Ken Forsee's Teddy (?)

[late2theparty]

In looking through ebay I came across this listing offering what is purported to be Ken Forsee's Teddy Ruxpin, and am throwing it out here in the event anyone is interested and wants to investigate:

www.ebay.com/itm/MINT-Vintage-1984-1985-Worlds-of-Wonder-Ted-Teddy-Ruxpin-Animatronic-Bear-Bears-/162441661783?hash=item25d2470d57:g:S9sAAOSw2gxY1E-A

I look at this as a buyer beware situation as without some clear provenance there would be no way to prove that it was Mr. Forsee's personal Teddy.  The indication that this seller has a load of WoW stuff that is going to be listed seems to raise a red flag, as does the representation that he was co-creator of the Disney Haunted Mansion (which is accepted as fact) and It's a Small World (which seems at least questionable as that one was first created as the Pepsi Pavilion for the 1964 New York World's Fair.)  But the Teddy appears mint with all paperwork and if it can be conclusively shown to have been the Forsee personal Teddy it might be of interest to someone here.

[DollyPrince]

I saw this one. I do not understand why having belonged to the creator is of any extra value. Because this Teddy is no different from any other Teddy regardless. He is not a prototype or promotional model.. Not a pre-1st gen.. Just a regular WoW Teddy. He is not even signed.

I did not know Ken Forsee was involved in It's a Small World.. To me that also seems like a questionable "fact"

[lachlant1984]

Did any of you look at the items specifics?
Condition:
New: A brand-new, unused, unopened, undamaged item. See the seller's listing for full details.
Brand: Kenner
Character Family: Star Wars Empire strikes back esb rotj potf Type: Action Figure Collection
Year: 1970 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 Packaging: Original (Opened)
Gender: Boys & Girls
This eBay listing is contradiction after contradiction. Also, why must eBay sellers write stupidly long item headings? Why did they have to write
MINT-Vintage-1984-1985-Worlds-of-Wonder-Ted-Teddy-Ruxpin-Animatronic-Bear-Bears? Why not write something a bit shorter and more to the point? I can see the attraction to buying something that belonged to its original creator, but at the same time I wouldn't buy something with an eBay listing like this, the item specifics crack me up, they're not related to Teddy Ruxpin at all, this eBay listing is highly questionable to me.

[DollyPrince]

Yes, I saw that.. It is definitely very suspicious. I am thinking it is a scam.

eBay sellers write long titles so their item can be found easily from a variety of different search terms.

[late2theparty]

I posted this listing for what it's worth. And as indicated, I would not believe it without some very clear proof that it is what it purports to be. While it certainly appears to be a Teddy in really nice shape, a claim that it was Ken Forsee's Teddy is easy to make and likely very hard to prove. Ebay claims are always to be taken with a big dose of Buyer Beware.

[teddyruxpin24]

To me it just looks like a regular Teddy. I don't believe it was really Forsse's Teddy. However the fact that it's coming from Disneyland, California is interesting.

[DollyPrince]

Yes, and I think that is even more suspicious... How can it come from Disneyland..

[lachlant1984]

Mar 25, 2017 4:14:32 GMT -7 late2theparty said:

I posted this listing for what it's worth. And as indicated, I would not believe it without some very clear proof that it is what it purports to be. While it certainly appears to be a Teddy in really nice shape, a claim that it was Ken Forsee's Teddy is easy to make and likely very hard to prove. Ebay claims are always to be taken with a big dose of Buyer Beware.

I completely agree with you there, I wasn't trying to suggest that you were involved with the eBay listing or trying to suggest that you shouldn't have posted it.  The claims in this listing are highly inconsistent in places, they don't agree with each other and I expect the claim that this Teddy Ruxpin was owned by Ken Forsse is false.  If the claim happens to be true then that's amazing, but I highly doubt it, I would think that Jan Forsse would have dealt with her late husband's affairs appropriately.  I completely agree with you though, buyer beware.