Jessica Rabbit Store 25th Anniversary - Part Three: The Merchandise

The Jessica Rabbit store was not short on the amount of merchandise it offered. Though the building was only a few hundred square feet of shopping space, it was packed with shirts, mugs, jackets, magnets, towels, tote bags, jewelry, and yes... even lingerie. Who Framed Roger Rabbit was a blockbuster movie, it was followed by two short cartoons, with another on the way by the time the Jessica Rabbit store was in place. It would appear there would be plenty of time to capitalize on the character - but unfortunately that time came to a quick and sudden end. There has been little record of Jessica's and the merchandise that was once available, especially since Pleasure Island is now a thing of the past.

Here for the first time is a very exclusive look at the vast selection of merchandise available at Jessica's. We will get inside information about some of the items through artist interviews and even see concept art for merchandise never produced.

Jessica Rabbit Store 25th Anniversary - Part Two: The Building

Pleasure Island was more than a new location filled with shops and bars, it was actually an entirely new themed area. The island itself had a backstory of once belonging to Merriweather Adam Pleasure, who used the buildings for his seafaring business. After he was lost at sea the island and its buildings sat abandoned until it was discovered by Imagineers. They were determined to bring new life into the old island, and also pay homage to its previous owner. Once restored, the island was bustling again and even had its own mascot, the moon-faced Grand Funmeister. All the buildings had a rustic, industrial look with many of them having metal side paneling, vaulted ceilings and large windows. The Jessica's store was no exception, and seemed to incorporate an older style with that of a modern city building.

Even though the mermaid from Splash didn't get her signature saloon with a tail-swinging neon sign, the idea may have inspired what we know as the Jessica Rabbit store. Let's take a closer look at the area of Pleasure Island where Jessica's was located, the building, brochure maps and what it was like for Jessica Rabbit creator, Gary K. Wolf, to see his character's very own store.

Jessica Rabbit Store 25th Anniversary - Part One: The Beginning

According to the D23 Website, December 15th, 2015 will mark the 25th Anniversary of Jessica's, the Jessica Rabbit store which once stood in the center of Pleasure Island. This store is almost legendary to some people, since its time in Disney History was extremely short. Often confused as merely a lingerie shop, Jessica's was actually full of themed merchandise such as mugs, shirts, statues and accessories. Although Pleasure Island has now converted into Disney Springs, the iconic image of Jessica Rabbit was a mainstay to the West End Stage, greeting guests and providing photo opportunities long after her store had closed. (Press Image left courtesy Disney Vacation Kingdom)

Open from late 1990 to some time in 1992, many people never got the chance to visit The Jessica Rabbit Store. After compiling information these last several years, ImNotBad.com is happy to offer an extensive look at what was - including merchandise photos, concept art and interviews, in a three-part article that will put a spotlight on one of Disney's first character-themed stores.

Jessica Rabbit Pin Of The Week - Destination D: Attraction Rewind Jessica

Title: Pleasure Island Tonight!
Released: November 23 2014 at the D23 Destination D: Attraction Rewind in Walt Disney World
Price: $19.95
Limited Edition: 250

The Jessica Rabbit Pleasure Island pin was available at the Disney D23 Destination D Event as a Walt Disney Imagineering exclusive. This is a replica of the Pleasure Island Tonight! sign which was once atop the West End Stage on Pleasure Island. The back layer is circular with a dark blue clear fill with stars showing in the metal. The Pleasure Island Tonight! sign is on the next layer with a purple background and the two firework shapes which animated along side it. Jessica is also part of this layer, with a glitter filled dress and a movable leg as another layer. Her red lips have been printed on. It is an oversized pin measuring 3 inches and came on a special Pleasure Island backer card with original logo.

Jessica Rabbit Pin Of The Day #235 - Jessica Settee

Title: Jessica Settee
Released: August 2003 in Disneyland and Disney World
Price: $6.50
Limited Edition: Open Edition

Jessica Rabbit lounges around on her lavender settee with one arm draped over the side and one leg bent up. This art of Jessica was originally used from the Jessica's store in Pleasure Island.

