Custom publishing, an old idea that has seen a rebirth, strikes again. The latest is a tri-branded effort:

OfficeMax partnered with Marvel Entertainment and TeachersCount in a nationwide contest to find the “OfficeMax Super Hero Teacher of the Year” earlier this year. Of the 4,200 entries submitted, six winning middle school teachers and the students who nominated them were announced in June. The 12 winners are now featured as illustrated characters in the new custom comic book.

And DM News reports that custom publishing will continue on its hot streak:

Recent journalism graduates can look toward custom publishing for good news in entering the ever-competitive publishing world.

A new study from the Custom Publishing Council , an organization representing custom publishers in North America, and the Publications Management newsletter, claimed growth in individual areas of custom publishing and overall spending has led custom publishers to their fifth consecutive year of growth.

More blogs about custom publishing.

In an apparent attempt to sell breast implants to an ever younger audience, doctors and scientists have developed an alternative to saline and silicone, Gummy Bear implants:

“You can literally cut across the implant, squeeze it, and it kind of bulges out just like gummy bear candy would do,” said Dr. Mike Zwicklbauer, a plastic surgeon at the Plastic Surgery Center of Hampton Roads. “Then it goes right back in.”

The FDA has recently approved the “gummy bear” implants for study. And the Plastic Surgery Center of Hampton Roads is one of the few places taking part.

Bonnie Tomlin got the gummy bear implants two months ago, one of 18 women participating in the study. “First thing I thought was, oh my gosh…”

The rest of the article is here, if you must. For more on “sexuality and the gummy bear”, start here.

Speaking of Dickens, while shopping at Mollie Stones in Sausalito, CA, for a barbeque I was to host yesterday afternoon, I spied this tomato:

“Ka-ching!”, I thought. The image of The Virgin Mary on a grilled cheese sandwich was bought by Goldenpalace.com for $28,000.00, as part of a viral marketing campaign. Golden Palace has also purchased a rock that sort of looks like Jesus, paid $25,000 for one of William Shatner’s kidney stones (as if they are rare), and purchased an “Australian man’s frying pan bearing the likeness of Jesus Christ in burned leftover lemon mustard cream sauce”.

Any ten-percenters out there interested in representing the Igor tomato, get in touch.

Next time you find yourself cooped up with a bunch of bored kids some rainy day, fear not. The online games and quizes that will keep your kids engaged all day.

In the “Mouse Traps” section kids will have fun answering trivia questions like, “Are you limited to only one named inventor on a patent application?” and ”Can you get a patent on a design for a holiday ornament?” and ”Do trademark attorneys have to register to practice at the US Patent and Trademark Office?”. In the “Chicken or Egg section”, the wee ones can have hours of fun trying to remember the correct evolution of different product and company logos over the last 75 years!

[ More posts about trademark | More posts about patents ] [ More blogs about trademark | More blogs about patents ]