The Australian Beanie Kids Trivia Quiz

Aqua the Mermaid Bear.
BK386 - this is her product code number which is important in any collectable product. This one is very simple - BK for Beanie Kids followed by the number given in the order they were released.
Birthdate: 28th of September 2003 - Libra.

All of the above information is given for all Beanie Kids and is written on the tags that comes with them. A lot of the later bears also contain a short introduction about who they are and where they were born and live.

Once Skansen realised that they had tapped into a huge product market with their quirky tags they launched a website which introduced a message for all of the bears.

Aqua has a generic tag and the only information the website provides is the above details and that her birthplace was at Seal Rocks (on Beanie Island).

This is because she was recalled shortly after being released. The reason being that "The gold star attached to the head of the bean filled toy may have a potential risk associated with the sharpness of the points on the star."

This has resulted in her being relatively rare, many people did not bother to return the item but they did remove the star so one with a star is a very collectable item.

I hope you got the three references in the clue to a mermaid. "Splash" was a 1984 movie with Daryl Hannah playing a mermaid and Flounder and Eric are from "The Little Mermaid".

Fifi the Poodle Bear
BK368
Birthdate: 16th of May 2003 - Taurus
Place: Picnic Area.
Blurb: "This fur needs a lot of work, it's no wonder Fifi spends so much time at the beauty parlour, she has a great relationship with Antoinette, although Fifi thinks that sometimes Antoinette seems to be lost in the past, and dresses to match. She enjoys nothing but the best food, and has a particular penchant for garlic."

The Beanie Kids are similar to the popular American Beanie Babies in that they are filled with small beans rather than conventional stuffing. Skansen gifts released the first Beanie Kids in September 1997. New Beanie Kids were released each month, usually 4 at a time. Skansen originally designed, manufactured and distributed the Beanie Kids but since 2013 they are being distributed by Korimco.

Poodles were originally breed to retrieve waterfowl from freezing waters for their owners while hunting but the smaller varieties are very much coddled pooches in this day and age.

Jeannie the Bear
BK296
Birthdate: 31st of March 2001 - Aries
Place: Rainbow Land
Blurb: "Whilst walking along the beach one day, the Beanie Master tripped over a bottle poking out of the sand, when he tried to brush the sand off it, out popped Jeannie. She was very grateful for being released and now lives on Beanie Island granting wishes to all the other Beanie Kids."

The original Beanie Kids are only 21 cm and used to sell for $11.99 new but it is the second-hand market that sets the prices for the collectable older models with some valued at $500.

Most Beanie Kids are bears in costumes but there are some animals particularly in the early releases.

"I Dream of Jeannie" was a 1960s TV show about a Persian genie and the man who became her master and, eventually, her husband,

Audrey the Bear
BK287
Birthday: 6th of March 2002 - Pisces
Place: Beanie Town
Blurb: "What a starlet! This bear believes she belongs in the movies, she is always dressed ready for all the "A" list parties, and is always looking for the red carpet treatment she deserves."

The Beanie Master arrived on the island in 2002 and made friends with all the Beanie Kids. He helped them fix any problems they had and added new areas to the island. He was so nice and helpful the Beanie Kids voted him to be their leader so he lives there with them now and greets all the new arrivals every month.

The Island includes many habitats including islands, caves, mountains, grassy plains, farmlands, dunes, towns, forests and a jungle. Different bears live in different areas depending on the climate they need but are able to move around as they desire.

This bear is named after Audrey Hepburn and is dressed as she appeared in the movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's."

Christina the Ballerina
BK374
Birthday: 1st of April 2003 - Aries
Place: Rainbow Land
Blurb: "Christina loves to dance in all the Christmas pageants, she is a big supporter of the "Camp Quality" charity for kids living with cancer, and is always willing to give her time to support them."

Every year a special Beanie Kid is chosen as their Charity Bear where $1.00 from every sale goes to a charity. Christina was the 2003 charity bear and her proceeds went to Camp Quality.

Camp Quality was founded in Australia in 1983 to provide children under 15 with cancer, and their families, help and support. It also provides places where families impacted by cancer can create precious memories through fun camps, retreats and recreational fun days and experiences.

Odette, Ariel and Giselle are all prima ballerina roles. Odette is from "Swan Lake", Ariel "The Little Mermaid" and Giselle is the self-titled lead.

Jester the Clown
BK156
Birthday: 10th of October 1999 - Libra
Place: The Kingdom
Blurb: "A real crowd pleaser is Jester, with his wacky tricks and jokes, he is often seen performing for the Royal Family".

