Toy train:Thomas & Friends Trackmaster: Den

Appearing first in the late 1940s as one of many characters in a series of children's books about anthropomorphic railways trains and road vehicles, Thomas the Tank Engine grew into a major figure of mass media and popular culture. He is the central character of forty books, twelve seasons of a TV series, and feature-length films, in addition to the image on everything from bed covers, curtains, and clothes to spaghetti shapes-and, of course, toys.