'T.M.X.(TM)' Elmo Extra Special Edition Shoots to Top of Plush Toy List in Week One

In the one week since its debut, "T.M.X.™” Elmo eXtra Special Edition has put a sparkle back into the holiday shopping season as the hottest selling mass market plush toy, with retailers reporting some stores are already selling out. It’s creating quite a buzz as consumers are challenged to a fun search for the silly surprises that make this year’s Elmo extra special. This new Elmo includes all of the hilarious tickling and giggling action of last year’s "T.M.X.™” Elmo, plus it’s packed with new hidden silly surprises that can only be discovered when kids play, pose and tickle Elmo in the right sequence. The key is to find the right combination of movements (raise his arm, tickle his belly, etc.) to activate the fun. Today, as consumers flock to the Fisher-Price web site at www.fisher-price.com, the company offered up one more clue to help curious consumers and identified one more exciting new surprise. As debuted last week on "Good Morning America,” Elmo sings a Ticklish song in one surprise and struggles with hiccups in another. Though the Hiccup surprise was revealed to encourage the search, the secret combination of moves was kept under wraps to build the intrigue of the game – until today. With phone calls to the company on how to find the Hiccup surprise mounting daily, Fisher-Price today revealed a clue at www.fisher-price.com to help consumers find it. What's bothering Elmo you will know When he does an exercise involving toes The plan will go without a hitch If (when he's not looking) you pull a switch Then tickle his extremity And Elmo's problem you will see. Adding to the excitement of this week’s announcement is a sneak peek at yet one more surprise consumers will find in "T.M.X.” Elmo eXtra Special Edition. This time Elmo is being really silly -- squeakin’ and honkin’ and clangin’ in a symphony of Silly Sound Effects as he falls to the ground laughing and kicking in great gales of glee. For consumers in pursuit of the additional hidden silly surprises, a new clue will be posted next week to help them find one more surprise. All of the surprises and how to find them will be revealed on January 2, 2008. "Since the launch of the original Tickle Me Elmo, Elmo feature plush has become a perennial hot seller every holiday season,” says Jim Silver, publisher of Toy Wishes Magazine. In its debut on "Good Morning America,” Sam Champion revealed one surprise that consumers will find upon opening the box. A simple rhyme leads them to raise Elmo’s arm and tickle his belly to activate the fun "Elmo’s Ticklish” song. In the other silly surprise revealed, Elmo struggles with a funny case of the hiccups. He’s trying hard to laugh, but keeps hiccupping instead. And just when he thinks the hiccups are gone, one last loud hiccup escapes. "T.M.X.” Elmo eXtra Special Edition, for ages 18 months and up, is available at all major toy retailers with a retail price of approximately $39.99. This limited holiday edition "T.M.X.” Elmo eXtra Special Edition will be available at major retailers nationwide only from November 13 and through the holiday season. Editors Note: Product samples, images, and /or b-roll footage available upon request. Fisher-Price, Inc., a subsidiary of Mattel, Inc. (NYSE: MAT) and located in East Aurora, New York, is the leading brand of infant and preschool toys in the world. The Company has a 75-year legacy of high-quality toys that enhance early childhood development. Its often-emulated Play Laboratory was the first child research center of its kind in the toy industry, allowing researchers to observe the way children play and how play benefits their development. Some of the Company’s best-known "classic” brands include Little People®, Power Wheels® and View-Master®. Fisher-Price is also a leading developer of baby gear products (nursery monitors, infant swings, high chairs) as well as a wide array of character-based toys inspired by high quality children’s programming such as Sesame Street®, Dora the Explorer™ and Winnie the Pooh. The Company’s web site, at www.fisher-price.com, provides valuable information and resources to parents.