturally the shoe company has appropriate footwear including Dino Dave and Dino sneakers slippers and rain boots. 1 he bags Are about $17 sneakers Range from $30 to $35 boots Are $1 5 slippers Are $10. A the associated press the stars and stripes 17