HOPPING GHOST Vinyl Toy by Osaka Popstar
Osaka Popstar presents "Hopping Ghosts" - a new 8" vinyl figure that comes complete with its own punk-rock theme song (check out the animated video at bottom of this post)! With a suggested retail price of US$50 per, there is a 1:6 chance to score a Green Ghost (limited to 100pcs) over the "regular" Blue Ghost (limited to 300pcs). DKE Toys is distributing, so do check in with your fav retailers for availability.
PRODUCT PRESS: "Hear the bells...See these claws...Feel these fangs...then Hop Like a Ghost! Chinese vampire mythology takes a spin through the mind of Osaka Popstar creator/frontman John Cafiero-who designed the figure and penned the accompanying single. "
PRODUCT PRESS CONTINUED: "Each figure is 8-inches tall, with removable scroll spell accessory, and comes packaged in a full color art box with free download card for the new single "Hopping Ghosts" by Osaka Popstar. The single features John Cafiero (vocals) backed by a lineup featuring Dennis Diken (The Smithereens) Drums, Sal Maida (Cracker, Milk & Cookies, Roxy Music) Bass, and Dean Rispler (The Dictators NYC, Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black) Guitar. Download also includes an alternate "animated instrumental" version (as heard in the animated promo for the new figure line)."
WHAT ARE "HOPPING GHOSTS"?
"What exactly is a Hopping Ghost...? Known as Jiangshi in Chinese folklore and kyonshī in Japan, hopping ghosts or hopping vampires are basically a breed of zombie; reanimated corpses dressed in traditional garments from the Qing Dynasty. Rigor mortis has set in so they can only move around by hopping with their arms outstretched! They can't see using traditional vision, instead, they sense living creatures by their breath and seek to absorb the life force of the living.
They can be stopped with a scroll to the forehead containing a spell written in a mix of ink and blood, and led by Taoist priests using bells. Some of the streets of Chinatown in NYC (like Doyers st. for example), are said to have been intentionally designed crooked to deter Hopping Ghost attacks; making it difficult for them to navigate through them.
The mythology even inspired a string of fantastic Hong Kong films in the 1980s, most notably the "Mr. Vampire" series directed by Ricky Lau and starring the immortal Lam-Ching Ying. Ying is often referred to as the "Peter Cushing of Asia" and both he and Lau are given props by Cafiero on the box of the new "Hopping Ghosts" vinyl figures.
In an effort to achieve true authenticity, the spell found on the scroll accessory of the Osaka Popstar "Hopping Ghosts" vinyl figures (and seen on the art for the new single), was written by an actual Taoist priest residing in Hong Kong. Beware of cheap imitations, look for official "Hopping Ghosts" vinyl figures available now from Osaka Popstar!"
