OK, so you found a real live dancing frog in an old abandoned time capsule, and this one is legit. He will pull out a hat and cane and sing “Hello my baby” on command to any and all. Dollar signs light up in your eyes and you see this as your chance to make it rich.
The problem: today’s public is fickle and gets bored easily. A one trick dancing frog is good for a few million youtube hits, an appearance on Letterman, and if you are lucky a couple of comercials. But after that its old news, and the public will have moved on. I’m sure that scientists would be interested in studying it, but they don’t have a whole lot of cash to throw around and its not entirely clear what they could learn from it. You could ebay it and hope a rich eccentric bids on it but that would be a one shot deal and may not be enough to put keep you in the kind of life-style to which you are hoping to become accustomed long term.
A couple of other notes: In case it wasn’t clear, he only does the “Hello my baby song” no other tricks. The frog is immortal, so if you can get a consistent revenue stream going, you can milk it for the rest of your life.
Its been a long time since I saw the original cartoon, so I stand corrected. He can sing some other songs, but he has a limited repertoire of his own choosing and can’t be taught to sing specific songs or say specific lines.
As specified in the OP, this one is different. I’m mostly interested in exploring whether the initial dollar sign reactions of the owner were justified even before he realized the constraints on the frogs abilities.
Vita Beata might be on a good track. I could see renting him to an already established museum or park as a star attraction. Where people could watch him dance for a few minutes then move on. If zoos are willing to shell out 1 million a year to China for a Panda, you should be able to get something for a unique dancing frog.
Assuming immortality and the ability to pull out a cane and hat from Hammerspace, I’d use his obvious physics defying powers to solve the world’s energy crisis. Put him in a container capable of harnessing the boundless energy from his singing and dancing and let him generate power non-stop. Have him pull out multiple hats and canes continuously to eliminate the world’s need for wood and cheap felt material. Have him continuously dance to move a motor and sing to vibrate some sound capturing device
Thanks, I love reading that I might be on a good track. So we’ve got his You-tube video, then we’re sending out offers to Disney, who happens to own rights to Kermit the Frog. Then the Smithsonian has the original Kermit puppet … but I’m doubting they want live frog entertainment there. Still trying to brainstorm this, with “Hello My Baby” playing in my head …
I think the days of any one-trick pony being a source of wealth are long gone. In the vaudeville days, you could do one stupid act over and over to new audiences; today, even the most bizarre and extreme act is burned out in days, weeks or even hours.
Just maybe as an AFLAC-duck kind of mascot… but, y’know, animated ones are a dime a Korean dozen.
Was his time capsule air tight? If so, he’s not just immortal, he can exist without oxygen. Any chance of NASA being interested in research on him to maybe learn about survival in space or on planets without an atmosphere?
As has been mentioned, it’s more difficult to sustain the career of a “sensation,” especially with a one-trick wonder that can’t reinvent itself, unlike Madonna.
If I had a dancing/singing frog, I’d introduce him very selectively, trying to reduce any free viewings on the internet, early in his career. Maybe a few videos from a distance, so as to muddle the perception if he was real or some CGI trick. Then have him make his first “live” appearance at the Super Bowl half-time. And then a follow up appearance on the debut of the new Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon… or maybe the farewell to Leno show. At that point, I’d entertain all the offers to sign “exclusive” sponsors, i.e., one car endorsement, one cell phone network, one fast food chain. Make them long-term deals at the height of the frog’s popularity.
I think that’s the best you can do to maximize revenue from a frog that can only do one thing. And after his endorsement deals run out, sell him off to some rich Oil-Sheik in Saudi Arabia to entertain his young children. If you have no takers, consider donating him to a Children’s Hospital to entertain kids or for medical research, and then take a huge write-off on your taxes.
So we’ve got his You-tube video, then we’re sending out offers to Disney, who happens to own rights to Kermit the Frog. Then the Smithsonian has the original Kermit puppet … but I’m doubting they want live frog entertainment there. Still trying to brainstorm this, with “Hello My Baby” playing in my head …