Doing this whole blog thing has been a way for me to consistently write outside of an academic setting about stuff that I liked. Each figure is a prompt where I can exercise my creativity and form narratives around objects that didn’t necessarily have them already. Even if they did I’d at minimum try and come up with some weird way in which I could tie an aspect of them to my life and tell a ridiculous story in the process. I’ve written about having to get rabies shots, drug use, medical procedures, and other wacky thing I could think of just for a cheap laugh and a modicum of recognition. Never would I have realized that Frank Kozik was paying attention to me. So much so, in fact, that when he took over as creative director of Kidrobot he asked me to write their blog posts. I met with him at Toy Fair in New York, tried to act like I wasn’t a complete and utter idiot, and started on a journey that lasted nearly four years. I learned a lot about crafting stories to highlight products and nothing made me happier than when I wrote something that got his stamp of approval. I never told him that because I thought it would make me look uncool or like a fan who didn’t have any business doing what I was. But that was a mistake. I should have told him. I should have said exactly what I was thinking and how much the opportunity meant to me. I always figured I’d connect again with him sometime but of course that won’t happen. I know in the scheme of things my blogging was a blip on the radar of someone who stood larger than life itself, but it made me feel like I did something right. That I wasn’t just the weird kid who was always furiously writing down his ideas in a speckled notebook when he should have been taking notes in school. That the wads of scrap paper I cleaned out from my pockets everyday with random thoughts scribbled in messy script actually added up to something. Wherever his spirit may reside I’m sure they have internet access so I hope he sees it now.
The influence of Frank Kozik will live on through the work he created and the people he inspired. It also lives through his wife Sharon, who has thankfully continued to make his iconic creations available for all of us. This Friday will see the release of the Spirit and Legacy editions of the iconic Labbit. Each one is cast in solid resin with an ethereal smoke effect captured throughout their forms. They will retail for $500 each, are limited to one of each style per customer, and go on sale April 19th at noon Pacific time from https://store.kozik.tv/.
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