Monday, December 29, 2014

ImNotBad.com 2014 Year End Review

While 2013 was a bigger year for Jessica with the Silver Anniversary of Who Framed Roger Rabbit, 2014 still offered a lot of the sultry singer of Toontown. Let's review 2014 and all the Jessica Rabbit news:

A new Piece of Disneyland History pin series was released in January to celebrate the history of Disneyland attractions, including the Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin ride. On this pin, Jessica is holding a mallet and tied up (after making her escape from the weasels from the end scene), features a glitter filled dress - and a piece of Jessica Rabbit's purple spandex glove from the ride! While 2014 still offered less Jessica pins, they were in no short supply. "I'm not bad. I just CRUISE that way." was released on Disney Cruise Lines, a hinged 2014 Pin Trading Night, and several more were released monthly from the Disney Studio Store in Hollywood.

Artist Kengi was spotted in Downtown Disney, creating some cool Jessica Rabbit art at the Wonderground Gallery. Here you can see the artist as he draws our favorite toon in colored pencils. Vibrant red and purple are used to recreate the stunning form of Jessica.



Sketch Dailies made Jessica Rabbit one if their topics in February, involving people all over twitter to sketch out their version of the classic cartoon redhead. It lead to many people submitting their own unique art of Jessica.


2014 Marked the 20th Anniversary of the Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin ride in Disneyland. It is still a popular attraction in Toontown and a special pin was released for the occasion. It was also the 25th Anniversary of Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly Disney's MGM Studios). There were several pins and shirts released, but unfortunately no merchandise featured Roger or Jessica.

For the first time ever, the Ink and Paint Club was brought to life with music, entertainment and cartoon craziness. Future Cinema in London created a Who Framed Roger Rabbit Live Experience, with an evening full of dancing - and getting frisked! Not simply a movie screening, this presentation brings you into the world of Roger Rabbit via the Ink and Paint Club where people were able to meet like likes of Eddie Valiant, Marvin Acme, Judge Doom, The Weasels - and Jessica Rabbit!

Hallmark released their official 2014 Keepsake Christmas Ornaments this summer. The Jessica Rabbit ornament was sold through the Hallmark Website and stores. It is designed by Keepsake Artist Joanne Eschrich and is the first time Jessica was released through Hallmark. A Long Board Surf Shack mug was released in Disney parks and their website. An "I'm not bad. I just CRUISE that way." t-shirt was sold exclusively on Disney Cruise Lines. The Disney Couture de Force line continued and surprisingly added a Jessica statue to the series, which is to be released in 2015.


The most beloved detective in Toontown passed away this year. Actor Bob Hoskins, who played Eddie Valiant in Who Framed Roger Rabbit, died at age 71. In 2012 Hoskins announced that he would be retiring from acting after making public his battle with parkinson's disease. He starred in a colorful assortment of films, such as Hook, Mona Lisa, Mermaids, The Inner Circle, Super Mario Brothers, Hollywoodland, Snow White and the Huntsman and Pennies from Heaven. He set a new standard for actors when taking on the role of Eddie Valiant, making us fully believe toons and humans really can exist in the same world together. Fans and colleagues alike took to social media to pay tribute to Hoskins.

The Roger and Jessica Rabbit Sketchbook ornament from 2013 was rereleased for 2014 in Disney parks and online. A new Jessica Rabbit Runway Collection shoe ornament was released featuring glitter and Jessica's park signature. There was also a matching pin released with other shoes from this years collection.


Funko added Roger Rabbit and co. to their collection of Disney POP! Figures. The characters were rumored, hinted at and wanted for many years. Roger, Jessica, Judge Doom and Smarty Weasel were released and sold in various locations.

Video has surfaced of a Disney Television Special from 1983 which features a section on a brand new film in the works at that time, Who Framed Roger Rabbit!. The animators discuss the plot, story and characters for this new film and we are treated to concept art and test animation. This version is a bit different than the one we know, with the character designs for Roger and Jessica Rabbit in their earliest original stages. This version of Jessica is a lot more cartoony, with a distinct early 80's feel.

Acme Archives Ltd. decided to unveil their new Jessica Rabbit poster right here on ImNotBad.com. The print is by artist Michael de Pippo. Jessica's name and lips are made with a special metallic pink ink. Below reads "The Ink and Paint Club - June 22 - Los Angles. Toon Review - Strictly Humans Only - Password: 'Walt Sent Me.'" The poster is a Limited Edition and was made available through DarkInkArt.

The song Fireball by Pitbull featuring John Ryan has a very interesting music video that looks straight out of Toontown, complete with a shapely woman in a red sequin dress and bar patrons with their eyes bugging out. A Walt Disney Imagineering Exclusive pin of the famous Jessica Rabbit and Pleasure Island Tonight! sign was released at the D23 Destination D: Attraction Rewind. The event celebrated the early days of Downtown Disney. The Disney Designer Collection was released in the fall as a continuation of the Fairytale Collection, still leaving people wanting more - and wanting to see different selection characters.


In 2015 you're going to be seeing a lot more of Jessica Rabbit - at least on this site. Jessica Rabbit Pin of the Day will take a look back at pins of the past every day and will include photos, info, advertisements and artwork.

ImNotBad.com continues to grow and is now nearing ONE MILLION page views. There were more posts than ever in 2014, with over 200 for the year. Special thanks to all of you who continue to enjoy the site.