For Every Copy Sold, Fantoons Will Donate $1 to Venezuelan Charity Organizations; Aid for Aids/Healing Venezuela and Hogar Bambi
LOS ANGELES, CA– Musician Simón Díaz, known throughout Venezuela as “Tío Simón” remains a vital part of the country’s cultural legacy, and forever in the memory of all who knew his musical work. On October 15, Fantoons will celebrate his immense cultural impact with the release of a bilingual children’s book of Spanish and English words with a Venezuelan twist!
For every copy sold of the $12.99 book, the publisher will donate $1 to two different organizations providing help to Venezuelan children; Aid For Life/Healing Venezuela and Hogar Bambi.
Fantoons creative director, David Calcano will be joined by Simón’s daughter Bettsimar Díaz on Saturday October 19 for a special launch event at Imago Art in Action, located at 165 Majorca Avenue, Coral Gables, Florida at 11:30am.
In this beautiful book, Tío Simón—beloved Venezuelan folk musician and children’s TV personality—will teach you words of every letter in both English and Spanish! Children will be able to learn with Tío Simón about his home, Venezuela, as well as traditional food like Arepa! with a beautiful full-color illustration on every page that will spark joy in families of every kind.
Assembled by Fantoons’ David Calcano, the Venezuelan-born creative director, recognized for his work with Disney Channel, alongside projects in publishing and animation with Rush, Frank Zappa and Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys. Calcano, and his Fantoons team of illustrators and designers, assembled 60 beautifully illustrated pages inspired by images of Venezuela.
David Calcano says “It is humbling to represent the true spirit of Tío Simón by collaborating with organizations that are giving so much to the Venezuelan children in need. it is the least we can do as Venezuelans. It makes Bettsimar Díaz and I incredibly proud to actively share our culture through the eyes of Tío Simón and continue his legacy by helping kids in extreme poverty.”
Tío Simón ABC features a foreword about Tío Simón's (Simón Díaz) life and legacy written by his daughter Bettsimar Díaz, and will be released in finer bookstores everywhere on October 15. This beautiful and charming book is available for preorder now through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Indigo and will carry a cover price of $12.99.
For more info on the special October 19 launch event, visit the Imago Art in Action website.
Simón Díaz, a.k.a. Tío Simón,
has been a cultural fixture for Venezuelan and Latin culture worldwide since the 1960s. His children’s TV show, Contesta por Tío Simón, aired for a decade, and its messages and popularity earned him the unofficial title of “the Mr. Rogers of Venezuela.” His music has been covered more than 200 times in a dozen languages, and Díaz is a known influence on artists such as Julio Iglesias, Plácido Domingo, the famous Spanish director Pedro Almodovar and The Gipsy Kings. He was awarded a lifetime achievement Grammy from the Latin Grammys in 2008.
David Calcano
is the creative director of Fantoons, an animation studio based in Los Angeles. David was born in Caracas, Venezuela and has been watching cartoons ever since he was inside his mom’s belly. As an adult, he moved to the UK where he worked as a systems engineer until he dropped his career many years ago, to pursue his true dream: to build an animation studio, create cartoons and publish books that combine music and creative art. Calcano has worked with some of the best companies and artists around the world, including Disney, Rush, Frank Zappa, Steve Martin, Poison, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, Mr. Big, Universal Music, and Anthem, among many others!
AID FOR LIFE (AFL)
is a non-profit organization (AID FOR AIDS sister organization), founded in 2018, committed to generating social impact that enhances the lives of people at risk of social vulnerability in developing countries, implementing programs that increase their skills and abilities while providing access to essential survival products that allows them to strength their health and surroundings in their communities.
For the past two years, AID FOR LIFE has focused on the health crisis in Venezuela and has provided access to medicines to people in need as well as support to local civic organizations.
For more information and to purchase a Healing Venezuela t-shirt to support the cause, visit www.healingvenezuela.com .
Hogar Bambi Venezuela
was born in April 1992, at the initiative of a group of people sensitized by the situation of children in the country, led by Ms. Erika Spillmann de Pardo, who with the support of her father Dr. Rupert Spillmann, decide take action to help solve this problem.
Since then, we have managed to open four home homes in Caracas, created national and international alliances, and most importantly, cared for more than 150 children every year. For more information, visit http://hogarbambi.org/
Fantoons
is an animation studio & book publisher, comprised with artists who are passionate about music in every possible way. The studio creates books, animation, comics, pop-culture merch and alternative media inspired by the world’s greatest artists. Clients include Rush, Frank Zappa, Brian Wilson, Mr. Big, Motorhead, Steve Martin, Tom Keifer, Disney, TSN, Random House, Universal Music and many more.