September 5, 1986, Friday
 

NEW YORK, Sept. 5 /PRN/ -- One of the youngest attendees
at the glittery MTV Music Video Awards tonight will be six-year-old
Keri (Last name) from Seymour, Tenn.
She and her parents will be seated in New York's trendy
Palladium amidst music industry executives, celebrity presenters and
award nominees like Whitney Houston and Don Johnson. But Keri's
favorite rock star will be right beside her.
Phil Collins? No. Tina Turner? Not exactly. Rather, Keri's
companion for the evening will be her favorite doll JEM. JEM, a
fashion doll and star of the top-rated animated T.V. series for
girls which airs Sunday mornings has become the biggest heart throb
of millions of little girls like Keri. Like all the best heroes,
JEM has a dual identity: she's a music executive by day and rock
star by night. She's also got a social conscience; JEM's rock star
earnings go to support a home for homeless girls.
Keri won a Hasbro Toy-sponsored promotional sweepstakes whose
first prize was a trip to New York City to attend the MTV Awards.
Keri and more than 375,000 other girls and boys from all 50 states
entered the sweepstakes by calling a toll-free number and singing
the JEM theme song to a sophisticated answering system. Keri's
entry was selected at random. In addition to the other prizes, she
won a JEM outfit to wear to the awards broadcast.
JEM's influence and popularity among girls Keri's age is due, in
part, to the ripple effects of music video on fashion and music.
''Children today have a fascination with music videos because
they portray the world larger than life, often with magical
images,'' says Al Carosi, corporate vice president, marketing
services, Hasbro Inc. ''That's the same approach we took in
creating the world of JEM and its fantasy, fashion and
music-oriented playsets.''
Part of the story is that JEM's alter ego, Jerrica Benton, is a
record company executive and her boyfriend is the road manager for
JEM's group, the Holograms. A ''battle of the bands'' takes place
with another all-girl group, The Misfits, who are jealous of JEM and
her success and constantly make mischief.
Keri's day in New York City, which will be her first trip
outside her hometown area of Knoxville, Tenn., includes touring the
United Nations/Statue of Liberty/Empire State Building, shopping at
Macy's and F.A.O. Schwartz stores and lunch at Tavern-on-the-Green.
Keri's mother, Norma Jean  (Last name), was very supportive of Keri's
entry into the contest. 'Keri's just loves to pretend and sing, so
when she told me she wanted to sing the JEM song and try to win, I
told her to go right ahead. Toys that expand a child's imagination
and still provide good role models are toys that I want her to
have.''
JEM, her boyfriend Rio, The Holograms and The Misfits are all
trademark products of Hasbro Inc."