Happy World Water Day!
According to non-profit organization Save the Children, and United Nations-established in 1993, World Water Day is an occasion to recognize the crucial nature (pun somewhat intended) of clean H20 for folks globally.
This World Water Day 2025 seems like the perfect instance to introduce people to Rubber Ninja: a quirky superhero (of sorts) who dives right into challenges on land and in the sea. He is me — Vadim Govorov — with a few tweaks and a more exhaustive wardrobe of neoprene. I am a 25+ year veteran of professional oceanic escapades, including search, rescue, recovery, salvage, construction, and all-around damage control. My workplaces include near every briny deep on the planet. Soon . . . outer space!
Above is the cover of my illustrated, autobiographical tome. Please enjoy the next two pages, and expect regular installments until the story is told . . . or a worthy successor assumes the oxygen tank!
Thank you for reading thus far! To reward you for your time and attention, please enjoy an excerpt from this collaborative piece for GLOBAL TOY NEWS, originally published on March 19, 2025. To enjoy the entire Toy Fair 2025 tribute, visit GLOBAL TOY NEWS itself, and be alert for additional Rubber Ninja sightings while there!
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According to Rubber Ninja Vadim Govorov (and as told to Marlene Sharp), these are top of the top activations of New York Toy Fair 2025:
Number 5: It’s a tie!
b) 32-year Javits exhibit floor booth ‘to-do for Nerf Vortex Football, as attended by its inventor David Fuhrer.
In full transparency, Rubber Ninja is a folk hero, but not an omnipresent one. Govorov, a well-intentioned Fair-goer, did not traverse the aforementioned party paths. He did not witness these pop-ups up-close-and-personal, though up-close-and-personal events (i.e., a bit o’ family forces majeures) were responsible for his absences from Mary Couzin’s and David Fuhrer’s tres fabulous festivities, respectively)! He heard that they were ragers, though. Kudos to those folks who were there!
(Incidentally, Govorov was able to spend quality time with his teen son Henry who lives full-time in NYC. Success!)
Number 4: GennComm and Cray-Z-Art announcement — Just prior to Toy Fair, the two industry stalwarts signed on the dotted line to bring GennComm’s groundbreaking, patented memory foam to more plushies within the Cray-Z-Art stable. Govorov celebrated alongside GennComm’s Genna Rosenberg at a meet-and-greet.
Number 3: Spin Master soiree — A Canada-based Spin Master spinner spun her web — Charlotte-style — and landed admission for Vadim and Henry Govorov at the Sunday night HK Hall shindig. (Thank you, Sarah Serata, Carol Robinson, and Ben “Jimmy” Dermer!). The Vincent Imaoka (Paramount/Sega Toys) sighting was a particular bright spot for Rubber Ninja and Ninja, Jr.
Number 2: Hape (home of the Pixel Piano) and a new joint venture with The Met Museum — Govorov test drove the buzzworthy Hape Pixel Piano and met Hape Senior Marketing Manager Freddie Jordan and Swerve Strategic’s Despina Danishwar in the process. Rubber Ninja extended metaphorical fins of gratitude toward Swerve’s Mikayla Werner and Andrew Wagar for their parts in this play. He also applauded the new Metropolitan Museum x Hape partnership. The two entities announced a collaboration to transform early childhood learning through art-inspired infant and toddler toys (to be unveiled in late 2025). Congratulations to Hape founder Peter Handstein and the Met’s Head of Global Licensing and Partnerships Josh Romm!
Number 1!: GLOBAL TOY NEWS fancy get-together in honor of Richard Gottlieb’s legacy — Clearly, this business trip’s capstone was the Sunday night celebration of life for Richard Gottlieb. In memory of her late husband and in toy trade solidarity, Wendy Levey opened her gorgeous, sea shell-adorned Manhattan home to an industry who’s who, including co-host Steve Velte, co-host Christopher Byrne, Sharon Weisman, Jacqueline Vong, John Baulch, Amanda Gummer, Denis Crushell, Joe Burke, Glenn Bakie, and many others. Over food and drink, Rubber Ninja (and his plus-one progeny Henry) paid tribute to the great man who molded his clay toy-sculpting career and fired up his creativity for what’s to come.
P. S. Thanks to Rubber Ninja, Autism in Entertainment had a taste of Toy Fair 2025!
