I'm Hungry for Your Blood

Illustration of a green vampire in a purple robe with purple bat wings on a black background with yellow stars, a moon, orange text, and an illustration of a purple vampire bat.  

“I’m hungry for your blood” is a play on the famous quote “I want to suck your blood,” commonly misattributed to the 1931 Dracula film starring Bela Lugosi. The quote actually comes from 1994’s Ed Wood, a film about the science-fiction and horror director by the same name. The movie is largely about Wood and his relationship with actor Bela Lugosi. In one scene, a character who’s impersonating Lugosi's version of Dracula puts on a thick accent and says the iconic line. 

Company founder Russ Berrie started his eponymous business with $500 in a rented garage in Palisades Park, New Jersey. Berrie intended to design, market, and distribute “impulse” gift items. From the start, Russ Berrie & Company produced a string of hit products that quickly found their way onto countertops, desks and dashboards across the country. Among the company’s earliest creations: Fuzzy Wuzzies (tiny fur ball-like critters bearing messages like “You’re My Best Friend” or “Wild Thing”), troll dolls (squat gnomes with plumes of brightly colored hair) and the Bupkis Family (a motley collection of endearingly ugly rubber figurines). The owner believed in the power of “transformational giving,” partnering with energetic, visionary leaders to change the world for the better. He took an entrepreneurial approach to philanthropy, using his keen interpersonal skills to identify people and causes in which to invest and working closely with partners to hone strategies and set expectations.  “There is nothing more important in life than helping a fellow human being.” — Russell Berrie (1933-2002)