WE LIKED THE BLUE KIND

Hasbro, makers of iconic modeling compound Play-Doh, is trying to boost sales this year by jumping on the Halloween bandwagon. The company is pushing both the Play-Doh Halloween Trick-or-Treat Bag and the Play-Doh Halloween Bowl. The former contains 20 one-ounce cans of black, orange, red, yellow, green and purple compound. The latter “is a festive orange color and is filled with 45 one-ounce cans.” The idea is apparently to give them away to trick-or-treaters instead of candy. One problem, as we see it through the misty recall of our youth: We used to EAT Play-Doh when Mom wasn’t looking. (It’s salty.) Didn’t anyone in Hasbro’s sales department ever remember doing this? That’s what happens when you decide not to seek the counsel of seasoned marketing veterans. Just wait for the news reports next week. Heh.