UPI – A Texas man who has been collecting Sonic the Hedgehog memorabilia for 30 years earned a Guinness World Record when his cache of items was officially tallied at 3,050.
Barry Evans of Dayton said he bought a copy of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for Sega Genesis in 1992 – his first-ever video game purchase – and he’s been hooked on the character ever since.
“Sonic has been my passion for 30 years,” Evans told Guinness World Records.
Evans said the game was the first item in his collection, and the second was a Sonic-themed bubble gum container in 1993.
“Later I saw a poster and more toys, and I just started decorating my room with it,” he said.
Evans said some of the most treasured items in his collection are giant statues of Sonic and his sidekick, Tails, that were decorations at a Toys ‘R’ Us store for years.
He said his most unique item is a mold used to create plastic Sonic toys for British Burger King restaurants.
The most recent addition is a pair of Sonic and Tails plush walkie-talkies from Japan. He said the items cost him USD1,700.
“There is a lot of amazing Sonic the Hedgehog stuff that never sees the United States (US) shores. The Internet opened up the world for collectors,” he said. The collector said earning a Guinness World Record for his collection is validating.
“It was just incredible to have Guinness World Records give me vindication for my collection.
To have my collection recognised by Guinness World Records is a life-fulfilling event to me.”
