Teddy scares

A line of twisted teddy bears created by Applehead Factory in 2003. The bears are supposed to represent old teddy bears that have been abandoned by their owners and become warped and rotted over time. There are two "series" of bears, including a set of miniature versions called "morgue minis". There is an animated short produced by Dave School and also a series of graphic novels published by Ape Entertainment that depict the "after lives" of the bears.

Series One

;Rita Mortis"Filled with all this anger inside, I swing at what's in my way.":Rita Mortis is an angry white teddy bear with dark red eyes and wears a plaid jumper, wristbands and a pair of black boots. She has two facial piercings and three on each ear, as well as a tattoo of the Teddy Scares icon on her left upper arm. Rita was always known to stand out from the crowd. Her parents ignored her unruly behavior, thinking it was just a phase. Her death was a relief for those who could no longer deal with the troubled youth. Her family sighed, spit on her grave, and walked away. It was the most attention they had ever given her.The doll comes equipped with a bear-sized plastic baseball bat to smash things with. Rita is included in the second series of the Morgue Minis.

;Abnormal Cyrus"I've got my eye on you.":Abnormal Cyrus is a strange grey teddy bear with one green eye in the middle of his face, much like a cyclops monster. He wears a black and white striped shirt with olive green overalls.Cyrus was tormented as a child. He spent his days drawing pictures of people with no heads. Monday morning, his body was found hanging from his favorite tree. It was obvious that things would turn out this way. Always alone, rejected by society.The doll comes equipped with a plush eyeball that he carries with him everywhere. Cyrus was included in the first series of Morgue Minis.

;Redmond Gore"I have no identity, just my axe.":Redmond Gore is a homicidal black teddy bear with a brown burlap sack over his head and a blue blood stained jumpsuit, bearing a close resemblance to Jason Voorhees from Friday the 13th.Last week, Redmond's body was found lying near a dumpster with an axe by his side. No one is really sure how he died. Some say the cause of death was murder; murder of the mind. The doll comes equipped with a bear-sized plastic axe to hack something to pieces. Redmond was included in the first series of Morgue Minis.

;Hester Golem"I'm infested with slimy bugs that rummage through my body.":Hester Golem is a bizarre blue teddy bear missing an eye on the right side of his face and missing his flesh on the left, partially exposing his skull. He is dressed in a tattered dark green jacket and brown pants. There is a hole in his chest held together loosely with thread, which is full of rubber toy roaches. Hester was known to wander through abandoned houses. His remains were found at the bottom of a cardboard box with a worn edge. He leaves behind no family, but a lifetime full of nightmares.Hester is included in the second series of the Morgue Minis.

;Edwin Morose"You stole my heart, so I carry yours as a souvenir.":Edwin Morose is a depressed red teddy bear with white eyes. He is dressed in a grey sweater with a red broken heart design on the front of it.Edwin started his life as a love token. He served most his days on red satin sheets with the sweet smells of perfume and a daily hug from his beautiful owner. Then the day came when loyal Edwin was thrown into the trash. He cried himself asleep every night surrounded by the comfort of dried up roses, torn up memories and old love letters. He comes with a bouquet of bear sized wilted blue roses and a bag that contains his patched up broken heart. Edwin was included in the first series of Morgue Minis.

Series Two

;Eli Wretch:Eli Wretch is a wandering green teddy bear with a red goatee and sunglasses with a shattered lens. Eli was bought as a souvenir at a highway rest stop for a trucker’s son. He was a reminder of a father who was never around. When the trucker deserted his family, Eli was thrown to the curb as a painful reminder of a father who won’t be back. He wears a black trucker hat with a "Deadneck" logo on the front, a mud-stained wife beater, torn jeans and a belt with a large silver belt buckle. He has a tattoo of a woman's torso on his upper left arm that says below it R.I.P and comes equipped with a bear-sized tire iron to change the tires on his truck.

;Granger Evermore:Granger Evermore is a convicted grey teddy bear with a large scar over his right eye. He is dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit and has a ball and chain latched onto his right leg. Granger is a captive of his own evil deeds, the voices in his head constantly reminds him what he is. He tries to find redemption in himself, a task far out of reach. His body is his jail cell, trapped behind the steel bars and barbed wire of his mind. The doll is equipped with a bear-sized sledgehammer to smash his way out.

;Mazey Podge:Mazey Podge is a hideous rag doll teddy bear with a mismatched pair of eyes and a black ribbon in her pink hair. She is dressed in a black lace-up brassiere and a black frilled skirt with red and black dress shoes. Mazey was created from scraps of other soft and luxurious items. Over and over the seamstress repeated how magnificent her toy would be, “This will be the most beautiful bear!” When the last stitch of thread was sewn, she gasped with horror and died. Brainwashed by things her maker would say, Mazey now sits in a satin lined hatbox staring into her mirror for hours on end. She comes equipped with a shattered mirror to admire her warped beauty with.

;Mundy Drudge:Mundy Drudge is a dark green teddy bear wearing a grey sweatshirt and ripped jeans.Mundy’s body was discarded in the corner of a garage with various rusty tools and other junk forgotten about long ago. Horribly disfigured and soft no more, his face is harsh from bolts that hide away the horrors within.He has a metal tab bolted onto his face, half of which peels away to reveal the red "flesh" beneath.

;Sheldon Grogg:Sheldon Grogg is a dark blue teddy bear dressed in one-piece pyjamas complete with a cap. Sheldon has spent a lifetime of trudging through the darkness in the hopes of finding something more. Restless and groggy he roams past the bedrooms of sleeping children. He searches for his special resting spot, looking to find a companion to hold him tight and tell him he is loved. Loneliness is so tiring it can drive one insane. He has a permanently sleepy expression and carries a ragged blanket and a bottle of sleeping potion - relics of his chronic, lonely insomnia.

Morgue Minis

The Morgue Minis are miniature versions of the bears. Each bear comes in a vinyl body bag with a coroner's report on the back of the package. There are two series of minis, including special editions that were available for a limited time. Each Mourge Mini is 6 inches tall.

Animation

In June 2006, a team of animation students at Dave School produced a 3D animation that features the Teddy Scares characters (of the first series of bears). Some of the characters were voiced by well-known horror movie icons, such as Clive Barker providing Edwin Morose's voice and Rita Mortis being played by Linda Blair. The short can be viewed on the school's website, as well as the official site for the toys and currently on Youtube.

Graphic Novel

The first volume of the Teddy Scares comic book series was released April 13th of 2007 (notably on Friday the 13th). There are currently three volumes that are published by an independent publisher called Ape Entertainment.

Official Site

[http://www.teddyscares.com Teddy Scares Official Webpage]

References