‘Garfield’ slots face scrutiny

Tuesday, May 13, 2003 | 9:52 a.m.

A Las Vegas gaming supplier has acquired the exclusive licensing rights to the cartoon cat Garfield and plans to develop slot machines around the character.

Mikohn Gaming Corp. announced Monday that it had acquired the casino rights to Garfield and would develop games by the end of the year. Terms were not disclosed.

Bobby Siller of the state Gaming Control Board said today that he expects the Garfield theme to come under scrutiny because the cat character is attractive to children.

"I haven't seen the presentation, but this sounds like a case that Mikohn will have the burden of proof to convince the board that it is not a theme that targets children," Siller said. "The nature of Garfield is that he does appeal to kids."

While Nevada gaming regulators have been critical of slot themes that are attractive to people under 21, Olaf Vancura, vice president of games development for Mikohn, said the Garfield franchise is 25 years old and has wide appeal to adults.

"We're not developing games for tots," Vancura said. "We believe the Garfield demographic fits very well with our game's target demographic."

Mikohn acquired the license through Indiana-based Paws Inc., a 57-employee company Garfield creator Jim Davis formed in 1981 to handle merchandising the cartoon, which made its debut in 1978.