Take Your Action Figure To Work Day is: Friday, March 4th!
In this installment of Behind the Figure I had the pleasure of interviewing Randy Ham the creator of Action Figure To Work Day (#AFWD). We here at Go Figure News are big supporters of this annual event. I was already excited for AFWD 2016, but after our chat I was even more stoked!
So what gave you the whole AFWD idea? What got you started?
In February 2014, I lost my dog Kiwi. It was incredibly traumatic for me, and going back to work was a Herculean task. One morning, I was having a cup of coffee (in one of my Wonder Woman coffee mugs), and I noticed my New Teen Titans White Raven variant figure. I sat her down next to my coffee mug and Instagrammed a photo with the caption, 'White Raven senses I need a second cup of coffee.' On my way out the door, I just decided to bring her with me and post pictures thought the day. It was really more about just keeping me sane and happy than anything else. Throughout the day, I'd get comments, messages and texts from my friends letting me know how much they enjoyed following White Raven's adventures.
At the end of the day, someone asked me if I would do it again. I decided if I was going to do it again, I was going to invite my friends to do it too. With only three days to prepare, I declared the first Friday in March, 'Take Your Action Figure To Work Day.' That first year, I got s bit of media from some online press. and decided it might be a good idea to carry on. With a lot of encouragement and assistance from my partner Tom and my best friend Anthony, I set up a website, twitter, pinterest, Facebook, Instagram. By 2015, we had a little cottage industry set up, and started contacting media. GoFigureNews, and Mashable got involved right away, On the day of, we were mentioned by NPR Morning Edition, and many other outlets, and our hashtag received over 2 million twitter impressions. The rest is history.
Wow! That is one major feat! If you could go back in time and change one thing, what would that be?
(Probably the worst week to ask me this) My very dear friend Mark died in a car wreck last week. I would certainly change that.
Sorry about your loss, my condolences. On a lighter note how long have you been a collector?
I've had action figures since I was a kid. I still don't consider myself a 'collector.' I just buy what I like.
What are your favorite toy brands?
I like DC Collectibles a lot. I'm a pre-New52 DC guy. I like my Superheroes in bright colors, and full of hope and optimism. Give me figures that reflect that.
I like the old school versions of the super heroes myself. Not to take away anything from the revamped line of characters. I am glad to see the older figures get a little more shine now. So what is your favorite toy in your collection?
That's a tough question. I have a set of the Wolfman/Perez New Teen Titans figures (Robin, Wonder Girl, Raven, Cyborg, Kid Flash, Changeling) I'm very proud of. I'm also proud of numerous Wonder Woman figures I own.
I know this may be asking a bit much, but what figure are you taking to work?
I'm gonna be meta about the whole thing. I have a custom figure of myself I ordered from MyFaceOnAFigure.com, and he's bringing a micro-winder Woman. ;) I've been posting little comic panels on the AFWD Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram I made with this cool app of mini-Randy running the AFWD Office with a Mego Wonder Girl as his Intern. It's very The Devil Wears Prada-esque. Mini-Randy is kind of a jerk.
What would the world be without jerks lol! What would you like to see happen in the toy industry in the future?
I love it when the companies dig deep into the vault for the cool nostalgia pieces. I don't really need to see another Superman figure with special kryptonite shield. Gimme a Lynda Carter era 6 inch Wonder Woman.
What is your favorite day of the year?
Take Your Action Figure To Work Day!!!
How did I know that was going to be your answer lol! If there were an extra hour in every day, what would you do with it?
Honestly, I would turn off my phone, turn off the tv, and read.
Reading is always nice a mind is a terrible thing to waste. If you could try out any job for one week, what job would you choose to try?
I'd be Stevie Nicks' shawl organizer.
Besides digging toys what other hobbies do you have?
I'm so lucky that my day job affords me incredible opportunities to travel, meet amazing people (some of whom are my idols), and create programming for my community. I get paid to find ways to fund the arts, and create arts programming. My job is my hobby, and my hobby is my job.
Get ready for AFWD 2016 can’t wait to see the tons of pictures posted that day. Make sure to like the AFWD Facebook page and support this totally nerdtastic event. Until next time Go Hard! Go Fast! Go Figure!