There are already over 2000 Beanie Kids. After the success of the original bears they have bought out other editions. There is a Cuddly Kids' range - these are double the size at 42 cm and also 'Great Big Kids' which are 80 cm. Then came some 'Giant Big Kids' who are big enough to sit on the sofa with you.

Then they did a couple that were smaller including a 'Bean Bag' range and the 'Bag Tag' range - these are about 5cm and have a clip on their heads to clip onto your handbag.

The clue appears in Don McLean's "American Pie" lyrics:

"When the jester sang for the king and queen
In a coat he borrowed from James Dean
And a voice that came from you and me
Oh, and while the king was looking down
The jester stole his thorny crown"

Giggle the Twin
BK303
Birthday: 7th of May 2001 - Taurus
Place: Beanie Town
Blurb: "Born only a minute apart, Giggle is the younger sister of Wriggle, they have never been separated and have shared the same cot since birth. Giggle certainly lives up to her name, as that's all she seems to do. She is a very happy baby."

Giggle is one of the 'Tiny' range at only 10 cm.

Instead of flooding the market while sales were high Skansen did the opposite and started to limit the quantity that any store could order so there was an even distribution but it also increased their collectability factor.

They also started their 'Retailers Exclusive' range where certain bears were only sold exclusively by one particular store - different stores not the same one each time, believing that the 'thrill of the chase' would increase their desirability among serious collectors and I'm sure there was some benefit received back from the stores themselves.

Don't think I need to explain this one - she is obviously a baby from her clothing and is sucking a dummy.

Blitzen the Reindeer Bear
BK366
Birthday: 9th of December 2002 - Sagittarius
Place: Snowy Mountains
Blurb: "Good friend of Rudy who also lives on the Snowy Mountains of Beanie Island, these two can always be seen frolicking together, but come December, this is when Blitzen truly comes alive, he works out constantly in preparation for Christmas Eve!"

Blitzen is what is classed as a 'Premier Exclusive' bear. This is again designed to make them into a collector's item but these bears go even one step further. They are only released via accredited premier stockists and then they are immediately retired, on the same day as their release, and are no longer produced making them harder to come by and more valuable.

Any of the Limited Edition or Exclusive ranges were also produced in limited quantities for the same reason. Once any Beanie Kid has been retired no more of that design are ever produced again regardless of any demand for them.

It is a very interesting sales technique because, apart from guaranteeing a sell out when they are produced, their value is in the second hand market which they don't receive any profit from.

This was just a play on the Ritchie Valen's song "Donna" as Blitzen's reindeer partner is Donner.

Enchantress the Bear
BK343
Birthday: 19th of May 2003 - Taurus
Place: Fantasy Glade
Blurb: "With her mesmerising voice and her magic crystals, you had better beware if you don't want to fall under her spell. Those who succumb to her charms quite often find themselves cleaning her house for her."

Enchantress is also a Premier Exclusive release.

As mentioned in question 1 every original Skansen Beanie Kid has what is referred to as 'swing-tag', usually fastened to their ear, which provides all the information about who they are.

This swing-tag forms part of the popularity of the bear and is vital that it remains on the bear and is kept intact if the bear is intended as a collectible rather than a toy. Beanie Kid stockists just happen to sell swing tab protectors that stop them getting damaged.

Circe is an enchantress in ancient Greek mythology and religion.
Lorelei comes from German literature about a siren who distracted shipmen with her beauty and song, causing them to crash on the rocks.

Purity the Christmas Bear
BK 356
Birthday: 24th of April 2003 - Taurus
Place: Snowy Mountains
Blurb: "Another great member of the family, Purity has a heart that is filled with love and only good. She can see the best in everyone and treats everyone she meets with the utmost respect."
Purity ranks up there as a Retailer Exclusive and a Limited Edition.

Besides the swing tag all the Beanies also have a 'Tush Tag' as well, usually sewn into the leg seam. Apart from identifying it as a Skansen product and the material used, the later bears have their characters names on it. It is not as vital as the swing-tag but is necessary for it to be considered in mint condition.

One of the most amusing things though is that the very earliest Beanie Kids were bought as children's toys and nearly all had the tags removed and were 'well loved' so not many remain which, of course, makes them some of the highest value bears there are! Of course one in a mint condition would be worth a lot more.

I admit he doesn't look like much like a Christmas Bear but he is white for Purity and his chest has the star of Bethlehem on it - which the three wise men followed to find Jesus.