‘Dynamite’ doll popularity baffles parents

CLEARWATER, Fla. – A Napoleon Dynamite Talking Doll that angrily tells you you’re a “Freakin’ Idiot” and “I wish you’d get out of my life and shut up” may be just the perfect gift to give a loved one.

The grumpy 8-inch tall talking toy is so popular that hundreds of thousands of fans are paying for the right to be insulted by it. It says 18 lines from the smash movie “Napoleon Dynamite,” in Napoleon’s own voice.

Lines like “Tina, you fat lard, come get some dinner!” or “Gross!” are two of the movie’s many catch-phrases that make fans howl with laughter. But most parents are mystified as to why their kids are so attracted to this sour character.

“I get calls every day from bewildered parents telling me their kids have each seen the movie five to 10 times,” said Jay Kamhi, the creator of the doll. “But when parents hear the doll say ‘But my lips hurt real bad,’ they don’t understand what the appeal is.” Kamhi said fans of the movie are paying as much as $200 for an autographed version of the ill-tempered movie hero on his Web site.

Famed American artist Paul Brooke, who also sculpted Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom figures for the upcoming “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie sequel, sculpted the Napoleon Dynamite Talking Doll for Kamhi World. Both Kamhi and Brooke are huge fans of the movie.

Wearing a T-shirt that says Vote for Pedro, some moon boots, and a Walkman headphone, this 8-inch talking doll is only too happy to tell you you’re an idiot. And fans love it.