Dec. 9, 2003 - Brad Pitt has one, Marilyn Monroe has one and Arnold Schwarzenegger has one. So it's only fitting that Nintendo's MarioTM, the No. 1 video game star in history, should join those notable figures today with his own wax statue.

It's easy to see how he fits in with this crowd of superstars: Mario has starred in 67 video games that have sold more than 170 million units, a big reason why the video game industry today brings in more revenue than the motion picture box office. The Hollywood honor comes during a time when Mario has four new games available for the Nintendo GameCubeTM and Game Boy® Advance systems.

"With four new Mario games in stores right before the holidays, this truly is the 'Season of Mario,' " says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president for marketing and corporate communications. "Mario's induction into the Hollywood Wax Museum further establishes his importance as a pop-culture icon."

The statue now resides at the Hollywood Wax Museum at 6767 Hollywood Blvd. in Hollywood, Calif. Mario, the first-ever video game icon honored with a wax figure at the museum, replaces statues of Matrix actors Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss in the museum's lobby, even while the final installment of their trilogy remains in theaters.

The Hollywood Wax Museum opened in 1965 and showcases figures of 180 stars like Tom Hanks, Cher and Michael Jordan. Now fans will be able to visit their favorite video game star, who himself was overcome with the excitement of the day. "My fans always said that no one could hold a candle to me," Mario said. "Now they'd better not!"

Despite his wax figure honor, Mario will not rest on his past success as he offers fans four new games. For Nintendo GameCube, Mario stars in Mario Kart®: Double Dash!!TM, the hottest game for the holidays, which already has sold more than half a million units, and Mario Party® 5 with more than 60 new mini-games to attract fans of all ages.

For Game Boy Advance, Mario appears in Super Mario® Advance 4: Super Mario Bros.® 3, the hand-held version of the best-selling video game of all time. He also teams with his brother, Luigi, for a wisecracking adventure in Mario & LuigiTM: Superstar Saga.

The worldwide leader and innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its popular home and portable video game systems. Each year, hundreds of all-new titles for the best-selling Game Boy® Advance and Nintendo GameCubeTM systems extend Nintendo's vast game library and continue the tradition of delivering a rich, diverse mix of quality video games for players of all ages. Since the release of its first home video game system in 1983, Nintendo has sold more than 1.8 billion video games globally, creating enduring industry icons such as MarioTM and Donkey Kong® and launching popular culture franchise phenomena such as MetroidTM, ZeldaTM and Pokemon®. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere.

For more information about Nintendo, visit the company's Web site at www.nintendo.com. For more information about the Hollywood Wax Museum, contact Tej Sundher at 323-462-5991, ext. 11.

Posted: December 9, 2003