What happened to the Telecran?

Aka, the Etch A Sketch from Ohio Art. I was thinking about them in response to a question Hadji asked about dying brands that need CPR. I realize the electronic age of video games and IMing has marginalized the board game technology we grew up on like Monopoly or Battleship, but for some reason this outdated little red box of linear funk seems like it should be so much cooler than it is, especially given the love for all things retro. Maybe it’s just a reflection of the brand’s DNA, that maybe Ohio Art is just one of those companies destined to end up killing time before it becomes extinct.

Take their Flash-based online version that they just got up and running recently. Why did it take so long? Flash certainly wasn’t invented yesterday. (Perhaps in their mind it was.) By the way, that drawing is one I did there thank you very much. It’s either an EKG or a skyline, your choice. So forget being Lindsey Lohan’s PR guy, that challenge is easy: just pass out 8 x 10 headshots of her dad with “Consider the source” printed across them. Campaign director for a politician? Cake. “Our candidate isn’t quite as sleazy as their candidate.”

Resurrecting Etch A Sketch though is tougher.

It’s now a fringe novelty brand that only savants and others seem to have parlayed into any kind of notoriety. It’s so retro uncool that it could be cool again by default, and not just by kids either. Have Etch people go up against Rubik’s Cube solvers on YouTube to see who’s faster. (Our recent tour viewership for some reason was focused on Ryan’s ability to solve that damn thing in under two minutes, no matter where he started with the pattern. But things like Best Celebrity Sketch A Like. (Or Stalk A Like, again, your choice.) Sure they’d look horrible, but that’s not the point. Or, while not a new idea, actual t-shirts made with Etch A Sketch material for drawing on at parties: “I was with stupid, but they moved out.”

Why, the social media possibilities are endless. Any other ideas?

Tags: Etch A Sketch