European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 01, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 18 the stars and stripes Money matters monday August 1,1994 today s rates following Are fixed rates a which Community tanking and credit Union facilities will sell for eign currencies to . Personnel for personal use British Pound i. 1.57 dutch Guilder 1.74 German Mark 1.56 note tha rates above apply within the Host country. Figures Are expressed in dollars to the British Pound other currencies to the Dollar following Are Interbank rate that fluctuate and should be regarded As the approximate value of the . Dollar to foreign Curren cies austrian schilling11.1975 Bahrain Dinar 0.37675 belgian franc 32.77 British Pound 1.528 Canadian Dollar 1.3832 danish Krone 6.243 dutch Guilder 1.788 French franc 5.4398 German Mark 1.5945 greek drachma 240.50 italian lira 1,592.00 Kuwait Dinar 0.29795 norwegian Krone 6,9334 portuguese escudo 162.43 saudi rial 3.75 Spanish peseta 130.97 Swiss Iran. 1.3517 turkish lira 31,100.00 note figures Are expressed in dollars to the British Pound other currencies to the Dollar Gold quote unavailable Silver quote unavailable sources merchants National Bank & Trust co. And the associated press chinese get of to sell Swiss knife by the Washington Post new York before this Battle is Over the Swiss May have to Start Selling chinese checkers a Federal court in new York has decide that the chinese can sell cheap knockoffs of the famous Swiss army knife and Evenfall them by the Swiss army name. Why Don t they Call it a chinese army knife ? they should go with their own name and not copy ours said Swiss army maj. Gen. Hans a. Schlup defense attach6 at the Swiss embassy in washing ton and the proud owner  army knives for 35 years. It Hurt said James Kennedy chair Man of the Forschner group in connect Cut which has imported the Swiss mad knives since the 1950s and lost the court fight to Stop the Quatse sales Forschner had argued that the sales and reputation of the1 Superior original Swiss army knife could be damaged by what it sees As the inferior chinese version. Their knife making is 100 years be Hind the industrialized world said Ken Nedy. But lawyers for Arrow trading co., the company that Sells the chinese made knives and won the july 22 ruling in . Court of appeals saw it As a Victory. It s really not such a bad product lawyer Louis Ederer said. Mit s a product that Sells for a much lower Price than the Swiss product Sells for and its Quality is commensurate with its  the original Swiss version of the knife known for its his Quality and precision has been made since the turn of the Cen Tury by two Swiss factories Victorinod cutlery co. And Wenger a. But the Swiss version was never trademarked. American soldiers returning from Europe after world War ii coined the phrase Swiss army knife to describe the ingenious Pocky knives used by the Swiss military the court noted video game firms unveil ratings for sex violence by the los Angeles times Washington hoping to head off Federal intervention in their Industry the nation s largest video game maker Friday jointly introduced a rating system to warn Consumers of graphic violence or explicit sexual Content in their products. Industry officials said to at parents try ing to keep objectionable material out of their children s hands can expect to see games labelled with rating icons which will explain whether certain video games Are appropriate for different age groups on store shelves in time for this year Holiday shopping season. Text describing the game s Content also will be printed on each package or Cartridge. However parents buying Persona computer software will Likely have to face a second set of ratings which also were unveiled Friday by computer game Mak ers who plan to Label their products wit different symbols and textual warnings of violence nudity and profanity. Lawmakers and child development experts cheered the release of the ratings but said development of a single set of la Bels would serve Consumers Best. With a rating system parents will have at least a fighting Chance to control what comes into their Homes said  Lieberman d-conn., who has spearheaded the drive for video Gam ratings since the release of controversial games such As mortal combat which contains scenes showing a martial arts fighter tearing the spine out of an oppo nent. The video Mariie Labelling system will affect titles scheduled for release this holi Day season and afterwards including doom in which a player wielding weapons from a handgun to a Chain saw at tacks opponents and possibly mortal combat 11. Industry officials projected that 40 per cent of the games sold this Christma season and virtually All games sold next fall will carry the ratings. But the labels will not apply to games already in stores. Still announcement of the rating comes As a crucial step for an Industry that is struggling to maintain credibility with parents and a responsible Public image. Lieberman and sen. Herbert Kohl d-wis., introduced legislation earlier this year to set up a National commission to regulate the Industry but said they would withdraw the plan if game makers policed themselves. The threat of Federal regulation sent Sega Nintendo and other game makers who sell about $5 billion Worth of cartridges Arra compact disc games annually scrambling develop their own warning labels but Industry officials said they now plan to fold the individual rating plans into one. Ftp Vav pay As you go lion King reigns in merchandise realm Anaheim Calif. A Paige a1--Drich is the kind of sophisticated consumer the Walt Disney co. Loves. A few Days after seeing the lion King she s shop Ping for movie merchandise asking by name for a stuffed doll based on the lion Cubala. She selects a $10.95 doll and leaves the Disney showcase store in her  is 4 years old. With a Plush lion toy Here an african earring set there and thousands of other transactions across the Globe Disney expects worldwide lion King merchandise sales to exceed $1 billion bringing the company considerably More than $50 Mil lion in profits. One analyst estimates Disney s con Sumer products division made $63 million in profits on Aladdin merchandise an Disney says tha lion King should exceed that figure. The live King is projected to be the highest grossing animated film fall time surpassing the $217.4 million Domestic Gross of 1992 s Aladdin. But the popularity of the animated musical can not be measured by ticket sales alone. The lion King is spinning a Merchan dising Cyclone. While a handful of licensees say their lion merchandise in t moving most manufacturers Are Niovi Nestron demand. Burger King says that its lion King kid s meal promotion is so popular the fast food restaurant will exhaust its entire Supply of 30 million action figures Early next week spokesman Michael Evan says. Mattel inc., one of the largest linking product suppliers began developing themed merchandise in March 1993 when the movie was a work in Progress Cunt Idem the film would be popular Mattel developed a wide array of toys anchored by stuffed animals. The action figures have been flying off the shelf and the $10 to $15 Plush stuffed animals Are very popular say Michelle Greenwald a Mattel vice presi Dent. In 1992, Disney merchandise Gener ated worldwide wholesale returns of $275million for Mattel and that climbed to $330 million in 1993. In 1994, Mattel is projecting Disney related merchandise to climb to $400 million. By releasing the film in the summer unlike the Little Mermaid Beauty and the beast and Aladdin All released inthe fall Disney has guaranteed Strong sales through Christmas. You have a kids film that appeals tothe whole family and it s a very hug a Ole Lead character says Ira Mayer pub Lisher of the monthly licensing letter Trade Magazine