Jessica Rabbit Store Floor Plan

The Jessica's store once stood in Pleasure Island for a very short time. The D23 Website states that it was opened on December 15th 1990. It was repurposed into the Music Legends store some time in mid 1992. It was located on the corner of Breeze Way and Chandler Row. The neon leg-swinging sign of Jessica became a fixture to the island for many years after the store had gone. There had always been very little information about the store available - for example a floor plan and merchandise layout. With the help of one brief video of the store, and my own memory, I have created a full interior layout of the Jessica Rabbit store, exclusive to ImNotBad.com.

Above you will see the top of the store, with slanted, windowed roof - and another without the roof for the interior layout. For numbered descriptions and a full merchandise layout, click below for a guided tour of the Jessica's store.

Flashback Friday - The Totally unOfficial Toonography of Jessica Rabbit Part Two

The Totally unOfficial Toonography of Jessica Rabbit was a big project I embarked on in an effort to preserve the character and tell a lot more of her story through the happenings at the time, and from Disney artist interviews. This six part documentary slideshow reveals some information about Jessica, her creation, merchandise and history.

Part 2: Jessica's - Signature Store of a Toon Diva
If you never had the chance to visit the Jessica's store during the very short time it was open, this slideshow will take a look back into its history. See what merchandise was available at the Jessica's store, original drawings of rare unproduced items, and insight from the creator of the neon Jessica sign himself, Mark Marderosian.

Flashback Friday - Jessica Rabbit Store Video

It's a video that never gets old for me. It's very short but sweet! Video of the Jessica Rabbit store, Jessica's, and more of Pleasure Island in 1991.

Jessica Rabbit Store Merchandise Manifest

This is no joke, the manifest for the Jessica Rabbit store has been found! A friend of this site, Anthony, has been good enough to share the full merchandise list for the Jessica's store (even the special Jessica Rabbit kiss tissue paper used to wrap glassware). Here for the first time ever, exclusive to this site, is the full list of items from the store in June of 1991.

Flashback Friday - The Jessica Rabbit Store, Gone But Not Forgotten

The Jessica Rabbit Store, called Jessica's, was opened on December 15th 1990, according to the D23 Archives. I was fortunate enough to visit the store without even knowing it existed, now over 20 years ago. Back then, there was no internet to keep you informed on all the different happenings, news and such. Disney fan's had an especially hard time knowing much of what was going on in the parks, aside from random TV specials. Though Disney's MGM Studios had quite a lot of press at the time, the Jessica's store in Pleasure Island was a well kept secret. Also around this time, Disney began to focus on creating more "park-exclusive" merchandise which you wouldn't find anywhere else, making Jessica Rabbit one of the first modern Disney characters to house a shop of her own signature merchandise.

Before becoming the Jessica's store, the building housed the Island Depot from 1989 to 1990, which sold Pleasure Island memorabilia and assorted sundries. It then became the Dick Tracy store around the summer of 1990, selling merchandise from the film. The entrance sign was the Dick Tracy logo, and automobiles from the Dick Tracy film were located around the outside. There was even a large standee of Breathless Mahoney outside - much like that of Jessica Rabbit from the MGM Studios. The building then became Jessica's and was only open until some time in 1992. Though the article on the D23 website states it was shut down in February of 1993, the merchandise was not being sold in 1992 when I went for a second visit, so they maybe referring to when the large neon Jessica Rabbit sign was removed.

The Jessica sign was eventually relocated to another area of the park atop the West End Stage alongside a “Pleasure Island Tonight” sign, where it remained a popular visual for many years until the sign and entire stage were removed in June of 2006. The store building went on to become the Music Legends store, a tattoo parlor and in 2007 a smokers lounge called Fuego by Sosa Cigars. Sadly, even the entire building which once housed the store is now gone, as you can see blow from this photo taken in the Pleasure Island area in December 2013. The blank space in the middle would have been were the building once stood. Disney is now reworking this entire area.

