Atlantyca Entertainment will handle the licensing and merchandising for Fitz Roy Media's Funny Face property in Italy.

With a goal of capturing a whole new generation of fans, the company will seek partners across a wide variety of categories including publishing, music, toys and games, food and beverage, promotions, advertising, and home video.

The Funny Face characters were originally introduced via packets of a drink mix launched by Pillsbury in 1964 as a challenger to Kool-Aid. The character’s silly, smiling faces made them instantly popular with school age kids. Funny Face returned to the small screen in 2008 in a new series of animated interstitials produced by Renegade Animation/Brady Enterprises and distributed by Fitz Roy Media.

In other news, Fitz Roy Media named Brandzoo as the exclusive licensing agency to represent its entire portfolio in the UK. 

The three-year deal begins in March and includes Heathcliff, Secret Wings, Fido Dido and Funny Face, among others.

For the Secret Wings brand, Brandzoo’s initial efforts will focus on the apparel, novelty and gift, and back-to-school categories. For Fido Dido, the company will focus on direct to retail programs for t-shirts, hoodies, jeans and other related product categories along with promotional tie-ins with wireless carriers and Internet sites targeting teens and tweens.