In anticipation of the January 14, 2011 release of Sony Pictures’ action film, The Green Hornet, starring Seth Rogen, Rubie’s Costume Co., Inc. has obtained a license to create products ranging from deluxe costumes of Green Hornet and Kato to hats, gloves, masks, and other costumes.

In The Green Hornet, Britt Reid (Seth Rogen) is the son of LA’s most prominent and respected media magnate and perfectly happy to  maintain a directionless existence on the party scene—until his father (Tom Wilkinson) mysteriously dies, leaving Britt his vast media empire. Striking an unlikely friendship with one of his father’s more industrious and inventive employees, Kato (Jay Chou), they see their chance to do something meaningful for the first time in their lives: fight crime. To get close to the criminals, they come up with the perfect cover: they’ll pose as criminals themselves. Protecting the law by breaking it, Britt becomes the vigilante The Green Hornet as he and Kato hit the streets.

Watch the trailer here.

Forum Novelties, Inc., a division of Rubie’s Costume Company, has been awarded the “2009 Vendor of the Year” Award for Best Category Development given by Spirit Halloween, a division of Spencer Gifts, in recognition of Forum’s creativity and extraordinary service.

Forum Novelties, Inc. has become a leader in the Halloween industry, as well as the joke, trick, magic, and novelty gift item business. Over the past 30 years, Forum’s product line has evolved to meet customer needs and consumer buying trends.  Forum Novelties is a manufacturer, importer, and distributor of more than 8,000 items, and only sells to the retail and wholesale trades.

Warner Bros. Consumer Products (WBCP) has renewed its global partnership with Rubie’s Costume Co. for an extensive library of properties including DC Comics Super Heroes, the Harry Potter franchise, Looney Tunes, The Lord of the Rings, and Hanna-Barbera characters including Scooby-Doo.  Since 1999, Rubies has held the worldwide rights to an array of Warner Bros.’ properties, allowing fans worldwide to become a part of their favorite films and series.

In addition to WBCP renewing the license for Rubie’s global business in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australia/New Zealand, and Asia, Warner Bros. also continues Rubie’s license agreement for The Wizard of Oz, Gone With The Wind, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, Beetlejuice, and Corpse Bride in North America and around the world.

Rubie’s Costume Company has been granted the license for Lady Gaga, licensed by Bravado International Group. Pop star and musician Lady Gaga is known for her wild collection of outfits. Her signature style includes wigs of all length and styles and her unique couture costumes.

Rubie’s is now the worldwide licensee of Lady Gaga Halloween costumes and accessories. The costumes will be available for Halloween 2010.

Two cartoons we remember fondly from childhood are My Little Pony and Alice in Wonderland (the Disney cartoon movie). Each of these properties has grown and changed since then, and while the properties seem to get more awesome as they get older, we just get older.

The Entertainment & Licensing Division of Hasbro recently signed a deal with Church & Dwight to bring My Little Pony Orajel Fluoride Free toothpaste to market. The My Little Pony toothpaste will be available in drug and grocery stores at the end of this month.

My Little Pony toothpaste joins the other Hasbro branded health and beauty aids at retail including, Johnson & Johnson Transformers and Littlest Pet Shop Band-Aids.

In other news, New Alice costumes will hit stores this Halloween, when Disguise debuts new Halloween wear based on Alice, The Mad Hatter, and the Red Queen from Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. The Alice Movie Poster Deluxe will include a dress with petticoat and glovettes; The Mad Hatter Prestige will come with a faux shirtfront, jacket, bow, pants, and hat with attached hair; and the Red Queen Deluxe will include a dress, petticoat, crown, and collar.

Have you seen Tim Burton’s Alice film yet? What’s the verdict? Just in case you’ve been living on another planet and haven’t seen the trailer yet, check it out now.

We’re happy to announce that our newest publication, The Halloween Insider, is live on our website. Click here to see the hottest costumes, accessories, and games for the 2010 Halloween season!

Also, Rubie’s Costume Co. has been honored by BuySeasons with its 2009 Vendor of the Year and Children’s Costume of the Year awards. Rubie’s was in such a celebratory mood at the Halloween Expo in Houston that its annual Halloween Bash lasted more than four hours, when it was supposed to run for only two. Great memories for all, and in case anyone *can’t* quite remember everything from the party, don’t be surprised to see a photo of yourself with Elvis or Marilyn Monroe, who were snapping pics with partygoers all night.

So we just finished a Halloween magazine, and in originally mocking up the issue we found this picture in a random Google Images search. It would be difficult for us to describe how much we love it, so you can just use your imagination. But it’s a lot. If anyone knows who the manufacturer of these beauties are (the costumes, that is), they’ll get a special place in a future issue of The Licensing Book.

In other costume news, we got a release yesterday from Rasta Imposta’s Gary Schneider, with whom we spoke for the Halloween issue, and he was ecstatic that one of the company’s costumes had been featured on American Idol… and on a successful contestant, no less.

He wrote: “Holly Harden of Rockmart, GA showed up for the Atlanta round of American Idol auditions wearing the GLAM ROCK GUITAR Red Costume. Noting that she ‘can’t play the guitar, but she can be the guitar’ Holly performed for the four American Idol judges, and after noting her fashion sense, the judges put her through to the next round of performances in Hollywood.”

Good news for Rasta Imposta, and great news for Holly Harden, to whom we wish luck owing to our twin fondnesses for Schneider and all things Atlanta, which pops up as relentlessly in our lives as bad singers do on Idol.