LOS ANGELES - It was an event 40 years in the making, as Los Angeles became the mecca of all things Hello Kitty.
Thousands including Filipinos dressed up and came out to celebrate the birthday of one of the world's most famous third-grade girls -- Hello Kitty.
Hello Kitty marked her 40th year with a four-day convention drawing 25,000 from throughout the country to LA's Little Tokyo area.
"I'm a fan, die hard Hello Kitty fan. It's Halloween and the first annual Hello Kitty convention. Had to be here. It's historical," Meriam Reynosa, a resident of northern California, said.
Pinky Soriano of Los Angeles said she wanted to celebrate Hello Kitty's 40th anniversary.
From food trucks to toys to clothes to furniture, everything was Hello Kitty, right down to the kitchen sink, and for the die-hards, tattoos.
A Filipino Hello Kitty fan came from San Francisco with her mom to get one permanent souvenir.
"Hello Kitty is really special to me. My mom actually gave me my first Hello Kitty, I dunno. I was one year old or something and it's connected me with her. It's connected me with so many of my friends. She's a really good ice breaker. It's all about friendship. I couldn't help it," Kimiko De Pedro said.
Hello Kitty fans are not just school girls. A large number of men and older people were among the super fans.
For Kimiko's mom, the silent piano playing character keeps people forever young.
"There are all ages here. You'd be so surprised there's so many middle aged and older people here so they still are in love with Hello Kitty. She's such an icon," Teresa De Pedro said.
The convention paid homage to Kitty's beginnings, including the first product -- a coin purse that originally sold for a dollar in Japan.
Yuko Yamaguchi who has been Hello Kitty's head designer since 1980 talked about the famous cat's early days.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
