Last Call for The Toy Association’s 2021 Toy of the Year (TOTY) Awards Nominations

The clock is ticking to nominate toys, games, and properties for The Toy Association’s 2021 Toy of the Year (TOTY) Awards.

Companies, inventors, and other toy industry representatives must submit their nominations by midnight ET on Sept. 2. The finalists will be selected by a panel of industry experts and will be announced the week of Oct. 26.

Voting will open to members of the media, retailers, and Toy Association members through Jan. 5. Additionally, consumers will be able to vote for the People’s Choice Awards via toyawards.org. Winners will be revealed during the 2021 TOTY Awards ceremony alongside the annual inductions into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame.

This year’s winners were honored in February in a ceremony held at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in New York City. The big winners of the night were MGA Entertainment, which won the distinguished Toy of the Year for L.O.L. Surprise! for a third time, and Rainbocorns Ultimate Sequin Surprise Series 2 from ZURU, raking in the most votes for the People’s Choice Award.

Proceeds from the awards program and the gala event support the giving efforts of The Toy Foundation.

About the author

James Zahn

James Zahn, AKA The Rock Father, is Editor-in-Chief of The Toy Book, a Senior Editor at The Toy Insider and The Pop Insider, and Editor of The Toy Report, The Toy Book‘s weekly industry newsletter. As a pop culture and toy industry expert, Zahn has appeared as a panelist and guest at events including Comic-Con International: San Diego (SDCC) Wizard World Chicago, and the ASTRA Marketplace & Academy. Zahn has more than 30 years of experience in the entertainment, retail, and publishing industries, and is frequently called upon to offer expert commentary for publications such as Forbes, Marketwatch, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, Reuters, the Washington Post, and more. James has appeared on History Channel’s Modern Marvels, was interviewed by Larry King and Anderson Cooper, and has been seen on Yahoo! Finance, CNN, CNBC, FOX Business, NBC, ABC, CBS, WGN, The CW, and more. Zahn joined the Adventure Media & Events family in 2016, initially serving as a member of the Parent Advisory Board after penning articles for the Netflix Stream Team, Fandango Family, PBS KIDS, Sprout Parents (now Universal Kids), PopSugar, and Chicago Parent. He eventually joined the company full time as a Senior Editor and moved up the ranks to Deputy Editor and Editor-in-Chief.