4/20/2016
By Ivan Pereira
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are coming out of the sewers to show off New York City’s best spots.
NYC & Company, the city’s tourism wing, announced Wednesday that the crime fighting reptiles will be this year’s family ambassadors. The sibling ninjas, Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo, will appear in ads throughout the city and locations across the globe that promote tourist locales such as the Staten Island Ferry.
“Known by visitors from around the world, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are the perfect guides to help families discover the vibrancy and excitement throughout the five boroughs,” NYC & Company CEO Fred Dixon said in a statement.
The characters debuted in a comic created by Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman in 1984 and became instant sensations spawning a hit cartoon, movies, video games and more.
A new video game launches in May and the franchise’s sixth movie, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows,” which filmed extensively in New York, premieres in June.
NYC & Company started the Family Ambassadors program in 2009 to promote events and locations for visitors of all ages. Other ambassadors included Dora the Explorer and the Smurfs.
