Indiana Jones and the Search for the Lost Goldmine...In Just a few days we get to see part 4 of the Indiana Jones chronicles. Ir was nearly a 20 year wait. The fourth installment of the franchise was never going to take place. The only thing that saved it was the empty wallet of Harrison Ford and Steven Spielberg. Am I supposed to believe that the script got lost all these years? Was it buried in one of the wooden crates stored in the warehouse full of "The Ark of the Covenants"? Just like good pal George Lucas and his Star Wars movies, Spielberg thought this would be the perfect time to bring back Indiana Jones and take advantage of all the new special effects in Lucas Arts Industrial Light and Magic studios. George Lucas told us in 1980 that "Return of the Jedi" was the end of Star Wars and then all of a sudden, by some miracle, three scripts appeared out of thin air and these three films would be prequels to the original trilogy (as a sidenote, Lucas swore again that he was done milking the Star Wars franchise in 2004 yet, rumors are swirling that perhaps another trilogy will be made to take place after "Jedi" ends.) Likewise, Spielberg is toying with the idea of making prequels for "Indy". I guess these would fall in between "Young Indiana Jones" with the late River Phoenix and the "old Indy" that we see on the silver screen today. There's one tale however, that need not be written and turned into a movie...that is, "Indiana Jones and the Search for the Lost Goldmine. Even months before the movie was set to make a splash in theaters, all kinds of product tie-ins were selling like hotcakes. Not too bad for a movie version of Activision's Pitfall Harry, and not so bad for a 65 year old man running down hills and swinging from ropes on trees. Even without Indiana Jones in the picture, taking the kids to the Super Wal-Mart is an adventure by itself. Thank goodness for the product tie-ins with everything from ketchup to pop tarts and soda, Doritos, Oreo's, Ritz crackers, M&M's and more! Yes, these things are strategically placed in displays that line up perfect with a three year olds line of vision. You don't take the kids with you to the store? That's okay too. The kids will tell you all about what's out there on Saturday mornings during commercial breaks. The FCC created the "Safe Harbor" Law which is supposed to designate a time period during the day that children's programs are aired. The law also regulates what ads your kids are supposed to see. Product tie-ins to cartoons and so on are a big "no no". Really? ...Who fell asleep at the switch on this one? Anyway, this brings me close to the end. Junk food related to movies is one thing and TOYS are another thing. One of the most dangerous toys to hit the market in relation to this movie is the "Indiana Jones Whip" A few feet in length, your kid will have the thrill of a lifetime making the whip "snap" and hearing the sound effects along the way. Isn't this a great idea? Kids would NEVER use this toy as a weapon, would they? There's nothing like a nice crack of the whip across the face of a brother or sister. All is fun until someone loses an eye. If it hasn't happened already, someone will. You can blame this on Indiana too!
