“These days, many kids are playing with these toys in a vacuum. “Ten or 20 years ago, parents were around more to give kids values, to comment about the violence (children encountered),” she said. The swashbuckling Turtles aren’t much different than the cowboys or soldiers of years past, said Gary Emery, a Los Angeles psychologist.īut Lieberman points out what she sees as a crucial difference. Other behavior experts propose a middle ground, reasoning that a ban might make the reptiles even more irresistible to children. “It gets other kids more riled up and play turns more aggressive.” “Kids become more violent in reaction to the Turtles,” she claims. Carole Lieberman, a Beverly Hills psychiatrist and UCLA assistant clinical professor of psychiatry who supports a Turtle ban. They’re taught the ways of the Ninja warrior by Splinter, “the biggest rat ever to face a trap.” Their enemies are a collection of mutant characters called the Foot Clan-Bebop, Shredder and Rocksteady among them. Four pet turtles dropped into a sewer are covered with radioactive goo and transformed into teens with unlikely names: Leonardo, Donatello, Michaelangelo and Raphael. The story is an enticing one to young minds. Prime fans are boys ages 3 to 8, but the “heroes in a half shell” also claim little girls and older children as fans. “Last year, we sold $110 million just in Turtle action figures and action figure accessories.” in La Mirada, the licensee for Turtle action figures. “The toy trade projects sales of more than $200 million this year,” said Diane Teigiser, director of marketing for Playmates Toys Inc. There are Turtle action figures and accessories, computer games, videos, stuffed animals and bubble gum. Since the Turtles first debuted in the comics in 1984, merchandising has taken off. On one point most would agree: Turtles are more pervasive than the Roy Rogers and Dale Evans gun-and-holster sets of the ‘50s and ‘60s. Some think nothing short of a Turtle ban is enough others see little difference between the animated Turtles and the cowboy-and-Indian games of yesteryear. To complicate matters, parents, child-care providers and psychologists don’t see eye-to-eye on the effects of the swashbuckling teen-age mutants. And anti-war activist Jerry Rubin, director of the Los Angeles Alliance for Survival, is offering Teddy bears to kids who turn in their Turtles ((213) 399-1000). Some ration Turtle power, allowing children to show off their favorite Turtle toys one or two days a week at “share” time. Others forbid Turtle weapons, but allow children to wear shirts and other gear. Some day-care centers and schools have banned Turtle wear and toys. Some other Southern California day-care centers and preschools also are waging war against the reptiles, concerned that Turtle play is sparking violence and aggression.
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