Wallables History

Hot Buttered Elves Inc.
The Artists Behind the Wallables™

Wallables™ are designed by the whimsically-named corporation, Hot Buttered Elves, Inc. The Southern California-based company has over 12 years experience in creating special effects and sculpting for the film industry. While having worked on films ranging from Forever Young through Titanic, Hot Buttered Elves, Inc. continues to maintain their toy and character sculpting/prototyping services for many licensees of Disney, Warner Bros. and other licensed companies.

President Dan Garr was inspired to turn his artistic talents to the needs of young children after he discovered the healing benefits of creating a visually-stimulating 3-D environment for many children's hospitals in southern California through his fund raising programs.

Dan created the donor wall for St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica in association with the donations made available from Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver. Other projects include UCLA and Long Beach Memorial Medical Center. Dan Garr wrote the children's book, "Izzy the Bouncing Baby Elephant" for Miller's Hospital in Long Beach and 4 x 6 foot books were crafted and sculpted for the donor project. These books (6 in total) flow down the hallway, providing heart-warming reflection as parents await the arrival of their new-borns near the ICU.

While installing a 3-d environment of sculpted, full-sized animals into the Western Medical Center in Tustin, California, Dan was approached many times by parents who asked, "Can you make these for my child's room?"

The animals were carved out of wood in a bas-relief style where all of the features were raised to the touch. Children could touch them in the hallways as giraffes stretched around corners and elephants leaped into the sky in fear of mice. At this time, however, it was not efficient to make the individual pieces. It took 6 years of R & D and manufacturing to create the Wallables™ as they were first introduced.

Wallables™ were born from the desire to create products that parents and children can enjoy together. The addition of brightly illustrated board books coupled with the touch activated sound modules lays the platform for a very bonding experience. Dan and his wife are the proud parents of their new baby who provides their motivation for a world of Wallables to come!