To read more about Jessica's, the merchandise, and my visit to the store, Click Here: ImNotBad.com - A Jessica Rabbit Site: Jessica's - Signature Store of a Toon Diva

For a timeline of photos for the Jessica Rabbit store building, interior, exterior, and neon sign, Click Here: ImNotBad.com - A Jessica Rabbit Site: Park Photos - Pleasure Island and Downtown Disney

Photos Of The Jessica Rabbit Store

Over at Jessica Rabbit World - the ImNotBad.com Tumblr page - you can get a look at the very short lived Jessica Rabbit store, called Jessica's. Merchandise photos, store displays, interior photos and that famous leg-swinging sign are all there. Check back often and remember there are new photos every day to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

Jessica Rabbit Merchandise Review #48 - Jessica Glitter Sticker

It's always exciting to review exclusive merchandise from Jessica's. This time, the particular item is more for visual purposes than an in-depth review. Still, it's a rare item that can't be overlooked since it was solely made for the Jessica's store that once existed in Pleasure Island many years ago.

Jessica Rabbit Merchandise Review # 11 - Small Jessica's Keychain

Back in the day, between 1989 - 1992, Jessica Rabbit was lucky enough to have her very own store called Jessica's. It's a shame that it was not open very long - and many people had never been there, not to mention ever knew it existed. There were so many different things available and it was easy to let some of those things slip through the cracks if you thought the store was going to be open for a long time. One cool items that you can still find now and then are the Jessica's keychains. There were two kinds, one small lucite keychain and another larger glittered version.

Computer Wallpaper - Jessica and Roger

Check out this collection of various different wallpaper images for your computer - so that Jessica Rabbit can always greet you while surfing the web.

Jessica Rabbit Merchandise Review #7 - Magnet

The Jessica's store, which once existed in Pleasure Island way back between 1989 to 1992, offered the biggest assortment of Jessica merchandise ever. Pins, statues and other kitschy collectibles were not among the majority at that time. Instead, there were shirts, mugs, neck ties and magnets.


There were a lot of items that had use in the home, something we have not seen much of since then (with the exception of a few mugs and journals - not counting the Very Rare Jessica stationery released in Tokyo Disneyland). One such fun and inexpensive item was the Jessica Rabbit magnet, available only at the Jessica's store in Pleasure Island. The magnet was full color and shows Jessica in her most iconic look-over-the-shoulder pose. It also was not just a big, square magnet with a photo of Jessica either. It was shaped in her form and painted.




The Jessica's store magnet.

With such an item, you can't always capture small detail, but this works for what it is - just a cute fridge magnet that might hold up a report card or grocery list. They used a few colors - red, peach dark purple and light purple. Her hair is red here from what it appears, not orange as it should be but it isn't something that really changes her look. I suppose they made a little more effort making her shoes the correct color rather than just making them the same color as the gloves. She is also outlined in black which is painted and not just the magnet color coming through. The paintwork can be a little sloppy or uneven in areas, and it might be more of a silk-screen technique rather than hand painted.



Like pretty much all Who Framed Roger Rabbit related merchandise, they had to be stamped Disney/Amblin - since both companies jointly owned the rights to the film and the characters.




I suppose there is not much you can say about a magnet but such Jessica Rabbit related houseware has not been available in a long time. I suppose it would have been cool to see a glittered version of this magnet too, but as for now, its all we have. The Jessica's store magnet does show up online from time to time so you can still get your hands on one.


The Jessica's Store Glittered Keychain gets a 3½. I had previously given this a 3. It's cute, maybe a little sloppy paint, but a glitter version would have been cooler.

Video of THE JESSICA'S STORE

Here is the biggest gem of them all; VIDEO of the Jessica's store taken in 1991! Short, but sweet, this is the only video that exists, so far, of the exterior AND interior of the store! You can also read the post on my visit to the store and the Jessica Toonography and interview with a Jessica illustrator to find out more. ENJOY!